Remsen Reflects

And we'll remember your performances here Ed.

Calling various constituents names and your memorable comments

"I think I'll puke.
Posted by: Ed Remsen | July 30, 2006 11:09 PM "

"I reserve the right to be as cranky, selectively antagonistic and occasionally inconsistent as the rest of you.
Posted by: Ed Remsen | October 19, 2005 7:28 PM "

Ill remember you as the guy who rubber stamped the funding to move the baseball field 17 feet.

and I know Miss Martta will always remember Eddie

I liked Remsen. He struck me as someone who made a serious effort, was accessible and decent. (As for his remark about upchucking, I think that's a perfectly rational response to so many commenters here, at least those of a year or two ago.)

We have not such another Mayor to criticize, to paraphrase what someone in the crowd yelled out after Sir Walter Ralegh was beheaded.

Remsen needed to smile more and say, "Hope" and "Change."

Other than that, he seemed like a nice enough guy and if he's only remembered for getting rid of Hanes and 3 parking decks-- that's okay.

(As for the world famous, amazingly historical Inn that, well, no one used, I haven't missed it one bit. But I still shun all the new residents of Christco to show I'm down with the cause....)

Cathar: Do we inhabit the same planet? I don't ever recall any decency on Ed's part--certainly not directed at me--and I have a pretty good memory.

Speaking of memory, he will soon be one, so these will be my last comments on this matter.

Uh ... and what might be the reason that he couldn't/wouldn't critizie the establishment of the Sewer Authority prior to now? And the Marlboro Inn ... you wouldn've asked the Planning Board to pay closer attention????? What the f**k .... now you can look back and say "oops"!!!

That he was snappish at times, Miss Martta, does not disqualify him from relative (very, very relative, I admit) suburban mayoral "greatness." Lincoln was equally testy at times, as were FDR and Madison, to cite but three examples. So were Pitt the Elder and Younger alike.

Incoming Mayor Fried may well be a more gentle soul. But gentleness also sometimes translates into incompetence.

You want a mayor into polite discourse, but also racial duplicitousness, there was David Dinkins. You want an often rude SOB who loved his city and got things done, there was Ed Koch. So we will see, won't we?

And prof, good point about the Marlboro. If a reasonable number of those so frothingly outraged about its demolition had actually either booked a few affairs of their own into there or at least put up out-of-town guests there, why, it might still be functioning. Instead, its demise became an occasion for unfocused (sometimes downright irrational, even smacking of a lynch mob's mentality), spittle-flecked outrage.

A beheading isn't such a bad idea. The castration has already happened.

Under Ed - two of the current town council members have attempted to appoint themsleves to the Parking Commision and Civil Rights Committee (may have the committee and commisssion thing reversed).

Appoint Themsleves! Crown themselves is more like it.

Michaelson wants to be the Parking Czar and thinks that this is the way to get it.

We'll also remember that for most of your term you were in violation of the Open Public Meetings Act OPMA and the phone call among town councilors and ED (no Teddy) where you discussed the Wayfaring signs and decided to table the ordinance- that was certainly a public meeting that wasn't held in public.

Oh, should I also mention the CFO that was allowed to work in two places at once (even superman can't do that) and the reappointment and special severance deal that Joe Hartnett gets.

I'm sure if I thought a while I could go on and on and on.

Well, maybe later.

Remsen was only a Tuesday night punching bag because the actions of Joe H. and the entire town council made it occur.

Hiding, don't forget to add to your list the completely unnecessary logo campaign, the stupid sign on Claremont, the promised grants for the microburst cleanup (that never came through), the extra million the BOE was hiding, the extra million the water utility couldn't find, the building of the new school, the variance after variance allowed for developers and the list goes on.

13%

The water utility was $500,000 - otherwise you're right on!

"(As for the world famous, amazingly historical Inn that, well, no one used, I haven't missed it one bit.)"

I DO miss the open space it provided.

I liked Mayor Ed's candor and lack of pretension, and I respect his decision not to run for a second term. Being a pol in this town can't be easy. I can only imagine the abuse one would have to absorb during interminable meetings under florescent lights. I am astonished that anyone would volunteer for the job, and as much as I criticized Ed while he's been in office, I also want to express my thanks and gratitude.

Remsen still, after four years as Mayor, doesn't know the first thing about municipal government. Thanks to Ted Mattox for exposing Ed for the fraud he is... and a special thanks to the Thrive Montclair campaign for putting the final nail in the coffin of the Michaelson-Remsen regime.

Yes, a special thanks to the Thrive campaign and to Teddy for losing!!!!

YES YES YES

Walleroo actually makes some sense with his post above. That's rare enough on any occasion but particularly so when he opines on politics.

You go, marsupial!

Clearly it is impossible to please everyone in this town. I certainly have had many disagreements with the decisions this council has made.

However, I think we frequently are more harsh than necessary in voicing our opinions (myself included). This is a very tough job, that most of us would not want to do. I think that anyone who does the job dilligently and without being swayed by ulterior motives deserves our thanks. Seems to me Ed deserves our thanks.

I have seen him stand his ground and make some good calls which resulted in the Town being better off.

"Seems to me Ed deserves our thanks."

Thank you Ed for not running again!

OK -- about the Marlboro Inn --

The soon-to-be former administration and the one before that had a chance to protect the neighborhood by making a historic district. They punted, and they lost control of the final outcome.

Without the tool of a historic district, the township felt huge pressure and folded, granting variances to allow construction of a street, amazingly without asking for final review of the size and scope of the structures as a condition to the variances.

The issue got hotter and the well connected Plofker (Mr. Bobby Brown), such a force during the hearings, bailed out.

The Inn may well have been beyond saving, but town could have protected the neighborhood from the demise of the Inn. Now look at what they've built.

I'm proud of Montclair for voting out all the incumbents who oversaw this mess.

Miss Marta - now that this is all behind us, I hope we can be friends - let's do lunch - I'll have my girl call your girl

[deleted] - time to shut it down and go away - your man did none of the heavy lifting to solve problems - never moved projects or ideas from Point A to Point B - all sound bites and bluster and personal attacks. Never worried about being consistent or pandering to whomever came before us. My bad - I should have checked him out more thoroughly before I asked him to run.

And to everyone else - it's great when the choice we have to make is cyystal clear - more often it's not so easy because for everything YOU feel so passionately about, there are folks who feel the exact opposite - now clearly, YOU must be right and THEY must be wrong but try telling THEM that. Thanks for the kind remarks some of you have made - gave it my best shot - for some it was good enough and for others it was not. Go back and look at the Strategic Plan - we did get most of it done but there were obviously certain decisions and issues that struck a powerful chord with many people and around which no consensus will be reached. This is, after all, Montclair, 37,000 people and at at least as many opinions.

Have a nice summer.

Ed Remsen

[deleted] - time to shut it down and go away - your man did none of the heavy lifting to solve problems - never moved projects or ideas from Point A to Point B - all sound bites and bluster and personal attacks. Never worried about being consistent or pandering to whomever came before us. My bad - I should have checked him out more thoroughly before I asked him to run.

[deleted- violates Baristanet comment policy]

The town is better off? And how does one come to that belief? The town is over taxed, BOE can't do the math, developers in the pockets of the "decision makers", the non-tax tax ..... What exactly do we owe Remsen thanks for other than not running for a second term?

Ed Remsen, that baiting of Miss Martta was unnecessary and a bit tacky (and I've generally been one of your supporters.).

It also would have worked better if you'd typed "Have your marsupial call my marsupial..."

Good luck in the future, sir.

Cathar

You call that baiting? You're going soft of us.

Cathar

You call that baiting? You're going soft on us.

Cathar

You call that baiting? You're going soft on us.

If you think Remsen was over his head---You can look forward to Obama running the country.

cstarling!! Great to see you posting!!

However, in the future please use the present tense for President Obama.

The "election" is just a formality.

He's already the President. Just ask him.

He's cocky and his wife needed a make over-but needs more like an over haul to soften "her image"!-What happens when the make up wears off?-What happens when he actually has to utter more than the word Change?

It took awhile for the "client" to be outted-- It took way too long for the greedy, oh I mean Greevy to be exposed (do I need to list them all?)

For a group of suspicious people, I find it hard to believe so many are jumping into a pit on a wing and a prayer.

They thought Ed was bad here in Montclair, well they showed him didn't they, they voted for Bike Boy.

I'll be at the polls, I just hope everyone shows up.

Bike Boy is a good guy with a good head on his shoulders. You won't find him insulting his constituents here or saying he's gonna puke. You'll find him building consensus and encouraging people to volunteer and be heard.

Soccermom - your guy lost!

L-O-S-T

You know why? Because of the way he behaved. The people of Montclair couldn't believe their eyes and ears and knew that they had to elect someone else.

He lost becuase he showed his hand, he lost because of how he behaved, he lost! He didn't "help" someone else win. That wasn't his mission.

His mission was to win. He failed.

I'm only treading a bit more "softly," Ed, until the Presidential campaign begins in earnest. I'm also quite sure the wolves here will begin dining on your mayoral successor soon enough and that they'll gladly share the bones; he does seem so far, as someone termed him, a "daffy hippie." It definitely amazed me that Montclair somehow morphed into Berkeley to elect such a one-issue canddidate with so little administrative experience, someone perhaps more concerned on July 4 with inclusiveness and insuring that floats from left-wing groups get fair placement in the line of march than with a celebration of the blood and gust aspects of the Revolutionary War.

Yes too, nice to hear from you again, Clarice. (And I'm sure you already realize I'd never be so foolish as to vote for Obama. I think the installation of one so callow and committed to the old, wheezy politics of alienating affirmative action and tax-and-spend recklessness would be disastrous for this nation, particularly so in league with the likes of Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and John Conyers.

Your rants are getting pretty tiresome, Montclair.Mommy.