BOE member replies

For years TUF has opened its pages an offered to allow members of the BOE or Council to contribute to our site and comment on our articles. To be honest we've been asking so long with out a positive response that we have become lazy about offering. This is the first time any official has taken us up on it. While Ms. Mettler was one of those that voted to hire Mr. Bonanno we appreciate her acknowledging our concerns. We hope other Township officials will use TUF as a sounding board.


Dear TUF

This is in response to your Good News, Bad News article. I agree with your recommendation that the BOE, in hiring a prior Board Member as an employee, should have given more thought and sensitivity to the feelings of the citizens as well as Mr. Bonanno. It was a unique situation for Mr. Bonanno as well. He was inactive on the Board for over 15 months. He is a citizen with equal rights and I might add he is the best fit for the position. His employment was in accordance with NJSBA Laws and Policies. However, the issue is not why Mr. Bonnano was approved along with others on the walk-in addendum to the agenda. The issue is that this matter could have been handled and presented with grace and with an appropriate report to the people who were unaware of the procedure.

I thank the public for making me aware of their concerns. It was clearly an oversight. I did not realize how much of an impact this matter was to have on public's perception. In the future such matters will be given additional diligence via a summary report, provided to inform the public of the actions being taken. Thank you.

Aruna Mettler
BOE Member

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