Upper Freehold mayor will not seek re-election Fleischacker may not get to see master plan revisions through BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer Mayor Stephen Fleischacker UPPER FREEHOLD - Although Mayor Stephen Fleischacker has chosen not to run for re-election, he believes he could have been elected to serve a second term. Fleischacker said he will not run for office again because he cannot make a three-year commitment to serve another term at this time. The mayor fell subject to criticism early in his second year as mayor, when during the township's reorganization meeting on Jan. 4 he made appointments to the Planning Board without consulting two members of the Township Committee. Township Attorney Granville Magee said Fleischacker could legally make the appointments even though previous mayors had not done so in such a way. Just prior to the appointments, the Township Committee voted 3-2 in favor of reappointing Fleischacker as mayor, a position he had served during the previous year. Committeemen Bob Faber and Stephen Alexander voted against Fleischacker's reappointment. Faber and Alexander were the committeemen with whom Fleischacker did not consult before making his Planning Board appointments. Several former mayors spoke out against Fleischacker's mayoralty and his method of making appointments during the reorganization meeting. Former Mayor Bob Abrams referred to Fleischacker as a "dictator" and said, "I think it is time for us to change to a form of government where we vote for mayor." Another former mayor, Fred Kniesler, said at that time that the township had become very divisive. "Times change," Kniesler had said. "An elected mayor is the first step in a new change process. You have to take a serious look at what people want." Former Mayor John Mele, who lost the 2005 Republican primary to Fleischacker, said at that time that while he dreaded hearing about change in government, the Township Committee's actions during the reorganization could force a change. Mele is now running in the Republican primary along with Lori Horsnall Mount and Stanley Moslowski Jr. for one of the two available seats on Township Committee. When asked if the situation at the reorganization meeting had anything to do with his decision not to seek re-election, Fleischacker said it did not. Fleischacker, who has been a vocal proponent of Smart Growth and incorporating the concept into the township's master plan, may leave office before the revisions to the plan are complete. The township has been trying to revise its master plan for the past three years. The Planning Board has recently discussed incorporating Smart Growth planning concepts into the master plan, such as density transfers. In an effort to preserve large tracts of land in certain areas of town, density transfers would allow landowners to transfer the development potential of their properties to other areas in town designated for development. An economic incentive for landowners to do so would be provided. The Planning Board has also discussed creating village centers in town that could house the density transfers. Current zoning in the township is 3 acres with a 35 percent bonus density for developers who cluster their development. Although Fleischacker has been a proponent of these Smart Growth planning concepts, he said the Planning Board spearheaded such changes to the master plan while he did not. When asked if the master plan revisions could be voted on while he is still in office, Fleischacker said, "It depends on the extent of the Planning Board's deliberations." Although he plans to remain involved in township activities after he leaves office, Fleischacker said he is not certain right now what form of involvement that will entail. "I will give that more consideration as the year goes on," he said.