Time4Change's Tony Perillo Responds to APPress

(Failure is not an Option – APP Editorial – April 12, 2009)

You’re right that redevelopment plans must be dealt with “openly”, which would be a first for Asbury Park. But why isn’t anyone asking why the current Council did not publicly disclose the status of Metro Homes, a developer facing foreclosure on its Esperanza project, nor its negotiations with Asbury Partners? Who are the lenders? Have they even been named let alone quoted? Too many negotiations have been conducted behind closed doors with costly consequences -- yet they continue.

I agreed with much of your editorial with the exception of what I was supposed to have said – that Asbury Partners’ “bank had foreclosed on its loans”. You referred to this statement as a rumor but it was obviously extracted from your reporter’s article on Asbury Partners wherein she misquoted me. What I actually said at the Candidates’ Forum held at Asbury Tower on April 6, 2009 was that Asbury Partners’ “lenders are ready to foreclose on them.” (You can hear the statement in a sound file at http://www.time4changeinap.blogspot.com/.)

I’m somewhat amazed that it took my comment at a public forum to get your paper to report on the dire financial situation on the Waterfront. Asbury Partners verified my statement by elaborating for you on its current negotiations with its lenders, further validating my statement. It should be obvious to anyone that lenders do not voluntarily offer to restructure loans unless there is a danger of default.

This was not just a lucky guess on my part. I’ve made a living negotiating contracts and managing the finances for a Global Fortune 50 Company. Managing a city, even a small one, undergoing a multi-billion dollar redevelopment at any time, let alone during these economic times, requires expertise and experience. That’s why I’m running with the Time4Change ticket for election to Asbury Park’s City Council this May 12th.

Tony Perillo
Asbury Park -- 732-774-4843

Press: Time4Change Answers The Coaster

The Coaster has an ongoing series in which it poses a different question each week to the the four different tickets running for election to Asbury Park City Council this May 12th.

Week 1 - What is the most important problem facing Asbury Park and how would you address it? Click here for our answer.

Week 2 - Asbury Park has changed much over the last few years, with the addition of new businesses both downtown and at the boardwalk. Safety, however is still raised as a concern. How would you address the safety issue or the image of a safety concern? Our answer

Week 3 - What is your vision for redevelopment over the next four years? Our answer

'Ocean Mile': a "Comedy" about redevelopment...(click invitation to enlarge)

Time4Change Brochure with Candidate Profiles

Please click here for Time4Change Brochure with Candidate Bios and Platform in Brief

S. Maureen Nevin
Maureen Nevin, an independent journalist who has lived in Asbury Park for 10 years, plans to seek a seat on the City Council in the May election.
“I’ve tried everything else to get this city to practice open government, to share its decision-making with the people it serves,” Nevin said. "I’ve decided to give this, too, a try.”
From The Coaster, March 5, 2009. For a longer bio, click here.

Bradley Cove Question Verbatim

The Question posed to the candidates on Monday night, April 6th, at the Candidate's Forum at Asbury Tower was as follows:
"This is a yes or no question. Are you willing to align yourself with the community will to publically oppose the building of the Bradley Cove Townhouse Project in front of Asbury Tower?"

Time4Change's Perillo Smokes Out Story for APP

http://www.app.com/article/20090409/NEWS01/90409015/1282/LOCAL06
See today's Asbury Park Press (link above)to learn what the city has been doing behind the scenes with Asbury Partners, which now admits it's trying to restructure its debts with lenders.
Reporter, Nancy Shields, quotes the source for the story being Anthony Perillo, a candidate for AP city council. She doesn't identify him as part of the five-member Time4Change ticket. Shields quoted from what Perillo said at the mic during his 3-minutes in the Meet the Candidates Event at Asbury Tower. During the same event incumbents actually called the seniors in the audience "narrow-minded" and "myopic" for objecting to the construction of a 15-home development between their building and the ocean.
Shields never attempted to interview Perillo after the meeting, even though he lingered until after Shields had left. Instead, Shields made small talk with Time4Change candidate Kevin Michel about the various night spots in Montclair, where he went to college.
As for the story, where is the interview with or comment from The Partners' lenders? Who are the lenders?
Why did the city meet with the partners to discuss their financial wherewithall behind closed doors??? This is the city's future. Don't we have a say in it? The two sides, according the Press, have decided the way to go is more affordable housing. Where's the public's input on this? Do we have to hitch our wagon now to the same broken caravan?

Hear the First Candidates' Night - from April 6

Time4Change was the guest of the Residents' Assn of Asbury Tower, on Monday, April 6th, along with the other 7 candidates. Resident Joyce Grant asked each candidate in succession if they would support the residents' opposition to a 15-home development directly in front of Asbury Tower. The question was,"This is a yes or no question. Are you willing to align yourself with the community will to publically oppose the building of the Bradley Cove Townhouse Project in front of Asbury Tower?" Please NOTE: This was the exact wording of the question: "This is a yes or no question. Are you willing to align yourself with the community will to publically oppose the building of the Bradley Cove Townhouse Project in front of Asbury Tower?"
With the exception of Ed Johnson, every candidate on the incumbent ticket voted no. Challengers unanimously voted in favor of the Residents' position.
We each spoke for three minutes in the reverse alphabetical order. I split the sound recordings - Mp3s - into 8 files so that no file would be too large. So please bear with me, when looking for your candidates. There may be some overlap. They are all up here. Some audience members in the back of the room came across faintly. If you want me to boost the sound on any file, please email me at AsburyRadio@aol.com. But if you have the volume turned up on your speakers, you should be able to hear most of the candidates' presentations and answers to questions. Just click the files below to listen:
File 1 - The opening; File 2 - Starts with Mayor Sanders; File - 3 End of Mayor's talk; File with Quinn, Pacheco & Perillo, File with Nevin and John Loffredo: File - 4 starts with candidate Rosetta Johnson and councilmember Ed Johnson; and File - 5 starts with councilmember Sue Henderson.
Time4Change would like to thank Barbara Sibley, president of the Residents Assn. and the other residents and staff of Asbury Tower for their hospitality.