Overcrowding, understaffed fire department are focus of Dover mayor's debate

DOVER — Concerns over residential overcrowding, affordable housing and public safety in the borough were front-and-center during a mayoral and aldermen candidate forum Wednesday night at the Dover Moose Lodge.

Former Democratic Mayor James Dodd, who's seeking to return to the job this fall, and independent Dennis Touhey faced an audience of close to 100 people during the mayoral debate. Republican and Democratic candidates for alderman in each of four town wards followed, in a night cosponsored by the League of Women Voters Morristown Area, the NAACP Morristown Branch and the Daily Record.

There is no Republican on the ballot in the traditionally Democratic-controlled town, which has a population of more than 18,000. More than 68% of residents are Hispanic or Latino, according to 2022 U.S. Census figures.

Dodd, who served four terms as mayor from 2006 to 2019, earned his spot at the forum after dominating the June Democratic primary, winning 50% of the vote in a three-way race with incumbent Mayor Carolyn Blackman, who ousted Dodd in 2019, and Dover Democratic Committee Chairman Edward Correa.

"Our community has faced tremendous difficulty, quality of life issues, setbacks and financial disasters, in the last four years, and it's time to restore what's been lost," Dodd said on Wednesday, taking another shot at Blackman's administration. "My last administration brought in over $350 million worth of redevelopment. For 14 years, we had the lowest taxes of any full-service town in Morris County."

He stressed his experience and ability to attract developers to town.

Touhey, a 58-year resident making his first run for public office, is retired from a 33-year career with New Jersey Natural Gas, during which he established the utility's Dover-based Home Service Division. He highlighted his ties to the community and management experience.

"Dover has been a part of my life," said Touhey, a 1974 Dover High School graduate and former youth league coach. "I've been involved. Maybe you don't have to be out there in the glow. Maybe you can be behind the scenes. I've dealt and talked to the people and they tell me 'Dennis, you are Dover.' That's one of the reasons I took this on."

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Overcrowded housing, 'inhumane conditions'

Both candidates agreed that residential overcrowding was a priority issue.

"I think it's no secret that since COVID, stacking and overcrowding has multiplied in the town of Dover to staggering numbers," Dodd said. "To where people come home from work and don't have a place to park on their street anymore. There's five, six families living in a single-family home."

Touhey agreed overcrowding is a serious issue and cited the recent example of a five-alarm fire on Saturday that displaced as many as 50 residents occupying apartments above two downtown businesses.

"It's an ongoing problem that's never been solved," Touhey said. "So we have to find these landlords somehow and say 'Listen, let's find a way or we're going to increase your taxes.' Rockaway Township did it."

Dodd also proposed an aggressive course of action.

"The first thing we need to do is establish a task force," Dodd said. "It takes more than a code enforcement officer to go into the neighborhoods and identify the problems. It's about health, it's about safety, it's about children living in inhumane conditions that are defecating in their backyards because they don't have access to bathrooms. That goes on the homeowner who is allowing it, whether it's a resident or non-resident landlord. And we send out the message we're not going to take it anymore."

Candidates' plans for more police, firefighters

Both candidates bemoaned understaffing in the police and fire departments, a problem punctuated by recent developments. In August, Dover's longtime volunteer fire chief resigned during a public meeting in which he took the town to task for lack of support. Following Saturday's fire, current Acting Chief Robert Sperry said the department has been pushing the town for years to increase paid career staff as the ranks of volunteer firefighters have decreased dramatically.

Sperry called the most recent incident, when the initial fire crew showed up with just two firefighters, a "warning shot" to local officials.

Dodd said he would pursue more federal grants to hire firefighters, a practice he said was suspended by the Blackman administration.

Touhey hopes to reverse the trend of volunteer attrition.

"Growing up, it was an honor to be a Dover fireman," he recalled. "At one time I believe there were 125 firemen and a waiting list. Why that stopped when we have a lot of young people in our town? Maybe to pay for them to go to school, get into training − maybe that's the way to go. But we have to build an interest in the town. We have to find town answers. We can't just keep outsourcing for funds."

PILOT programs: Do tax breaks benefit Dover?

Dodd repeatedly stressed that bringing in new development would help to pay for more first responders and other town needs such as a community center. He also defended the sometimes controversial tax breaks known as PILOT programs that many towns use to lure those developers.

The programs authorize New Jersey municipalities to grant exemptions from traditional property taxes to builders for a set period of time to encourage them to make improvements to distressed or blighted areas. Instead of property taxes, owners make an annual negotiated payment to the municipality.

Critics say the arrangements shortchange schools, which do not receive the usual tax revenues from the projects. They also say towns often do not receive the expected economic boost from new construction. PILOT proponents stress that developers have come to demand those agreements for all kinds of projects and that, as Dodd argued, smartly negotiated PILOTs can still benefit a community.

"PILOT programs can work," Touhey agreed. "They can be done correctly. Not the way they've been done (in Dover). You can appropriate that money towards the town, towards the school. The one thing about PILOTS that has to be addressed is when a PILOT comes into town, say they build 200 units and only 100 are occupied. Well, then they only pay on those 100 units. If you're going to build 200 units, you have to pay us upfront. It's not our job to fill your apartments."

"It's a simple contract you have to negotiate," Dodd said. "You have to have a strong leader and a strong team to negotiate those contracts."

Closing statements for Dodd, Touhey

Dodd closed by acknowledging the factional rancor among Democrats in town over the last several years,

"A house divided against itself cannot stand," Dodd said, quoting Abraham Lincoln. "We face many challenges but we must stand together to overcome them. We did it before and we'll do it again."

Touhey concluded with a promise to follow the advice of a political mentor: "Be fair to the people you represent and be honest to the people you represent. I think I think I carry both of those qualities."

The question for voters on Nov. 7 will be "do we want to go back to the past or do we want to start fresh and say 'Let's see what this guy can do?'" he said. "I tell you what: I've never failed and the Touheys never failed in anything they've done."

Board of Aldermen candidates tout local ties

Four Republicans and four Democrats, each hoping to fill one of four ward seats, tackled similar issues following the mayoral debate.

The Democrats include incumbent Ward 3 representative Michael Scarneo and three candidates running on Dodd's "Rescue Dover" ticket: Claudia Toro (Ward 1), Sergio Rodriguez (Ward 2) and incumbent Arturo Santana (Ward 4) complete the field.

Toro is a Colombian immigrant, single mom and tax accountant. She said she is running because "everyone is responsible" for making Dover run smoothly. Sergio Rodriguez, also a native of Colombia, grew up in Dover and highlighted his work ethic and bilingual communication skills. Scarneo is a 42-year resident with years of experience on the Board of Education, planning board and zoning board. Santana is a lifelong Ward 4 resident and auto body technician.

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On the GOP side, they are challenged by Gaile Rodriguez (Ward 1), Wendy Huron Carmona (Ward 2), William Schuler Jr. (Ward 3) and William Inglis (Ward 4).

Gaile Rodriguez is a 25-year resident who said, "we must come forward and do whatever we can, as much as we can, as a community, as a neighborhood, to make changes."

Carmona emphasized that "the love of God, family and community bind the citizens of America and keeps us strong." Schuler is a longtime resident and volunteer, including as a board member of Zufall Health Center. He was previously elected to one term as an alderman in 2003. Inglis is a lifelong Ward 4 resident and volunteer coach who wants to make "our neighborhoods the first priority."

Calls for community policing, better communication

The candidates were mostly in agreement on the need for more fire and police officers, a new community center, senior services and residential overcrowding.

They also agreed regular ward meetings were needed to increase communication between the town and its elected leaders. Sergio Rodriquez added "It could go further" by enlisting invested residents to increase "direct contact with the people."

Scarneo said he would "piggy tail off the community policing initiative" to increase public contact. Gaile Rodriguez said, "It is our responsibility to go out to our wards, know what they need, what they want." Carmona favors meetings because "we can't always walk everywhere and be every place all the time."

Both candidate forums were livestreamed and are still available for viewing on the League of Women Voters Morristown area YouTube channel.

William Westhoven is a local reporter for DailyRecord.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: wwesthoven@dailyrecord.com Twitter: @wwesthoven

This article originally appeared on Morristown Daily Record: Dover NJ mayor candidates debate overcrowding, fire safety