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NORTHVALE, N.J.—Northvale’s incumbent Mayor Stanley “Ed” Piehler faces a challenge from independent former-Councilman Patrick Marana in this year’s general election.
Piehler is the Democratic nominee and is seeking another term, while Marana first emerged as a challenger as a write-in candidate in the Democratic Primary Election and then as an independent.
Borough voters will elect a mayor to serve a four year term on Nov. 6. They will also choose two candidates to serve three-year terms on the Borough Council. The candidates—Republicans Councilman Peter Sotiropoulos and Joseph E. McGuire, and Democrats Councilwoman Toni Macchio and Ryan M. Moran—will be profiled in a separate article.
Candidates were asked to submit a statement outlining their backgrounds and issues that are of importance to them; they appear in alphabetical order by last name. Asterisks denote incumbents.
Patrick J. Marana
“I left the Northvale Council at the end of 2016 satisfied that things were running smoothly. I also believed that, after almost a decade on the Council, it was time to let other people with new ideas give it a try. As the Council’s long time Finance and Taxation liaison, I focused on financial matters including capital projects. As of [Dec. 31, 2016], the Borough had stable taxes and a sufficient surplus that would enable future Councils to ride out any unexpected cost increases.
“Earlier this year, numerous residents, including several current Council members, began requesting that I run for Mayor. Too many things were going wrong. For the first time in anyone’s memory, the State of New Jersey rejected Northvale’s proposed budget resulting in a very late budget with a 6.2 percent municipal tax increase. The tax increase was held to 6.2 percent only by using a record amount of the taxpayers’ surplus funds to offset spending increases.
“The laundry list of other issues facing Northvale taxpayers are detailed and documented in the mailers by Residents For Change, the citizens action group backing my Mayoral candidacy.
“I was an early advocate (2005) of both the professional grants writing program and the development and implementation of the Livingston Street/Paris Avenue Streetscape. Both have been home runs with grant funds obtained having exceeded costs by a very wide margin. Fueled by grant money, the parks have been greatly improved.”
Stanley “Ed” Piehler*
“Northvale is a wonderful community where people genuinely care about each other, and I feel blessed to have been born and raised here. I feel equally fortunate to have the honor of serving as Mayor for the past four years.
“Working closely with the Town Council, we have worked hard to maintain Northvale as one of the best communities in New Jersey in which to live and raise a family, by:
• Maintaining stable municipal property taxes;
• Improving municipal services;
• Rebuilding our parks to make them safer for everyone;
• Obtaining State and Federal grant funds to purchase emergency equipment, improve streetscapes, and make our sidewalks and playgrounds safer;
• Organizing a very successful celebration of Northvale’s Centennial, with a carnival, museum, gazebo and multiple events commemorating this milestone;
• Continuing community events such as Town Day, Concerts in the Park and a Mayor’s Wellness Campaign, at no cost to taxpayers;
• Demolishing an unsafe, dilapidated building at 411 Clinton Avenue, making nearby sidewalks safer for children walking to school, creating new tax ratables and adding to the municipal surplus.
“Volunteerism and strong community spirit are two of the attributes that make Northvale such a special place. I am proud to have been a part of this community volunteerism for many years, serving as a coach or assistant coach in youth baseball, softball and soccer, and as a member of the Planning/Zoning Board.
“My wife, Lisa, and I are the proud parents of two children who attended Northern Valley-Old Tappan.”
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