Meet The 2019 Mendham Township Committee Candidates

MENDHAM, NJ — There is a contested election for Mendham Township Committee this fall, and Patch caught up with the four candidates ahead of the general election.

Democrats Melissa Saharko and Trishna Goswami are running against Republicans Jordan Orlins and Thomas Baio for two open seats on the committee. The elected candidates will each serve three years.

We asked all candidates the same five questions:

1. Why are you running for office?
2. What is the biggest challenge you see facing your community and how will you address it?
3. What makes you the right person to vote for as opposed to the other candidate(s)?
4. What will you do to facilitate communication with the community?
5. What inspires you?

All candidates were sent the questions at the same time, and were given the same deadline to submit them. They were given no minimum or maximum word count, and encouraged to write as much as they needed, or to keep the answers brief if they wanted to. Answers were submitted by email and are presented here as submitted.

Jordan Orlins, Republican

Why are you running for office?

Service is a big deal in my family. After getting my graduate degree at Georgia Tech I served four years in the US Air Force and left as a decorated Captain. Those were amazing years that I may have missed out on if not for the early inspiration of my family. My father was a Korean War veteran and my older brother and sister served in the first Gulf War. Two of my uncles served in World War II. I idolized my father and uncles, men who served and came home to build fine families, businesses and careers. They were strong confident people who could do anything as far as I was concerned. I also grew up hearing stories about my great uncle, Max Orlins. Max Orlins had a very distinguished career as the Chief of Police in Norwalk CT back in the 1950s and 60s. I am told he risked his life fighting organized crime in Norwalk. My son is named Max Orlins, a tribute to an uncle I barely knew. Gina and I have three wonderful children who play all sorts of sports. Service in this setting includes coaching and assisting with their teams. We all have vivid memories of those volunteer dads and moms who made an early impact on us through youth sports. From coaching I also moved into community volunteering, serving on several ad hoc committees for Mendham Township. This led to contacts and friendships and eventually an appointment to the Finance Committee in 2018, an advisory group to the Mendham Township Committee. My time on the Finance Committee helped me see opportunities for continuous improvement in Mendham Township and a desire to run for office and contribute further. Receiving your vote on November 5th and serving on the Mendham Township Committee would be an honor and a privilege.

What is the biggest challenge you see facing your community and how will you address it?

Mendham Township is an amazing place to live and raise a family. Before moving here in 2007 my wife and I lived on the upper east side of Manhattan. We would visit Mendham Township most Saturdays and spend the day golfing at Mendham Golf and Tennis Club (MGTC) and just living the bucolic life with our extended family here. Mendham Township made such an impression on us that we joined MGTC in 2003, four years before moving out here, because we knew this was our place to raise our family. Maintaining that bucolic charm that struck Gina and I back in the early 2000s is the biggest challenge I see going forward. New Jersey is literally attacking the corporations and jobs that are the life's blood of Mendham Township. Corporate flight to lower tax and lower regulation states is challenging home values all over the tri-state area and it threatens our way of life here in Mendham Township too. The best way to protect ourselves is to get as tax and service efficient at the municipal level as possible so that we can attract new home buyers. I believe consolidating with Mendham Borough is the best way to achieve greater efficiency with better service. We are geographically, demographically, politically and fiscally well suited. Our tax rates are nearly identical which makes merging and sharing the savings a no-brainer. It is an idea that has been floated before with enthusiastic support on the Township side (88% approval in a 2013 referendum) and it is an idea that needs to be revisited continuously until consolidation is achieved. Tom Baio and I have already opened lines of communication in the Borough so that, if elected, we can begin to explore the possibility of a Joint Consolidation Study immediately.

What makes you the right person to vote for as opposed to the other candidate(s)?

My experience is the principal factor that distinguishes me from the other candidates. I am an engineer with a master’s degree, a military veteran, a Harvard MBA, a former consultant with Bain & Company, an entrepreneur with an IPO in my track record, and a long time fund manager and investor. I have worked in the government sector, the private sector and the start-up world -- there isn't much I haven't seen. All of this experience means that if elected I can hit the ground running helping to make Mendham Township more efficient and effective in a pragmatic 'can do' way. My mergers and acquisition experience at Bain & Company is particularly useful for helping to bring the two Mendhams together. At Bain I was involved in all manner of mergers big and small. A few of these mergers where highly complex, involving tens of thousands of employees and unions and facilities across multiple states. Several involved complicated government relationships with disparate agendas. Merging the Mendhams -- a challenge for sure -- will be relatively easy compared to that. And merging the Mendhams will have no day to day impact on Mendham’s residents. It will result in a better, faster and cheaper Mendham which will be more attractive to new home buyers.

What will you do to facilitate communication with the community?

The first step toward facilitating communication is listening. As I walked Mendham Township’s neighborhoods and streets these last several months I have met many of you and discussed many things. Some of you gave me quite an earful (you know who you are!) and I thank you for that. It taught me a great deal about what YOU care about and sometimes that turned out to be a little different than what I care about. But nearly all those conversations ended up on common ground – a place where we shared important views and needs and could focus on how to address those. The second step toward facilitating communication is being direct and honest. It is a virtue I pursue in my daily life like a mission. If I can listen first and be direct and honest second, then I know it will facilitate tremendous communication with Mendham Township’s residents, employees and my fellow committee members.

What inspires you?

I am inspired by virtuoso performances. It can be watching my wife Gina prepare an amazing holiday meal, a baseball pitcher on top of his game, a world class symphony, even a mechanic fixing an engine on one of those crazy car shows. One of my earliest memories is watching US Olympian Dave Wottle in the1972 Munich 800 meter race come from dead last to win Olympic gold. It was a virtuoso performance of running. My whole family was glued to the TV, first in tense silence and then screaming our lungs out at the end. To this day I get goose bumps watching it on YouTube. Lately what inspires me are the virtuoso, and sometimes not so virtuoso, performances of my children. They are discovering and discarding passions and turning in some amazing performances along the way. It is inspiring.

Thomas Baio, Republican

Why are you running for office?

Running for a seat on the Mendham Township Committee fulfills a long held desire that I have had to serve the public since I first testified before a local zoning board of adjustment in 1992. Having only experienced municipal governance from this side of the podium all these years I must say that it excites me and presents a real opportunity to steer public policy from the other side of the podium.

I have advocated for private & public policy changes within my expertise of land use & historic preservation for over 28 years. I have appeared before numerous zoning & planning boards while also testifying before a number of governing municipal bodies on the subject of land use, zoning ordinances & regulation. On Historic Preservation I have long advocated for historic celebration & adaptive re-use. I feel well equipped to serve on the Mendham Township Committee

What is the biggest challenge you see facing your community and how will you address it?

The biggest challenge I see facing Mendham Township is declining property values. I would pursue and advocate for policies which encourage residents to remain here while attracting new ones to consider residency here. Jordan Orlins and I see attacking this challenge by a multi-faceted approach.

1. Keeping taxes low by pursuing all economic efficiencies including consolidation.
We can do more than just talk about making Mendham Township efficient we can take an entirely novel approach to engaging consolidation with our nearby neighbor. Jordan Orlins is a master at M & A, and I believe together our approach will bring efficient governance & lower taxes to our township over the next 3 years.

2. Foster & encourage private investment in the township.
Residents I have spoken with leave our town because downsized housing opportunities don’t exist, others believe the housing options present in our town are out of touch with younger buyers. We need to focus on introducing diversity in housing options when approving development and having a marketplace mentality.

3. Communication the existence & elevate the use of current township amenities to all citizens.
Few residents know how much property the township owns. Our township DPW, maintains lands which hold hiking & biking trails, nature & historic walks, as well as our numerous parks & don’t forget our underutilized beach. I think when residents learn of the vast number of amenities few would say that they can find a better place to live and raise a family.

4. Celebrating our historic heritage and advancing its awareness without over-regulating.
A fine line exists between acting to foster historic preservation and actually causing the historic inventory to decline in market value. Declining property value of any kind must be avoided and I will combat all forces who seek to over-regulate our historic inventory.

What makes you the right person to vote for as opposed to the other candidate(s)?

Given the expectations of the challenges over the next few years I believe my skill set makes me uniquely qualified to serve & benefit the community in the position of Township Committee. Several years ago our town built a firehouse which ran severely over budget. Limited knowledge skill sets on the then committee, placed the township in a week position. There was inadequate plan review, inadequate contractor review, and inadequate construction execution & oversight. We could have done better. These are skills I employ every day and skills that I would bring to the role if elected. These are vital skills which inform the nuts and bolts of administration. Whether evaluating plans, properties or proposals I am the only candidate with expertise in these roles.

What will you do to facilitate communication with the community?

My response to this question is more about how I would listen rather than speak in terms of communication. I am a licensed Architect in NJ and for 28 years I have run my own practice. I have had strong ideas for projects with compelling theses’ and yet I needed to listen, respond & augment that vision to meet client preferences and wishes. Only when those two forces are mitigated (strong architectural pedagogy & pragmatic client satisfaction) did a project of mine get built. The citizens of this town will soon be my newest clients and while I will impart my visionary sensibilities I would also address the needs & comments of the residents as I have done for the last 28 years in private practice.

What inspires you?

I am inspired by great spaces & the built environment. My wife and I were out hiking in the India Brook Park & the Buttermilk Falls Natural Area and I was so impressed by these vast open spaces that are at our public dispose. We noticed foot bridges, foundations of former structures and mock-wooden benches carved by someone and left for the public appreciation. Similarly when we took our campaign photo at the Ralston Cider Mill I became inspired by the wonderful assemblage of local building materials that converged to make that building so special.

Melissa Saharko, Democrat

Why are you running for office?

Mendham Township’s own Governor Christie inspired me. I saw the video of him responding to a voter who asked him about why, after decades of promises, Mendham Township and Mendham Borough had not merged.

Christie said that it was very easy to criticize but the only way to make a difference would be to run for Township Committee. We may not agree on much politically, but I took that message to heart. We live in a tumultuous political time and many of us are scared about the future. I want to be part of the solution.

What is the biggest challenge you see facing your community and how will you address it?

Mendham Township has two pressing problems that feed off of each other. We have a stagnant real estate market with home values declining ten percent in the past few years. There are a lot of reasons for that, but a major one is the capping of the federal SALT deduction. We have not heard our opponents promise to fight to restore this full deduction, but we would work with Rep. Mikie Sherrill to reverse this more than $10,000 tax increase on Mendham Township families. The second problem is that Mendham Township has not responded to these changes in the market. If we want our town to thrive, we must recognize these changes and respond appropriately. That’s why we have a plan to build a Welcoming Committee that would market the Township effectively and ensure that new residents get the support they need to transition into the community. We expect that these efforts will result in bringing new residents to the area, helping folks sell their homes, and ensure that our home values rise again.

What makes you the right person to vote for as opposed to the other candidate(s)?

Unlike our opponents, we have a plan to set Mendham Township on the right course for the future. We will bring a strategic, long-term approach to decision-making that will ensure we make smarter investments in the future. We will advocate strongly for transparent, accessible government so that all taxpayers know how they are being served. We are against new, large development and want to maintain our open spaces while using our current commercial spaces and existing town infrastructure to serve current residents and attract new ones. You can read more about our ideas here: https://medium.com/@melissaformendhamtownship

Our opponents’ entire platform rests on tired, unachievable promises to increase shared services and merge with the Borough, promises that have been raised for years around election time but never executed. To be clear, we are very supportive of increasing shared services where appropriate. But our opponents are not telling you the truth about the feasibility of their plan. Similar overtures have been made to the Borough for 20 years, and they have rejected every proposal. We do not have a willing partner, and a big part of the reason is that the Borough does not want to assume responsibility for our huge debt- yet another missed opportunity from the past that has handcuffed our future. If you don’t believe us, ask Borough leaders their position on this plan.

What will you do to facilitate communication with the community?

Transparency and responsiveness were problems for a long time in our community. Indeed, so many of the bad decisions of the past that got us into this mess were able to happen because a public spotlight was not adequately available. Committeewoman Amalia Duarte ran on improving communication, and she has made some headway with the Ad Hoc Communications Survey and in sharing information via Facebook and newsletter. Partnering with her, and with the ability to take action as a majority, we would further efforts to build a transparent and responsive government that is a model for the entire region.

What inspires you?

I worked for the federal government for 15 years providing constituent service. At the Smithsonian, it was my job to inform and educate the public on our historic collections. At the Library of Congress, I provided a service to the public paid for by their tax dollars. I took great pride in my job and enjoyed helping the public to meet their creative and research needs. I believe government should take a customer service and customer-centered approach. Ultimately, this is all about service to and for the public.

On a personal level, I am inspired by learning and reading. I love to read books about science, math, the arts, and science fiction. I enjoy seeing the world through the eyes of my children, who marvel at every bird and deer and creature they see out of our window. I’m inspired by the people in our community laboring at their respective crafts, industrious, creative, and purposeful. I’ve learned so much from my conversations with them and am grateful for their kindness.

Trishna Goswami, Democrat

Why are you running for office?

I've always loved being involved in the community and volunteering my time. However, in big cities, your impact is minimal and it's easy to feel like you can't really do anything that really matters. When we moved to Mendham, I immediately fell in love with it. Given the size of this town, I knew that here you could give back to the community and really enact change. Additionally, I was personally very affected by the incidents in the last year being an immigrant myself and hearing the anti-immigrant rhetoric in town. It gave me flashbacks to incidents as a child and it was hurtful to think that this day and age, we still have people who cannot acknowledge the power of diversity. Hearing the backlash against those sentiments was heartening but I knew more could be done to ensure no one felt discriminated against. These incidents happen in my opinion when you don't know the person next door and can be erased when we embrace our community. My hope is that by running and instituting some of the actions we are pushing for we will be able to counteract that sentiment and build a stronger and more welcoming Mendham.

What is the biggest challenge you see facing your community and how will you address it?

Two big concerns that I think are impacting our community are our real estate market and the underlying feeling that Mendham is not welcome to all. Our analysis shows that our houses are on the market longer than similar towns our size with similar resources and with schools that are not even as good as our Blue Ribbon and top-ranked schools! Additionally, as I mentioned recent events that demonstrate to the world that Mendham isn't welcome to everyone certainly aren’t a selling feature for this town. We've proposed a "Welcoming Committee" (put in a consistent name) that is geared towards bringing in new residents and keeping those that are here. This committee will explore what those of us who came to Mendham were looking for and why we chose Mendham and will help market Mendham to new residents by working closely with realtors in our area as well as publicizing the town on social media. The committee will also explore ways of making Mendham more attractive to new and old residents by reminding people about all the family friendly and fun activities this town has to offer, and also create new activities through our parks and recreation program such as summer movie nights or international fairs. In addition, the committee will work with the Township to assess ways to reutilize existing infrastructure to attract small local businesses like Harmony Brookside. This effort will enhance our small town feel, while offering more amenities to local residents. Finally, we'd like to ensure this committee explores diversity issues and celebrates the growing diversity of Mendham with establishment of a Diversity Council similar to what towns like Chatham have. We would like to support passing a Pride Initiative and will support efforts to progress our Stigma Free Initiative.

What makes you the right person to vote for as opposed to the other candidate(s)?

As new residents we bring a fresh perspective to this Township and can offer suggestions that have simply not been explored before or discussed. Further, given the issues we have identified above, we are uniquely positioned to address these issues having experienced home purchases in this area and discrimination ourselves in the recent past. The opposition has not acknowledged any of these issues as problems even though they resonate with residents. While we too acknowledge that the Township's debt is a problem, the solutions they are offering to eliminate the Town debt are trite and the same solutions offered for 20 years that have not been executable. We have investigated the issues around the poor real estate market and debt and are offering the Township thoughtful considerate review with the same thoughtful consideration in presenting solutions. While shared services may be able to lower the Town's budget, we have to address the issues that prevent that from being a viable option. In the meantime, we need to look to other solutions rather than rolling out the same.

What will you do to facilitate communication with the community?

There has been incredible improvement in how the Township communicates with residents, chiefly because of Committeewoman Amalia Duarte’s efforts with the newsletter and her office hours. But communication shouldn’t be limited to a newsletter, or to existing residents. To tie in with our efforts to market Mendham better, we plan for our volunteer Welcoming and Marketing committee members to be available to realtors and home buyers to answer their questions about living in and commuting from Mendham. In this way, we would make communication a selling point for the town. We would also continue, and amplify, the current communication efforts, and operate all township business with an eye toward rapid dissemination of information that affects residents.

What inspires you?

We don't necessarily always acknowledge that a handful of individuals can really make a difference when they come together. Despite the tension that can arise from diversity of those individuals, a strength is built and nurtured as well. We have a great opportunity in uniting and making this an even better place to live for residents while also tackling some of these immediate issues that Melissa and I have identified that are impacting Mendham. We'd love the opportunity to work for this Town.