DuBois chosen mayor of all-Dem Springfield committee

DuBois chosen mayor of all-Dem Springfield committee

SPRINGFIELD, NJ — Mayor Erica DuBois says having an all-Democratic Township Committee won’t be an issue for Springfield. “I’m sure that everyone is going to be concerned about this,” DuBois, who was chosen as the township’s fifth female mayor at the Jan. 1 reorganization meeting, said in a Jan. 2 phone interview. “We’re all going […]

Delisfort takes oath as Union’s first black woman mayor

Delisfort takes oath as Union’s first black woman mayor

UNION, NJ — Michele Delisfort took the oath of office as the township’s first black woman mayor on New Year’s Day, replacing Suzette Cavadas after her two-year reign and becoming the first female Haitian mayor in the state. “It is a given that none of us ascends to elected office without the sacrifices and support […]

Local police see body cams as big plus

Local police see body cams as big plus

UNION COUNTY, NJ — Clark police Chief Pedro Matos said he has been in a difficult position in the rare instance when resident said a township officer had acted unprofessionally and the officers denied it. But facts haven’t been in question since officers began wearing body cameras in January 2016, and Matos said that’s why […]

Rahway house fire kills one, but three escape

Rahway house fire kills one, but three escape

RAHWAY, NJ — A 44-year-old woman was killed when a two-alarm blaze swept through her single-family home on the morning of Jan. 2, Rahway fire Chief Michael Roberts said. Shonda Smith was found in her second-floor bedroom at 452 Washington St. after firefighters took nearly about an hour to extinguish the fire that had completely […]

Kean institute receives $100K grant to expand operations

Kean institute receives $100K grant to expand operations

UNION, NJ — The Institute for Life Science Entrepreneurship’s mission in part is to train the next generations of entrepreneurs, and officials belief that at a recent grant from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority will aid that goal. The nonprofit institute housed at Kean University has plans to use the $100,000 planning grant to […]

Giblin takes selection to be mayor in stride

Giblin takes selection to be mayor in stride

CRANFORD, NJ — Patrick Giblin, who has been chosen to become mayor in 2019 by the members of the Township Committee, is taking the appointment in stride. “From the outside looking in, it seems to be a big deal,” he said during a phone interview with LocalSource Dec. 20. “I view it more I’m chairing […]

New Roselle schools chief settles in, has ways to go

New Roselle schools chief settles in, has ways to go

ROSELLE, NJ — James Baker was trained as a paratrooper in the Army in the 1970s. He knew something about jumping into hostile situations long before he accepted the job as the superintendent of the Roselle School District six months ago. “I’ve worked in the field in urban areas for 25 years,” Baker said during […]

Summit mulls $17 million for firehouse, police equipment

Summit mulls $17 million for firehouse, police equipment

SUMMIT, NJ — The city is considering more than $17 million in spending requests for capital projects in its 2019 budget, a 200-percent increase from 2018. The original capital budget was projected at $5.5 million, but a new firehouse would raise that figure to more than $17.3 million, according to numbers presented at at a […]

Five-story Morris Avenue apartment building tabled to January

Five-story Morris Avenue apartment building tabled to January

UNION, NJ — Discussions regarding the construction of a five-story apartment building on the site of the Garden Buffet restaurant on Morris Avenue were postponed by the Zoning Board after the developer presented new plans that add a possible ground floor restaurant. American Landmark Development, which was involved in the development of Union Center and […]