Columns/Opinions

Earlier this month, the Livingston Fire Department held a huge 100th anniversary celebration, complete with a parade, activities on the Oval, and countless fire trucks for children to enjoy. It was delayed one week due to rain, but that was only fitting, given the circumstances. The anniversary celebration was originally supposed to take place in 2021, but was delayed a year due to the pandemic.

In this edition of the Tribune, we are paying tribute to our great fire department and its 100-plus years of dedicated service. This special commemorative section features historic photos and articles detailing a century of the department’s heroics and good work.

Originally, we had planned to run a sponsored page honoring the LFD, but so many local businesses reached out asking to get involved and say “thank you” to the organization that we were instead able to create an entire section (and a portion of the revenue from this section will be donated to the LFD).

There is less than a month before Election Day on Tuesday, November 8, and this year’s ballot will feature two contested local elections. Four candidates are vying for two open seats on the Board of Education, while seven candidates are running to fill three seats on the Township Council. We have 11 local candidates, making it more important than ever to have an informed opinion about each of them.

Some people have cast their early votes by mail, so the process is already underway. But for the majority of residents who have not yet voted, we encourage you to pay attention to the candidates and the issues as we approach voting day, not simply focus on the best looking lawn signs. It is important to remember just how valuable each vote is in a local election; in recent years, less than 100 votes have made the difference in some of these races. So your vote, or lack thereof, will shape this town moving forward.

This week, running through Saturday, October 8, is National Newspaper Week. The annual observance of the service that newspapers and their employees provide to their communities has been in existence since 1940; what is printed within the pages of newspapers has certainly changed since then, but the importance of the medium has not. And here at the West Essex Tribune we are proud to be one of the only remaining independent newspapers in the state, bringing our community the stories that matter to them.

In recent months, the Tribune has heard residents commenting on a lack of transparency in meetings. Specifically, in regard to Township Council, people in person at meetings and on social media have complained at how little discussion is had in public, prior to votes on resolutions and ordinances. Meeting transparency was also the subject of a question asked during last week’s Township Council debate. A common refrain we have heard is that most matters on the agendas during the regular meetings appear settled long before they are even brought up, resulting in what can at times be limited discussion and unanimous approvals. The overarching sentiment among those who have complained appears to be that most of what transpires among Township Council members happens in a private space, away from the public eye.

I always knew that the earliest developmental stages of my sons’ lives weren’t going to be my favorite. I have always wanted to be a father, but what I was looking forward to were the things a little further down the line: taking them to movies and baseball games; coaching their sports teams or other activities; traveling with them on vacations that they were eagerly anticipating. Slightly older kids stuff. That was totally fine with me. I was more than willing to wait and do my best to relish the journey getting there.

Last week, Livingston Public Schools hosted a community conversation focused on school security. The program included district administrators and members of the Livingston Police and Fire Departments, and touched on topics ranging from active shooter incidents to cybersecurity.

The school shooting that occurred earlier this year in Uvalde, Texas was one of the most discussed topics that evening. It was heartbreaking to hear parents discuss the fears they have about simply sending their children to school, and they relayed the concerns their children have shared with them, as well. It was a somber, grim discussion, but one that, sadly, needs to be had in 2022. We are glad the district was willing to listen to these comments directly, even if all involved knew there would be no magic answers to solve these terrible issues.

The gradual drop in temperature and faint smell of pumpkin spice means that we have once again arrived at September’s National Immunization Month, and this is right around the time we encourage everyone to get their flu shots.

This year we are also encouraging everyone to get their newlyavailable (as of this month) fall COVID booster shots, reformulated to target the omicron subvariants of the virus. Individuals 12 years old and up are eligible to receive the latest booster.

We understand that “booster fatigue” may be setting in for some (for many, this will be their fifth COVID shot in less than two years), but this is no time to get lax about your health.

The same could be said about the flu. While the past two years have seen significantly fewer flu cases, due in large part to precautions taken during the COVID pandemic, signs in the southern hemisphere indicate a rough flu season may be imminent.

Dear Editor: On behalf of the membership of the Livingston First Aid Squad, we are very appreciative to the Tribune for helping to promote our Fund Drive Campaign, which started last week. Livingston residents and businesses received our letter last Need a last-minute gift? A subscription to the Tribune is just the thing! We’ll even send a card to the recipient, to let them know who the gift is from. Call 973-992-1771 to order a gift subscription, or send an e-mail to WETribune@gmail.com.

At the latest Livingston Township Council meeting, there was lengthy discussion of redevelopment and payments in lieu of taxes (PILOT), specifically concerning a parcel at the corner of East Northfield Road and South Livingston Avenue. Put simply, a PILOT is an agreement in which a person is exempt from paying property taxes, and instead, pays a lower amount to the township.

A resolution concerning the area was initially on the Council meeting agenda in August, but it was ultimately pulled after some residents complained about a lack of notice. The proposed resolution would have declared 21 and 25 East Northfield Road – known as block 2700, lots 50, 51, and 52 on the township tax maps, partially along South Livingston Avenue – as a noncondemnation area in need of redevelopment.

This Sunday marks the 21st anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the fall of the World Trade Center, the crash of Flight 93, and the attack on the Pentagon.

Much has changed in the decades since that terrible day, but in Livingston, each and every year, we still take the time to honor the seven township residents we lost.

Luke A. Dudek. Jeffrey Brian Gardner. Donald Thomas Jones II. Ming-Hao Liu. Joseph P. McDonald. John M. Pocher. Kenneth Albert Zelman.

These seven Livingstonites became part of a nationwide tragedy that forever altered the face of America. Our country’s confidence in the security of its citizens and its institutions was shaken to its core, and nothing has been the same since. In the years that followed, towns across the nation held ceremonies to honor the more than 3,000 people who lost their lives in the attacks, including our own service in Livingston.