Millstone welcomes new Twp. Committee member
Michael Kuczinski to complete Dilfanian's unexpired term
BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer

Michael Kuczinski

MILLSTONE - The new face on the Township Committeeman is that ofMichael Kuczinski.

The members of the governing body unanimously votedKuczinski in Jan. 2 to replace departing Committeeman Ray Dilfanian, who resigned in earlyDecember in order to pursue professional interests. Kuczinski will complete the remaining year of Dilfanian's unexpired term, which ends Dec. 31.

The township'sRepublicanCountyExecutive Committee (RCEC) had provided the Township Committee, as per statute, with the names of three possible candidates to fill the vacancy on the governing body.Residents Chris Pepe and James Bell were the two other candidates the RCEC nominated for the position.

Both Pepe and Bell praised Kuczinski after the TownshipCommitteemade its final decision and said he would do a great job.

Mayor Nancy Grbelja said that all seven candidates who originally applied to fill the vacancy were very qualified.

Committeeman Steven Sico, who ran for and won election to the committee with Dilfanian in 2005, said that the committee only had one seat available and that the final choice to fill it had been a tough call.

Kuczinski, 47, has lived in the township since 2001, along with his wife and three children. He is the owner/operator of Total Wealth Enhancement Group LLC, a financial services company located on Route 33 in Millstone.

While Kuczinski has served on both the township's Planning Board and Recreation Commission for approximately the past two years, he will no longer serve on either, he said, because of the time commitment involved in being a committeeman.

When asked why he decided to submit his name for the committee position,Kuczinski said he was already actively involved in the community on several fronts, and had been to some extent from the time he moved into Millstone.

"Prior to moving to Millstone, Iwas never involved, at any level, in any political or advisory board positions in any other town, corporation or municipality," he said. "When I firstmoved to this town, it became apparent quite quickly that the administration in place at that time was leading the town in the wrong direction."

Kuczinski said the governing body in placewhen he firstmoved intoMillstonewas "clearlymaking decisions that put the interests of the residents second, behind those of the special interests thatwere destroying our community." He said he began to voice his concerns at various township meetings and other public gatherings and then began to align himself with "good, trustworthy, likeminded peoplewho sawthe same problems I did."

"By being a part of this team, I too can have the opportunity to show the residents that a governing body can run this town efficiently and responsibly, without bowing to any special interests, but rather in a way that benefits all the residents of this community as a whole."

As for what he intends to bring to the governing body, Kuczinski said he's a "what you see is what you get" kind of guy.He said his honesty and integrity are his biggest strengths and that these strengths, combined with his financial planning expertise, will enhance and build on the talent currently on the Township Committee.

For Kuczinski, the most important issue in the township is taxes.

"Unfortunately,most of the tax problems we face are not derived from the township level, but rather from irresponsible budgeting and poor planning at the state level," he said. "Over the last several years, the town has beenmoving in the right direction with regard to stabilizing our tax rates and controlling spending."

He said the township should continue to stabilize taxes and control spending and to move forward with various initiatives, such as sharing municipal services to further reduce costs.

Kuczinski also views communication as an important issue, he said.

"I know firsthand that many of the residents do not understand how and why tax rates go up and the control or lack thereof that the town actually has over a lot of this," he said.

He said his property taxes have risen more than 65 percent in the six years he has lived inMillstone.He saidmany peoplemistakenly believe the current administration caused the increase.

"This could not be further from the truth," he said. "Most of these increases are the direct result of overbuilding, poor planning and runaway government of past administrations."

Kuczinski said the nuances of good, responsible governance are important and need to be communicated to the community more efficiently.

"The bottomline:most reasonable people will embrace or accept things easier when they understand the rationale behind it," he said. "Theywill consistently resist the things they do not understand."

Although Kuczinski's appointment will expire at the end of the year, he said that he plans to run for election to the seat in November, provided that residents would like to see himdo so.

Kuczinski commented on the selection process to fill the committee's vacancy.

"Somemay feel that the process is flawed and/or should have more public involvement," he said. "On the surface, this may sound like it has somemerit. However, I believe the process by which the Township Committee used to fill the vacancywas done fairly, openly and without prejudice and has been in place for a very long time."

He noted that, by statute, the governing body had a fixed amount of time in which to complete the selection process and had little leeway to add extra steps.

Noting that current Township Committee members were voted in to office by the residents, he said, "The residents gave them the power tomake decisions for the benefit of the town on their behalf. I feel that this is just one more of the decisions that they had to make, and they will be held accountable for that decision."

Kuczinski said that if residents do not like the committee's choice or they do not think he is living up to their expectations, they will get a chance to be heard "loud and clear" at the polls this November.