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CR’s TROTTER HITS 24; GUARRIELLO 13 PTs; KUTZER 10 RBs; WF’s KANE NETS 10 PTs, 8 RBs

Cougars Jump on Blue Devils at Investors Games, 61-47By DAVID B. CORBIN

Specially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

Momentum hopped in the Cou-gars’ favor midway through thefirst quarter and remained therelong enough as the Cranford HighSchool boys basketball teamstartled the Westfield Blue Dev-ils, 61-47, at the Investors Gamesat Kean University in Union onJanuary 12.

Part of the Cougars’ successcame from their ability to hitfrom 3-point range, and four ofthose 3-pointers were launchedby Tommy Trotter, who led allscorers with 24 points.

“It’s a credit to the kids. Yester-day after practice, they all stayedand worked. The custodian hadto throw guys out of the gym,because an hour later the kidswere still in there shooting.Tommy stayed for an extra hourand just shot and shot and shot.We came out and shot the ballwell today,” Cougar Head CoachRyan Huber said.

Senior Dave Kane was the BlueDevils’ main man under theboards with eight rebounds. Healso added 10 points, three stealsand an assist. Sophomore ChrisBoutsikaris scored 14 points, in-cluding three 3-pointers, andsophomore Parker Hess hit a pairof 3-pointers and finished witheight points. Junior Sean Elliott(3 rebounds, blocked shot, 2steals) also finished with eightpoints.

“We didn’t come ready to play atall today. I am disappointed. I amdisappointed with our team. Weplayed like crap to open up and wecouldn’t fight back into the game.It was awful,” Kane expressed.

The Cougars not only were ajump ahead of the Blue Devils inrebounding, especially in the firsthalf, but also, they were havingmuch success with rapid, cross-court passing to set up their shots.

“In between quarters, coach[Chris] Loeffler was looking atwhat they were doing defen-

sively. He diagrammed a coupleof things up. We did it and we gotit done,” Coach Huber said.

Cougars Mike Guarriello andCameron Kutzer also left a lastingimpression on the court, espe-

cially in the absence of seniorstarter John Oblachinski, who hadbeen away for college interviewsthe past several days. Guarriellosank 13 points, while adding fiverebounds, two assists and two

steals. Kutzer led the team with10 rebounds and netted 12 points.Luke Christiano had six points,four assists, four rebounds andtwo thefts. Jack Schetelich hadfour points and Jack McCaffrey (3rebounds) had two points.

“Mike and Cameron have reallystepped up the last two gamesthrough Johnny’s absence andreally played great. Cameron,especially, has played unbeliev-able the last two games. If wekeep continuing like this, we aregoing to be a tough team tobeat,” Coach Huber said.

The Blue Devils actually carrieda 6-2 lead midway through thefirst quarter, but the Cougarsabruptly answered with 11 un-answered points, including a pairof 3-pointers from Trotter, tograb a 13-6 lead. Three pointersfrom Trotter and Kutzer openedthe door for a 14-5 run in thesecond quarter and a 27-11 leadat the half.

Twenty Three of the Cougars’34 points in the second half camefrom the free throw line. TheCougars, who were 5-for-8 fromthe line in the first half, hit 28 of37 free throws for 76 percent.The Blue Devils finished 11-for-18 (61 percent) from the line.

“It’s the work that they areputting in. Sometimes a lossopens our eyes. I think our lossto Roselle really opened our eyes.We did what we could do. We hada couple of great days of prac-tice. We just got to keep themomentum going forward,”Coach Huber said.

“Like I said, ‘We didn’t comeout to play.’ We got destroyed.This was an awful loss for us,”Kane said.Cranford 13 14 16 18 61Westfield 6 5 8 28 47

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Probitas Verus Honos

David B. Corbin for The Westfield Leader and The Times

JUST PASSING THROUGH...Cougar Mike Guarriello, center, passes the ball through Blue Devil defenders BenSchumen, left, and Eric Shor, right, in the Investors games at Kean University in Union on January 12. The Cougars goton a hot streak early and kept on throughout the game to win, 61-47.

Story on page 11

of The Westfield Leader



Cougars Get Jump on Blue Devils at Investors Games at Kean University for 61-47 Win



By DAVID B. CORBINSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

Bonus points early on and out-standing efforts from severalfreshmen in the lower weightclasses allowed the Cranford HighSchool wrestling team to resttwo of its top athletes en route toa 35-25 triumph over the Eliza-beth Minutemen in Cranford onJanuary 8.

Senior Corey Birch (152-lbs)and sophomore Niko Cappello(160) were given the opportu-nity to sit out their bouts, whilejunior Gavin Murray jumped up afew weight classes to 152-lbs torecord a pin and Paul Castillofollowed with one of his own togive Cranford a 35-6 lead withonly four bouts remaining.

“It’s a team sport, so it’s bestfor the team having us go up aweight class against bigger kids.It helps us, because the kids aregoing to be smaller when we godown to districts, and it helps theteam, because we are gettingthe team points,” said Murray,who added, “We scheduled somany matches during the sea-son, so they got their rest today.”

“A lot of our kids have a lot ofmatches, so I had to sit a coupleof kids, so some filled in and dida great job. It’s good to have thatmovement and have kids, whocan fill in. It’s nice to know wehave depth,” said Cougar HeadCoach Pat Gorman, who added,“We have a lot of good freshmen.The freshmen are really pullingtheir weight.”

Murray kept his unbeaten streakin tact when he recorded a slip-through takedown then pinnedBruno Zurita in 1:33 with an armbar/half nelson after stretchinghim with a single grapevine.Castillo settled Rob McCall with aheadlock in 3:19.

“I had an arm bar on one sideand a half on the other. I tried to

run the arm bar then I hoppedover to half and stacked him up.I took the leg out once I got thearm and the half,” Murray ex-plained.

In the opening bout of theevening, after Cougar heavy-weight Jon ElKhoury dropped a3-2 overtime tiebreaker to Min-uteman Lloyd Jackson, threefreshmen, Anthony Capece (106),Tom DiGiovanni (113) and ChrisScorese (120) managed to reapthe bonus points to put the Cou-gars in a 13-3 driver’s seat.

Capece got a double-legtakedown and a two-point tilt inthe first period, added a nearfalland an escape in the second thentacked on a reversal and a tight-waist tilt to squeeze out an 11-3majority decision over MikeAnaya.

DiGiovanni also remained un-beaten when he claimed a 13-3majority decision over WesleyOrtiz.

“DiGiovanni is on a 13 or 14match streak. He had a great rundown in North Carolina. knockedoff the top seed, won the tourna-ment and he has been wrestlingawesome ever since,” CoachGorman said.

Scorese attempted to sever re-lationships early with TonyStuckey when he worked a three-point guillotine in the first pe-riod, had a switch reversal and asit-out turn-in reversal in thesecond then added three nearfallsin the third period to reap an 18-

2 tech fall in 5:28. At 126, Cou-gar Mike Nigro added an 11-3majority decision over JoseRondan.

Minuteman Willy Silva pulled asecond-period reversal to defeatDave Busch, 2-1, at 132-lbs, butCougar freshman Brian McGovernscored three takedowns and anescape to defeat Juan Miranda,7-3, at 138-lbs. Cougar AndrewTompkins recorded a pair of lowsingle-leg takedowns to topWesley Martinez, 5-1, at 145-lbs.

After Murray’s and Castillo’spins clinched victory for the Cou-gars, the Minutemen won thefinal four bouts, beginning withThassio Marques, who pinnedChris Kiame in 53 seconds at170-lbs. At 182-lbs, Mike Rojasused a two-point cradle to edgeNick Ballas, 3-1, then after JosepMejia received a forfeit at 195-lbs, Dave Tobe recorded atakedown, reversal and a pair ofnearfalls to earn a 10-1 majoritydecision over Mike Pastor at 220-lbs.

“I am very excited about theseason. There’s a lot more tocome. These are the freshmen Iwatched in the PAL. Now they arefinally here, and they have beenwaiting to wrestle up at this level,”Coach Gorman said.

BOUT SEQUENCE:Hwt: —Jackson (E) d ElKhoury, 3-2 TB106: — Capece (C) md Anaya, 11-3113: — DiGiovanni (C) md Ortiz, 13-3120: — Scorese (C) tf Stuckey, 18-2,5:28126: — Nigro (C) md Rondan, 11-3132: — Silva (E) d Busch, 2-1138: — McGovern (C) d Miranda, 7-3145: — Tompkins (C) d Martinez, 5-1152: — Murray (C) p Zurita, 1:33160: — Castillo (C) p McCall, 3:19170: — Marques (E) p Kiame, :53182: — Rojas (E) d Ballas, 3-1195: — Josep Mejia (E) won forfeit220: — Tobe (E) md Pastor, 10-1

DiGIOVANNI, MURRAY, SCORESE, NIGRO, CAPECE, McGOVERN, TOMPKIN, CASTILLO WIN

Cougar Wrestlers Pounce on Elizabeth Minutemen, 35-25

CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE


WORKING FOR A 3-POINT NEARFALL...Cougar Chris Scorese works a two-on-one tilt to get a three-point nearfallon Minuteman Tony Stuckey during his 120-lb bout. Scorese claimed an 18-2 technical fall in 5:28.





CRANFORD ATHLETES OF THE WEEK...Tom DiGiovanni, a freshman on the varsity wrestlingteam, is currently on a 16-match winning streak with an overall record of 17-1 so far this season. Heis currently tied for the most pins on the team at 7. Mairead McKeary, a senior captain on thebasketball team, led the Cougars with 15 points, 4 assists, 5 rebounds and 3 steals in a 65-43 winagainst Scotch Plains Fanwood this past Saturday.

Cougar Matmen Stop Elizabeth Minutemen



By DAVID B. CORBINSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

Team speed on the part of theCranford High School boys bas-ketball team led to a 59-46 vic-tory over the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Raiders at Scotch Plainson January 10. From the secondquarter onward, the 5-3 Cougarskept one step ahead of the 5-3Raiders to keep expanding theirlead.

Senior Mike Guarriello was oneof four Cougars, who hit doublefigures, leading his team with 15points to go with three assists,two steals and a blocked shot.Point guard Tommy Trotter (3steals, 2 assists) and CameronKutzer (3 assists, 3 steals, 5rebounds) each scored 11 points,and Jack McCaffrey (6 rebounds,2 steals) sank 12 points. LukeChristiano added six points.

“We like to push the ball morethan them. They like to slowdown. That’s pretty much howwe came out on top,” Guarriellosaid.

“They are athletic. They aregood. They were beating us offthe dribble. We were a step slow.They played last night, and weplayed last night an overtimegame, but they beat us to the

spots. That was big,” Raider HeadCoach Dennis Doherty said.

Leo Ramos was the go-to manfor the Raiders and finished with12 points, six rebounds and apair of assists. But the Cougarslimited him to only two points inthe final quarter.

“They wore him down prettywell. He was a little tired at theend,” Coach Doherty said.

The Raiders were moving play-ers on-and-off the floor through-out the game, so, in addition toRamos, seven players got intothe scoring column. Dan Lopez(3 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 assists)scored seven points, and AaronLee bucketed six points. JackPoillon (5 rebounds) and EmendoThomas each had five points,Quaryee Bull had four points,Josh Acosta (3 rebounds) sankthree and Chris Gibbons, whohad six rebounds, added twopoints. Devin Glover scored twopoints.

“Andrew Voysest’s hamstringwas hurt, but we are playing a lotmore guys,” noted CoachDoherty.

Despite the absence of big manJohn Oblachinski, the Cougarsheld their own to outscore theRaiders, 14-13 in the first quar-

ter, then pushed to a 29-22 leadby halftime thanks to Guariello,who found the openings to net 13of his points.

“I just moved around and got tothe basket, and they were able tofind me,” he said.

Trotter and Kutzer also foundthe open spaces and contributedsix and seven points, respec-tively, in the half.

“We made stops and we pushedup the floor. And that’s why wegot open looks,” Guarriello said.

McCaffrey got into the offen-

COUGAR GUARRIELLO NETS 15; TROTTER, CAMERON 10 POINTS EACH; RAIDER RAMOS 12 PTs

Cougar Cagers ‘Push’ Past Raider Boys for 59-46 Winsive act in the third quarter andsank seven points, including a 3-pointer, in a 21-14 Cranford runto up their lead to 50-36. Leebucketed a pair of 3-pointers inthe quarter. Lopez and Acostaeach hit a 3-pointer in the fourthquarter.

“We matched up with their size.We were able to defend theirplays. In the second half, wepicked it up and we were able to

drive to the basket and makeopen shots,” Guarriello said.

“We got to make sure that wedo a better job running our sets,getting good shots, getting goodshots for people who can makethem for us. Other than that, Itold the guys it’s a long season.I just want us not to get caughtup in a bad losing streak. We willtake the 5-3 for now. We will gofrom there,” Coach Doherty said.Cranford 14 15 21 9 59Sc. Pl.-Fanwood 13 9 14 10 46

Mairead McKeary and CerysMacLelland each scored 15points to lead the 3-5 CranfordHigh School girls basketballteam past Scotch Plains-Fanwood on January 11. MicaiahBattle led the 2-6 Raiders with10 points, while Katie Harperand Madison Maisel each nettedseven points.

Cougar Lindsey Pace put up 10points, Erin Miexner sank eight,Kerry Wischusen netted seven,while Megan Pringle and BelaSpeer each added four. RaidersAmani Williams and TabithaDwumfour scored eight and sixpoints, respectively.Sc. Pl.-Fanwood 15 11 9 8 43Cranford 19 15 17 14 65

Cougar Cagers Defeat Lady Raiders, 65-43

Cougar SnackCougar SnackCougar SnackCougar SnackCougar Snack



DRIVING PAST A RAIDER...Cougar Jack McCaffrey, No. 12, drives past Raider Devin Glover, No. 5, at Scotch Plains.More photos on next page. Story is on page 13 of The Westfield Leader and The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times.



** Cranford Cougar Basketball Boys Push Past SPF Raiders for 59-46 Victory **

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FULLER NIPS WETZEL; MILLER BROS ADD PINS; BARBER, GOZDIESKI, ANDERSON, HOERLE WIN

Blue Devil Wrestlers Burn Bears in Final Bout, 36-31By DAVID B. CORBIN

Specially Written for The Westfield Leader and The Times

Johnny Fuller faced the pres-sure and succeeded with a 1-0victory over Ray Wetzel in thefinal bout of the evening to sal-vage a 36-31 victory for theWestfield High School wrestlingteam over the Brearley Bears inWestfield on January 14.

The 6-4 Blue Devils were cling-ing to a 33-31 lead entering the113-lb bout between Fuller andWetzel. If Wetzel pulled out adecision, the Bears would win,34-33. After a scoreless firstperiod, Fuller escaped in the sec-ond period and needed to con-trol Wetzel for the entire thirdperiod to salvage the victory. Hedid!

“I knew coming down to theend that it was going to be reallyclose. I had to do something.

They bumped a really good 106-pounder up to me, and I knew itwas going to be a tough, physicalmatch. In the second, he couldn’thold me down. In the third, it wasjust everything I got. I had to doit for my team and for myself, aswell. Earlier we [team] were in alittle bit of a hole. My coach toldme going into the third that ithad to be my best wrestling. Iwent out there and left it all onthe mat,” Fuller said.

The Blue Devils stumbled intodire straits when Kevin Frega, ina close 220-lb bout with BearSaverio Salfcas, became the vic-tim of a lateral drop fall in 4:32 toput Brearley in front, 31-27, withthree bouts remaining. Blue Devilheavyweight Tom Anderson re-corded a takedown and an es-cape to beat Orion Stubbs, 3-0.Then at 106-lbs, Chris Hoerle

tacked on a takedown to a three-point half nelson nearfall thenadded a two-point nearfall, all inthe third period, to defeatEmanual Montero, 8-2, to putWestfield in front, 33-31, enter-ing Fuller’s bout.

“Great win by John Fuller! Hegutted that one out. He lookedtough on top. Chris Hoerle puthim in a position to win by com-ing back, trailing the wholematch, showed some guts, camethrough,” Blue Devil Head CoachGlen Kurz said.

The two Miller brothers, Jack at132-lbs and Kevin at 138-lbs,came up with key pins. Jack re-corded a back door takedown, adefensive spin around takedownand a three-point nearfall in thefirst period before showingCharlie Buckley the lights in 2:18.Kevin recorded a reversal on

Jesse Goncalves, which led to a3:03 fall using an arm bar halfnelson combination.

Matt Barber followed at 145-lbs with a pullback and smotherpin of Aly Mohamed in 52 sec-onds. Nick Velez received a for-feit at 160-lbs then JerekGozdieski earned a 5-3 decisionover Eoghan Savona at 170-lbs.

Bear Nick DeMarco received aforfeit in the first bout of theevening at 120-lbs. and TimMurphy recorded an 8-4 decisionover Nick Kalimtzis at 126-lbs.Bear Mike Tancs recorded atakedown on Devin Anderson withtwo seconds left to grab an 8-0,majority decision at 160-lbs. JoeBalboni received a forfeit at 182-lbs and Jeff Velez recorded a2:40 fall over Phil Ricca at 195-lbs.

“There were some places where

we wrestled really well. The twoMillers came through. As a team,we wrestled pretty well. I feelbetter than I have in the lastcouple of matches. We are goingin the right direction. Are we asgood as we need to be? Nope!But we are getting closer,” CoachKurz said.

BOUT SEQUENCE:120: — DeMarco (B) won forfeit126: — Murphy (B) d Kalimtzis, 8-4132: — J. Miller (W) p Buckley, 2:18138: — K. Miller (W) p Goncalves, 3:03145: — Barber (W) p Mohamed, :52152: — Velez (W) won forfeit160: — Gozdieski (W) d Savona, 5-3170: — Tancs (B) md Anderson, 8-0182: — Balboni (B) won forfeit195: — Velez (B) p Ricca, 2:40220: — Salfcas (B) p Frega, 4:32Hwt: — Anderson (W) d Stubbs, 3-0106: — Hoerle (W) d Montero, 8-2113: — Fuller (W) d Wetzel, 1-0MORE PHOTOS CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

Blue Devil Matt Barber

Bear Aly Mohamed

Blue Devil Kevin Miller

Bear Jesse Goncalves



The Cranford High School wres-tling team picked up three winswith a 46-22 victory over theScotch Plains-Fanwood Raiders,a 66-15 triumph over JFK-Iselinand a 40-18 triumph over OldBridge at the JFK-Iselin Quad Meeton January 11. The three victoriesput the Cougars’ record at 8-2,while the Raiders, who also beatOld Bridge earlier, 43-30, andJFK, 36-31, shifted to 8-2.

Cougars Anthony Capece (106-lbs) and Chase Gunther (113-lbs) received forfeits then ChrisScorese pinned Owen Martin in50 seconds at 120-lbs). RaiderJT Beirne nipped Dave Busch, 2-1, at 126-lbs then Cougar BrianMcGovern earned a 9-3 decisionover Tom Cunningham at 132-lbs. Cougar Gavin Murray pinnedJeff Liebich in 1:30 at 138-lbsthen Raider Brian Laphamgrabbed a 5-1 decision over An-drew Tompkins at 145-lbs.

In a key bout at 152-lbs, Cou-

gar Corey Birch shutout DomNatale, 7-0, then Paul Castilloclaimed a 14-3 majority decisionover Raider George Ramos at160-lbs. Cougar Niko Cappellopinned Jaylen Bryant in 31 sec-onds at 170-lbs. Raider AlexMirabella pinned Nick Ballas in2:50 at 182-lbs.

Raider Matt Ridge received aforfeit at 195-lbs then Dan VanBrunt seized a 13-2 majority de-cision over Cougar Mike Pastor at220-lbs. Cougar heavyweight JonElKhoury pinned Mike Hendersonin 3:48.

Against Old Bridge, TannerCorbett pinned Raider Matt Olinin 39 seconds at 106-lbs. Afterthe Raiders forfeited 113-lbs,Martin received a forfeit at 120-lbs the Beirne decisioned SteveNadera, 7-6, at 126-lbs.Cunningham won a 10-0 major-ity decision over Tom Angstadtat 132. At 138, Nick Sodanopinned Lieblich in 3:17 then

Lapham pinned Xavier Jenkins in3:26 at 145.

Natale claimed a 17-2, 4:07tech fall over Adam Chojnowskiat 152 then Dave Hopman pinnedRamos in 1:46 at 160. At 170,Dmitriy Mikhol pinned Bryant in1:48. Mirabella nipped MikeYuhos, 1-0, at 182. Ridge pinnedDan Makagon in 1:31 at 195. VanBrunt won a 13-4 majority deci-sion over Jeff Pabon at 220 andHenderson pinned heavyweightChristian Manzanares in 3:24.

Against JFK, Anthony Favorpinned Olin in 36 seconds at 106and JFK’s Kevin Schaeffer won byforfeit at 113. At 120, Martin waspinned in 52 seconds by VictorTorress. Beirne pinned EmmanuelRivera in 5:57 at 132 andCunningham lost, 13-6, to StivenSkenderi at 138. At 145, Laphampinned Sean Aston in 3:48.

JFK’s Carl Buttitta won a 14-6majority decision over Natale at152. Ramos won by forfeit at

Cougars Defeat Raiders, 46-22, at JFK-Iselin Mat Quad-Meet160. Mirabella lost, 13-8, to Bran-don Farrell at 170. Ridge won byforfeit at 182 and Van Bruntpinned Carlos Martinez in 59 sec-onds at 195. Anthony Deleonwon, 7-2, over Raider ChrisMcMahon at 220. HeavyweightHenderson pinned ChristianCardosa in 4:28.

Against JFK, Cougar Capecepinned Favor in 1:26 at 106. TomDiGiovanni pinned AdemDjonovic in 5:13 at 113 andScorese pinned Torress in 1:07at 120. Busch won by forfeit at126. McGovern pinned Rivera in5:07 at 132, Murray pinnedSkenderi in 2:43 at 138 andTompkins pinned Aston in 1:20at 145.

Buttitta pinned Castillo at 152 in1:10 and Alan Skaev pinned CoreyBirch in 49 seconds at 160. Farrellnipped Cappello, 4-3, at 170.Cougar Chris Kiame pinned IsaiahDiaz in 40 seconds at 182. Ballaswon by fall at 195 over Martinez.

Pastor won by fall over Deleon at220 and ElKhoury pinned Cardosain 1:46 at heavyweight.

Against Old Bridge, Capecepinned Corbett in 42 seconds at106. At 113, DiGiovanni pinnedNick Botte in 1:57. Scorese ekedout an 8-7 win over Kyle Brownat 120. Busch beat Nadera, 4-2,at 126. McGovern beat Angstadt,5-0, at 132 and Murray grabbedan 18-4 majority decision overSodano. Tompkins beat JohnMcCarthy, 6-4, at 145.

At 152, Birch claimed an 8-2decision over Chojnowski.Hopman pinned Cougar Castilloin 1:21 at 160. At 170, Cappellobeat Mikhol, 4-1. At 182, Ballaslost to Yuhos, 4-2. Old Bridgewon by forfeit at 195 and Pastorlost, 1-0, to Pabon at 220.ElKhoury won by forfeit at heavy-weight.


Blue Devil Jarek Gozdieski

Bear Eoghan Savona

Blue Devil Kevin Frega

Bear Saverio Salfcas



By CHRISTINA M. HINKESpecially Written for The Westfield Leader

CRANFORD — Paul LaCorte,chairman of the board of direc-tors of the Cranford DowntownManagement Corporation, dis-cussed phases one and two of athree-phase construction projectof the municipal building atMonday’s township committeeworkshop meeting. Phase onewill be to rehab the exterior ofthe building and phase two isrehabbing the bathrooms.

Mr. LaCorte said the “guidingprinciple is to keep it simple.”

The exterior wood trim, whichMr. LaCorte said is rotting, will bereplaced with a rot-resistant ma-terial; the cupola will be reworked

and its four finials restored, andthe cupola will be lit. The en-trance to the police departmentcurrently slopes toward the build-ing and will be redone to slopeaway to prevent water seepageinside.

Water seepage issues on thelower level need to be addressedas well, he said. Drainage pipingwill be reworked. Exterior light-ing will be added, but will beminimal and lit from the groundup. Rain gardens are planned forthe site, but the plans have yet tobe submitted, he said, and hedoes not want it to delay theoverall project.

The committee, he said, hadasked about installing a fire sprin-kler system. He said it would be“expensive and disruptive” to theconstruction process.

Committee member ThomasHannen, Jr. suggested havingthe elevator reach the third levelto allow the movement of archi-val files there in order to free upspace and get the files out of theground level so they are not atrisk to be ruined by floodwaters.

During construction, Mr.LaCorte said the computer serverwould be moved, and recom-mended it be relocated to thepolice department. It currently ishoused in the mailroom, whereasbestos tiles need to be re-moved. Also, he said there is a“remote chance there is asbes-tos in the plaster.” He said therewas asbestos testing completedin the lower level, and it wasnegative for asbestos there.

Phases one and two of the planare being funded through insur-ance, Mayor Andis Kalnins said.The committee expects a finalarchitectural proposal on Mon-day, February 10.

In other business, Police ChiefEric Mason announced a vacancyin the records division and askedto fill the vacancy with a startingsalary of $30,000.

Mayor Kalnins discussed theallocation of grant funds fromthe Kids Recreational Trust GrantProgram. The Memorial Fieldbathrooms have yet to be re-habbed, he said. The RooseveltPark and Sherman Park groundsare to be re-graded and resur-faced with the grant money.

Also, there was discussion aboutadding a playground to ShermanField, which Mr. Hannen saidwould take away from field spacefor sports. He said other sportsleagues have said there is lim-ited space to practice as it is. “Ifwe put playground equipmentthere, there are limits to what wecan do there,” Mr. Hannen said.

The roof above the indoor Or-

ange Avenue pool and exercisearea is leaking and Mr. Hannensaid that needs to be a priority.

The committee also discussedthe Roads and Resurfacing five-year plan. “There is a more im-mediate need for pothole re-pairs,” committee member LisaAdubato said.

Some resurfacing is not to startuntil April. “To tell people youhave to wait until April and it wassupposed to be done last year isunacceptable,” Mr. Hannen said.

Township AdministratorTerrence Wall suggested a soft-ware program that will track re-ported potholes and road dam-age and their subsequent repair.

Committee member Mary

O’Connor asked about revising theresidential garbage hauling ordi-nance. She said that while she wascampaigning, senior citizens askedto have it be allowed they get oncea week pickup instead of twice aweek. “It might be a help for somepeople to offset their costs,” Ms.O’Connor said.

Residents Albert and RachaelWatson voiced their aggravationwith their neighbor, who has beenplaying music for hours at a timeat a high volume that they canhear in their own home. Thecouple asked the township com-mittee to revise its noise ordi-nance and revise it to phrasethat the noise level on one’s prop-erty cannot be heard beyond theproperty line.

The Watsons said they havecalled the police regarding thematter, but that the police havenot been able to force the neigh-bor to lower the volume becausethere is no law in place that theneighbor is breaking.

Mr. Watson said the neighbor isplaying the music at high levelsas retaliation for Ms. Watson op-posing his fence plan when hewent for a variance at the lastzoning board meeting. The neigh-bor was denied a variance tobuild a six-foot-high, closedfence.

Mayor Kalnins said the chief ofpolice, who was in attendance atthis meeting, is looking into thematter personally.

Maureen Strazdon, chairwomanof the historic advisory board,said the board has been prom-ised a $2,000 grant from FEMA toreshoot its video architecturaltour of Cranford, A CruiseThrough Cranford. She said therelease of funds has been held updue to the plan for elevation ofsome homes in the historic dis-trict. Mayor Kalnins said the com-mittee will look into seeing if itcan front the money and be re-imbursed by the grant later.

GW Council Discusses RVSAFee, Athletic Field Delays

By MEGAN K. SCOTTSpecially Written for The Westfield Leader

GARWOOD – At the GarwoodBorough Council meeting on Tues-day night, the council discussedthe Rahway Valley Sewerage Au-thority fee increase, the replace-ment of a water main on MyrtleAvenue and heard an update onthe Athletic Field Complex.

The borough’s payments to theRahway Valley Sewerage Author-ity (RVSA) will increase by$37,000, less than last year’s$60,000 jump but still worth about$15 for every $100,000 of as-sessed home value, according toFinance Committee ChairwomanSara Todisco.

“I am disappointed, obviously,to hear these numbers, but at thesame time I am happy that I wasinformed before the budget pro-cess,” Ms. Todisco said. She addedthat she was told payment to theRVSA will flatten by 2016.

The RVSA payment only adds toother expected increases, such as

contractual obligations, an antici-pated compensation increase tovolunteer firefighters and first aidresponders and a possible addi-tional police officer.

“Of course I would like taxes tobe as low as possible, but at thesame time we have bills to pay andwe have services to keep up in theborough too,” Ms. Todisco said.“So we’ll see how it shakes out.”

Councilman Jim Mathieu, whohas been outspoken on budgetissues, acknowledged the strainthat the news will put on town’sfinances, but suggested its effectsare avoidable.

“It definitely makes things moredifficult,” Mr. Mathieu said afterthe meeting. “This is a very, verymild increase that we had noticeof, because we have a five-yearrolling average, and [RVSA repre-sentative] Stephen Greet told uslast year that we’re having a low-year drop off. So we knew this wascoming.

Cranford Township Committee Discusses Town Hall Rehab


Dietitian to SpeakAt Temple Event

CLARK – Temple Beth O’r/BethTorah will host a Lunch & Learnprogram on Saturday, January25, at noon following the morningSabbath services. The featuredspeaker will be diet and nutritionexpert Lauren Purdy, whose talkwill be on “How to Eat Healthy in2014.”

A Registered Dietitian, Ms. Purdyserves as the dietitian for ShopRiteof Clark. Also participating will beCantor Steven Stern of TempleBeth O’r/Beth Torah, who will in-troduce the program with a sur-vey of Jewish views on diet andhealth. The morning service andprogram will be open to the com-munity, but reservations are re-quired for the Kiddush lunch.

Located at 111 Valley Road inClark, Temple Beth O’r/Beth To-rah is a traditional, egalitariancongregation that welcomes allto join in their year-round pro-gramming of lectures, concertsand classes. The temple’s educa-tional programs serve pre-school-age children through adults. Formore information, call (732) 381-8403, extension no. 12.



By CHRISTINA M. HINKESpecially Written for The Westfield Leader

CRANFORD — During its meet-ing Tuesday, the Cranford Town-ship Committee designated theCrane-Phillips House as a his-toric landmark, discussed therenewal of Comcast’s contractand made appointments.

The Cranford Historic Preser-vation Advisory Board had soughtthe distinction of the Crane-Phillips House from the town-ship, making it the first house ordistrict designated under thisprocedure. At the urging of theadvisory board, the townshipformed an ordinance on historicpreservation last March for prop-erties in the township seekingsuch designation.

The Crane-Phillips House is al-ready on the National and StateRegisters of Historic Places. It isa historical museum open to thepublic on Sundays from 2 to 4p.m. Henry Phillips, of PhillipsMilk of Magnesia, purchased theproperty in 1867 from the Cranefamily, the founding family of

Cranford, and had the house builtby Andrew Jackson Downing.

Comcast went before the town-ship committee to present themunicipal consent public hearingfor the application of Comcast ofNew Jersey II, LLC for renewal ofits municipal consent to own,operate, extend and maintain acable television and cable com-munications system in the Town-ship of Cranford.

Charles Smith, director of pub-lic affairs for Comcast, said thecommittee must base its fran-chise renewal decision on fourquestions: has the cable opera-tor substantially complied withexisting franchise laws; has thequality of service been reason-able for community needs; doesit have financial, legal and tech-nical abilities to provide facilityequipment; is the renewal pro-posal reasonable to meet theinterests of the community. Hesaid the committee may look attwo areas - rates and program-ming - should it decide not torenew. The committee did not

Christina M. Hinke for The Westfield LeaderTO RENEW OR NOT…Charles Smith, director of public affairs for Comcast,presents facts to the Cranford Township Committee during the public hearingon the franchise application of Comcast New Jersey for renewal of its contractto maintain a cable television and communications system in Cranford.

“And I think that’s part of theproblem here when we don’t cutin other areas of our budget,we’re less able to absorb shocks.So we’re constantly surprised bythings that happen regularly.”

The council also was told byNew Jersey American Water Com-pany representative MichaelBange that the company will bereplacing 300 feet of a two-inchmain on Myrtle Avenue with aneight-inch wide pipe to servicethe area residents and the Ath-letic Field Complex. The com-pany will also replace servicelines to 113 homes. Those resi-dents will be notified in advancethat their water will be shut offfor up to an hour, Mr. Bange said.

Mr. Bange’s presentation domi-nated the work session, occupy-ing approximately an hour of themeeting.

In other meeting news, thecouncil was informed that theAthletic Field Complex likely willnot be ready in time for youthbaseball’s opening day in April,according to Councilman LouisPetruzzelli. The complex is nearlya year behind schedule.

Council members approved theintroduction of a resolution in-creasing the salary range for thepolice chief from $112,000 to$125,000 to $120,000 to$132,000.

Councilman Bill Nierstedt ishoping to organize a volunteercrew to wash council chamberwalls for Martin Luther King Day,considered a day of service.The work will start at 10 a.m. onMonday, January 20. Mr.Mathieu commented that he be-lieves that kind of work cheap-ens the memory of a great civilrights leader. In a handwrittennote given to The WestfieldLeader after the workshopmeeting, Mr. Nierstedt wrote“It is a shame that CouncilmanMathieu continues to belittlejobs that don’t satisfy his higherstandards.”

The Planning Board is consid-ering asking council for a budgetpool, which it will have discretionover to hire a firm for a redevel-opment study of the North andSouth Avenue corridors, Mr.Nierstedt told council. Membersalso agreed to review the park-ing ordinance, which was writtenin the mid-1980s and does notrequire businesses downtown toprovide parking.

“That was all well and goodwhen we didn’t have develop-ment,” Mr. Nierstedt said. “But ifwe are going to talk about howdo you develop downtown, we doneed to provide parking.”

Borough attorney Bob Renaudpointed out that there is no placefor parking. “So if you say youcan’t have development unlessyou provide parking you’re basi-cally saying you can’t have anydevelopment.” He added that theexisting parking could be “bettermanaged” to allow for greaterparking availability.

Mr. Nierstedt reminded resi-dents that trash has to be put incans. He said the Streets, Roadsand Ecology committee is look-ing at requiring recyclables beplaced in containers. He said 2013leaf collection “worked well” forthe Department of Public Worksand “positively” for the borough– there was no overtime. “It wasreal savings,” he said.

He mentioned a couple of pos-sible tweaks to the 2014 LeafCollection – requiring residentsto put leaf bags in the area be-tween curb and the sidewalk –not in the street – providing morepickups and extending leaf col-lection further into December.

Mr. Nierstedt suggested includ-ing money in the budget to hire afirm to assess the cost of certainservices in the borough – such astrash pickup – in order to deter-mine whether outsourcing wouldsave the town money.

Editor’s Note: Brian Trusdellcontributed to this report.

** Garwood Discusses RSVA ** Crane-Phillips House Designated Landmarkneed to vote on the renewal Tues-day, he said.

The lowest rate available forbasic cable is $15 a month, Mr.Smith said.

Mayor Andis Kalnins appointedMaureen McDougall as a Class Cmember to the Historic Preser-vation Advisory Board.

The mayor also made mayoralappointments to the EmergencyManagement Council for 2014 —Commissioner Thomas Hannen,Jr., Coordinator; Police Chief EricMason and Fire Chief LeonardDolan as Deputy Coordinators;Mayor Andis Kalnins; TownshipAdministrator Terrence Wall;Monika Koscova-Jencik, Sanitar-ian; Superintendent of SchoolsGayle Carrick; Township Engi-neer Richard Marsden; PublicWorks Superintendent StevenWardell; Construction Code Offi-cial Richard Belluscio; TV35 Rep-resentative, Edward Davenport;Citizen Representative, Marga-ret Pipchick; Consultant RonMarotta, and Support Team Mem-ber Michael Beams.

The committee approved, witha 5 to 0 vote, the salary for ChiefFinancial Officer LavonaPatterson at $106,951. Her ap-pointment is for a four-year termending December 31, 2017.

The committee approved, 4 to1, with Commissioner ThomasHannen, Jr. voting against theresolution, the salary of Fire ChiefLeonard Dolan, at $134, 366.

Mayor Kalnins announced theGreen Certification, part of Sus-tainable Jersey efforts by theCranford Green Team, of threelocal businesses: Romola’s Sea-food and Grille, Brooklyn Pizza,and Tony and Dan’s Accurate Auto.

The township’s e-mail systemhad gone down Tuesday. Mr. Wallsaid he had two proposals submit-ted by companies to correct theproblem. The system was expectedto be up and running by the end ofyesterday, January 15, Mr. Wall




Clergy Council CommitteePlans MLK Day of Service

CRANFORD — The InterfaithHuman Relations Committee ofthe Cranford Clergy Council,comprised of members from allhouses of worship in Cranfordand the Osceola PresbyterianChurch in Clark, will honor thememory and work of Dr. MartinLuther King, Jr. on Monday,January 20, with its SecondAnnual Day of Service.

The community is invited tocome to Bates Hall at the FirstPresbyterian Church ofCranford, located at 11 Spring-field Avenue, from 4:30 to 6:30p.m., to engage in various ser-vice projects. These will includedecorating potholders to be do-nated to a local women’s shel-ter, creating food packs, mak-ing gifts for the more than 300veterans at the Veterans Ad-ministration Hospital in Lyons,N.J. and making gifts for par-ticipants in the Meals on Wheelsprogram. There also will be arefreshment table available forpeople to purchase food anddrink, with proceeds benefitinglocal charities.

Janice Grevious, organizer ofthe event and recipient of theMartin Luther King Jr. Award,will return for her second year tohelp create this day of service.Participants also are asked tobring either a new, clean pair ofsocks or a canned good, to be

donated to local organizations.For more information about the

event, contact Ms. Grevious [email protected] or CindyHannen at [email protected] learn more about the Inter-faith Human Relations Commit-tee of the Cranford Clergy Coun-cil, contact Cindy Hannen [email protected] or call her at(908) 272-9133.

CRANFORD — The PinedaConservatory’s Center Stage Pro-gram for talented high schoolstudents is holding auditions forits five-week summer programthat includes fully staged pro-ductions of Jonathan Larson’sRent and a musical revue en-titled A Road Trip.

The Center Stage program be-

gins Monday, June 30, to and runsMonday through Friday, 12:30 to5:30 p.m. at the Cranford Dra-matic Club Theatre in Cranford.

The training program includesacting, dance, vocal and auditiontraining. The staff includes cho-reographer Christopher Johnson(Radio City Christmas Spectacu-lar, Chicago), Ra-Sean Holloway(A Chorus Line, Radio City Christ-mas Spectacular), director JuanPineda (Broadway’s Miss Saigon),vocal coach Valerie Pineda (Man-hattan School of Music), directorand choreographer Fausto Pineda(King and I, Grease) and vocalcoach Patricia Pineda.

Enrollment to the tuition basedprogram is limited and acceptanceis by audition only. Applicants mayapply for scholarship. FormerPineda Conservatory studentshave been accepted into some ofthe nation’s leading college the-ater programs and conservatoriesand have gone on to appear inprofessional theaters and opera

said.During Commissioner Reports,

Commissioner Hannen announcedthat Cranford High School hadstarted CHAPS (Cranford HighAssistance Program) to providehelp to families who are in need ofassistance for a variety of things.Residents interested should con-tact students Kevin and Trevor [email protected].

Commissioner Robert D’Ambolasaid, “This incredible cold snaphas created numerous potholesthroughout town. It is very bad.”Residents should call (908) 709-7217 to report dangerous condi-tions. The township’s Departmentof Public Works will be out makingrepairs, he said.

On Saturday, February 22, mem-bers of the team advisory boardwill participate in the Polar BearPlunge in Seaside Heights to ben-efit the Special Olympics and hopesto raise $18,000, CommissionerMary O’Connor said.

The Cranford Fire Departmentwill hold a Food and Wine tastingon Wednesday, January 22, atPines Manor in Edison. Seecookedanduncorked.com for moreinformation.

Ms. O’Connor thanked Cranfordpatrolmen Timothy O’Brien andDaniel Donnestag for pursuing andapprehending suspects in the at-tempted theft at Martin Jewelerslast Thursday.

The Chamber of Commerce willhost a 2014 kickoff party at theCranford Hotel on January 22 at 6p.m., Mayor Kalnins announced.Local businesses are invited. RSVPat the chamber office.

A Jaycees fundraiser will be heldat the Cranford Hotel from 3 to 6p.m. this Sunday, January 19.Admission is $30.

As part of the FEMA elevationproject, the township is movingforward on elevating two homes,Mayor Kalnins said.

The New Jersey Department ofEnvironmental Protection will holdan open public hearing on the

application for the proposed de-velopment of a site on BirchwoodAvenue today, Thursday, January16, at 6 p.m. in the council cham-bers. Each resident will have threeminutes to speak or can submitwritten comments in advance.Each comment in regards to theenvironmental impact will be con-sidered with the application.

CALLING ALL ACTORS...The Pineda Conservatory’s Center Stage Programfor talented high school students is holding auditions for its five-week summerprogram that includes fully staged productions of Jonathan Larson’s Rent anda musical revue entitled A Road Trip. Pictured above, the cast from a previousproduction.

Pineda Conservatory Sets Teen Auditionshouses around the country.

Auditions are being held on Sat-urday, March 1, Sunday, March 2and Sunday, March 8, by ap-pointment only for students en-tering ninth grade and up. Ap-pointments can be made by call-ing (908) 731-1377 or by onlinesubmission atpinedaconservatory.com/Audi-tion-Request.html.

Prepare 16 bars of a musicaltheater up-tempo and 16 bars ofa musical theater ballad that showrange and acting ability. Vocalauditions will be followed by agroup movement and dance call.Bring dance clothing (comfort-able clothes and dance shoes/sneakers). All students shoulddress professionally for the audi-tion. You will be given time tochange. The audition process willtake approximately two hours.

If necessary, call backs will bescheduled on Sunday, March 9.Students selected will be givenone week to accept their spots. ARoad Trip is a musical tribute tothe USA. This show includes ev-eryone selected for the program,and features those who do nothave leads in Rent The show iswritten specifically for the stu-dents featured and has two fullystaged performances.

Everyone in the program alsoparticipates in the main stageproduction of Rent. Some rolesmay be double, triple or qua-druple cast. Be advised that theproduction of Rent deals withmature themes and all studentsparticipating will be required tosubmit a permission slip prior toauditioning.

The Pineda Summer Conserva-tory also holds a five-week morn-ing program for middle schoolersfeaturing a production of Shrekthe Musical and for students inelementary grades 2-5 with aproduction of Aladdin Kids.

For more information visitpinedaconservatory.com or call(908) 731-1377.

Crane-Phillips House Landmark

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