Congress awarded Hammonton $250,000 in July to help bring a Stockton educational center or campus downtown. The college already is offering classes at St. Joseph High school, but Mayor John DiDonato estimated in July that it would still cost $3 million to $4 million to open a Stockton campus in town.
Joseph Ingemi, the Democratic candidate for mayor, said in a release that he began to question what impact the project would have on Hammonton taxpayers.
"When I questioned the mayor, he did not give a total cost of the project, nor could he identify sources of funding other than the $250,000 in federal resources. Nor could he give any details on the project," Ingemi said. "Public statements have only proved more confusing."
As a result, Ingemi said, he has filed two separate Open Public Records requests with the town clerk's office.
The first was a July 31 request for all correspondence, earmark requests, notes from conversations and meeting minutes pertaining to the project, from which he said he received "insufficient documents."
The second was a Sept. 1 request for the Economic Development Initiative Application for the project, but he said that request was never answered.
"When this refusal to provide information is coupled with recent arbitrary changes to zoning ordinances throughout the town, I am beginning to wonder if something big, expensive and intrusive is in store of Hammontonians," said Ingemi, who filed a complaint with the sate Government Records Council on Sept. 22.
DiDonato said that it is not his job to handle OPRA requests and that "in no way" has he prevented the information from being released.
"This is an excellent project for our community," he said. "Any community would love to have a college campus in town, especially when it is a joint partnership with a college with the excellent reputation that Stockton has."
DiDonato said there is currently "nothing in place" that would cause the burden of paying for the project to fall on the town's taxpayers.
"At this point, we're trying to achieve everything with grant money," DiDonato said, adding that the $250,000 grant would be used to acquire a building to house the campus. "And there's nothing in place for spending anything other than that."
Town Solicitor Brian Howell said he is investigating Ingemi's allegation and confirmed that the town has not taken any steps to bond for any portion of project.
E-mail Robert Spahr:
RSpahr@pressofac.
Joseph Ingemi adds the following statement to the article:
"This article brings out many interesting points. First, let me say that this action is not a lawsuit. No one is suing the Town or encouraging litigation. This action is a request to the state to help bring out the truth on a secretive project. I am running to protect taxpayers not take from them.
Second, the Mayor's reponses were laughable. He states that there is nothing "currently in place" to burden taxpayers. Well, the taxpayers are concerned with what will have to be put in place in the months and years to come to pay for the satellite campus. Then, the Mayor states that any community should be happy with the project. Is he insinuating that we are simply to accept whatever his administration does and not ask any questions? So much for open government."
