UCCF 7/14/22: UC Gov’t Complex Fiasco

In about an hour Bruce Paterson should be expounding on the “cluster–f” that is the UC Gov’t Complex project. Here is what he intends to say:

Union County in NJ FY23 Budget

NJSpotlight noted how Democrats divvy up COVID-19 aid quickly and in private and spotlighted how much the Union County Improvement Authority benefited.

Still, there’s been no explanation in the budget documents that spells out precisely how many of the approved appropriations will be utilized. They include the combined $40 million that will be going to the improvement authorities located in the home counties of Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin (D-Middlesex) and Senate President Nicholas Scutari (D-Union).

But in looking over the FY23 budget, there is more than just what the UCIA got.

Advertisement

Square One for UC Government Complex

When laws are broken in the real world there are often consequences. But when it is Union County ignoring New Jersey’s Local Public Contracts Law what we get is an attempt to make what is blatantly wrong perfectly legal, as per the nj.com article.

UCCF 6/23/22: Resolutions

Resolutions referenced:

UCCF 6/9/22: Q&As and MV Strategies

Questions on resolutions:

Comments on MV Strategies:

Responses:

UCCF 5/26/22: Underpaid County Employees

Some turn employment with Union County into hundreds of thousands of dollars in salaries and stipends annually. While others:

MV Strategies Coverup

The good news is that “Daily Reports to Ed Oatman and the UC Board of Commissioners from MV Strategies” and “emails, texts, memorandums and any communications between Edward Oatman/Jessica Cohen and Megan Brown/Elaina Estrin of MV Strategies beginning June 2020 through December 2021” exist. The bad news is that it will cost you $750.91 (not including copying charges) to get them.

Cultivating Justice in the Garden State

David Wildstein had Chapter 3 – Settling Scores – on his blog which led a my first blog. Now the book is out and reveals Union County political power broker Raymond Lesniak to be in line with almost all other politicians here who believe they know it all because they elicit the largest bribes. Lesniak’s career highlight was some forensic competition he won in France opposing the death penalty. We find out about France, his method of preparation, and the skill level of his opponents that day but nothing about his argument. It’s all about him.

UCCF 5/12/22: MV Strategies in NJ

When asked what MV Strategies did and who else they did it for, we got this response:

So these are supposed to be the clients of MV Strategies in New Jersey:

• Union County
• Hudson County
• Camden County
• Gloucester County
• Burlington County
• Middlesex County
• City of West New York
• State of New Jersey

If googling is supposed to yield better results than sending in OPRA requests it’s worth a try.

UCCF 5/12/22: MV Strategies Called Out

Nobody got the poll question right as Bruce Paterson was shut down after 4 paragraphs of his statement at last night’s Union County commissioner meeting – though it had to do with running into a time limit after laying out his timeline of trying to find out what MV Strategies did for $750,000.

But most of you were right about commissioner backlash:

Here is the full exchange: