The Oakland town council is in quandary as it seeks to decide if the Public Events Committee can donate $15,000 toward the repairs of the Van Allen House roof.
The money in question is from a public events trust account containing over $100,000.
Supporters of the donation argue that the Van Allen House is the site of numerous public events held throughout the year, and that additional public events could be scheduled should the building ever be properly repaired.
Opponents to the donation argue that a capital expense such as repairing the roof is not a public event, and the donated $15,000 cannot be used for that purpose.
The question of exactly how the $106,000 trust account can be used is still under discussion, but the town council’s previous actions concerning this money may make it literally impossible to spend.
In the spring of 2011, a request by Oakland’s American Legion for $800 to be spent on the Oakland Memorial Day Parade was denied by the council.
The parade is partially funded by the borough, but a lack of donations in 2011 left the American Legion short on cash and the veterans’ organization requested $800 from the $100,000 public events trust.
The Memorial Day Parade is the single largest public event in Oakland outside of the carnival. If the trust monies cannot be used to support the Memorial Day Parade, it leads to some serious confusion as to how – if ever – the money could be spent.
In order to alleviate the confusion faced by the town council, The Journal has compiled a Ridiculist of Ten Suggestions where the public events trust might be used.
Top Ten Suggestions To Spend The Public Trust
1) Use the money to pay Snooki to come and preside over the holiday tree lighting ceremony
2) Hire Roseanne Barr to sing the national anthem at the Memorial Day Parade
3) Organize an Oakland Family Day and hire NJ Governor Jim McGreevy to speak on family values.
4) Stock the Ramapo River with Atlantic salmon for a fishing derby.
5) Contract Teresa Giudice of RHONJ for an Italian gravy making festival.
6) Give every man, woman and child in Oakland $7.00
7) Build a community zoo so residents can see up close deer, bears, racoons, rabbits, coyotes and squirrels.
8 ) Have a Roadkill Cookoff to see who can cook up the best deer, bear, raccoon, rabbit, coyote or squirrel.
9) Sponsor a Festivus for the rest of us.
10) Build a Native American village with tepees that can be used for a pow-wow, but also double as senior housing the rest of the year.
An eleventh suggestion was considered, but because the idea was offered from the council dais in complete seriousness, it cannot be officially listed on the ridiculist.
It was suggested at the last council meeting that the town use the trust fund money to purchase a grandstand to be used once a year so council members can sit and watch the Memorial Day Parade – Ironically, this is the same Memorial Day Parade where in 2011 the Oakland council denied the American Legion $800 from the $100,000 trust to fund the parade.
I forgot about the $800 refusal. Isn’t this comment filled with irony:
“What they need is a snake with a good head to lead them down the right path,” Fabrizio said. “They’re running around in circles, and they’re not thinking with two feet. I don’t want to see them go down, but, if it happens, I guess we’ll have to get other organizations to pull them out.”
Can the money be used to tear down the stream house? That would be a great public event.
I like James idea, we can have a “celebration” while tearing that building down brick by brick. Hire a DJ, get some hot dogs and juice, and have a party. I found certain councilmembers quite pompous in their “looking out for the trust” excuse. There is $100,000 + in a non-taxpayer created trust fund. The group that over sees it would like to spend it on a worthwhile cause. So they are told no by these pompous members. At times I think we live in bizzaro town, or maybe it’s Oaktown.
Suggestion #11
Sponsor an “Illegal Alien Labor Day Parade”.