State of the Borough Address 2009 Mayor Letitia G. "Tish" Colombi

Good morning! How was your breakfast? Anybody need more coffee? Another sausage?

Do these guys and gals do a great job, or what? Let’s hear it for all the members of the Lions Club who have shown us this morning yet another meaning of their motto, "We Serve"!

On behalf of my fellow Commissioners, and all of you, I would like to thank the Lions Club for once again hosting this annual community gathering. If you have never been to a Mayor's Breakfast before, I hope you will feel, when you leave, that you have had a pleasant time, that you are more knowledgeable about the state of the Borough, and that you will want to come back next year. And I hope, when you DO come back next year, that you will bring a neighbor or colleague with you. There's plenty of room.

I would also like to thank the Presbyterian Church and Pastor Bill Getman for their hospitality. They have always been very willing to make their facilities available for community events, and we are very grateful.

The Mayor's Breakfast is intended to provide an opportunity for members of the community to hear a report from the elected leaders of the community on the state of the Borough. Often, in times past, the report was delivered by the Mayor alone. It has been my practice, however, to invite my fellow Commissioners to speak – BRIEFLY – about their departments. I intend to follow that practice again today.

A YEAR OF ACCOMPLISHMENT

When I look back on 2008, I see a year of extraordinary accomplishment. Accomplishment by our municipal government. Accomplishment by our School District . By our community organizations. By our business community. And by our residents.

The nature and scope of these accomplishments enable me to look forward with confidence to the year ahead and to our ability to weather the economic storm that is swirling around our community, our state, our country, and our world.

If we were to look for just one example of accomplishment in 2008, of dedication and determination, we would only have to step outside our homes or businesses and wait a while. Before too long, an attractive and incredibly fit young woman would come running by. Erin Donohue has run through the streets of our town for the past twenty years, on her way to becoming a two-time National Scholastic Outdoor mile champion and record-holder, the Nike National Indoor mile champion, the New Jersey Athlete of the Year in 2001, the fastest American to run the women's 1500m in 2007, and – in the summer of 2008 – a member of the US Track & Field Team, competing in the Women's 1500 at the Beijing Olympics.

What an extraordinary accomplishment, and how proud we are of our hometown Olympian!

We will remember the crowds lining Kings Highway for her send-off parade, Erin riding on the back of one of our fire engines. At the High School stadium, where she had logged thousands of miles, she invited all the kids to join her in a jog around the track, creating memories for a lifetime.

Right now, Erin is training in Mexico . But several of her longtime coaches are here – Nick Baker, Maureen Baker, and Mike Bussarello – and they certainly deserve much of the credit for Erin ’s success. Will you please stand? Let's show our appreciation to them.

Considerable credit also goes to two other people. They are the ones who guided and encouraged Erin from Day One. How proud they must be. Erin 's father, Ed, who taught her the love of running and with whom she ran in her first 5-miler – and came in fourth, at age 9 – could not be here today. But we are joined by her mother, Eva Donohue. Eva, would you please stand?

HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETICS

Since I am on the subject of sports, I want to shine a spotlight on the High School's overall athletic program. Each year in New Jersey , a trophy is awarded to the high school that has the highest overall achievement in athletics in the state. It's called the Shop Rite Cup and Haddonfield won it, in the Group II division, in 2004. We also won it is 2005. And 2006. And 2007. And 2008.

So many students and coaches and administrators deserve the credit for this extraordinary achievement. Some of them are with us this morning. Please stand when I call your name. The District Athletic Director, Lefteris Banos. Nick Baker, Dean of Students and Track Coach, whose Boys- Cross-Country team won the 2008 state championship. Mike Bussarello, social studies teacher and Cross-Country Coach, whose Girls' Cross-Country team won the 2008 state championship; boys' and girls' swimming coach Bob Querubin, whose teams won Colonial Conference and South Jersey Sectional championships in 2008. Then there is High School counselor and tennis coach, Jeff Holman. Incidentally, the National Federation of High Schools has named Jeff "the winningest tennis coach in the country." Jeff coached his 2,000th tennis match this year and his girls' tennis team won the 2008 state championship. I'm especially grateful to Frank DeLano, 6th grade math teacher and football coach, for guiding the Dawgs to victory on Thanksgiving Day – the 100th anniversary game against Haddon Heights – so the Mayor's Trophy remains in Haddonfield, where it's been for seven of the last eight years.

I've mentioned just a few sports and introduced just a few coaches. Our sports programs in 2008 had 10 Colonial Conference championships, 9 South Jersey Sectional championships, and 4 State Championships. But it's that Shop Rite Cup that stands as testament to the depth and breadth of our athletic program. Thank you, all.

Great credit for our success at the varsity level must go to the coaches who guide our youngest athletes, whose numbers are in the thousands, in a wide variety of town sports. We have seen their efforts pay off, time and time again, when those youngsters reach the High School. These organizations are responsible for hundreds of thousands of dollars of improvements to our recreational and sporting facilities.

ROAD AND UTILITY WORK

We continued to pour money – millions of dollars, in fact – into our streets and utilities program which in 2008 included Chestnut Street , Colonial Avenue , and Westminster Avenue . Major reconstruction projects in 2009 will involve utilities replacement, road reconstruction and beautification along the entire length of Tanner Street . The others will include Woodland Avenue and Redman Avenue , for which we received $180,000 in state funds. These projects will be disruptive and time-consuming, unfortunately, but they are vital, and we will work hard to keep the inconvenience to a minimum.

The big public works project in 2008, of course, was the reconstruction of Kings Court which was originally a street, as the old-timers here today will remember. The entire infrastructure had to be replaced, so we took the opportunity to redesign the streetscape, plant trees, install new lighting, etcetera. In a few months, when the weather warms up, the landscaping will be completed.

I want to recognize David Watson, our Superintendent of Public Works, and his entire crew for their dedicated service to our community. They do an excellent job.

And I want to thank the residents for their magnificent recycling efforts which resulted in Haddonfield's winning the first Camden County recycling grant – $25,000. We purchased 12 new recycling cans for our downtown with a portion of the grant. Haddonfield recycled 975lbs per household, beating the runner-up by over 300lbs.

MILESTONES

A number of organizations in town celebrated major anniversaries, birthdays or developments last year. Among them:

– Mt. Olivet Baptist Church – 117 years – and a newly renovated sanctuary.
– Bancroft NeuroHealth – 125 years – with a parade down Kings Highway and day-long festivities on the campus.
– Hadrosaurus foulkii – 150 years – with a party at the sculpture site, the renaming of Lantern Lane (to Hadrosaurus Lane ), and a magnificent exhibit at the Museum of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia . It runs through April, and I urge you to go see it.

There was a celebration and grand opening at the Markeim Art Center as well – a total makeover. $100,000 for improvements was donated by private individuals through the efforts of Markeim president, Brian Wolfson. The result is a stunning facility, a real art museum. An dinner event is planned for April, with music provided by David Kim, concertmaster for the Philadelphia Orchestra. If you haven't seen the Markeim, please stop by! Better yet, make a reservation for this fabulous evening.

First Night attracted a huge crowd despite the fact that it was one of the coldest – and windiest – nights of the year. This prohibited the fireworks demonstrations, but thanks to the committee, top notch entertainment was enjoyed by over 6,000 people. And Erin Donohue, our Celebrity Master of Ceremonies, introduced a remarkable new act, the Beijing Opera.

At Mt. Pisgah AME Church on Ellis Street , the steeple was hoisted into position atop a new building that, unfortunately, is shivering this winter for lack of an external skin. There is a dispute between the church and its insurance company about the amount that should be paid, following the fire that destroyed the building in June 2006. The case is in arbitration, and we hope and pray for a speedy and favorable resolution.

The fall of 2008 brought with it the retirement of Bill Mason, the longtime and extraordinarily dedicated innkeeper at the Indian King Tavern. A threatened closure of the building – one of the state's most historic properties – was averted when the Governor restored its budget. The Friends of the Indian King Tavern made considerable noise in protesting the potential closure, and got the attention of Assemblyman Lou Greenwald, the chairman of the legislature's Budget Committee. Joe Murphy, a tireless advocate for the Tavern, was instrumental in the creation of that group, and was out in front of the demonstrators in his three-corner hat, holding a sign that said, “Honk! Gov: Save the King!” Joe, could you please stand?

Also on the historical front, Kathy Tassini and Doug Rauschenberger completed many years of research on a pictorial history of Haddonfield that was published in the fall. The book costs $20 and $5 goes to the Historical Society. Copies are available at the Information Center and Greenfield Hall. Our congratulations – and thanks – to Doug and Kathy.

Still on the subject of milestones, there are over 25 stores in town that have operated under the same ownership for 25 years or more, representing more than 10% of all retail businesses in town. We have one business in Haddonfield that is over 100 years old – Caravelli’s Barber Shop – but its ownership is no longer in the Caravelli family. But can you imagine a business where the SAME PERSON has been waiting on customers for 50 years? How about 60 years? OK. How about 69 years? There IS such a business in Haddonfield and the owner is here with us this morning. I suspect that most of you have visited Quaker Shoe Repair at one time or another, so the face will be familiar to you. Ladies and gentlemen, celebrating 69 years in business – and his 89th birthday tomorrow – James Spinelli.

REVENUE & FINANCE

The Partnership for Haddonfield was created by the Borough in 2004 to help advance the economic status of the business community and, by extension, our entire community.

Neal Rochford is the Commissioner who serves as liaison to the Partnership for Haddonfield, so I would like to invite Neal to give us a State of the Borough report on that topic, and also on his areas of responsibility generally – Revenue & Finance. Ladies and gentlemen, Commissioner Neal Rochford