O.B. voters should ask questions, keep scorecard on issues
This year I'm finally going to do it - that is, forget party lines, and in the case of an incumbent, I will vote for his or her opponent. There are too many entrenched officeholders, sometimes with multiple offices, making a career in elective office rather than treating it as a temporary trust.

The incumbents are so smug that when they become part of the minority party, the spoils are so great that they can sit back, confident they will continue to get their fair share, just as they gave their fair share when they were part of the majority party.

That brings us to Old Bridge, where the question should be, "What have the representative of both parties done in the past four years?" Very little, I believe. So I'm putting together a checklist of items you should consider and also can use as a checklist for the next election.

These are the real issues.

• Town environment. Both parties claim that a crowning achievement is that builders must get town approval for tree removal. It has not happened. The Highview development had a natural border of trees on undeveloped land. Enter The Woods - the natural border is gone. The one new home on the corner of Oakland and Trans Old Bridge Road was a wooded lot; not a tree remains, and the builder must have gotten a number of variances to build.

• New developments. Both parties can now claim that building will be reduced, thanks to a new-home housing recession that will not go way for years. Since individuals in both parties claim that they never approved the extraordinary building of the past 10 years, who can deny they appointed the individuals who approved the now-defunct project that starts on the corner of Texas and Marlboro roads?

• Size of government. According to the monthly jobs release, the growth sector in new jobs is in the category state and local government. Why do we have so many acting/ deputy roles in addition to their current jobs for individuals with extra pay? Do we have a manpower plan? Has the director of public safety reported on the conditions and violations in construction sites? Does the mayor get a daily report with monthly summaries on the 10 spots in town with the most auto accidents? What is done with it? Do we have quality indicators that tell us the turnaround time we should expect when we apply for a town service?

• Traffic. What's the plan? The greatest public-works project in town is Texas Road. What is anyone doing about it? Why is there no right-turn lane at Inverness on Route 9, the only right turn on the entire length of Route 9 without a turn lane? Has the director of public safety ever left Town Hall?

• Controls. We have had several scandals in town departments, and each time we say it will not happen again, but it does. Where are the controls?

• Cost of government. We cannot afford premier health and pension benefits to municipal workers when we have to struggle to pay town increases. Who has done a study and has alternatives?

• Technology. The economic boom of the past 20 years has, according to Alan Greenspan, been greatly aided by technology. How is technology being used in the township? I can't get an acknowledgement on an e-mail.

• Ethics. Who will replace the Ethics Committee with its $100 fines to individuals, who, if they had committed the same violations in the private sector would have been dismissed? Do all elected officials and department heads sign a yearly statement that they have complied with all the rules? What are the rules? Can a councilman get a loan at a bank the town keeps its deposits with? Who can certify that they conduct town business with the same degree of care and ethical standards as they conduct their own affairs? Do they?

Keep a scorecard and ask the questions.

Peter A. Armenia is a resident of Old Bridge