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| One of the Hackensack City Council's most persistent critics is Daniel Carola, a member of the Board of Education, above. Some might think Carola is just trying to deflect attention from the sad state of the city's public schools, including the food service in the roach-infested Hackensack High School cafeteria. |
By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR
David R. Troast, top candidate for Hackensack city manager, says he lives in Hawthorne, and would be commuting in his own car.
In a brief conversation during a lull in Tuesday night's tumultuous City Council meeting, Troast told Eye on The Record he has already "refused" use of a city owned car, breaking with an age-old practice that inflames property tax payers.
Mayor John Labrosse and City Council members deferred action on a resolution to appoint Troast after what The Record today called "intense resident criticism of their presumptive pick for new city manager" (L-1).
The story, written by Todd South, identifies some of the critics by name, but doesn't report they are allied with local Democratic Chairwoman Lynne Hurwitz and the Zisa family's politics of greed, which dominated the city for decades.
Troast is a planner
According to his LinkedIn page, Troast is a redevelopment planner who was township manager in Sparta (Sussex County) until a year ago, and before that headed the rural township's Department of Community Development and Services.
Since 1989, he has owned David R. Troast LLC, which "specializes in professional planning services for municipalities and private clients in northern New Jersey."
His redevelopment background would seem to be a good fit in Hackensack, which has launched an ambitious plan to make over its downtown.
The Record and North Jersey Media Group abandoned the city in 2009, knocking Main Street down but not out.
Back to school
Four of Troast's most vociferous critics come from Hackensack's Board of Education, which spends more to educate a student than does the highly regarded village of Ridgewood, according to state education officials.
Board of Education Attorney Richard Salkin was fired from a second job as municipal prosecutor after the winning City Council slate took their seats in July 2013.
Two other critics, Jason Nunnermacker and Joseph Barreto, are Board of Education members who were on the losing slate, which was backed by Hurwitz and the Zisa-allied City Council members who didn't run in May 2013.
Another critic, Daniel Carola, also is a member of the Board of Education.
Carola, who harangues the council at nearly every meeting, appears to be reading from prepared remarks.
His attacks on the mayor and other council members serve to deflect attention from the sad state of the city's crowded public schools.
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| The City Council and acting city manager listening to a critic of David R. Troast, whose hiring as city manager was deferred on Tuesday night. |
Newsroom idiocy
A front-page story today asks how a man who "seemed to have everything" -- including a good job, backyard pool in a wealthy community and "even Giants season tickets" -- could kill his mother (A-1).
What idiocy.
This is the same kind of clueless media speculation that occurred after Robin Williams' suicide on Aug. 11, with editors and reporters ignoring how depression and other demons could drive someone to suicide or murder.
The lead byline on the story about suspect Nicholas Piotti of tony Ho-Ho-Kus belongs to Christopher Maag, who was assigned to cover Hackensack for a few months before taking over the transportation beat.
Maag and other reporters covering the story of a son allegedly killing his mother should just assume the suspect is "crazy" -- as is any killer -- and go from there.
In fact, Piotti is being held in a "psychiatric hospital," according to the story.
Are the editors suggesting that the Giants miserable season last year had anything to do with the slaying?
