This Week at NJ21st: Pavement, Proficiency, and Power Outages
Burning Through Reeboks Laura walked for miles and hours documenting driveways the town is spending “emergency” bond money repairing – what she found was both dissapointing and infuriating. She followed up with coverage of the Town Council meeting where the “emergency” bond was approved and a resident asked Councilwoman Susan Poage about her glossy campaign materials and promises to work...
This Week at NJ21st: Flood Fail, Turf Tale, School Ready, Debt Steady
Oooh yeah — serving up alliteration, rhythm, contrast and a dash of parallelism in one epic newsletter title. You’re reading high-class material, baby. Flooded Out, Fed Up Our continuing coverage of the 07/25 flood event starts with a powerful call to action from one of the many families impacted. Michael Leblond took matters into his own hands, documenting ongoing neglect...
Bond Blow-Up, Freelance Shake-Up, Police Records Battle, and Residents Speak Out
Like. What. The. Actual… This week’s newsletter starts with a saga that could fill an entire article. On August 3, NJ21st reported that the Township announced an “emergency” bond meeting for August 4, tied to the July 14, 2025 storm—without attaching a project list. On August 4, the Zoom-only meeting began with no project list available. It was quickly derailed by pornographic...
The Week at NJ21st: Berkeley’s Bottom, Water World, Rajoppi’s Games and Help a Watchdog Out
Top of the class, bottom of the curve An educator in our community breaks down the New Jersey Graduation Proficiency Assessment (NJGPA), drawing from a recent presentation at a New Providence BOE meeting. Out of the nine districts, Millburn and New Providence sit at the top while Berkeley Heights remains at the bottom. Sink or swim John takes an in-depth...
The Week at NJ21st: Referendum Breakdown, Turf Field Ghosting and Kindergarten for Everyone
Referendums… After John’s months-long battle with BHPSNJ to obtain details on the proposed referendum, he finally received documents connected to the District’s submission to the state and breaks it down. The result: more questions than answers. The District still has a lot to explain before asking voters for $50 million. We’ve published the full file. Libraries… A local educator weighs...
This Week at NJ21st: Berkeley Heights Spins Again, A Storm Shakes Jersey, Calls for School District Unification, and a Closer Look at NJ’s Prison Economy
Mid-Summer Suprise We begin with a troubling Town Council meeting in Berkeley Heights. The story starts with the Township rejecting the only bid on the Sewage Plant (Sewer Sale Stalls) that then snowballs into a web of no-bid contracts, questionable settlements (including one where taxpayers foot the bill for a vendor’s error), and a quiet vote to raise bid thresholds...
This Week at NJ21st: Accountability, Community Love Letters, Dumpsters — and BHPSNJ Still Acting Like the CIA
Who’s In Charge? Back in February, NJ21st uncovered a Union County Prosecutor’s investigation raising serious questions about oversight in key Berkeley Heights municipal departments. This week, the investigation resurfaced—this time in an official NJ Office of the Attorney General report as the Mayor and Council remain silent. Love Letters from the Community One resident raises new concerns over the Township’s push to privatize its...
This Week at NJ21st- Unanswered Questions, Hidden Revenues, and a Simple Transparency Solution
The Sewage Deal Smells Worse John did a write-up on the fifth and final addendum to the Berkeley Heights Sewage Plant RFB, as already-weak job protections continue to shrink and the public is left holding the bag on a long list of unanswered questions. Show Us the Summary… and the Money Shauna provided a summary of the 06/26/2025 Town Council...
This Week at NJ21st – Two Packed Agendas on the Same Night, BHPSNJ GPA & Budget Update, 7-District Grade Band Comparison and……Stone Veneer?
So Much Agenda, So Little Detail – In a near-unanimous vote — with Ms. Akiri rightfully dissenting — BHPSNJ moved forward with 19 projects as part of the next step in the referendum process. There was no detail available to the public on scope or cost, and it remains unclear when the Board itself received that information. Adding to the frustration, several policies...
This Week at NJ21st- School Rankings, Primary Votes, Sewage Deal & Budget Panic
From Little’s to Middle’s – This week we published a detailed analysis of school rankings, including some troubling trends in Union County middle and high schools. As special interests like the NJEA continue to lobby for the removal of proficiency measures that allow families to hold schools accountable, the data tells a very concerning story. Berkeley Heights Sewage Sale and...
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