GRAEBENER & ST. AMOUR'S ORIGINAL LETTER TO ATLANTIC COUNTY

You have probably recently read about the response from Atlantic County Administrator Gerald Del Rosso to a letter from Bernard Graebener and Michael St. Amour requesting that the County pick up roadside litter BEFORE cutting the grass and shredding the litter along county roadways. The tone of Mr. Del Rosso's response, along with the sensationalizing by our Mayor, Janet Forman, would lead you to believe that the original letter written to the County was somehow disrespectful or politically motivated. Here is the actual verbiage from the letter:

Atlantic County Government
County Executive Dennis Levinson
1333 Atlantic Avenue
Atlantic City, NJ 08401

Re: Litter Pick-Up

Dear Mr. Levinson:

Please accept this correspondence as a request that regular litter control along County Route 561 (Moss Mill Road) in the Township of Mullica be instituted, specifically between Adams Circle and Clarks Drive, where long stretches of unattended, undeveloped land parallel this busy County roadway. This appeal is being addressed to you due to our dissatisfaction with the way that county road department officials have responded to previous Township telephone requests, since the New Year, that roadside trash be removed from this neglected section of Rte. 561.

Moss Mill Road is a major thoroughfare in Mullica, and this stretch of road is one of our gateways to our community. Numerous visitors pass along what otherwise would be a scenic, rural route. The amount of trash allowed to accumulate along this portion of the roadway is unsightly and reflects poorly on our community.

The County regularly cuts the grass along Rte. 561 during the summer months but doesn't seem to ever pick up the trash before or after cutting. The new litter just blows to the tree line and into the woods from the action of the mowing and left there.

Most of Mullica's landowners regularly keep their property fronting County roads clear of trash, as well as do local volunteers along some of the County roads; however, we would ask that the County better maintain those portions of roadway that are not being so well looked after.

Another County thoroughfare in Mullica that we would like the County to address is Route 658 (Columbia Road), on the stretch of undeveloped forest between Elwood Road and Moores Avenue, in Nesco. The amount of trash regularly left there is much less; however, it has been allowed to collect for a long period of time, with many beer bottles and other unsightly refuse laying along the roadway's shoulders, and it needs to be cleaned up and then maintained, preferably at least twice a year.

Respectfully,
Bernard Graebener
Michael St. Amour
Township Committee

This letter was written with respect after phone calls were made to the County. The letter was drafted only after committeeperson Kathy Chasey insisted on making another phone call, citing her working relationship with Atlantic County. THAT RELATIONSHIP YIELDED NO POSITIVE RESPONSE WHATSOEVER. With no relief from the County, Chasey decided, at a public meeting, that she was "comfortable" with the trash in Mullica.

Atlantic County officials could have handled this request in a number of ways that would have shown their respect for the residents of Mullica. Instead, we received a partisan political response from one of Dennis Levinson's subordinates.

In this case, Graebener & St. Amour went to bat for the residents of Mullica. Chasey, who claimed to have the County's ear, in the end did nothing but make excuses.