Open letter to Mr. Rickey Sumter
Dear Mr. Sumter:
You owe your Mayor an apology; when you chastised Mayor Levine for asking the North Brunswick Township Council to come to tonight’s meeting, you were totally off base.
I attended the North Brunswick Township Council meeting on Monday, Feb. 6, and spoke for twenty minutes at the podium to the Council about the Bennetts Lane/Route 27 development. There the Council agreed to attend tonight’s meeting to present North Brunswick’s concerns about this development and the impact on the traffic, environment and quality of life for residents in both Franklin and North Brunswick. Mayor Levine had absolutely nothing to do with my Township Council attending tonight’s meeting. If you have any doubts, I am sure I can obtain the videotape of the meeting.
It is refreshing to be a citizen and have my elected officials listen and allow me to speak long enough to express my concerns, a concept unknown in Franklin. Considering you feel that your town operates and exists in a bubble, there is small wonder that you resent any input. But of course, why should you listen to me or any other North Brunswick resident since you and your fellow Council members have refused to listen to your own townspeople?Yours truly,
Karen Ramsden-ZahlerPS. I’m still waiting for that apology. I hope to hear it at the next Council meeting.
Comments
Karen,
The residents of Franklin would appreciate your submitting your open letter to the editor of THNT if you care to.
Ray
Posted by: Ray Kulberda | February 9, 2006 07:01 PM
Actually, Ray, I did send an email to the Ms. Blumberg, the Home News Tribune reporter who wrote Franklin Housing Plan Advances this morning, so maybe it'll be printed:
Dear Ms. Blumberg:
I believe that you were accurate on your reporting; however, what is lacking is the appalling way the North Brunswick Township Council was treated by certain members of the Franklin Township Council. I especially take offense at the way Mr. Sumter berated Mayor Levine for inviting the North Brunswick Township Council. Mr. Sumter’s anger was directed at the wrong individual. I attended the North Brunswick Township Council meeting on Feb. 6, and spoke to my Township Council for 20 minutes on the Bennetts Lane issue. They agreed to come to the Feb. 8 meeting to address their concerns with the Franklin Township Council UPON MY URGING. For any member of the Franklin Council to act that way is unforgivable and shows complete hostility towards Franklin’s neighbors. It was unwarranted and rude, and Mr. Sumter owes his Mayor an apology.
But then again, rudeness reigns on this Council, as I’ve seen it in the way the Council constantly batter their Mayor. Their methods utilize the old “the best defense is a good offense” mode of operation. Maybe I expected too much from last night’s meeting and the Council. The behavior was unprofessional.
Yours truly,
KARZ
Posted by: Karen Ramsden-Zahler | February 9, 2006 07:30 PM