‘It was Unnecessary’
Lynda Cohen has a sad story on Billy Dennison Froehner, the 91-year-old EHT man who wandered away from his home and was found dead on Monday. He’d been a jazz musician “whose 74-year career included performing with Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and Tommy Dorsey,” LC writes. She interviewed Froehner’s grandson. Another family member had been taking care of the elder Froehner in recent years, but he was getting old too.
“My grandfather wandered into the woods and died alone because people couldn’t connect the dots,” the grandson said. “It was unnecessary.”
Spending Money to Save Money
Jeffrey “Boardwalk Emperor” Chiesa and his gang of avid money-savers hired a private investigator to “track” Atlantic City firefighters who are fighting–in addition to the fires–the state’s efforts to cut their salaries, the firefighters allege in court documents, the indispensable Amy Rosenberg reports.
Someone noticed a car lurking and called the police who ran the plates.
A spokesperson for the Imperial Palace did not deny the part about the private eye, but did say, ““The fire union’s posture has been one of confrontation from day one.”
I think that’s called “projection.”
Now I’m going to have that Hall & Oates song in my head all day.
Bruce from Denver
Wayne the Man Parry from the AP offers yet more indication on who’s buying the Revel.
“AC Ocean Walk LLC, a group controlled by developer Bruce Deifik, applied for the [New Jersey casino] license in October, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement said Tuesday,” Parry reports.
Glenn Straub continues to maintain there’s no deal, but it’s hard to tell if he’s gaslighting or genuinely confused himself. This is probably the kind of question we should get used to. The Boomers are not going quietly into that good night.
#ThemToo
A “far-reaching” class action lawsuit filed in Superior Court in Mercer County alleges state officials ignored for years “rampant sexual harassment” by prison guards on female inmates, NJ.com reports.
As S.P. Sullivan said the other day, from the desert, “State authorities would have you believe there are 1-2 substantiated cases of sexual abuse in New Jersey prisons each year, among a population of 20,000 inmates.”
He wrote this original story back in September.
Homo Criminalis
ICE agents arrested 101 “criminal aliens” last week in a sweep, NJ.com reports, noting that “many from Mexico and Central America.” The ICE head in Newark said the New Jersey residents the agency is focused on “are criminal and are a threat to public safety and national security.”
Incidentally, as an ASIDE, if you lecture your peers online about immigration but don’t realize “illegals” pay taxes or know who Árbenz was, we should probably upgrade the terms and conditions of our relationship.
$400 Million Millennial Repellent
Historically unpopular lame-duck Governor Chris Christie’s administration is set to issue $400 million of debt to build a bunch of “controversial” buildings “that have been panned by many residents and business owners” in Trenton, the valuable NJ Spotlight reports. The EDA approved the money yesterday. He’s doing it for the Millennials, who don’t like those kind of buildings and will get stuck paying for them.
31%
Connecticut millionaire Tom MacArthur says the GOP tax bill is good for you, fellow New Jerseyan, a claim that makes him unique among the state’s congressional delegation. What makes MacArthur different? Unlike those “other people” out there “having press conferences” and “bloviating” (MacArthur’s words) he has really looked at the bill. I mean really looked at it, in all its magnificent disarray.
“I have looked at this bill six ways from Sunday,” he said. There you have it.
In related news, 31% of Americans think the bill’s a good idea, and a whopping 8% agree with MacArthur it will benefit the middle class, according to this poll.
Very Connected Dude Disconnects
Finn Wentworth is “forgoing his lifelong Republican allegiance” and backing Democrat Mikie Sherrill for the Eleventh Congressional District, NorthJersey.com reports.
Careful readers of this space will remember Wentworth as an investor in the Chelsea Hotel, and a member of the ACDevCo and a member of the Hanson Commission that wrote the report that created the DevCo.
Anyhow. Wentworth cited Rodney Frelinghuysen’s support for a recent concealed-carry gun law and his vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act as the reason he was jumping off the Frelinghuysen train, saying those views were not consistent with the “socially moderate and fiscally conservative” Republicans of his community.
Elsewhere locally, that crazy house with the dinosaurs in Tuckerton is being auctioned off, Vincent Jackson reports.
And Haddonfield’s first microbrewery is having its grand opening next week. It’s on the King’s Road darling! The energetic Matt Skoufalos reports.
O.L.S.S.
Our Lady Star of the Sea should be re-opened and ready to go for mass on Christmas following a major renovation, the Press of AC’s John DeRosier reports. Renovations include “a new floor, new wheelchair-friendly ramps, a new bathroom, new pews and a new altar, among other things.” They’re also using the old altar from the Holy Spirit church in the Inlet.
On a personal note, yours truly spent a lot of time in that church as a kid, contemplating the Infinite under penalty of pain from Srs. Shamus, Anastasia, etc. etc. And I was allergic as hell to that old carpet. Look forward to seeing the upgrade!
See what it takes to replace 90-year-old boardwalk in Ocean City (PHOTOS)–The removal of loose change, straws, thousands of plastic tasting spoons and 12,000 cubic yards of sand brought the final phase of the Ocean City Boardwalk reconstruction project one step closer to being completed. www.nj.com
Widow of EHT policeman to receive a free new roof–East Coast Roofing, Siding & Windows announced Friday that the family of the late Egg Harbor Township police Lt. David Algeri won its annual roof giveaway. www.shorenewstoday.com