Plainfield cable TV starts 7th week without active programming

Today marks the beginning of the SEVENTH WEEK without regular programming on Plainfield's cable TV stations (channels 34/FIOS or 96/Comcast).

There has not been any regular programming since September 7, when two hard drives failed at the time of a 'brownout' in the City Hall Annex, which was detailed on the Cable TV Advisory Board's blog (see here).

Advisory board chairperson Lamar Mackson advised a week ago that the consultant, who was owed approximately $2,300 by the City, had been paid, and the new hard drives were set to be shipped two weeks ago tomorrow.

"Once they are here and installed," Mackson said, "the station will be up and running."

Checking this morning, I still find the scrolling message advising programming is down and will resume 'as soon as possible'.

The city's website has no mention of the problems with or status of the cable TV station or when regular programming might resume.

Should you stay tuned?

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-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Hey! This is MY soap-box! You got a problem with that, get your own!

Hmmmm.....

Today, I will take up those whiners who complain through their anonymous comments that I am unfair to Plainfield Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs and/or Assemblyman Jerry Green. (For yesterday's post on Councilor Burney's tantrum over not getting star billing on CLIPS, see here.)

Plainfield Today is DAN'S soap-box. It has always been Dan's soap-box. There is no secret about it. The tagline says as much: The needler in the haystack.

Nevertheless, some supporters of Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs and Assemblyman Jerry Green repeatedly post anonymous comments whining that I take constant potshots at Her Honor and her mentor (Bernice's monicker for Assemblyman Green).

So what?

I choose NOT to post those comments because they DON'T ADVANCE THE CONVERSATION.

Got a beef with my 'facts' or agument? Give chapter-and-verse to support your opposing view.

'Dan, you are just soooo unfair' just won't hack it.

Is Mayor Robinson-Briggs the best thing since sliced bread? Prove it, sticking to the relevant issues like crime, economic development, staff and board appointments, budget -- you know, the 'important' stuff, not how many events she has gushed at.

Does the Assemblyman walk on water? Show us the pictures.

Better yet, all you anonymous herds (or is it really just two or three of you?), start your own damn blog and blast away.

Go here -- www.blogger.com -- it's free, it's easy, it's waiting for YOU.

I even have some possible blog titles to get your juices flowing.

How about 'Queen of Victims' or 'Life Is Just Sooo Unfair' for supporters of Mayor Robinson-Briggs?

Or for supporters of the Assemblyman, maybe 'Puppetry by Trial and Error' or 'Life Behind the Yellow Curtain'?

All you will have to do is set yourself up and start casting your pearls of wisdom as the rest of the bloggers do.

And I'll be happy to include you in CLIPS, giving you the same chance to impress Plainfield readers as Councilor Burney and the others get.

Now, get to work!

And stop whining!

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• Plainfield Today: "Whose soap-box is it anyway? Burney blame-game compels Dan's response"

-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Whose soap-box is it? Burney blame-game compels Dan's response.

Burney claimed to have been left out, though it wasn't so.

With all the serious stuff going on in Plainfield and the world, Councilor Rashid Burney had to go and kick off his 'NO-BLAME CAMPAIGN' for civic improvement by throwing a hissyfit, BLAMING Dan for not giving him star billing in CLIPS' Sunday headline (see Burney email and Dan's response here).

Burney's tantrum, combined with some whiny (and unpublished) comments by various supporters of laissez-faire in Mayor Robinson-Briggs' policies and in defense of the selling OUT (not to mention the possible selling OFF) of Plainfield's true interest by various and sundry 'public servants' lead me to the conclusion it is time to define yet again whose SOAP-BOXES CLIPS and PLAINFIELD TODAY are.

Today, I take up CLIPS. Tomorrow will be PLAINFIELD TODAY.

C L I P S

A little background. CLIPS got its start way back in 2005, when I was still a city employee, as an INTERNAL EMAIL NEWSLETTER for City Council and administration members, keeping them abreast of news items about Plainfield appearing in the media and available for reading ONLINE. It became a BLOG in November of that year (see the first post here).

When I retired, I continued it in the same vein -- gathering together news items about Plainfield or of interest to Plainfielders (from my perspective) -- as one of my two PERSONAL BLOGS.

Over the years it has grown and changed and as Council members and others have joined the local blogosphere, I have tried to keep abreast of the wealth of expression Plainfielders engage in.

Having run a successful mail-order business (in historic preservation, which is what brought me to Plainfield in 1983 in the first place), I try to craft the 'headline' at the top of each post in such a way as to encourage readers to 'tear open the envelope' to get at the news.

Reader 'Rob' has sometimes zinged me for thus luring him with the headlines, but he has never complained the articles weren't worth reading or didn't supply what the teaser copy promised (though perhaps not in the exact way he expected).

I'd like to think that's part of what makes CLIPS interesting and draws constantly increasing numbers of readers.

But Blogger, the platform on which things run, had a limitation until recently in the amount of text that could be put in a headline. That limitation forced me to choose the most interesting stories from that day's blog posts, prioritize them, and condense the gist of them to fewer characters than even Twitter allows (140).

Recent improvements in Blogger have relieved that pressure somewhat, but I still try to keep the headline to about three lines of text, so as not to overwhelm the 'skimmers'.

There is no contract between Dan and the bloggers. I just am happy to steer traffic to each and every one when they have a fresh post. I try to give Councilors a hit in the headline (by the way, Councilor Burney is the only Council member who DOES NOT send me a courtesy heads-up email to advise they have a new post), but even so their posts may be judged to be not as gripping as one of the other regular bloggers -- which is why you see Bernice, Olddoc and Maria prominently featured every day.

In any event, to get to ANY blogger's post, the reader has to go down to the green typeface paragraph where the bloggers most recent posts are featured. The only way folks would have gotten to Councilor Burney's post from yesterday's CLIPS would have been to go there -- just like any other day. So, Burney wasn't overlooked, nor was he cheated of those readers who would want to follow what he says, despite his complaint about 'a small line in the middle' (about which he never previously complained).

Burney added a clarification (if not a correction) to his post.

Did Burney's post merit marquee treatment?

As editor-in-chief I didn't think so.

The 'no-blame' pledge is an interesting concept (not well-grounded in American history, I might add), but if you read Burney's post carefully, it's more focused on him and his patting himself on the back for 'working with everybody' than on proposing how he is going to actually TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR MAKING IT HAPPEN in Plainfield.

Secondly, I've had experience of Councilor Burney and his support of the Citizen Campaign's ideas.

Take, for instance, the CIVIC RESPONSIBILITY ACT, which was supposed to make volunteering for, and serving on, Plainfield's many boards and commissions easier and more transparent. Can Councilor Burney explain why it is still not in force -- after several years -- WITHOUT BLAMING anyone?

Editorial call? An interesting post, but no headline cigar.

I overhead a mother whose young son was throwing a tantrum in the supermarket the other day. Gripping his arm tightly and steering him toward the checkout, she said through clenched teeth, 'Just wait 'til you get home, young man'.

We're all adults, and I don't have to threaten Concilor Burney with what will happen when he gets home. He'll only have the blog's readers to face.

Will that be punishment enough?

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• Plainfield Today: "Councilor Burney accuses Dan of snubbing his post. You be the judge."

-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Hidden home of 10/17 apparently isn't so hidden

Respondents knew where Sunday's mystery home is.

Plainfield Today readers who responded on yesterday's 'hidden home' post all recognized it as a house on Arlington Avenue, across from Cedar Brook Park.

See the comments on the post here.

This home and one adjacent to it were the subject of extensive (and expensive) renovations a couple of years ago (hope the added debt hasn't put them 'under water').

Homes in this block surely have one of the nicest vistas in Plainfield, looking across the sport fields at Cedar Brook Park.

I have long marveled that realtors don't make more of a fuss over the neighborhood, which also includes a cul de sac of well-maintained split-levels on Cedar Court.

Note to Rob: Drive by it almost every day, just happened that particular day that -- like Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard -- she was 'ready for her closeup'.

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• Plainfield Today: "This home is hidden in plain sight. Where is it?"

-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Councilor Burney accuses Dan of snubbing his post. You be the judge.

Councilor Burney sent round the following email to his list just after noon today, advising folks that I had not put up notice in CLIPS of his post concerning his advocacy of the Citizen Campaign's 'take responsiblity' theme. This is not true, and I am asking him to correct this misinformation in his blog.

As one can see from reading CLIPS, Councilor Burney simply must have missed what it is plainly there -- reference and link to his post. Below is my response to Burney and below that his email. Judge for yourselves. -- Dan
------------------------------------------------------------

Councilor Burney -- For some reason you did not check the complete CLIPS entry. While I did not have it in the headline copy it certainly is in the CLIPS, where I highlighted the 'no blame' section which you bracketed so prominently with arrows. A correction inserted in your blog post would be appreciated. See my entry on 'recent blogging' from today's CLIPS below...

RECENT POSTS: Bernice posts from Seattle, where she is on vacation. Olddoc is in rewrite on a pearl he wants 'just so' before casting to the swines. Maria thinks Plainfield Dem factions should make up. Councilor Burney likes the Citizen Campaign's 'no blame' clause. BOE member Renata Hernandez reports at Standing In The Gap, on the Family Success Center's open house for parents, and the difference between blogging and blah-ging. Milani Hernandez at PEPTalk: A PPS pupil's perspective, reports on seeing the play 'Confirming the Search'. Teacher blogs Dr. E=MC², ponders 'the Rhee effect'. Plainfield Sports News reports the Linden-Immaculata game (Cardinals face Immaculata next week).

Thanks and best regards.

Dan Damon

PLAINFIELD TODAY

The needler in the haystack.

http://ptoday.blogspot.com/

C L I P S

Where Plainfield turns for news.

http://pclips.blogspot.com/

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On Sun, Oct 17, 2010 at 12:15 PM, Rashid Burney wrote:

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Councilman Rashid Burney Councilman Rashid Burney Posts New Blog Entry Is Plainfield ready to take on responsibility and ownership for itself? Are we willing to change our political culture? Are you ready for a ownership in Plainfield's future? Are you willing to take responsibility? It's a lot of work I warn you. See my blog entry on this matter I wrote yesterday. For some reason Damon choose not to include it in his non-partisan CLIPS today, so I am coming to you directly. Click here to read this. Why did Dan Damon choose not to include it in his CLIPS? I don't know but maybe you should read my blog entry for yourself. You decide! Thank you! ***************************************************** I always welcome your comments and criticisms. This is how we move forward with an honest dialogue not rooted in political factions. I welcome your comments on this blog entry. Councilman Rashid Burney 1127 Watchung Avenue Plainfield NJ 07060 908-285-5986 info@rashidburney.com

Forward email This email was sent to plaindan@gmail.com by rashid.burney@gmail.com. Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Email Marketing by Councilman Rashid Burney | 1127 Watchung Avenue | Plainfield | NJ | 07060

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This home is hidden in plain sight. Where is it?

Where is today's mystery home?

Some interesting Plainfield homes are hidden in plain sight, rather like the object in Edgar Allen Poe's detective story 'The Purloined Letter' (see here).

So, while this home's neighborhood is sort of off the beaten path, it is still visible to perhaps more visitors than any other neighborhood in the Queen City.

Where is it?

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-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Man shot overnight Saturday

 

A man was shot in the back overnight Saturday while sitting in his car in the side parking lot of 674 West 7th Street.

This is the first violence in the complex known as Town & Country apartments, formerly owned by high-flying Plainfield real estate mogul David Connolly.

The man was transported to Robert Wood Johnson hospital.

Shot in the back while sitting in his car?

Drug deal gone bad?

Gangs?

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-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Plainfield makeovers: Facelifts and Falsies

Some renovations got me to thinking of bullet bras.

Despite a sagging economy, Plainfield finds itself with quite a bit of renovation activity in the central business district.

Let's go with a fashion metaphor, OK? (It's the weekend, after all.)

First, the falsies.

I'm sorry, but that's all that comes to mind with the façade renovations being made over the past year or so at 301 East Front Street (the former home of the Plainfield Senior Center).

The two new pointy peaks on the Front Street façade remind me of nothing more than bullet-bra falsies. Like falsies, they give an illusion of something that is not really there. When viewed from the side, you can even see the bar propping them up, like some Hollywood set.

The facade renovations at 301 East Front.

Facelift?

Check out the YMCA, one of the historic structures in the Civic Historic District (which includes City Hall and the Annex). The YMCA is having its façade staircase entry completed renovated.

Replacing 'like with like', the building will keep the look it has had since its construction in the early 20th century.

New steps and facade work for the YMCA's entrance.

Round windows, as in original, will replace YMCA roundels.

The railings will be removed, cleaned and replaced.

'About time,' one former YMCA employee said to me, 'those steps were really worn'.

Fact is, those steps were REALLY WORN, so worn they reminded me of photos of the Appian Way, the famous Roman stone highway.

The YMCA will be getting a refreshed façade and staircase with new treads; the round wooden discs saying 'YMCA' will be replaced with windows, as in the original; and the railings will be cleaned and reinstalled.

It will make a handsome improvement to the Civic District.

Back downtown, more renovations are under way.

As Paramount Properties continues renovating its properties,
Mr. Lee has moved from the corner to the East Front Street side.

Mr. Lee has moved his store from the corner of Front and Watchung, where he has been for decades, around the corner to newly refurbished space. Paramount Properties, the owner of that block, has renovated the stores along East Front, and will tackle the former Lee's site next.

Will a new tenant spell the demise of the classic Art Moderne sign?

Across the corner, in the Union News Building, the shop sporting the classic Beverly's Millinery sign is once again angling for a tenant.

For some, the worst of times can still be the best of times.

---

-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

50s Sock Hop Dance for Library tonight

Poodle skirts welcome!

The Plainfield Public Library will be rockin' tonight -- if not around the clock, at least for a good portion of the evening -- as the Friends'  organization hosts a fundraiser dance called 'Sox 'n Subs', celebrating 1950s culture in dance and food.

It promises to be an evening of fun and fab food (courtesy of Sandy Spector and friends), as guests dine and dance to doo-wop and 50s classics around the Library's pool, recreating a bobby sox hop that a few may have actually experienced in their teen years.

Blue suede shoes, too!

The Friends of the Plainfield Public Library has as its mission raising funding to supplement the Library's programming. This has become even more important in recent years, as the Library has suffered reduced funding from the City along with increased expenses, resulting in cutbacks on hours and services.

So, dig in your closet (or maybe your attic) and find those old blue suede shoes and that hot-pink poodle skirt, and come along for a fabulous top-down ride along Memory Lane as you dance and dine the night away.

Whoopie Pies included!

---

SOX 'n SUBS
A 1950s Dance Party

Sponsored by the Friends of the Plainfield Public Library

Tonight, October 16 | 7 PM

Plainfield Public Library

Park Avenue at West 8th Street
(Parking in both Library lots)

$25 Contribution at the door
Info:  (908) 756-0310

---

-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Democracy in Plainfield: Should it be doctored?

There has been considerable comment by Plainfielders on the length of Council meetings, which are beginning to noticeably affect the speed of the legislative process.

Like it or not, this is how democracy works. Should it be 'doctored'?

Repeated comments by Olddoc (see here and elsewhere on his blog), as well as mentions by other bloggers (Bernice, Maria) and private comments by various and sundry to Council members have underscored the issue.

Council President Annie McWilliams acknowledged the difficulties in a recent email to Courier reporter Mark Spivey (see his story here), but argues that there is important work being done by the Council through its committees that helps clarify and advance the legislative process and which the public deserves to be aware of.

McWilliams' idea of a 'second agenda-setting' meeting each month -- basically for the committee reports and discussion -- would go a long way to ease the situation, I think. Hopefully, the Council can make it through the remainder of the year (and the budget process) and consider a fresh approach when it sets up the 2011 meetings calendar.

That is the kind of 'doctoring' that could do some good.

There are other 'doctoring' proposals that I think are more problematic.

In response to a query by Maria Pellum on the lack of Council minutes, Council President McWilliams outlined a proposal for dealing with the backlog and handling future minutes (see her post here).

Part of her suggestion is a two-step process which would include bare-bones minutes in a speedy manner, with amendments to include Councilors' explanations of their votes to be added subsequently. In the meantime, she suggests that the videos of the meetings are available for the public's review.

Which leads to other 'doctoring' proposals that are also in the air.

In response to my post (see here) on the status of returning Plainfield's cable channel to active programming (after being down since September 7), reader Steve Kilduff wondered --

...it would be great if the council meeting videos were available in a YouTube type setting where they could be indexed by agenda sequence. Watching 3 to 6 hours of a council meting on PCTV is deadly and not a real option for a working person who has an interest in a part but not all of a meeting.

to which Cable TV Advisory Board chairperson  Lamar Mackson responded --

...[i]n response to Mr. Kilduff's inquiry-the Department of Media has been working on a new website specifically for PCTV 96/34 which will offer programming, Video-on Demand, schedules etc.

In the case of recordings of the overlong Council meetings, it certainly would be good to have an easy way to navigate them.

The problem is that videotapes are just not up to the task.

Editing them down to segments would be very costly and time consuming.

What is needed is a quicker, easier and less expensive method of getting the recorded meetings in the public's hands, and that requires some more up-to-date technological thinking.

There are systems marketed that allow for direct-to-DVD recording of meetings, where the Clerk can insert 'chapter headings' for agenda items, presentations, public comments, etc. and have the finished product available for the public or broadcast on the local access channel THE NEXT DAY.

No consultants to pay to videotape meetings. No minutes to amend for Councilor comments on their votes. No worries about 'editor bias'. No endless hours of tape editing. No weeks delays for broadcast.

Plus the DVDs are available for the public at a small fee, basically the cost of a copy.

Messy as the way democracy works itself out in Plainfield is, the record of it should be full, unedited and permanent.

Thanks to advance in technology it is now easy and cost-effective.

Isn't it time for Plainfield to make the investment?

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• Doc's Potpourri:  "The public be damned!"
• Courier:  "Plainfield's marathon meetings spur thoughts of calendar change"
  
• Positive Change: "Overdue minutes: Taking responsiblity, proposing a plan"
  
• Plainfield Today: "Plainfield cable TV may be up again soon"

-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Plainfield Cable TV may be up again soon

Though Plainfielders will still find the scrolling notice of 'technical difficulties' on the City's cable TV channels (down since September 7, see my previous post here), I am told the problem may be fixed shortly.

Lamar Mackson, chairperson of the Cable TV Advisory Board, confirmed yesterday that vendor mmm

The stations (channels 34/FIOS or 96/Comcast) have not had regular programming since a September 7 two hard drives failed at the time of a 'brownout' in the City Hall Annex, which was detailed on the Board's blog (see here).

Mackson advised that the consultant, who was owed approximately $2,300 by the City, has since been paid, and the new hard drives were set to be shipped last Thursday.

"Once they are here and installed," Mackson said, "the station will be up and running."

Meanwhile, he said, the Advisory Board has questioned the adminstration's point person, IT Director Chris Payne, about the amount of money spent on the consultants and what exactly Plainfield was getting in return.

'You will find,' Mackson said, 'that while we are supposed to have been getting 'editing' services, no videos of Plainfield's City Council meetings have been posted to the city's website since the April 5 meeting.'

'We are exploring options to improve that situation -- and at a potentially considerable cost savings to the city,' Mackson said.

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• Plainfield Today: "Cable TV station down for over 3 weeks. Who knew?"
• Cable TV Advisory Board Blog:  "PCTV 96/34 downed by equipment failure"
  

-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Hispanic Affairs Commission getting organized

Establishing a Hispanic Affairs Commission was a goal of late
City Council President Ray Blanco (here shown with the late Mayor Al McWilliams).

A phone conversation on Monday with Plainfield's Hispanic Affairs Advisory Commission chairperson Norman E. Ortega confirmed that the group is getting organized.

The Commission was established by ordinance this past June and Ortega as well as Doris Cera, Darwin Rosario, Silvana Mullen and Edgar Freire were consented to as the group's first members by the City Council.

Ortega advised that the Commission held its first meeting Monday, October 4, and was tentatively setting a meeting schedule of the first Monday of each month at the Plainfield Public Library. He hoped, however, to find an alternate site that would be available until later in the evening (the Library closes at 9 PM), for the convenience of the Commission and the public.

I will be posting the Commission's confirmed schedule and meeting location to the calendar of public meetings on the CLIPS blog once it is firmly established.

Those wishing to communicate with the Commission may send correspondence to: Mr. Norman Ortega, Hispanic Affairs Advisory Commission, c/o City Clerk, City of Plainfield, 515 Watchung Avenue, Plainfield, NJ 07060 or by email here.

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-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Back door meeting at Jerry Green's office

Follow the arrows to Jerry's rear entrance.

Plainfield Assemblyman Jerry Green had a back door visitor just before 2:00 PM on Wednesday, October 6.

I saw the dapper Deputy City Clerk adjusting his tie as he walked from his car to the rear entrance to Jerry's office.

This leads to a couple of interesting questions.

Assemblyman Green has been at pains in the past to say that he doesn't interfere in the day-to-day operations of the Robinson-Briggs administration (despite longtime rumors that he regularly attends -- and sometimes presides at -- the Mayor's all-day Wednesday cabinet meetings).

So why then would he summon (I am told the Deputy Clerk advised he had been summoned to the Assemblyman's office) a city employee to his office?

To discuss CITY BUSINESS? To discuss PERSONAL BUSINESS?

Hmmm... and Hmmm...

If it was CITY BUSINESS, why wouldn't the Assemblyman take it up with the person in charge, the City Clerk?

And if it was PERSONAL BUSINESS, why during work hours?

Whatever the business discussed or the propriety of it, my other question concerns the Council.

It is no secret that City Clerk Laddie Wyatt has been talking about retiring.

That means the Council -- whatever else is on its plate, and there is plenty -- will also have the task of appointing a new Clerk of the Governing Body.

Back in the days when I was attending Clerk U., our instructors were at pains to underscore that they were preparing us to be PROFESSIONAL NON-PARTISAN PUBLIC OFFICIALS, dedicated to the management of the Clerk's considerable responsibilities in a fair, open and honest manner. This was often contrasted with the 'old days', where clerks owed their jobs to and were servants of local political machines.

The Council will have the responsiblity of choosing a Municipal Clerk.

Will that person embody the ideal of the NON-PARTISAN PROFESSIONAL OFFICIAL?

How will the Council know?

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-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Jerry and Burney mischaracterize the budget

Can't we just all go digital?

Plainfield Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs is slated to introduce the FY2011 budget at this evening's City Council business meeting (including a proposed layoff plan).

Assemblyman Jerry Green and Councilor Rashid Burney have, I think, mischaracterized the budget process.

In a recent post (see here), Jerry said --

Once the Mayor submits the budget to the Council, it is then the Council’s budget.

Councilor Burney, in his weekend post on the budget (see here), which included posting a scan of the document (see here), said --

...once accepted by the Council, it will become the Council's budget and the Council will then be responsible for the entire budget.

While it is true that the Council is responsible for STRIKING THE FINAL BUDGET, in a best-case scenario the Council engages in A CONSULTATIVE AND COLLABORATIVE process with both the Robinson-Briggs administration and with the Citizens Budget Advisory Committee, a group which Councilor Burney championed and which will have another go-round this year.

While it does not surprise me that the Assemblyman overlooks the collaborative and consultative nature of the budget process (these are, after all, NOT his strong suits), I AM caught off guard by Councilor Burney's apparent oversight regarding the budget process.

Council President Annie McWilliams has consistently and frequently throughout the entire year stated a desire to work collaboratively with the Robinson-Briggs administration on the City's business. I am sure she continues to hold this positive and beneficial attitude.

The only way the budget would become the Council's EXCLUSIVELY would be if the collaborative and consultative process breaks down.

I, for one, hope that it does not.

NOTE: While Bernice, Olddoc and Maria thank Councilor Burney for putting the budget doc online (as do I), the FIRST THANKS of course go to City Administrator Bibi Taylor who had to get things in shape in the first place. Thanks to her we have a budget introduction MONTHS ahead of last year's. As for any Councilor scanning documents that OUGHT BY RIGHT TO FREELY AND EASILY AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC, I advocate that the proper thing to do is ask WHY the Robinson-Briggs administration can't just get the stuff online itself. After all, it is created on computers and can easily be converted into PDF files. So why should the public have to rely on a well-meaning elected official (whose task IS NOT providing documents) to go to all the trouble of scanning a paper document that should be available digitally to put the stuff online?

---

CITY COUNCIL BUSINESS MEETING

Tonight | 8 PM

City Council Chambers/Courthouse

The Public  is welcome and may speak at the beginning and end of the meeting.

---

-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Friends of Library Dance Saturday: Sox 'n Subs

Poodle skirts welcome!

The Plainfield Public Library will be rockin' Saturday night -- if not around the clock, at least for a good portion of the evening -- as the Friends'  organization hosts a fundraiser dance called 'Sox 'n Subs', celebrating 1950s culture in dance and food.

It promises to be an evening of fun and fab food (courtesy of Sandy Spector and friends), as guests dine and dance to doo-wop and 50s classics around the Library's pool, recreating a bobby sox hop that a few may have actually experienced in their teen years.

Blue suede shoes, too!

The Friends of the Plainfield Public Library has as its mission raising funding to supplement the Library's programming. This has become even more important in recent years, as the Library has suffered reduced funding from the City along with increased expenses, resulting in cutbacks on hours and services.

So, dig in your closet (or maybe your attic) and find those old blue suede shoes and that hot-pink poodle skirt, and come along for a fabulous top-down ride along Memory Lane as you dance and dine the night away.

Whoopie Pies included!

---

SOX 'n SUBS
A 1950s Dance Party

Sponsored by the Friends of the Plainfield Public Library

Saturday, October 16 | 7 PM

Plainfield Public Library

Park Avenue at West 8th Street
(Parking in both Library lots)

$25 Contribution at the door
Info:  (908) 756-0310

---

-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.

Mystery House (10/10/10) Answer

The mystery house is located at 324 Rushmore Avenue, which two readers figured out.

Built a few years ago, it originally caught my eye because of the extremely narrow lot and the third floor, which seemed like it must go against the zoning ordinances density regulations.

But, hey, this is Plainfield and stranger things have been known to happen.

---

-- Dan Damon [follow]

View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.