Tanelli Demands NA Republicans take a stand on the EnCap debacle!

NORTH ARLINGTON - Council President Steve Tanelli is calling upon local Republicans to "take a stand when it comes to protecting taxpayers from the EnCap disaster."

"The local Republican Party needs to join the rest of North Arlington in our universal opposition to EnCap,” Tanelli said. “It's very disturbing that this year’s Republican council candidates do not support the borough's intent to void the EnCap deal and move forward with a proposal that homeowners want and support," said Tanelli, who was elected to the council in 2004 and re-elected in 2005 in landslide victories.

Tanelli, who has been a leader in the fight against EnCap, traveled to Newark last week to deliver a copy of the 277-page EnCap report compiled by the Inspector General's office to investigators at the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

"Last week, we saw bipartisan cooperation when North Arlington Mayor Pete Massa and Rutherford Mayor John Hipp came together to call for a federal probe into EnCap and even Republican Councilman Joe Bianchi supported our call for the inquiry.

But the remaining North Arlington Republicans remain silent as EnCap drains taxpayers in legal fees for a project nobody wants or supports," observed Tanelli.

Democrats believe that local Republicans will nominate Kirk Del Russo and perennial candidate James Bocchino for Council. Both men were members of the discredited North Arlington Redevelopment Authority that started the EnCap debacle during the administration of defeated former Mayor Leonard R. Kaiser.

Tanelli says local Republicans are beholden to the now discredited project thanks to tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions the GOP has received from EnCap lawyers, consultants and enablers.

"North Arlington Republicans accepted nearly $25,000 in campaign contributions from EnCap's lawyers between 1999 and 2003 including a period of time when Mr. Bocchino served as Republican Party chair. He needs to answer as to why local Republicans accepted so much money from those representing Encap and why anyone could think they have abandoned their support for the embattled redevelopment scheme.

Tanelli, a Third Street homeowner and marketing executive with MOVADO is a former member and director of the North Arlington Recreation Commission. A former coach in various borough programs, Councilman Tanelli is married with three sons.

“I have spent the last four years on the council trying to stop this project, which would urbanize North Arlington with thousands of apartments, hundreds of low income housing units, as many as one thousand additional children in our schools and countless additional cars clogging our local streets,” Tanelli said. “Worst of all, these below market housing units would put a crippling demand on local services driving our already high property taxes through the roof,” Tanelli added.

“North Arlington Democrats are united in opposition to EnCap,” Tanelli noted. “Republicans were the leading enablers to this housing scheme and their acceptance of tens of thousands of dollars in EnCap Campaign Cash makes it clear that the only thing standing between North Arlington and EnCap are the two council seats on the ballot this November.”

“For North Arlington homeowners, the outcome of the council election could be much more significant than the outcome of the Presidential election this November,” Tanelli said. “For this reason it’s critical that we have as big a turnout as possible to send EnCap a message that they are not welcome in our town.”

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