Four candidates vie for two seats on North Brunswick council

Republican candidate Mary Chyb, Democratic newcomer Shanti Narra, Republican newcomer Jordan Rickards and Democratic incumbent Carlo Socio are vying for two seats on this year's North Brunswick Township Council.

Mary Chyb Mary Chyb, 62, has lived in North Brunswick for over 30 years and in Middlesex County all her life.

She spent 30 years working at AT&T as a project manager in Information Technology and Internet Services and after retiring, stills works as a consultant.

She served on the North Brunswick Board of Education from 2005-08, and had chaired the board's Policy and Negotiations committees. She was elected as the Middlesex County school boards vice president for programs in 2005, and vice president for legislation in 2006. She was a member of New Jersey School Boards Delegates Assembly and represented the 17th District on the New Jersey School Boards Legislative Committee. In 2008, she was one of 31, out of 4,800 total members, to attain the status of certificated board member of the New Jersey School Board.

Chyb is an alumna of Douglass College and the Rutgers University Graduate School of Education, where she received bachelor's and master's of education degrees in mathematics education. She also studied at the Rutgers Business School.

Shanti Narra She is a trustee of Rutgers University, and has chaired the Nominating Committee and served on the Executive Committee.

Chyb's main focus during this year's campaign is taxes. She said property taxes have gone up 50 percent in North Brunswick in the last seven years, and that especially in this economy, the town cannot tax itself out of a recession.

She said if she is elected, she will work to keep taxes to a zero increase so that residents do not have to move out of town. She said the council needs to exercise caution and good stewardship, and should renegotiate bids with suppliers to save money.

"The local race says it's saving money, but our taxes show that you can call it 'saving' but our taxes have steadily increased," she said. "I believe in North Brunswick we can do better to live within our means and to have North Brunswick be more of a place where people can stay in their homes so parents and grandparents don't have to leave their homes and their children and grandchildren."

Jordan Rickards On a related note, she is concerned about the proposed layoff of 15 township employees, especially since a majority of those employees live in town. She said "creative options can be used" instead and that possibly part-time positions can be offered or current positions can be restructured to save costs.

Among the problems affecting taxes is businesses leaving town, she said, which reduces the township's ratable base. Chyb said that in the past five years there has been no progress in adding businesses that have helped lower property taxes after Johnson & Johnson, Snapple and L'Oreal left the area.

As a council member, Chyb said she would try and make opening a business less "cumbersome" and "expensive" so that businesses come to and stay in town.

"We need a friendly business climate where fees and regulations are affordable," she said.

Also in relation to finances, Chyb said water bills hurt township residents. She said her friends in East and South Brunswick pay half what she pays for a similar home, and that she would work to approach suppliers to renegotiate contracts in order to save money.

Carlo Socio Chyb said crime in North Brunswick is among the worst in Middlesex County, especially among more serious, violent crimes. She said that more gang awareness programs are needed, both in school and at home.

She also said that housing codes must be enforced because not only are overcrowded homes threats to fire safety and a tax on township schools and resources, but illegal living situations could attribute to other illegal activities.

"If we understand what's going on in homes, it could be a large marking of crime," she said.

In addition, she said absentee landlord situations must be dealt with because home values are affected by deteriorating conditions.

Chyb said overdevelopment in town must stop as schools and roads are overcrowded. She said this relates to the need for proper planning, and cited that having a developer serve as the chairman of the Planning Board could negatively impact decisions that are made.

She said the only future development she would be in favor of would be the transit village proposed on Route 1 "if it is done in the right fashion with the proper mix of residential [and] commercial … and with a train station ideally part of it, because the land is there," and also with the necessary roadway improvements.

Chyb said that all of these factors factor into the need for balance in town. She said that a two-party system provides different viewpoints, and that residents are currently frustrated by not receiving answers to their questions, especially during council meetings.

She also voiced concerns about the "distortions" stemming from the gubernatorial race down, and hopes that it does not trickle down to the local races.

"To me, what's good in North Brunswick are the people in our community. We have people who care about their community and care about their neighbors," Chyb said.

Shanti Narra, 42, has lived in North Brunswick for 35 years. Attending Georgetown University as an undergrad and law student, she has been an attorney for 17 years and recently established her own practice.

Narra has been a Democratic committee person for District 10 for four years and is a member of the North Brunswick Democratic Social Club. She is also a township Planning Board member.

She previously volunteered with a legal outreach mentoring program.

Narra moved back to town five years ago, and after being active in her former communities, she said, "If you make some place your home, you should get involved.… It's important to be part of the community."

In regard to the tax situation, Narra said her family has had the same house since 1976 and "I'm concerned because I don't want people to be priced out of this town, but at the same time I think the people who live here appreciate the services we have here."

She said that she has looked over the budget the past few years and thinks the council "has done an extraordinary job balancing the needs of the town."

"I think these are very rough times for everybody, but it's important to realize that everything is cyclical, and if we act responsibly now and focus not on the immediate but also ahead, this town can come out ahead," she said.

She said that she is worried about seniors in town, but also thinks it is "irresponsible to say to just cut taxes"; she said prioritizing is necessary to maintaining quality of life.

"For our elderly neighbors, if they see value for their dollars, sometimes it reassures them," she said. "The people who live their whole lives in town and love this town, I'd hate to lose those people."

On the same note, Narra said that as a solo law practitioner she feels the weight of the economy and understands the need to keep jobs, such as with township employees. She said the council has to make tax increases as low as possible, and that sometimes even an extra $30 on a senior citizen's tax bill can cause worry because they may not be able to afford the extra expense on a fixed income.

"We need to be creative and find ways to bring ratables into town … and find ways to expand the commercial tax base," she said.

Narra did express some concern over houses in town becoming rentals, and said she is a "big supporter of code enforcement."

"I hope people understand that newer immigrant communities are coming into town, and they seem to be the focus of worries of overcrowding in town but they can bring a lot to this town. I don't want code enforcement to turn this into looking at certain communities more than others for the wrong reasons," she said. "I could care less about who lives there, as long as they are good neighbors."

Therefore, Narra said she advocates a "small-town feeling" within the township so that everyone can have great memories as she did. As a Planning Board member, she believes the board is "focused on responsible growth" in town, and can maintain "a solid, small-town feel where people are comfortable."

She also said she would like to see more community block parties.

"I had a great childhood. I never looked at it as, I can't wait to get out of North Brunswick. I was very proud of this town," she said. "I think it's very important that everybody lives on a street in this town where they are proud to live on that street."

On a different note, Narra said she reflects the varied diversity of the town, as she was born in India but has since become part of the ethnic community of North Brunswick. She feels more ethnicities to get involved in town.

She would also like to get more involved in the "green" movement, and see more environmentally friendly businesses in town.

Jordan Rickards, 30, has lived in North Brunswick his whole life. He is a criminal law attorney, and previously was a prosecutor, Superior Court law clerk and worked in the Attorney General's Office. He went to Liberty University in Virginia and then Washington & Lee University for law school.

Rickards has never held public office but has volunteered for Central Jersey Legal Services, and is currently applying to do a prison ministry for his church.

Rickards' biggest issue is taxes, which he calls "insane" in New Jersey. He said there is a "comprehensive failure of government on every level."

He said locally, there is a "mismanagement" of the budget, which provides less services although more money is being spent. He said you can't lower taxes unless you lower spending, and although many township services are legitimate, the town needs to spend less on those services.

"It's not a problem in North Brunswick that things don't work, but how much things cost," he said. "There's no reason why when you're bringing in more money than ever that you should have to lay people off, unless the budget is being mismanaged — and that's exactly what is happening."

He also said that certain personnel in town are also making too much money.

"We are getting less out of government than we are paying for," he said. "With certain department heads, some perspective is in order."

Rickards said he believes that a town should never tax its residents into prosperity, but instead lower taxes in a recession.

Therefore, if elected, he said he would advocate zero-based budgeting so that the town starts with a zero budget and then only includes what is absolutely necessary, working from the bottom up instead of taking a complete budget and eliminating certain items. He said this leads to less wasteful spending and more accountability.

Because of his law background, Rickards' second biggest issue is crime in town.

The attorney believes the town needs to maintain its law enforcement personnel and have police officers in school, both which have been reduced in recent months. He said that weapons, drugs and gangs exist in town, and if the town knows these things occur in school, then they need to have the police present in school.

He also said that despite state statistics saying that overall crime in North Brunswick has decreased, crimes such as burglaries, robberies and aggravated assaults have increased, and are indicators of the town becoming less safe.

His proposal is that the town reallocates budget funds, especially so it can spend more money on public safety.

A third issue for Rickards is the fact that North Brunswick is currently a oneparty system. He said he does not specifically blame Democrats, but blames the fact that there are no checks and balances.

"If you are looking for change, it doesn't make much sense to re-elect people who are causing the problem," Rickards said. "My problem is not with them [as individuals] but the question is, do I trust them to manage my money?"

In terms of development, Rickards called the proposed transit village "a nice idea at the wrong time," and said that he likes the idea but that there would be "incredible infrastructure improvements" needed first, and that it is only "speculative" that there would be tax revenue from the project. He said this would just be another area for police to patrol, when they are already understaffed, and that there are other issues to deal with regarding the budget first.

Rickards also said the biggest issue surrounding the transit village is why the property is available: because Johnson & Johnson closed its North Brunswick location. He said there is a concern about major businesses leaving town.

"North Brunswick should be an affordable place that is safe," Rickards said. "People are very interested in creating a very likeable and livable community."

Carlo Socio, 38, has lived in town since he was 5 years old. He is currently a project supervisor with the Garden State Parkway division of the New Jersey TurnpikeAuthority.

Socio has been a councilmember for three terms thus far, and has served as president and vice president of the council. He is the township liaison to the Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee, and was liaison to the Planning Board, the Open Space Committee and the Media Advisory Committee. He also served on Board of Education subcommittees to handle defeated school budgets.

Socio is a former youth wrestling coach and is the president of the New Jersey Wrestling Officials Association Central Chapter.

With the current budget coming under fire, Socio said that "it is no secret that property taxes, statewide, are a problem. But we are currently working in the system that has been given to us." He said the council has petitioned state legislators to help since "we need a change in the funding system."

In the meantime, he said the township is doing its best to maintain services such as performing Public Works projects, continuing its road program, picking up apartment garbage and collecting leaves, "while keeping our tax rate level as reasonable as possible."

"We need to find more workplace efficiencies to keep the level of services we have," he said.

He credited the town with accomplishments over the past several years such as capital improvements to the library, revamping the water treatment plant, tying in sewer infrastructure improvements to the road program, renovating Sabella Park, and the remediation of Veterans Park.

"We need these programs. We need to make North Brunswick a town younger parents, like myself, want to be in."

Socio acknowledged the issue of using the full levy cap versus potentially laying off employees, and said that "when you continue to spend, it does add up."

"It becomes a matter of prioritizing and taking the big picture into account. It's not easy to contemplate and consider and enact layoffs … but at the same time, we talk about seniors, but it's everyone [affected by tax increases]," he said. "At this point, I don't condone adding an additional $500,000 [of expenses] to the budget."

As for public safety, Socio commended the town's police officers for doing more now than they have done in the past, and said that "this administration and council are trying to do their best to share the pain across the board to not let any one thing fall, and the safety of residents is first."

As a new father of two, Socio said parenthood has changed his perspective on a lot of things, and he wants to make sure that if he is elected to his fourth term on the council that he helps be a part of more positive changes in town.

"Growing up here and experiencing what I did, from day camp to playing soccer to wrestling, which was a rec program then, to swimming and everything else, to know I have two little girls and a wife and I made the choice to live in town, I want to make sure all little children have the same opportunities [Narra] and I had," Socio said.