Asbury Park Press from Asbury Park, New Jersey • Page 31

WuL.NCdiVtt 1 iNUV. ELECTION 97 Republicans retain control of Freehold Township panel Bradley Beach will continue to elect mayor "Si in mrr- By JOSEPH SAP1A FREEHOLD BUREAU FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP Retaining two decades of all-Republican control on the Township Committee, Raymond A. Kershaw and David P. Segal easily won re-election last night Kershaw and Segal defeated Democrats Joy E. DeSanctis and Timothy Dowd.

The committee femains 5-to-0 Republican. Kershaw led the candidates with 5,991 votes, while Segal received 5,820. Dowd and DeSanctis finished well off the pace, receiving 3,624 and 3,276 votes, respectively. NonRepublicans whether Democrats, third-party candidates or independents have failed to win a committee seat since the mid-1970s. Republicans have controlled the committee since 1970.

Kershaw and Segal have been on the committee since 1991 and 1976, respectively. "I'm just going to let the numbers speak for themselves," Segal said of the race in which the Democrats raised issues such as jobs local Republicans hold with the GOP-controlled Dowd said the race was not against Segal and Kershaw personally. He said the race was for their seats. "We're only interested in the issues," said Dowd, 53, of Eaglenest Road. "We're disappointed," said DeSanctis, 45, who lost a committee race for the second year in a row.

"We appreciate the support" Disappointed or not, the Democrats did remain upbeat "There's no funeral," Dowd said. "There's the birth of a new group of Democrats that arc going to be in Freehold Twp. "We offer our congratulations to Dave Segal and Ray Kershaw," Dowd said. "We also offer our expertise and our concern for the community. We entered the race because the people of Freehold Township asked us to." Kershaw, 55, of Sunnybrook Drive, could not be reached for comment.

DeSanctis lives on White Mountain Lane. Of the township's 18,171 voters, 10,272, or about 57 percent, went to the polls. dim tine Xm Murray WbttaM McGreevey Sakrw KefmNuaK Democrat Ltbertmnm Aberdeen Township 2,489 2,469 334 Allenhurst 189 102 13 Allentown 320 229 82 Asbury Park 748 1,790 69 Atlantic Highlands 997 740 89 Avon 499 373 61 Belmar 1,041 977 133 Bradley Beach 886 696 93 Brielle 1,289 474 103 Colts Neck Township 2,578 731 134 Deal 246 98 8 Eatontown 1,828 1,451 200 Englishtown 166 140 54 Fair Haven 1,456 722 75 Farmingdale 252 124 38 Freehold 1,262 1,314 i88 Freehold Township 5,724 3,519 633 Hazlet Township 3,687 3,054 476 Highlands 843 711 107 Holmdel Township 3421 1,167 198 Howell Township 7,260 4,686 1,175 Interlaken 305 136 18 Keansburg 1,140 1,330 184 Keyport 1,029 1,003 0 Little Silver 1J594 681 91 Loch Arbour 81 68 5 Long Branch 2,618 3,500 257 Manalapan Township 5,027 4,045 574 Manasquan 1,465 688 104 Marlboro Township 5,743 4,188 479 Matawan 1,449 1,136 194 Middletown Township 13,677 7,668 1158 Millstone Township 1711 733 269 Monmouth Beach 927 505 57 Neptune 3,522 4,498 399 Neptune City 734 663 96 Ocean Township 4,719 3,441 378 Oceanport 1,266 857 104 Red Bank 1,606 1,597 123 Roosevelt V16 219 22 Rumson 2J089 538 88 Sea Bright 457 224 30 Sea Girt 701 225 37 Shrewsbury 867 418 49 Shrewsbury Township 130 122 14 South Belmar 327 302 33 Spring Lake 103 447; 195 Spring Lake Heights 1J46 892 124 Tinton Falls 2,143 1,671 201 Union Beach 827 833 170 Upper Freehold Township 761 354 169 Wall Township 5,297 3,037 464 West Long Branch 1,782 1,129 86 Totals 103,839 72,715 10,435 Neptune Democrats win 2 seats, taking unanimous control of panel By AMY ZURZOLA COASTAL MONMOUTH BUREAU NEPTUNE Democrats regained two seats on the Township Committee last night, ousting two incumbents and gaining total control of the governing body. Democrats Joseph E. Krimko and Kevin B.

McMillan defeated Republican Committeemen Richard J. Iadanza and Richard B. Murphy by slim margins, ending a race that took several turns in recent weeks. On Sept. 30, Murphy withdrew froirl the campaign a few days after being charged in connection with a school bus bid-rigging scheme.

Over the weekend, however, Murphy sent letters to voters' homes saying he was getting back in the race. The departure of Murphy, 49, a manager with Laidlaw Transit left Iadanza, 42, of Webb Avenue, to continue campaigning on his own. "Well, we worked hard, we're pleased with it. We think we can make some positive changes for the town," Vote totals are unofficial. Asbury Park Press Graphic By AMY ZURZOLA COASTAL MONMOUTH BUREAU i BRADLEY BEACH The.

bor ough's strong mayor form of government withstood a challenge last that would have changed the way the mayor is selected. Voters overwhelmingly rejected" 3 ballot question that would have re- moved the direct vote for mayor and had the council members pick the per-', son for the top spot from among themselves. The measure failed by a more than 3-to-l margin, 345 for 1,069 against, which Mayor Steven -Schueler said was a clear message from voters. "They just decided they weren't going to give up their right to vote," he said. "They went too long without it and they weren't about to give it up." In 1992, a referendum changed the borough charter from a three-member commission form to the current mayor-council setup.

Schueler, 49, led charge that year to switch to the cmv" rent system and has held the top fice ever since. Turnout in the borough was strong," with each of the four voting district's-reporting nearly 50 percent of regis1-" tered voters casting ballots, Schueler said. Bradley Beach has 2,855 rqgi--. tered voters. The push for the referendum grew out of a dispute between Schueler and the current council over the 1997 nicipal budget passage in May.

The council members approved a spending -plan that included a 30-cent tax increase, which Schueler voted: against, saying he favored further budget cuts and layoffs of some hru- nicipal employees. Schueler, acting on legal advicfc from Borough Attorney Joseph Quinn, refused to detail his proposed cuts even after the council approved a resolution directing him to do so. Michael R. Speck, who the Committee to Change Bradley1 Beach, said changing the charter" would have encouraged cooperation and communication among the elected officials. He said the referendum's meant the town's voters did not want-a mayor who would be held accounted ble by the council for his actions.

monitors a female student, taken to a home, where they were "made to lay don by the pool where they were covered with catsup, then hosed off." I The "senior girls" said the June 17 incident was "not initiation or hazing," but a "simple prank between older and younger siblings." "If we were trying to harm these kids they would not have been our best friends' younger sisters and brothers and their friends," the letter said. "These freshmen were not physically or verbally abused." The letter further states that the rumors "were probably personal prob lems and not seniors hazing the fresh- men." "These exaggerated shakedownj lap dances and other incidents are not going on in Holmdel High School," the senior girls' letter concluded. painful story with his elected )ffi-J cials," McHugh said. "To allow loEbj-J ists to engage in these kinds of mali- cious tactics to advance their special interest groups at the expense of the little man is to subvert the legislative, process and cannot be condoned." I McHugh also represented Sklodoto-J ski in the original lawsuit against the park, charging the park's owners had failed to keep the landing pool deep enough, and arguing that they should, not have allowed riders to go hqad first down the slide. The park blamed Sklodowski, say ing he caused the accident by leap from the slide into the landing; pool, and that there never had beennl accident before.

Kershaw Segal county government Segal's full-time job, for example, is the county adjuster. Also, the Democratic campaign suggested the Republicans supported a recent power plant proposal near the Smithburg section. "The race wasn't about Freehold Township; the race in Freehold Township was funded and done just to get me," said Segal, 60, of Coachman Drive. "And the numbers speak for themselves. This is a huge victory.

It isn't close." Segal declined to identify those who he thought were out to get him. Krimko McMillan said Krimko, 58, of McClintock Street. "Professionalism is in, cronyism is out." A Superior Court judge ruled Murphy's name could not be replaced on the ballot because the Sept. 17 deadline had passed and some absentee ballots had already been printed. McMillan was the highest vote-getter with Krimko received 4,374.

Iadanza garnered 4,102 votes and Murphy got 3,299 votes. The vote totals include absentee ballots. Iadanza wished the two winners well, but cautioned them that the building. MATAWAN Borough Council, 7:30 p.m., 201 Broad St. MIDDLETOWN TOWNSHIP Planning Board, 7:30 p.m., town hall.

MILLSTONE TOWNSHIP Committee, 8 p.m., municipal building. NEPTUNE Cin Housing Authority, 8 p.m., municipal building. NEPTUNE TOWNSHIP Board of Adjustment, 7:30 p.m., town hall. OCEAN TOWNSHIP Council, 6:30 p.m., 8 p.m., town hall. OCEANPORT Board of Adjustment, 8 p.m., borough hall.

RED BANK Board of Education, 7:30 p.m., Primary School. SEA BRIGHT Borough Council, 8 p.m., Ceclle F. Norton Community Center. SEA GIRT Borough Council, 7:30 p.m., borough hall. SHREWSBURY Borough Zoning Board of Adjustment, 7:30 p.m., borough hall.

SOUTH BELMAR Council, 8 p.m., fire-house. TINTON FALLS Planning Board, 7:30 p.m., borough hall. WALL TOWNSHIP Board of Adjustment, 7:30 p.m., town hall. WALL TOWNSHIP Township Committee, 7 p.m., municipal building. WEST LONG BRANCH Borough Council, 6:30 p.m., 8 p.m., borough hall.

Caucus meeting: The public Is Invited, but public participation generally is not allowed. UPCOMING FREEHOLD: The Thrift Shop of Cen-traState Medical Center, 45 Throckmorton has used clothing and household Items In good condition. For more Information, call (732) 462-3437. THE NEW JERSEY Self-Help Clearinghouse maintains a database of more than 4,000 support groups and 200 help lines In New Jersey. For more Information, call 1-800-367-6274 from 9 a.m.

to 4 p.m. FREEHOLD: The Monmouth County Human Relations Commission, which fosters Improved relations and understanding among citizens, has formed a speaker's bureau. For more Informa- I tlon, call (732) 291-4257. township's voters will hold them accountable for their actions in office. "Neptune Township is very diverse," he said.

"There's no one person (voters) will stick with. They've got to move and shake or they'll vote them out, too." Murphy, 48, of Inskip Avenue, and Iadanza had held seats as two GOP voices on an otherwise Democratic governing body comprised of Mayor Patricia A. Monroe and Committeemen Michael D. Beson and James W. Manning.

McMillan, 36, of O'Hagen Terrace, is the executive director of the Boys Girls Club of Monmouth County in Asbury Park. He said one of his goals as a committeeman will be strengthening the township's recreation program. "We have a good program now, but we want to enhance recreation and bring good economic opportunities," he said. This was McMillan's first run for elected office. He said he was "ecstatic" at his victory.

Holmdel By SHERRY FIGDORE MIDDLETOWN BUREAU HOLMDEL TOWNSHIP Staff monitoring of Holmdel High School's Commons area has been stepped up and reports of harassment of underclassmen by a handful of seniors have died down, school officials said. Last week, the Board of Education approved the hiring of eight teachers to provide additional supervision during lunch periods when as many as 200 students gather in the Commons. The teachers, two in each of the four lunch periods, were appointed from Oct. 21 through Nov. 26, at a salary of $27.50 per hour, for a total of $5,280.

School Superintendent Susan M. LcGlise has been meeting with high school administrators and is expected to present a follow-up report tonight LOCAL NEWS beefs up lunchroom Reports of hazing decline, officials say vision and an insufficient number of aides to keep an eye on activities. The two student representatives on the board, senior Margaret Pesce and junior Jon Coppola, told the board and parents they were not aware of most of the alleged incidents. They denied that lap dances had ever occurred and defended both the aides and their fellow students. Letters from other students to the Asbury Park Press also defended their school against the accusations and denied that hazing is a problem.

One letter, signed only "Senior Girls," put a new spin on an allegation made by a mother who told the board that a group of 13- and 14-year-old girls were ordered into a car driven by Almanac TONIGHT ABERDEEN TOWNSHIP Board, 8 p.m., municipal building. AVON Library Board, 7:30 p.m., Fifth and Garfield avenues ASBURY PARK Board of Education, 7 p.m., high school. BELMAR Harbor Commission, 7:30 p.m., borough hall. BRADLEY BEACH Borough Council, 6 p.m. special meeting, senior citizens building, 719 Main St.

BRIELLE Board of Education, 8 p.m., elementary school. COLTS NECK TOWNSHIP Board of Education, 7:30 p.m., administration building. COLTS NECK TOWNSHIP Recreation Committee, 8 p.m., town hall. EATONTOWN Borough Council, 7 p.m., 8 p.m., borough hall. FAIR HAVEN Board of Education, 7:30 p.m.

special closed meeting, Viola L. Sickles school, Willow street. FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP Shade Tree Commission, 7:30 p.m., municipal building. HAZLET TOWNSHIP Township Committee, 7 p.m.. 8 p.m., town hall.

HOLMDEL TOWNSHIP Board of Education, 8 p.m., William R. Satz School, 24 Crawfords Corner Road. HOLMDEL TOWNSHIP Environmental Commission, 8 p.m., town hall. HOLMDEL TOWNSHIP Planning Board, 8 p.m., town hall. HOWELL TOWNSHIP Board of Education, 8 p.m., Middle School.

HOWELL TOWNSHIP Council, 7:30 p.m. executive session, municipal building. KEANSBURG Zoning Board, 7:30 p.m., borough hall. KEYPORT Board of Education, 7:30 p.m.. Central school, 335 Broad St.

LITTLE SILVER Planning Board, 8 p.m., borough hall. LOCH ARBOUR Board of Trustees, 7:30 p.m., municipal building. MARLBORO TOWNSHIP Planning Board, 8 p.m., municipal complex. I MARLBORO TOWNSHIP Hearing on public schools, 8 p.m., administration Man hurt on water slide settles defamation case: to the school board as part of a presentation on safety, security and student management. Arthur Q.

Frank, board vice president, said last week that many of the parents who complained to the board last month have told him the situation in the high school "is better." "No one is saying we don't have students with problems," Frank said. "What we have to do is determine how to address them." Last month, some 30 parents told the board of incidents in which freshman and sophomore boys were shaken down for money and freshman girls were ordered to perform lap dances for senior boys in the Commons. They complained of lax super dering Surf, Eighth Street and Bay Avenue in Beach Haven, headfirst and struck bottom in the landing pool. Sklodowski, who was 22 when the accident happened, sued the park, the operators and the manufacturer, accepting a $4 million settlement in 1994. In 1992, however, he appeared before the Legislature to challenge a proposed law advanced by the amusement industry to protect amusement parks from lawsuits based on negligent maintenance and operation.

According to Sklodowski's lawyer, Anne McHugh, lobbyist Lefkowitz was angry that Sklodowski testified. He and other amusement industry representatives falsely suggested that By CAROL GORGA WILLIAMS TOMS RIVER BUREAU TOMS RIVER A Florence man paralyzed from the chest down in an accident at a Beach Haven water slide in 1990 has received more than $100,000 in a settlement of his defamation claim against amusement industry officials who suggested illegal drug use caused his injuries. Craig Sklodowski had sued the New Jersey Amusement Association and its lobbyist, Barry Lcfkowitz, after they had alleged in conversations with legislators that Sklodowski was on drugs when he was injured in August 1990. Sklodowski broke his neck when he rode the 350-foot water slide at Thun- Sklodowski's injuries were affected by drug use, said McHugh, a partner in the Princeton and Mount Holly law firm of Pellettieri, Rabstein and Alt-man. Sklodowski filed suit, alleging the statements had defamed him.

The settlement of $105,000 "represents a small token for the outrageous conduct engaged in by these defendants when they attempted to chill Craig from exercising his rights to speak out against their bill before the Legislature," McHugh said in a news release. The settlement came on the eve of trial. Sklodowski "was there to help the legislative process and to share his.