We have probably lost track how many times we've said "You really can't make this stuff up." But - "You really, really, really can't make this stuff up."
In what adds a new twist to da big story of da year in Manalapan, Land-Grab-Gate now takes a new and potentially ironic twist as da New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection announced they've launched an investigation into environmental issues within Land-Grab-Gate!
Da absolutely shocking news comes from da very real and factual Asbury Park Press newspaper from factual and actual and extremely non-biased reporter Alesha Williams-Boyd. It appears da investigation by da DEP centers on wetlands, and if a huge 5,000 square foot area of wetlands was illegally filled in - in violation of DEP rules!
And - it gets worse.
It is being alleged that wetlands land on A-B-L's 7-figure taxpayer-funded property was filled in with debris, an obvious violation of da DEP rules!
And - it gets even worse.
Apparently da DEP "served an address for Diamond Developers a notice of violation in January. Lucas said he and his family bought the property and Diamond Developers at Burke Farm, the limited liability company that owned it, in March 2010." So they didn't go to his palatial estate. They instead went to da developer's office he is an owner of - da same developer that was a part of da sale of da Burke Farm to him - that he owns!
And - it gets even still worse.
Apparently da State Agriculture Development Committee which OK'd spending $1.15 million dollars of taxpayer money for da Manalapan Mayor knew about da wetlands on da land but had NO CLUE as to da DEP investigation! Would they have approved spending all that taxpayer $$$$$$$ for land under DEP investigation? Why did they not know? Who if anyone dropped da ball here????
And - yes, it gets even worse.
You have da Asbury Park Press writing a stern, direct and very blunt editorial on Land-Grab-Gate, not only backing up daTruthSquad in demanding answers, but even going a step further and saying he should abdicate his throne! They wrote "Taxpayers should know how much Lucas paid and see what kind of deal he got. Lucas should have pulled back the application until he is out of office. He didn’t. The township should have asked him to reapply when his career in township politics has ended. It didn’t. Now it is up to the county and the state to halt these proceedings, at least until Lucas leaves office."
And - yes, it can get even worse.
You have to remember that da GOP'er dominated and A-B-L-led Manalapan Township Committee as well as da GOP'er dominated Monmouth County Freeloaders also approved da deal for Manalapan Mayor A-B-L. Did they know that da DEP was in investigation mode and finding trouble on taxpayer-funded A-B-L Acres!?! Does it give da impression that this was fast-tracked for some reason? If that was da case, could da investigation have been da reason? Really - why da rush and fast-track?
And - before you ask - can it truly get worse?
Da next step for this plan to get its next GOP'er seal of approval comes from da Monmouth County Agricultural Advisory Commission - da very same commission that lists it is represented from Manalapan by Democrat-turned GOP'er Don Holland! Told you you can't make this stuff up.
And - yes, oh you know...
F-O-A-B-L (Friends of A-B-L Mayor Andy Boy Lucas) have patted him on da back for going da green thing and preserving land - even though da taxpayers of Manalapan and da state are in effect paying him to do it. We may be wrong on this, but illegally filling in wetlands doesn't sound as valiant and honorable as one might think.
Now, here's da most important aspect of all of this - Who's to blame?
Did A-B-L take da blame for debris illegally filling in a wetlands site? Gee, we wonder who is to blame?
That answer came from da comments left on da Asbury Park Press story site - and from da Asbury Park Press editorial board! What gives all da appearance of an A-B-L supporter actually posted that they believed Manalapan Township Committeewoman Queen Michelle was da one who turned A-B-L in "tramping through this farm in the middle of the night with a flashlight, just looking for something to bust Lucas's chops with."
Even da editors of da newspaper are stymied, writing "Lucas says he is a victim of partisan politics and is some kind of “green” knight trying to save his town from developers. Really? He and his family own the land. They can prevent it from being developed simply by holding onto it. That way, the money spent to preserve that property could be used to acquire another parcel or be banked until a property in greater jeopardy of being developed became eligible for the program."
Interesting, but when all else fails, and you're facing ethical issues, why is it that every GOP'er immediately points their finger and says "Da Queen Made Me Do It!" It's not like da Manalapan Deputy Mayor, when cornered after it was uncovered that he gave approval for a paid-job for his own sister when he claimed he didn't recognize her name, even though he shares da same last name, it was da Queen who was also blamed for that too using da old "gotcha-politics" line.
So, even Manalapan's GOP'er Deputy Mayor can't screw up without blaming da Queen for it!
This leads us to what else da Manalapan GOP'ers will try to blame da Queen for. Imagine for fun purposes if you will a clandestine meeting in a farm pasture next to a filled-in wetlands. Da group of A-B-L supporters are all huddled together and trying to brainstorm more reasons in their classic "Deflect and Accuse" mode that da Queen is at blame for other things in order to deflect da blame away from A-B-L's Land-Grab & Illegally Fill Wetlands-Gate.
One A-B-L Apologist says "Hey I got one. Let's photoshop a picture of da Queen on da grassy knoll in Dallas on that fateful day in 1963. We'll get some other A-B-L apologist to go on da record she was there."
Another A-B-L Apologist says "I got one. Let's say that police were wrong and it wasn't "Rosenberg" it was Roth" who was involved in da Lindbergh Baby kidnapping."
Another mentally-unstable A-B-L Apologist says "Why don't we say that she made a mistake on da Dreyer property and despite a court order she should be sued for legal malpractice, even though she's not a lawyer. We can sue her and drag her name through da mud for 25 months, and then just withdraw da case because we have absolutely no evidence whatsoever." We can even spend "over $100,000" on a law case instead of paying a $10,500 cleanup. At that point that apologist is reminded they did that once before, and that didn't turn out too good either.
An A-B-L Apologist has another idea "We don't even have proof da Queen was born in this country. Let's pass a resolution to force her to producer her Certificate of Live Birth. We can claim she was born in a hut in Kenya next to Barack Obama. We can call it da "Manalapan Birthers."
Then, a leading A-B-L Apologist comes up with another idea "Why don't we do what we normally do. We'll blame da Queen for everything, and when people start to realize da truth, we'll blame Da Mosked Man. What's he going to do, sue us? If that doesn't work, we'll just blame bloggers. It's not like we didn't do that before."
Let's admit something here. Like or dislike da Queen, it is pretty off da wall to believe she was trudging on private property wearing a black cocktail dress with high heels covered in a trench coat and carrying a flashlight in one hand and bug spray in da other muttering to herself, "There's got to be something illegal here. Maybe I'll click my heels 3 times and I'll find something." Did she click her heels and all of a sudden wetlands on da property mysteriously and illegally filled in? Confiscate her cellphone - does she have da DEP on speed dial?
DaTruth is, you can blame da Queen for a lot of things, but we believe it's safe to say she's not da smoking gun here. Maybe instead of blaming a Queen or a blogger, maybe it would be best that some questions are answered. In fact, we have a few that deserve answers - and so does da Asbury Park Press newspaper:
QUESTION 1: HOW WAS THIS PROPERTY FLIPPED IN ABOUT 8 DAYS AS SOME CLAIM?
QUESTION 2: WHAT DID MANALAPAN MAYOR A-B-L ACTUALLY PAY FOR DA PROPERTY?
QUESTION 3: WHY IS IT "NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS" AS AN A-B-L APOLOGIST IMPLIES?
QUESTION 4: HOW DID DA WETLANDS GET FILLED IN - WHO DID IT - AND WHY?
QUESTION 5: HOW THIS GET SO FAR WITH SO MANY GOP'ER LED APPROVALS WITH A DEP INVESTIGATION HANGING OVER IT?
QUESTION 6: HOW CAN TAXPAYERS ACTUALLY BE FOOTING DA BILL SO A SITTING MAYOR CAN GET $1.15 MILLION FROM TAXPAYERS TO PAY FOR LAND?
QUESTION 7: TWO WORDS - DIAMOND DEVELOPERS. WHO OWNS THEM? WHAT WAS THEIR INVOLVEMENT IN DA SALE OF DA LAND?
QUESTION 8: WHY DOES DA SELLER NOT WANT TO REVEAL DA SALE PRICE AND POST THAT SALE PRICE - LIKE EVERY OTHER SELLER OF LAND MUST?
We can come up with even more questions, but we think you get da point here. Too many questions - NO ANSWERS! So far there's silence from da A-B-L camp. Mayor A-B-L refuses to divulge da sale price of da land. WHY? How could all of da approvals have happened with a DEP investigation hanging over it?
DaTruth is, an investigation by da DEP should just be Step 1. What is now needed is an investigation by Federal authorities to see if there was any wrongdoing in da bidding process, and in da approval process where more than one governing body, led by GOP'ers, all approved thus far spending over $1 million in taxpayer money so a sitting GOP'er mayor could buy land that has more question marks on it that da Riddler's uniform on da Batman series!
We have stated before that it is quite probable that no laws were broken here, but from an ethical standpoint and a transparent standpoint this is bad government at its very worst. If Mayor A-B-L truly wants da land, as da Asbury Park Press stated so well, then "Lucas should have pulled back the application until he is out of office. He didn’t. The township should have asked him to reapply when his career in township politics has ended. It didn’t. Now it is up to the county and the state to halt these proceedings, at least until Lucas leaves office."
We demand that Manalapan Mayor Andy Boy A-B-L come clean. He needs to stop hiding it and tell taxpayers how much he paid for that property! And, due to da possible actions of other committees, it's time that ALL members of da Manalapan Township Committee explain on da record what they know - and what they were not told. Contact da county investigators and da state authorities. It's time to come clean about Land-Grab-Gate, it's time to stop blaming others, and it's time for daTruth to be told.
With all this in mind, it's also and very ironically da end of da month, and we must bestow a BaconHead Award for da month of May ---- so --- without further delay --- For finding new and improved ways of making Manalapan a political laughingstock --- for dragging Manalapan through da debris-filled wetlands --- for trying to get your farmer/developer hands on a cool million dollars of taxpayer money by simply filling out da proper forms --- for allowing "Land-Grab-Gate" to be an albatross to hang around da necks of Manalapan & Monmouth Freeloader GOP'er candidates this election year --- for having committee fiends in high places that approve forms --- and for allowing Manalapan to become da Newark of politics --- da TruthTellers have spoken and you, Mayor Andy Boy A-B-L - get a new "Land-Grab" BaconHead for your trophy case!
And, that's daTruth.
160 comments:
Is it a criminal investigation? If so the offending party should step down till at least the investagation is finished.
it's about time.
How sweet!!!! What goes around comes around.
Now get that tub of s--t McHenrey next.
Thank God someone is going to get that crook!
THANK YOU SQUADDO!!!!!!!!!!
Is this Michelle Roth's revenge?
I agree. it's time Andy steps down and becomes a farmer or developer or whatever he is. His time as a career politician is over.
I wonder which Andy loyalist will be the first to turn state's evidence?
Susan Cohen is on record saying give Lucas the money.
I'm waiting to see who flinches first and demands Andy resign. This is worse than when they sued Moskovitz. It's time that someone investigate the politics in this town. If taxpayer money has to be spent on something, let it be an investigation into Town Hall.
There's nothing like having "fiends" in high office!
Can we start a recall campaign? How?
"Farmer/Developer"?
This guy is the consummate politician. All that's missing is him twirling his mustache as he steals milk money from kids to line his own pockets.
Holy effing crap Boss Hog Lucus? lol
It's good to see the APP aggressively looking into this. The media has always been the watchdog for the people by the people against this sort of political scummyness. Where's the Snoozer on this story? Anyone who believes the news snoozer is anything more than a second rate coupon clipping lawn littering pile of garbage is a fool. Where's Bozo Bean stand on this issue? Thank You APP and Truth Squad!
"none of your business."
Donald will choke on those words for the rest of his pathetic political career.
His name is Andrew but I call him Dick!
Don Holland has been, still is and will always be a joke. The man is as simple as simple gets. He makes Forest Gump look like a genius!
Don Hollind looks like the 80 year old version of Forest Gump! lol There is no fool like and old fool. People always kind of thought Don Holland wasn't to bright, now Don confirmed it himself.
Found this on the NJ.com website. Very well written comment that I agree with. ABL is a mayor who claims to be a farmer. He is NOT a developer and should not get millions in taxpayer money to farm winter wheat. Read this:
5178. Gripes Of Roth....
by hightail, 05/29/11 8:40 PM
In Friday's Asbury Park Press, there was a letter from Manalapan Councilwoman Michelle Roth criticizing the acceptance of Mayor Lucas's recent land "purchase" into the N.J. Farm Preservation Program. There was also an earlier negative feature editorial in the same paper on this subject as well as a current negative report on this topic in the usually Republican oriented daTruthSquad website. In this case, Mrs. Roth is entirely right in her opposition as it is widely believed by many Township residents, both Democrats and Republicans, that this purchase requires an immediate investigation by unbiased outside government agencies. Mayor Lucas is not in the home development business and it appears that he allegedly used his political office to obtain advance assurance that he would be getting this 85 acres paid for with our taxpayer dollars.
Here's my opinion.
GUILTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm not one to ask for an investigation just to ask for one. Too many times they are partisan and a waste of taxpayer money. However, in this case, there's an exception.
You have a sitting mayor who has IMHO used his political position to cash in. If he weren't in office, thats one thing. But he is and he obviously IMHO manipulated the process.
He was in on meetings by his own admission. Thos meetings determined which piece of land would be chosen.
The county agreement for this was IMHO also manipulated by his friend and fellow Republican Don Holland.
I believe the cvounty and township should immediately halt this process and not continue until a Federal investigation were to clear any wrongdoing. If Mayor Lucas is above board, he should be the one demanding this to clear his own name - that is unless he has something to hide.
LETS NOT FORGET THIS SLIMY POLITICIAN IS THE SAME GUY WHO ALSO MADE HIS OWN CAMPAIGN MANAGER AND PARTY BOSS A SEWER COMMISSIONER AT TAXPAYER EXPENSE!
JUST ANOTHER REASON HE SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED.
JUST ANOTHER REASON MANALAPAN IS A POLITICAL LAUGHINGSTOCK.
The Feds have to investigate possible criminal conspiracy charges against Lucus and Holland and every other Republican involved in this alledged shady deal. These people if convicted should do real time.
Does Don Holland's wife know what's going on?
As a Republican who resides in Tinton Falls, I know ABL and many other of my fellow Republicans in Manalapan.
With that said, I'm extremely concerned about these allegations. Unfortunately in this case, I don't believe this was just one person trying to make a quick buck. Too many others may have had their hand in this taxpayer funded cookie jar. I agree - an investigation isn't just warranted. It's now something that is mandatory and must happen, because without it and without them cleared of wrongdoing, this could hurt other Republicans in other towns, including mine.
This is why we NEED Seth on the Manalapan Township Committee.
Vote Michelle & Seth!
A-B-L needs to go to J-A-I-L N-O-W I-M-H-O!
This much is clear: If there was ever a question about Lucas having integrity and courage, the fact that he hid himself behind Don "Mind-Your-Own-Business" Holland is proof-positive that Lucas lacks both. You KNOW that
Lucas would have preferred to throw Maskowitz or Green to the wolves, because they have more substance than Holland, but they must have told Lucas to fight his own dirty battle, so instead he turned to his fellow "farmer" turncoat for help.
Investigators should question Don Holland's wife to see what she knows or overheard. She's smarter than Don and will tell the truth rather than get caught up in a possible conspiracy charge.
Last Spring, Mayor Lucas boasted to a Colts Neck custom farmer that was previously farming this land for the prior owner that this land was now "his" as "the State had bought it for him" and the custom farmer was no longer welcome. The initials of this farmer are S.S. and I'm sure his name is listed on the Manalapan Farm Assessment forms for prior years. This makes Don Holland's claim that he only approached Lucas much later after the alleged purchase to enter the Farm Preservation Program highly suspect.
After reading this, and the newspaper account in the Asbury Park Press, it seems to me that Don Hollands hands are deep into this. I have to question what he knows, and if he did anything that helped this get through that may not be above board.
Question - Did Don Holland know about the DEP investigation?
Did Don Holland know about the wetlands highly illegal abuse issue?
Did Don Holland know what he was getting into?
Did Don Holland research anything about this land before he gave his 100% approval and backing to it?
Don Holland has some serious explaining to do.
It's starting to sound like ABL put one over on Don Holland. Will Holland have the integrity to tell the truth when he is questioned by the investigators into this obvious taxpayer funded land grab?
Here's my question.
Since this land issue involves ABL and apparently now Committeeman Holland and potentially other Republicans, will taxpayers also have to pay for their lawyers during this investigation?
Since this was his personal purchase this should come from his own pockets - and that includes Holland too.
Here is something else that should be investigated regarding violations on this property. Shortly after Lucas bought it, he had a next door excavation contractor remove a large number of mature trees and proceeded to have them burned in large piles. The removal of the trees may be legit under the Right to Farm Laws but the burn requires a permit from the Manalapan Township Construction Department. The question is whether Lucas ever obtained such a permit...and if so, in whose name?
Never thought I'd say this, but I'm glad the Da Queen of Mean is still in office, at least someones there who isn't in ABL's pocket.
One thing you can tell is who has who in who's pockets in Manalapan. Where is the News Transcript on this story? Why is the Asbury Park Press and the Truth Squad the big sources for this latest gaffe by ABL? Even Manalapan Patch is reporting on this! And as for who appears to be in ABL's pocket, when is Don Holland going to come clean?
Cream rises to the top, slimey politicians cling to the bottom.
We all know which describes Andy Lucas. As for his new henchman Don Holland, that's embarassing and sad. He used to be his own man.
When Michelle Roth comes out as the ethical person here, you know something illegal has happened.
"Investigators should question Don Holland's wife to see what she knows or overheard. She's smarter than Don and will tell the truth rather than get caught up in a possible conspiracy charge."
This is a very good point. Holland IMHO must know something he is not saying in public. I hope his hands are clean because he was at one time a good person. Its a shame he's involved in this mess in any way.
I know Don Holland and his wife. He's an unselfish, dedicated and wonderful human being who I'm sure did nothing wrong. If he did, I firmly believe he was unaware of anything wrong or he was duped. It's not in Don's nature to do anything for wrongful gain or to do anything illegal. Please remember this. Don is a good person. Don and Wanda are good people who would help anyone.
I'm waiting for the Amy Mallet and Michelle Roth press conference to demand a state investigation into what ABL Lucas and Don Holland's activities in this case. It's time for ABL and his crony to come clean and tell the truth.
Why are Maskowitz and Cohen going along with all this? Weren't they supposed to be the ones with principles?
We can all figure out what happened to the Hollands, based on past postings here. We can all spell h-i-s-t-o-r-i-c-a-l l-a-n-d-m-a-r-k and what it means to avoid being designated as such, what with all the restrictions that brings.
To add fuel to this fire, there may be even more DEP violations on this property. It appears that a huge quantity of asphalt millings were placed in wet areas to provide access into this property. Allegedly, the asphalt millings were provided by Manalapan Public Works at no charge. The request for same should be a matter of public record.t
A previous comment stated that it may not be a violation to remove trees under the Right to Farm Act. This may, or may not, be true depending on whether the area was designated wetlands. More importantly, however, is that this property at the time of tree removal was on record as an approved residential subdivision that has definite restrictions on wetland disturbances.
I hate to say it but must, from what I've seen and heard of Don Holland he's stupid. ABL could have duped this dummy. I hope Don can get out of this mess.
I don't blame Don. He IS a nice guy and always tries to do the right thing. Anybody who knows him will tell you that. Unfortunately people like this can often be duped by evil, and in this case ABL. I didn't buy into investigating this further, but now I do.
It's sad to see Jordan and Susan be made to look like tools on this. They are good people. Unfortunately now I cannot support Susan if she cannot stand up and tell the truth about ABL's land deal.
Do not be too surprised if there are more investigations by the DEP and others into ABL's taxpayer funded land grab. Too many Republicans had their hands in this to make it happen. Seems very much like political payback to me.
I feel so bad for Don and Wanda Holland about this. I think Don somehow will wind up being the fall guy here. ABL always looks for someone he can pin blame on, and in this case its most likely Don. If the Feds do get involved this could really be bad for him.
If you make your bed with the devil you still live in hell!
BTW, I got my Snoozer on my wet lawn this morning, and much to my surprise not even one mention about ABL and his land grab. Could somebody be in the Republicans pockets? Or maybe their afraid of actually printing real news that people are talking about?
It sounds to me like this is just more defamation by Michelle and her bobbsy twins Fred and Larry. Some people never learn.
yeah, yer right. i always surpected that that stoner guy wuz the one riting the crap here on datrueskwad, even wen daskwad waz sayin that stoner wuz a bad goy.
Interesting now how the ABL apologists mention Roth and Stone and others when they realize they got their hands caught in the cookie jar. You can blame Roth if you want, but in this case she's not the one demanding taxpayers spend millions while ABL reaps rewards and the DEP finds wrongdoing on his property. Manalapan Republicans = CORRUPTION!
@"Or maybe their afraid of actually printing real news that people are talking about?"
They are running one to three weeks behind on the Mount Laurel apartments on Wood Avenue.
Too bad for Don Holland. His great legacy is now forever tarnished by ABL. He made his bed.
great legacy? is that some game on pogo.com he was good at? maybe it's the name of his pet dog that got dirty with mud out in the rain? this is a man whose greatness is based strictly on excelling at being the dumbest guy in the room.
What the Manalapan Republicans need is for some high-quality, above-reproach, top-draw citizens like Butch Budai and Stu Moskovitz to come back and clean up the party!
We could have had Joey D but we got stuck with this clueless farmer Don the clueless farmer Holland. ugh
Where is that Johnson dude? Haven't seen him in a while. Is he supporting Lucas, too?
The question we all want answered is whether there are more brains inDon Holland's head or in Anthony's Weiner.
Interesting how its all Republicans who support Lucas in his taxpayer-funded land grab? Corrupt Birds of a Feather????
Question - How can you be a Republican who says they are fiscally conservative and want to cut taxes when you will add to the tax burden by taking over $1 million in taxpayer money to buy land for yourself?
One word -- C-O-R-R-U-P-T!
No doubt in my mind now. Manalapan Mayor Andrew Lucas and the Monmouth Agricultural Board should be investigated by the feds. There is no way "Joe Citizen" would get a deal like this.
FYI - Do you know who happens to sit on the Monmouth County Agriculture Board? Does the name Don “none of you business” Holland ring a bell? In effect, he switched parties and guided this land grab right into the pockets of his new party boss, Mayor ABL.
I can't say this enough - this need to be investigated by the US Attorney’s office. Questions are not being answered and they need to be answered. Taxpayers are buying land for a sitting mayor and we have no say in this at all.
While Christie is flying in state helicopters to see baseball games, Manalapan Mayor ABL is ripping off taxpayers under the guise of being a concerned farmer. This farmer owns a development company that sold him the land and now he wants taxpayers to pay for it.
Taxpayers are going to pay over $127,000 per house not to build on Andy Acres. As Mayor of the town he would have had influence over decisions regarding the development. The whole deal is more suspicious than any I can remember in the last 30 years. It absolutely demands further investigation. Anything less is even more criminal than what is happening here now.
Can't wait to see my taxes go up so ABL can rip off taxpayers.
Both Manalapan Mayor Lucas who refuses to answer questions of how much he paid for this and Committeeman Don Holland both need to be investigated for how they handled themselves in this. Holland should resign his position for guiding this through the county like a seeing eye dog.
Is anybody really surprised here. This is the same Repoublican leadership that has turned a blind eye to Carton making money, to foolish spending at Brookdale, and now Republican Mayor Lucas decides to pad his own pockets. Politics as usual if you are a Republican in Monmouth County, the Newark of Republican politics.
Lets not stop at Brookdale. What about the governor taking trips to his son's baseball games utilizing the state police helicopter? What about the pension fraud at the Monmouth County Sheriff's Department where former sheriff Kim Guadagno utilized fraud and deception to get a high-ranking sheriff's officer a job and be able to collect a pension at the same time?? This is outright criminal!!
The sad part is all of the Republicans in the area are refusing to call it for what it is:WRONG!!! That goes for Sue Cohen, Jennifer Beck, Caroline Casagrande, O'scanlon and all of the other hypocrites in the area.
I'm ashamed and embarrassed to call my self a Republican
At $127,000 per house, and at a taxpayer expense of an average of $15,000 per child per house, if each house just had 2 1/2 kids, this would pay for itself just in three years of school savings, let alone all of the other services that won't have to be provided. Sounds like the taxpayers got a far better deal here than with the Democrat's TARP payments, that's for sure. And they are certainly getting a better deal than what they're paying for Roth's salary and health care.
You can stomp your feet and shake your heads all you want, it won't change a thing. The Mayor is in power and he's one of the Governor's boys, end of story.
Don't hold your breath waiting for an investigation. Don Holland saw which way the wind was shifting and jumped ship to the Republican Party, he's now part of the club that finds these kind of stunts acceptable. I hope Mayor Lucas at least has the decency to thank the taxpayers for buying him a new farm and the new house that will be built on it. Only in New Jersey, ya gotta love it.
Above poster states a hypothetical example of 2.5 kids per house in Manalapan. Why then did the Manalapan Committee and Planning Board some years back accept an "expert's" opinion for the current Meadow Creek development of .75 kids per household? I often wonder what the true figure is in Manalapan and how badly the taxpayers are getting ripped off by these farm preservation programs where they are allegedly saving residents money by paying huge amounts of taxpayer dollars for residential development rights.
It's not what you know, it's who you know. Lucas knows the players and can profit off that knowledge. The bad news for Holland is if there was wrongdoing, Lucas left him holding the bag. Cost of friendship.
I hope taxpayers remember this in November. Vote against Don Holland for making the land grab happen. Vote against Susan Cohen for her silence. Remind Republicans they can't take our taxpayer money and pad their wallots.
Christie uses a taxpayer funded state helicopter to go see his kid's baseball game. Lucas uses taxpayer money to buy himself a million dollar property that he will make money off of. Should we expect anything less from Republicans?
You have to admit - they know how to milk the system to their advantage and get rich off it.
It's time for the decent, honorable Republicans to speak out! Let's hear from Butch Budai, Bruce Brickman, Steve Johnson, Stu Moskovitz. And how about Dotty and Joey? Their silence is deafening.
This land deal stinks to high heaven. Does anyone know whether Lucas was publicly involved in the approval process to have this land originally subdivided into 9 building lots prior to him purchasing it with taxpayer monies? This matter should be thoroughly investigated and, if so, he should be stripped of this approval and public office and left to rot in hell!
I'm struggling to pay my mortgage and taxes while our mayor gets a million $$ in tax dollars to buy a himself a farm and a new house ? Kick me in the a$$, I should have been a farmer or a politician in manalapan.
"Their silence is deafening"
Well, maybe that's because with Fred and Larry posting twenty-four hours a day, they can't get a word in edgewise.
Or, maybe it's because they know what everyone else knows. Andrew didn't do anything wrong. The State has said so, the County has said so, the Agriculture Board has said so, DEP has said so. Everyone has said so. Of course, the truth has never gotten in the way of a good Larry and Fred rant, has it? When election time comes, they're hoping this bogus story takes Michelle's lawsuits out of the headlines. I'll bet it doesn't.
Michelle has made nearly $200,000 in health care, pension and salary from the taxpayers. In return, the taxpayers have gotten nothing but aggravation, embarrassment and hundreds of thousands of dollars in litigation expense.
Andrew has made nothing off the property. He had to buy the property and is being paid for the development rights - the bulk of the value of any farmland. In return, the taxpayers avoid hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses for school children, police, and other services that the nine houses would have required -- assuming the land wasn't converted to low income housing which would have caused nearly a million dollars in expenses to the taxpayers.
That's why the public is going to see right through this nonsense of a story.
stu should get fined for jaywalking. he's on both sides of the street at the same time.
"Andrew didn't do anything wrong."
The jury is still out on that.
"The State has said so"
Really, where is your proof on that?
"the County has said so"
You mean the Republican-dominated and Republican-operated county Republican party?
"the Agriculture Board has said so"
Right, the Republican-dominated board led by Lucas lackey Don Holland.
"DEP has said so"
If that is the case, then why did the DEP launch an investigation and Andy ABL fix what they were investigating if he did nothing wrong? And, their investigation is far from closed.
"Everyone has said so."
Are you talking about ABL apologists McEnery, Holland, Cohen, Maskowitz, Green and whoever else does what they are told to do? This blog, the Asbury Park Press and even the League don't necessarily agree, but then again they are not on the GOP payroll nor do they drink ABL's Kool Aid.
Too many Republicans involved. Lucas is going to get away with this land grab. I rarely agree with Roth on anything, but this time she's right.
"stu should get fined for jaywalking. he's on both sides of the street at the same time"
It's hard to tell whether we should just laugh at Fred or truly feel sorry for him. He is so obsessed with Stu that even though Stu hasn't said one word on EITHER side of this story, there's Fred saying he's on both sides. LOL. Wow. Fred really, really needs to get help. What a sad commentary on his life that it is so filled with hate and venom for someone who has nothing to do with him. Pathetic. He must have lost a poker game or something to Stu to be so obsessed with him.
Could someone explain to me why Stu is saying that Larry and Fred are posting here? I notice that both of them have gone on record publicly with their opinions on this subject over on the Hate Site.
The Manalapan Hate Website is still around? I thought the owner was trying to sell that. I guess no bidders. No surprise.
Send a message, Vote for Michelle and Seth for Manalapan Township Committee. Show your support for the two only people in the Manalapan election who will work "For All The People" and not to line their own pockets!
@"the two only people in the Manalapan election who will work "For All The People" and not to line their own pockets!"
What in the world do you think Roth has been doing for the last 10 years? Her insane court cases alone have cost me thousands in taxes.
And just what has her running mate ever done for me or my community? The silence is deafening. What has he proposed or thought? Again, the silence is deafening.
Out of these four candidates, not one has shown themselves to be interested in anything but themselves. Maybe it is time to learn how to do write-ins on the new machines or, more simply, how to write in on the mail-in ballots.
Please no more lawyers. Let's have a recall vote for our mayor. Is it too late to get the recall issue on the November ballot? Every penny of profit he makes on this shady deal should be given back to the Manalapan taxpayers. This is arrogant corruption at it's woerst.
@"Please no more lawyers"
Since when have Lucas, Holland, Roth, Cohen and Maskowitz become lawyers?
Seriously, do you think this is Andy's only miscue? Remember, he was for the Village before he was against it. He was enemies with the Roths before he was their friend only to turn his back on them. He was friends with his running mate Joe before he was against him. He was friends with Stu before he turned his back on him. He was a buddy to Steve Johnson before tossing him under the bus. He was a friend of Susan Cohen before becoming an enemy and now a friend again. He was an enemy of George Spodak before becoming his friend only to turn on him again. What of Tara Lovrich? Members of the Manalapan Republican Club? Even Steve McEnery?
And there are others. See a pattern here. What have you done for me lately? And what happens when you're not needed anymore?
TIP OF THE ICEBERG.
Four words - MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING!
Too bad this isn't his election this year. It's a shame that a great person like Susan Cohen and Don Holland will have to fight their battle for ABL as this will surely be an issue. I don't see this going away. In fact, if this gets further investigated, I suspect it could get worse for all involved, and that now unfortunately includes Don. I can't believe he got caught up in this.
Hey Don Holland. Having any regrets?
Hey Susan. Having second thoughts about returning to ABL's taxpayer funded good graces?
Hey Jordan. Does everything ABL has told you add up? Are you sure?
Hey Green? Have you ever been lied to?
Here's my question: Who will be the first to realize they've been lied to and come forward and tell the truth?
Here's another question: Who will lie under oath?
@"Who will lie under oath?"
The whole bunch of scoundrels has already lied and violated their oath of office, as well as the pledge they take at the start of every committee meeting.
And the voters wonder why their taxes soar out of sight!
What level of education did Don Holland complete? 5th grade? Don should stick to planting corn, reminds me of the scarecrow in the wizard of oz. What did Don's wife Wanda know and when did she know it?
I saw this on NJ.com. Excellent solution.
5188. "Landgrab" Solution..
by midground, 06/06/11 6:50 PM
I am suggesting a solution for this land purchase fiasco that could be a win-win situation for everyone. First, and most importantly, the taxpayers would be satisfied that they are getting a fair return for their money. Secondly, Mayor Lucas could be a political hero locally, statewide, and even nationally...virtually guaranteeing his future political success. Very simply allow the State to approve the purchase with taxpayer money with the stipulation that Mayor Lucas will donate the property back to Manalapan Township with the condition that he will be able to farm it in the future at no charge. Additionally, he could be reimbursed for any lost out-of-pocket expenses involved in the initial purchase and have the right to claim a tax deduction for the farm preservation monies as a charitable contribution. I would be interested in what others, especially holeymackaral, think of this idea.
Four words: PLEASE INVESTIGATE MAYOR LUCAS!
I would personally like to know Don Holland's position in this. Obviously IMHO he aided and abetted here. He was on the county committee that approved this, so he must have had some pull there. Is he getting anything out of this? It's obvious that while what ABL is doing may or may not be illegal, it seems to me that ethical boundaries have been crossed. If you can't trust your mayor and town hall, how can you expect good government?
I think that considering this oblog has over 100 comments, there's something more to this story than just some guy getting a lot of money for some land.
I think this warrants an investigation. Depose all of the key players and every member of the Manalapan Township Committee. The truth needs to be told.
Think about this:
1. ABL is in on the process to choose the land and even votes on it - before he is told by Roth that what he is doing is either wrong or illegal and only after the fact recuses himself.
2. ABL is the same guy who installs his own campaign manager and party boss as a sewer authority commissioner eligible for getting a salary and benefits. Is this political payback?
3. ABL was for the Village and even takes a limo ride to Trenton with the then-developer before he was against it.
4. ABL led the charge to sue Moskovitz over the Dreyer property, spending in his own words "over $100,000" in taxpayer money for a $10,500 cleanup.
It's time to seriously investigate this town.
@"I would personally like to know Don Holland's position in this"
He has clearly made it known that it's none of yer damn business. And that goes for the purchase price of the land, too, despite its having to be recorded by the county in public documents.
I have been told that this preliminary approval from the state of New Jersey also contains a "residual dwelling site opportunity" which means that a residential building is permitted on the subject premises. If so, this means Mr. Lucas has the right to build a home for himself on this 95 acre property. Who knows...if he is receiving more money from the state than he is purchasing the property for he may have enough left to build himself a new home for nothing. Unbelievable, but true!
Why is ABL not telling the taxpayer what he paid for the property?
Please someone help me understand why ABL would go to such lengths to keep this a hush hush secret?
Hope clueless Don Holland doesn't wind up in big trouble for this.
"Very simply allow the State to approve the purchase with taxpayer money with the stipulation that Mayor Lucas will donate the property back to Manalapan Township with the condition that he will be able to farm it in the future at no charge."
Are you nuts? What is the difference between Lucas owning the land or the township owning the land...Lucas won't even have to pay the little farmland taxes! That would be the ultimate score for this loser. He gets my tax dollars to buy the land and will pay no taxes on it.
Hey Michelle Roth (or Larry..we know you monitor this site)
Even your unknown running mate got more votes than you!
Four words: THIS GUY IS GUILTY!
Nice showing by Seth P. in the Manalapan Township primary vote. Out of any of the people running, I think this guy would make a fine and upstanding addition to the Manalapan Township Committee.
"Hope clueless Don Holland doesn't wind up in big trouble for this."
Somehow I think ABL will let this guy twist in the wind over this. Somebody needs to be the fall guy.
The advantage to have the Township own the land is that they could use it for recreational purposes or other public uses at their will. If they choose not to...let Lucas have the right of first refusal to farm it. Also, Lucas would not be obtaining ownership of a home site and other valuable ground for free...an unethical boondoggle that is tainting the Town's reputation and credibility.
Somehow I think if Governor Christie tried to pull this fast one, then the entire state would be calling for a Federal investigation. As a resident of Linden, I can say first hand our politics here is pretty low. You guys in Manalapan make us seem like we're 1000% free of corruption. Who's your mayor, Sharpe James?
Four words: VERY, VERY, VERY GUILTY!
@"Who's your mayor, Sharpe James?"
Nah. Ken Gibson's offspring, from the Princeton side of the family.
As a democrat, I'll be voting for this guy Seth and one of the Republicans. That lets us get rid of that loser Roth and put her husband out to pasture in the process without giving the Republicans 5-0
besides racism, lies, false innuendo and scurrilous rumor-mongering, could you spell out again the great benefits of anonymous bloggeng?
Just what the town needs, more sports fields.
Why give Lucas first refusal to farm it? Why not bid for the farming rights?
I do not want my taxes to pay for Lucas to get land or more sports fields. Fix the damn taxes! Stop playing games with the budget. Boot Lucas out of office! Hell, boot em all out and start new!!
The Federalist papers were anonymous. They sparked our freedom.
Remember when talking about Lucas corruption. If it smells like a crooked deal, walks like a crooked deal, smells like a crooked deal, waddles like a crooked deal...it is a crooked deal. Get all the damn attorneys you want to say it is ok for Lucas to get this land with a million tax dollars. If a regular citizen couldn't get the deal it is a corrupt deal.
I want to know if Lucas was approached by a developer to get their land reclassified as farm land and what Lucas told them. I mean he could have said, "I have the mind numb robots to make the vote happen if you sell it to me." Is that how the conversation went Mr. Lucas? Did you mention to the developer they could get the farmland preservation money and lower taxes and keep their property to sell when the market comes back? Lot's of potential corruption with Lucas and his friends. Send in the feds! Start the investigation, now!!
95 acres, a manipulated process and the taxpayers will pay millions for it?
Is it too late for me to move to Manalapan and run for mayor?
I wonder if Larry will ever realize that despite his 116 posts here, far fewer people care about Lucas preserving farmland than care about the fact that his wife, Michelle Roth, is the only member of the Township Committee getting both a full salary and health benefits at taxpayer expense, for which the taxpayers don't even get preserved land. They get nothing in exchange for what Michelle is pocketing.
A recent blogger made a new and interesting observation in regards to this land scam. There was a large For Sale on this property approved for 8 building lots for a number of years and no developer purchased it. Simultaneously the real estate market for new building lots was going down the tubes as large developers were dumping lots and canceling land deals everywhere. Suppose Diamond Developers was caught in a financial squeeze and urgently needed to dump this property. They inquire about Farmland Preservation and find out they would be years down the list on properties to be considered. So along comes this public official with all the "right" contacts, the property goes to the top of the list, and both parties personally benefit at taxpayer expense. This scenario is entirely possible and should be investigated.
"Ulysses Morgan" complained about anonymity here all the while using it. Such a brilliant figure should clearly lead the way for the rest of us dolts by posting his/her real name.
I read here that the mayor either refuses or will simply just not release how much he paid for the land in question.
Obviously IMHO he is hiding something if he refuses to say what he paid. If this were just a simple transaction between himself and another party then this would be a non-starter. However, since the taxpayers are paying for this, then people have the 100% right to know.
Time to come clean.
No reason to read the local Snoozepaper anymore. They haven't even written about this. I'm sure their apologists will try to say there's no news here.
If it smells like an agenda...
Can the township be sued to divulge the cost of the property?
The last honest poitician in Manalapan was Stu Moskovitz. They should invwestigate the township committee people who rezoned to permit the over development. You won't find colors, just shades of black and white.
i guess the APP HAS NO CLUE THAT THERE'S NO STORY HERE. NT CLEARLY THE ONLY LEGIT NEWS SOURCE IN ALL MONMOUTH.
I suspect the reason that the purchase price is not being revealed is that this alleged purchase is a taxable transaction that by law should have been timely and accurately reported to the Internal Revenue Service. If if was not, it is a violation of Federal law and all involved parties are subject to penalty and imprisonment. A federal investigation should be requested...especially since it involves an elected public official.
I am disappointed that Stu Moscovitz has not spoken out publicly on this land grab. In my opinion, he is the only one with enough expertise and guts to get this matter investigated by higher authorities. Hopefully, he is not in "bed" with Lucas, also.o
Anybody else at Manalapan Day on Saturday? It was another great day and kudos go to the Heritage Committee for anothe fine event. It did seem like it was a little out of hand at one point. Lot of kids there for that boys group.
I think at th next TC meeting each member of the committee should be asked straight what they know about this land grab and how much was paid for it. If anybody refuses to answer, then Tara should demand a state investigation. If Tara remains silent too, then she does not deserve to be paid six figures for hiding information from taxpayers IMHO.
And if the Transcript refuses to provide the news to Manalapan, like the Asbury Press DOES provide in this very important news story that everybody's talking about then why do they get to deliver newspapers here?
Four words: CRIMINAL, CRIMINAL, CRIMINAL, CRIMINAL!
"I am disappointed that Stu Moscovitz has not spoken out publicly on this land grab. In my opinion, he is the only one with enough expertise and guts to get this matter investigated by higher authorities. Hopefully, he is not in "bed" with Lucas, also."
And yet Fred has said that Stu has spoken out on both sides of the issue. So he has spoken out on both sides of the issue while remaining completely silent about it.Hmm. This guy's good.
Investigation Please! This shouldn't even be up for debate, a standing Mayor buys land, disclose how much he paid to ensure everything is proper!
Disclose now Lucus! What do you have to hide? Forget about asking Dimbulb Don Holland, he shouldn't be takem seriously anyway. Can farm pesticide exposure effect decisions? It appears it might have.
Speaking of Dimbulb Holland as he's now being referred to what did his wife Wanda overhear about this alledged shady land grab by an elected Mayor.
What did Wanda Holland overhear and when did overhear it?
Question,
What happens if Mayor Lucus did do something wrong pertaining to this suspected tax payer funded rip off of land and duped Don Holland?
Can Don Holland wind up in Jail?
Can his defense be I'm not that bright and I was duped?
Can it be that criminals years from now will be using the Dimbulb Don Holland defense of being duped? lol
IMHO I think Don Holland didn't bargain for all of this. The question should be what does he do if and when he catches ABL in a lie, and if that lie is in any way connected to this land deal. He's been a good soldier for ABL, but that's so far. I feel worse for Wanda. She's a tremendously good person who does not deserve to have to deal with ABL's antics. I hope for Don's sake he didn't sign anything that could come back to haunt him or Wanda.
"i guess the APP HAS NO CLUE THAT THERE'S NO STORY HERE. NT CLEARLY THE ONLY LEGIT NEWS SOURCE IN ALL MONMOUTH"
If by "Legit" you mean closing your eyes to what is actually happening, then you're right. I wonder how the NT will respond if the FBI investigates? Will their headline be "FBI comes to Manalapan and accidently parks at Town Hall?"
Four words: PLEASE INVESTIGATE MAYOR LUCAS!
@Will their headline be "FBI comes to Manalapan and accidently parks at Town Hall?"
Well, there aren't that many other public restrooms in that area.
Interesting, I checked out the HATE website and they have the same 4 people who probably made all of 5 comments in the past 7 days. Last week the NT had like 3 or 4 letters to the editor. Then you look at the APP abou their story of Mayor Lucas and his land grab and there are over 20 comments. Then you look at this blog and there's over 140 comments. I guess that really shows where people get their information from. Kudos to the Squad.
Four Words: WHAT DOES HOLLAND KNOW?
I'm starting to believe if the Manalapan Republicans fall in 2011, it will be because Don Holland dragged the ticket down. He's too aligned with Lucas and his taxpayer-funded land grab.
Congratulations to the News Transcript. This is the third week that you have IGNORED MANALAPAN by not reporting or discussing Land Grab Gate by Mayor Lucas, unlike real news outlets like the Asbury Park Press, Manalapan Patch and this blog.
Since you are IGNORING MANALAPAN, I for one will now IGNORE THE NEWS TRANSCRIPT. I'm sure your advertisers will appreciate that.
Off-the-record: Mark Rosman says he'd love to cober it, but Greater Media told him HANDS OFF LUCAS.
Once the DEP pointed out that everything was taken care of, there simply was no story. It's just another property put into land preservation. Big Deal. Don Holland reviewed it on the ag board just like he reviewed every other piece of property over the years. Big Deal. The APP and the Patch are NOT covering it any more because it is not a story. Only two people in Manalapan are obsessed with it. The same two paranoid obsessive clowns who everyone learned to ignore long ago. The same two paranoid obsessive clowns who are the reason no one, I mean NO ONE reads the hate site any more.
The story is corruption! DEP has been in the pocket of certain Republicans for three decades.
you got 150 comments here, but itS DA HATE SQUAD that's pushing this??
If the story is corruption, maybe we should be talking about the artificial field instead. After all, Michelle is running this year, not Andrew. Did you think we forgot about the ugly facts behind the field?
There is no corruption in Manalapan and God didn't make little green apples and it don't rain in Indianapolis in the summertime and there's no such thing as Doctor Seuss
Or Disneyland, and Mother Goose is no nursery rhyme and it don't snow in Minneapolis when the winter comes and there's no such thing as make-believe, Puppy dogs, autumn leaves 'n' BB guns
I don't bother reading the News Transcript anymore. When it gets delivered I just put it in the trash. I like Manalapan Patch. They do a good job and are very informative and unlike the Transcript really cover Manalapan. Welcome to the digital age.
Mets lose on a walk-off balk. Michelle Roth's fault.
Where the HATE site go?
Kudos to Mayor George Spodak for seizing the moment and doing what other former mayors should have already done - tell the truth about the Land Grab. Nice to have you back Mayor Spodak!
Who needs the Transcript anymore. We have Manalapan Patch. Just saw the video posted on the June meeting. These guys are great. Call me a FORMER News Transcript reader.
If the state doesn't investigate Lucas's land grab, then they all might as well vote themselves 40 acres and a mule because nobody will care anymore. Manalapan is becoming worse than Newark and Camden when it comes to politicians lining their pockets IMHO.
As I have stated before I am more than happy to talk to anyone, Democrat, Independent, Republican one on one or in any forum you chose so that you get to know me better. All I can ask is the chance to do so.
regards
Seth P.
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