Slate of four discuss issues facing Sayreville Redevelopment, 'partisanship' among topics debated - Michael Acker Daniel Buchanan SAYREVILLE - With two Borough Council seats up for grabs in the Nov. 6 election, Democrats are looking to continue their recent successes at the polls, and Republicans are trying to regain representation on the council. Democratic incumbent Daniel Buchanan, seeking his second term, is running with former Board of Education member Alvah M. Cox. They face two Republican newcomers in David Kaiserman and Paula Siarkiewicz for the threeyear terms. The contest also features a mayoral election, with Republican incumbent Kennedy O'Brien being challenged by Democrat Thomas Pollando, who is currently the council president. Buchanan said the all-Democrat council is bringing a sense of community back to Sayreville through the implementation of various programs. He cited the dog park at the Capik Nature Preserve as something that has brought residents together. "We are developing new programs for everyone, not just for sports-inclined people," he said. "Bus trips, movies in the park, [and] fitness over 50 are activities for people of all ages and backgrounds." Alvah M. Cox Open space is also a high priority for the Democrats, he said. "We want to be proactive and aggressive to make sure that open space is being preserved and no more housing is being developed," Buchanan said. Buchanan criticized O'Brien on the redevelopment of the former National Lead site, saying the mayor failed to establish a good relationship with National Lead Industries, which is responsible for cleaning up the property. He said the Sayreville Economic Redevelopment Agency (SERA) has had more success since the Democrats refused to reappoint O'Brien to the agency last year. "The NL site is looking very positive," Buchanan said. "SERA, in the next few weeks, will pick a developer." "The bullying relationship of the mayor didn't work," he added. Kaiserman said he will vote according to what he believes is right for the borough, even if a given proposal comes from a Democrat. He said he does not believe the Democrats have extended the same bipartisan courtesy to O'Brien. Paula Siarkiewicz "The mayor has made a lot of proposals and made a lot of suggestions, but just because of party politics, they purposely block, and what they are doing is hurting [residents]," Kaiserman said. Cox said he does not feel that party politics is getting in the way of progress in Sayreville. "I would disagree with that," Cox said of Kaiserman's comment. "It's finger-pointing. I think it's them not having the ability to latch on to something to show they've done over the year." Siarkiewicz rebutted, saying that the council, due to partisanship, ignores the mayor's suggestions. "Mr. Cox's statement is a little ridiculous, since they haven't listened to anything the mayor asked them to listen to," Siarkiewicz said. "They have their own agenda of what they feel is important." Siarkiewicz, a former teachers' union president, has four children with her husband, Robert. She is formerly a paraprofessional and president of the Middlesex County Educational Services Commission, a 350-member New Jersey Education Association union. She now works in the finance Center, Edison. David Kaiserman "I think I bring a unique perspective," Siarkiewicz said. "I'm a mother, I'm a taxpayer." Siarkiewicz volunteers for the Middlesex County Association for Retarded Citizens, and was a Daisy troop leader with the Girl Scouts and a soccer coach in the Sayreville Athletic Association. Siarkiewicz said she has been actively working to find answers for residents who live near a steel mill and have complained of black dust material accumulating on their properties. She said the residents need answers, since the results of a recent round of tests funded by the steel mill were inconclusive. "They are inconclusive because there are no standards for outside air with the things they found," Siarkiewicz said. "It's just weird. It's frustrating." Siarkiewicz said she will vote in a nonpartisan manner if elected to the council. "Now, everybody votes the same way," Siarkiewicz said. "It doesn't seem to me like anybody is using their own minds. I will be an individual and listen to everybody's questions." Kaiserman cited the Democrats' refusal to reappoint O'Brien to SERA as an example of partisanship. He said O'Brien was not at fault when LNR Northeastern Investments withdrew from the National Lead project last year after failing to reach an agreement with National Lead Industries. "A lot of the National Lead problems were simple legal tie-ups that nobody, Republican or Democrat, can control," Kaiserman said. Kaiserman, 29, has been an emergency medical service (EMS) volunteer for 10 years and has served the borough's squad for the past three years. He earned a Master of Business Administration degree from Rutgers University and teaches at Matawan Regional High School. Originally from Holmdel, Kaiserman has lived in the borough with his wife, Melanie, 27, for the past three and a half years. "I truly want to run, because I want the people, the homeowners and my neighbors to be represented, and at this point, I don't feel that they are." Kaiserman said he responded to problems in his own community, Sheffield Townhomes, Main Street, by joining the condominium association board. "I took the association to a surplus, maintained maintenance fees and eliminated special assessment fees," he said, noting that he would now like to share his experience and knowledge on the borough's governing body. "I'm in the business of trying to save money before you go out and spend more," Kaiserman said. Buchanan, 31, who also serves on the recreation board, is a lifelong borough resident. He is president of the Sayreville Young Democrats Organization and acts as the council's liaison to the recreation and commuter boards. Buchanan earned a degree in administration of justice at Rutgers University and now works as a state investigator. He has a 2-year-old daughter, Kayla, with his wife, Michelle. His grandfather, Ken, and his great-grandfather, Charles, were councilmen for 18 years each. Cox is a lifelong member of the Democratic Party who raised two children in the borough with his wife, Diane. Cox and his wife are parishioners of Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, where he was a basketball coach for several years. Cox, who is affiliated with the Knights of Columbus, was a detective with the Sayreville Police Department's juvenile bureau. He is now an employee of the Motor Vehicle Commission in Edison. Cox said he wants to help the borough obtain grants for technological improvements in the police department. He added that techniques used in New York City, such as installing cameras in certain locations, would work well in the borough. He said the borough should work within the confines of the rules and regulations of the state, adding that the mayor's call for the borough attorney to look into eliminating nightclub licenses is not the proper response. "For 30 years I was on the police department, [and] I responded to numerous bar fights and club fights," Cox said. "Like any industry, that's a part of their industry. There is going to be fights when alcohol is served." "It's easy to say 'close them, take their license away,' but in reality that is not going to happen, because the final say is with ABC [state Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control]." Cox said the borough's public safety committee is looking at the incidents of violence at nightclubs on a case-by-case basis to find the root cause. He added that a blanket policy for all clubs is not the solution. Buchanan also voiced opposition to the mayor's proposal for a "three strikes ordinance" as a method of addressing violence at nightclubs. "O'Brien wants to shut down all clubs, which I believe is discriminating against the clubs," Buchanan said, adding that the mayor's proposal gives nightclubs too many chances. Siarkiewicz said she thinks the mayor's three-strikes policy is necessary and fair to club owners. "Mr. Cox admitted himself that he's gone on numerous calls as a police officer," Siarkiewicz said. "Why should we waste all of our taxpayer money by having these cops go back and forth to these clubs? If they're the root of the issue, then they should be closed."