Our Monmouth Blog

Jeff Whelan of The Star-Ledger reported “Passaic Mayor pleads guilty to Corruption“.

Passaic Mayor Samuel Rivera pleaded guilty this morning to federal corruption charges.

Rivera, 61, among 11 public officials caught in a statewide FBI sting last year, pleaded guilty to one count of extortion after being accused of accepting $5,000 in cash from an insurance brokerage firm in exchange for his help getting contracts. The firm turned out to be a front for the FBI.

He was indicted earlier this year by a federal grand on bribery and extortion charges. By pleading guilty to the extortion charge, Rivera faces 18 to 24 months in prison under federal sentencing guidelines, according to his lawyer, Henry Klingeman.

This is a good first step in cleaning up the political cesspool that still remains intact within our local government. Justice needs to be served swiftly to anyone who takes advantage of an appointed position for their own dishonest and immoral personal gains. More results like this are need to finish the job and clean up New Jerseys political landscape.

Tom Hester of The Star-Ledger reported “Top 10 most endangered historic sites named“.

Mr. Hester reported “The non-profit Trenton-based historic preservation organization unveils a list of what it considers 10 endangered historic sites annually in an effort to draw public and government attention to the danger that they may face demolition or alteration“.

* Sacred Heart Church, Jersey City: In its heyday in the 1920s, this monumental church was the parish for immigrants from Ireland, Germany, Poland and Italy.

* Shady Rest Golf Club, Scotch Plains: First African-American owned and operated country club in the United States.

* Lake Solitude Dam, High Bridge: Built in 1909 to provide hydro-electric power to the Taylor-Wharton Iron and Steel Company.

* Forney House and Clinic, Milltown: Late 1800s house built that later became the first American site of the Michelin Rubber Company.

* 160 Willard Avenue, Bloomfield: Unique Craftsman house considered crucial to the preservation of its neighborhood.

* Speedwell Avenue Business District, Morristown: An historic area where a redevelopment plan calls for demolition of old storefronts and some 19th and early 20th century houses.

* Arneytown Historic District, North Hanover: Three-building 1700s’ hamlet with tavern as centerpiece.

* Atlantic City Post Office: Classic and imposing Depression-era building.

* Beach Theater, Cape May: Landmark beachfront theater built in 1950.

* Belcoville Post Office, Weymouth: Built in 1918 as post office for a World War I munitions plant boomtown.

Monmouth/Ocean Small Business Development Center at Brookdale Community College

Presents:
Expanding Horizons in Federal Government Contracting

Presented by:
Stephanine Burroughs, Director of Procurement Programs, NJSBDC

DATE:
May 9, 2008
TIME: 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM
LOCATION: Brookdale Community College
ROOM: SLC 107
PARKING LOT : #7

Admission is Free - Registration is required!

Only 10 seats left so register today.

To REGISTER call 732-842-8685 or email: mosbdc@brookdalecc.edu

Topics that will be covered:

- Information on how the government buys
- Where and how to find opportunities
- Learn to maximize relationships with buying entities and important contacts
- Learn about different preference programs and how they can help grow your business

You must be Registered To Attend …

MONMOUTH/OCEAN SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER
Brookdale Community College
765 Newman Springs Road
Lincroft, New Jersey 07738

The water company has not yet found a way to make water more environmentally friendly, however, it could potentially cost more green. In a New Transcript story Toynett Hall reports “Water rate hike draws objections“.

HOWELL - With nowhere else to turn for water service, Howell residents urged representatives of the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) to deny the New Jersey American Water Company the 23.35 percent rate increase it is seeking.

With the cost of oil, gas, food, taxes, and now water rising by double digits it is becoming painfully obvious that the cost of living is seriously out of control. When was the last time you received a 23.35% raise? How can our seniors and lower income family’s bear these types of continuous price increases? As a business owner and concerned citizen I am uneasy about the direction our local and national economy.

This is an advisory from the Holmdel Police Department. Dwight Road and Red Hill Road East of Van Schoick Road will be closed to all traffic beginning Monday May 5, 2008 for approximately 6 weeks, 24 hours a day. Please follow detour.

During this same 6 week period, Middletown-Lincroft Road will be closed between Bamm Hollow and Castle Drive 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. Please follow detour or use alternate route if possible.

Click the following link to view the detour map (PDF format).

The Star-Ledger Continuous News Desk just reported that Home Depot will close 2 NJ locations.

The Home Depot Inc. today announced that it will shutter 15 of its locations nationwide, including stores in East Brunswick and Saddle Brook.

When enterprise level organizations like Home Depot feel the economic crunch the small business owner must take notice. Preparation and planning is key to protect our businesses. Activities such as expense management, creative marketing, and sound business planning is critical to manage your business through a difficult economy.

“Planning without action is futile, action without planning is fatal.” - Unknown

Tom Hester of the Star-Ledger reported yesterday that the “NJ court system struggling with flood of debt-related cases“.

Foreclosure filings for the first three months of the year exceeded 4,000 a month, a staggering 44 percent increase over the same period last year, Judge Philip S. Carchman told the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee. They are on track to hit 49,000 cases by the end of the year, double the number from just two years ago.

Debt cases, mainly from credit cards problems in which $15,000 or less is owed, are also spilling into the courts. Carchman said 621,000 are expected this year, 100,000 more than last year.

The cost of living has increased dramatically over the last few years. The back-up of the court system is just one of many minor consequences. If the corporate fleecing of America continues to go unpunished why would it stop? For example, the cost of gas continues to rise as the oil corporations make record profits. Lending companies that pitched risky loans and used unethical tactics walk away leaving the consumer holding the bag. Property and local taxes are rising because of corruption and misuse of public funds. The list seems endless.

How has the current economic conditions effected your business or your spending?

Welcome to the third installment of the Sunday Coffee Cup. I sincerely welcome your comments and feedback.

This week really felt like spring. You know the summer must be coming because gas was up over 20 cents in what seemed like a week. I just filled up my Subarau Impreza and it cost me 42 bucks. With all of the rising costs of basic staples its no wonder why people are defaulting on loans and our nations economy is weakening.

Worth Repeating:
Liberty State Park to create 234-acre refuge for wildlife
by Brian T. Murray/The Star-Ledger

A fenced-off, long-contaminated chunk of Liberty State Park is about to get a face-lift to become what federal and state officials are calling an urban wildlife refuge.

The $32 million project is not a cleanup. It’s a green makeover, with 234 acres of wasteland in the middle of the 1,100-acre park getting remodeled into a mixture of freshwater wetlands, grasslands, hardwood forests and a salt-water marsh.

Now It’s the $6 Loaf of Bread
As prices soar, food has replaced oil as the big threat to the long-running global economic expansion.
By Rod Nordland and Daniel Gross | NEWSWEEK

It may seem insensitive to discuss the impact of high food prices in a wealthy economy in which obesity is rampant. But higher grain prices are having a serious economic impact in the United States. As the U.S. economy slips into recession, the Congressional Budget Office projects that a record 28 million Americans will require food stamps this year. And since this year’s allocations are based on prices as of last June, federal aid won’t go as far. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the prices for staple groceries have risen sharply in the past year: white bread (16.3 percent), milk (13.3 percent), eggs (29.9 percent). Americans don’t starve, says Stacy Dean, director of food assistance at the Washington, D.C.-based Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, “but we have a very significant chunk of the population that isn’t able to eat a bare-bones, basic healthy diet.” Food pantries across the country are feeling the sting of rising food and gas prices. Barb Prather, director of the Northeast Iowa Food Bank, estimates that her group’s food bills have increased 30 to 40 percent in the past year—at a time of rising demand.

Blog of the Week:
Small Fuel Marketing
10 Clever Ways To Wow Your Clients by Dave Navarro

But how do you turn an ordinary client into a raving fan? All it takes is a little understanding of their wants and needs – and some creative strategies for exceeding their expectations. Here are 10 ways to create raving fan customers who give the word-of-mouth marketing that your business needs to succeed.

Coffee Break:
5000+ Resources to Do Just About Anything Online
by Sean P. Aune/Mashable

Since May 2007, we’ve [Mashable] been bringing you resources and tools to be more productive on the web. Due to popular demand, we’ve brought all these lists together into one gigantic meta-list: 5000+ Resources to Do Just About Anything Online.

Inspirational Quote:

“Failure is success if we learn from it”. - Malcolm Forbes

Find out what I am doing on Twitter.

American Recreational Military Services (A.R.M.S), a 501 (c)(3) Public Charity

I am really thankful to all that have helped promote this fund raising drive to get it started. There really is a lot more that we need to do so your continued help and support is appreciated. Find out more information about the ARMS Charity Fund Raiser in a previous post.

I would like to take a moment to thank for following businesses and organizations which were among the first to make donations:
Contempra Electric, Jackson - Homestead Run, Toms River - The Dance Connection, Toms River - Outreach of Greenbriar, Jackson - Veterans of Foreign Wars: VFW Post 8885, Toms River

And to the following supportive bloggers:
Surviving NJ
Exit 117A

Please continue to help promote this fund raising event and charity our troops deserve and appreciate it.

Best wishes!

Hugo Vidal Teixeira of Compenent House recently wrote a fantastic blog post on the importance of good user interface design titled “Ten UI Lessons from the Real World”. Through excellent pictures of real life examples Hugo demonstrates how bad design can hurt your brand, confuse, or even be offensive. It is not only good information but really funny and entertaining. As you read the post I am sure you can think of a few frustrating websites where ultimately you did not do business with because of a poor UI.

A well designed website can increase your credibility and improve sales conversions.

Best wishes!