In response to a press release from the Hamilton Township Council attacking Mayor Kelly Yaede for the veto of a new Township advisory commission regarding senior issues, Mayor Yaede explains her decision was based on the fact that Hamilton Township already has one!

Since 2004, the Hamilton Township Senior Center, which coordinates Hamilton’s services for seniors, has possessed a 45-member advisory commission with a diverse membership that includes representatives from Hamilton’s over-55 communities, as well as Police, EMS, hospital and non-profit (such as the Hamilton YCMA) representatives.  This very commission, with its four standing committees, helped with the Senior Center’s self-assessment process that was required for its national accreditation from National Council on Aging.

“In a sad, politically-motivated attempt to attack me, Council President Jeff Martin and his Council colleagues illustrated that they don’t do their homework – because they wanted to create a new advisory commission when one already exists.  And yet, with phony, election-year outrage, they want to attack me for making a common-sense conclusion: our taxpaying seniors do not need two advisory commissions’,” explains Mayor Kelly Yaede.

“This attack by Council is an affront to the hard work that the existing board has done to help our Senior Center earn accreditation from the National Council on Aging,” says Mayor Yaede.  “And if Jeff Martin and his Council colleagues were even the slightest bit sincere with their proposal, not only would they have added a line item to this year’s budget, but they would not have previously cut funding for senior transportation from the Senior Center’s budget.”

Additionally, the Council President was previously directed to contact Hamilton’s Senior Center Supervisor, but it appears he never did so.

“As a new resident, Council President Martin may not yet be very familiar with our community, and he has certainly not been a frequent visitor to our Senior Center, but perhaps it would have behooved him to research some basic information about this subject before requesting a new commission when one already exists,” says Mayor Yaede.

“I don’t expect the Council President Martin to apologize for calling my decision ‘short-sighted, mean and vindictive’, but maybe he and his Council colleagues can use this as a teachable moment,” says Mayor Yaede.  “If they cannot admit their mistake, maybe Council President Jeff Martin and his Council colleagues can explain to our taxpayers why they feel we need two, duplicative advisory commissions.”

The text of the Hamilton Township Council’s press release can be viewed at: https://www.insidernj.com/press-release/bipartisan-collaboration-hamilton-council-blasts-mayor-announces-override-vote-kelly-yaedes-senior-citizen-advisory-commission-veto/

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ADVISORY MEETING Minutes APRIL12 2019