OCEANPORT – How much of an impact does the mayor really have in the borough’s current form of government?
It was a question posed and answered by Mayor Jay Coffey in a recent interview, in which he said, “After four years, I think I’d have a larger and more positive impact on the lives of residents by overseeing our recreational basketball league than I would in another term.”
Coffey took office in 2016 after defeating two-term Oceanport Mayor Michael Mahon as a write-in Democratic candidate, a victory he sealed after just 60 days of campaigning before the November election.
Though he is pleased with some of the things the borough has accomplished under his watch, including televising municipal meetings, forming a stronger relationship with the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority (FMERA) and facilitating the sale of the old borough hall while identifying the site of a new municipal complex, not to mention in recent months Coffey said he was dissuaded from seeking a second term due to limited powers and contrasting viewpoints.
Under the borough form of government, the mayor does not have a vote in municipal matters, but does have the power to decide split votes, as well as the authority to veto a council decision.
Coffey points to the development of Fort Monmouth as a subject about which he and the council fail to see eye-to-eye, and a conversation he has not been able to make much headway on.
“They want the fort area to look like Oceanport. But you’re talking about sticking 720 homes, four liquor licenses and 100,000 square feet of commercial space into 430 acres. By definition it will look different. I think it’s OK that it’ll look different in 10 years. They don’t,” Coffey said.
Coffey, who works full time as corporation counsel for the city of Bayonne, also said he is not comfortable with the manner in which council business is sometimes conducted at public meetings and on social media platforms.
“When I first came in, we were going to get agendas out (to the public), televise meetings and treat people with more respect. And that happened for a while. Then, as the composition of the council changed, things started to become more partisan and a lot more uncivil, both online and in person. It’s not working for me, and I don’t want to be part of it anymore,” he said.
With the mayoral seat open in Oceanport, a current member of the all-Republican council, Robert Proto, has announced his candidacy for the position, and feels a sitting mayor is not nearly as inconsequential as Coffey suggests.
“Our form of government is one of a strong council and a weak mayor. I’m aware of it just as Jay was aware of it, just as previous mayors were aware of what they were signing up for,” Proto said. “You can certainly go in with your own agenda and vision, but you need to communicate with council members and your committees in order to accomplish your goals. If you’re not willing to be flexible and compromise, you’ll have a difficult time.”
Proto, who is running unopposed in the June primary election, said the council has made great strides in communicating with residents over the past few years, but recognized that sometimes emotions and passions can take over on both sides of the dais.
“Every meeting I’ve been part of, for the most part, they have been conducted with great civility and respect between the council and residents. But depending on the topic, the discussion may get heated,” Proto said. “Sometimes there are residents who are passionate about a subject and conduct themselves in a disrespectful way to the council. And those residents will be responded to. Respect is a two-way street, but at the end of the day, we’re all working toward the same goals.”
As for his future initiatives, should he win the seat in November, Proto said he “won’t try to recreate the wheel.”
“The focus will be maintaining a stable tax rate and reducing wasteful spending, while continuing to invest funds in infrastructure, roads and parks. We’ll all be focused on the development of the new borough hall complex and fighting the overdevelopment proposed at Fort Monmouth,” Proto added.
Coffey said, though he’ll be relinquishing his mayoral title, he’s not planning to go very far.
“I can’t help but be involved and maybe I’ll be more effective by questioning A, B, C and D from the audience than I am right now,” he said. “I’m the guy who volunteers to run basketball. It’s what brings me joy. This whole town runs on volunteers to an absurd level. If the council and mayor disappeared tomorrow, people would be less cognizant than if all the volunteers in this town stepped aside on a random Tuesday.”
