County Issues

With the shutting down of newspapers all across the country, information regarding elections is scattered all over the internet and oftentimes appears biased because it is coming from the candidates themselves and their parties. The local paper, The Daily Journal, was absorbed by a parent company and the last reporter in the county retired last year. Without a trusted 3rd party entity providing objective oversight regarding issues facing the county, the public is left woefully uninformed about what is going on, especially in regards to local elections where biased political messaging could be running rampant. While most of the candidates agree we need press coverage, none of them seem to be particularly interested engaging in an action plan to fix the problem for a variety of reasons. One candidate said "With the lack of press coverage, candidates are left to be their own press on social media." While we appreciate the pro-active approach to do something to get information out to the public, this approach could easily lead to the appearance of overwhelming bias and scattered sources of information... who has the time to scour all the candidates social media pages, verify the facts, send follow-up questions that oftentimes go unanswered, attend various events that have entrance fees, etc etc etc? The press, that's who. Another candidate said "If I get involved in forming the local press, it could be viewed as a bias for my party." Understandable, but we are still ultimately left uninformed. The public needs reasonable access to comprehensive, consolidated information regarding election choices. "We'll let the public know what we want them to know", this did not come from a candidate, but rather from a campaign organizer. It's pretty clear that we have a problem, but not necessarily anyone willing to solve it.

On the weekend of May 18th at the VHS Wellness Fair, we were able to speak with a representative of the Vineland Environmental Commission and dig into some of the environmental issues going on in the county.

• 1. Street trees not being replaced – When new construction is done throughout the city of Vineland, oftentimes trees are taken out during the process. While the city should replace these trees for overall beautification of the city and air quality concerns, oftentimes this is overlooked.


• 2. Stormwater - When it rains, the water that hits the streets brings out dirt and oils. Usually, this water goes into storm drains which hurts rivers and streams. We could instead build waterways that would redirect the water to the natural grass and dirt grounds, like lawns, which would act as a natural filtration system with the soil. Also, sometimes impervious surfaces which are not meant for certain areas, are created during construction projects because planning and zoning boards grant 'variance waivers' for impervious surfaces. This basically means natural ground that would act as a natural filtration system for dirty water is instead replaced with surfaces like roads, concrete, etc.


• 3. Over-mowing - Many areas do not need to be mowed. But when we do mow them out of habit, we reduce the amount of pollinators. Pollinators are the type of vegetation that bees need to survive, and bees have been facing endangerment for a long time. A simple solution would be to raise awareness that many areas, like many roadsides, don’t need to be mowed.


• 4. Over-fertilization of ponds – Many areas near ponds have runoff during storms that gets into the ponds. Oftentimes this runoff has a lot of fertilizer in it. When the fertilizer gets into the pond, pond vegetation grows way too much, which needs to then be dredged (cleaned out), which is very expensive. Finding a way to prevent over-fertilization of ponds could save us a lot of money.


• 5. Litter – Littering is still a big problem in the area and should be addressed. One interesting angle on this is the recent abolition of single use plastic-bags. With that step, there was an immediate reduction in litter throughout the county. Similar steps could be made to reduce litter throughout the county.


• 6. ATVs – In addition to the common problems associated with ATVs (like dangerous driving conditions), oftentimes they also cause an environmental problem. While there are some designated areas for drivers to use their ATVs, oftentimes people drive them wherever they want anyway, to the extent where endangered vegetation areas are being ruined, even when signage is posted not to drive there.


• 7. Local food – Oftentimes our local grocery stores are not using locally produced food. One example of this is that our local blueberries being grown in Hammonton are being shipped down to stores like Publix down in Florida. Meanwhile, we are shipping in blueberries from other areas. Food costs and gas emissions could be significantly reduced with better produce logistics.

This was the most popular issue over last year and continues to be a part of ongoing disucssions in the county. As part of the Inflation Reduction Act, Senator Van Drew applied for Cumberland County to receive a federal grant to upgrade our broadband infrastructure. The full grant was approximately $35 million, where Cumberland County would need to spend about $5 million of its own money to qualify for the grant. Part of the controversy arose during public hearings about the project, where the 'true cost', meaning additional costs during years of implementation as opposed to the initial proposed cost, could add tens of millions, let alone maintenance costs after implementation.... so who would pay for that? Another part of the controversy over moving forward on this project was that the ‘middle mile’ grant only extends dark fiber around the general area of the county but does not guarantee that any homes will actually be hooked up in the future. That part would rely on internet companies such as Comcast and Verizon, individual residents, or 'end mile' grants to directly connect customers to existing infrastructure. With 'end mile' options available, some people feel that direct connections are a better method rather than a county-wide solution that is oftentimes redundant, meaning many areas around the county already have sufficient access to broadband. There was also no feasibility study finished, which implies the cost of the project could be significantly off. There was much passionate debate at county meetings on whether to move forward or not, and finally the county commission voted in favor of moving forward. Shortly after the vote, Director Commissioner Albrecht informed us that the county is already in talks to receive the ‘end mile’ money, which could work in tandem with middle mile money we already received. The bulk of these discussions happened about a year ago in 2023, so perhaps it is time the public receives a progress report from the county so they can get a clear picture of how the project is going and how their tax dollars are being spent. This would be consistent with Commissioner Lod's statement during the vote (paraphrased), "We understand that the project is a risk, as many projects are. We can try going in this direction and if it doesn't pan out the way we're hoping, we can try something else."

There seems to be several problems revolving around the county jail. The most obvious of which is an ongoing class action lawsuit about the mistreatment of prisoners during the pandemic. This seems to have led to some discussion about renovating the jail while focusing on issues such as mental health, rehabilitation, etc.

Nabb Ave is a road in Millville which is close to both its business and industrial districts. Extending it is proposed to have an effect in which trucks delivering goods via route 55 would have easier access to the business and industrial districts, which might reduce transportation costs, which could help overall business in the county.

The county seems to have outdated sewage and septic systems, which leads to many problems regarding business development and home real estate (such as building new homes or selling homes). I’ve been quoted costs anywhere from $15,000 - $90,000 for sewage/septic upgrades of individual properties.

Off-road vehicles such as dirt-bikes and ATVs have been a problem in the county for years. When addressed at county meetings, commissioners claim that the local elected officials hands are tied because of insurance and state law related issues. Will we ever solve this problem?

A representative from East Point Lighthouse gave a speech at a County Commissioner meeting on October 10th 2023, regarding several issues surrounding East Point Lighthouse. Apparently the DEP has been causing blockades and giving a lot of runaround in regards to the lighthouse receiving funding for its upkeep. There was also much discussion surrounding unequal treatment for the Eastpoint lighthouse in comparison to other lighthouses throughout the state. Under current management, the lighthouse has restored to a fully functioning lighthouse which ships depend upon, and has become a historic landmark for tourists. However, funding and support is needed for basic things such as bathrooms (there are currently none), adding walkways, and upgrading the current dirt road entrance to a paved road. These specific aforementioned improvements do not even need funding, they only need to be approved by the DEP. Also, with the ever changing climate, rising water levels threaten to destroy the property. The lighthouse needs protection for this concern that other lighthouses throughout the state already have.

Cumnberland County has been working with Cape May County to promote general tourism in the area. With Cape May already having an established tourism industry, many tourists and vacationers book hotels in Cumberland County during their trips. Both counties are working together to increase tourism in Cumberland County, as that will help Cumberland County apply for state tourism grants, provide tourism packages for both counties, and help develop business in both counties.

Homeslessness is on the rise throughout the country and Cumberland County is no exception. Areas of Landis Avenue in Vineland and the business districts in Bridgeton or Millville are examples of the problem growing. There also seems to be only one shelter that is not centrally located, leaving people who depend upon it with the burden of finding reliable transportation to and from it while attempting to get back on their feet.

Much like homelessness, crime seems to be a growing problem in the county. With discussion of gangs in Bridgeton regularly occurring at county meetings, what are our candidates planning to do to handle crime? Furthermore, it has recently been stated that immigration has brought MS-13 members into the county... will this also contribute to crime?

The handling of veterans' affairs continues to be a problem throughout the country. While there is a lot of overlap among county commissioners, congressmen, and US senators while addressing tasks associated with veterans, there are some responsibilities which are specific to the county level. Commissioners are responsible for things such as local services coordination, like overseeing the county veterans' cemetery, veterans ID card issuances, and being a liaison between veterans associations and the government. Being liaisons, commissioners should provide service referalls for local veterans and advocate for policies which would help local veterans. What visions do the candidates have to ensure our veterans will be taken care of moving forward?