thats good news, but honestly i would have like to see some saving s and reduction in spending. one thing that bugs me about berkeley is its liberal sanitation system.
the bulk pickup days have to cost a whole lot of money, which is used by few, but paid for by every tax payer. the bulk day is abused as in the days/week leading up to bulk day, car s and trucks from friends from other area s can be seen unloading garbage at someone s curb . or homeowners doing major renovation projects and piling up the debris for bulk day. when i built my additions i had 2 30 yard containers at cost of 800 each. geeee had i known of the liberal bulk day i woulda had the rest of the taxpayers subsidize my construct just like others do.

recently after cleaning out moms house in N jersey, we needed to dispose of a couch, the hauling company charged 35 dollars for one couch. that s in addition to their 100 or so dollar quarterly charge.

i m not liking the idea that a service used by say 20 % of the citizens, but paid for by all............

The Mayor and Council members ran on a platform outlining that the past administration had run up the budget about 146% over the past 10 years. So, where are the cuts?

ummmm.they were not truthful perhaps?

rj, my taxes are almost 3 fold higher than when i moved to berkeley in 2000.

i agree with you on the issue of school taxes also. why does everyone have to pay for that if they don t have kids.......guess my next move is to a state that doesnt tax everyone for schools.....perhaps s carolina for retirement. i m never going to survive in NJ at these property taxs in another 10 years.

regarding bulk day, so you never bought a new couch or refrigerator ? i have, and had both hauled away by the stores i bought them from. i didnt add expense to the problem.

i often wondered how all these small houses generate so much bulk garbage, until i observed what i mentioned in my first post about people driving up to their friends house in berkeley from where ever doesnt do bulk, dropping their crap off. nice.....

we the people thou must remain vigilant all the time. from the state to local level, revenue streams increased many times over, and rather than cutting tax rates, most all increased spending to match intake. run your household budget like that and see where u are when incomes drop off..

What a breath of fresh air. It is wonderful seeing Berkeley Township being run responsibly. It is finally being run the way we try to run our own homes. We have to be responsible with our own personal budgets, so why shouldn't the town. I still hate paying taxes, but do appreciate that they are finally being managed wisely. Keep up the good work Mayor Amato, and our hard working council.

It is great to hear we are going in a positive direction. Mr. Mayor and Council, keep up the good work!!!!

Keep up the good work Mayor! It's about time that we have someone in office that wants to make great things to happen for this town.

agree Amato is the best thing that happened for this town. Verano was the biggest waste we had.

Hay Carmen
Thanks you for yours and the council’s efforts. You people are working resolutely to try to undo the damage the former administration did to Berkeley Township. It will take time but you are off to a good start. Just keep going forward and ignore the obtuse comments made by some of the disgruntled people in the paper. They are just people who don’t know how to lose graciously.

I'm not trying to be a downer but it's only been 6 months, I don't think we should be lifting the mayor and council on our shoulders. The only thing they did was say taxes will not be increasing. Before judgement is passed one way or another let's see what else they will do for the residents of Berkeley.

Yes, in such a short time turning this town around. No tax increase, no layoffs during a time when people really need their jobs, responsible spending, budget of 2.7 million - under state 2% cap. Keep up the great work Mr.Mayor!!!!!!!

do not know why my last post got deleted, did Varano get a job ?.....cant we all be happy Varano property taxes are staying flat !

Verano is the reason we all got jacked to where we are.. real smart guy. the economy has been suffering so lets hit people for more than what they can afford.. I am sure he hasnt suffered being unemployed..

Way to go Carmen and team! Excited for things to come!

To All Varano's Kool Aid drinkers: The bottom line is that since Mayor Amato and the Republicans took back the Council, my taxes, which increased by double digits every year under Varano, have stopped going up. Mayor Amato legally took surplus money from the sewer and water departments and used that money to give us taxpayers a break and, for that, I will forever thank Carmen Amato. If your Varano was soooo great, why didn't he think of that? The problem was that Varano never saw a tax increase he didn't like. Mayor Amato has overturned, in 5 short months, the 1.4 million dollar hole with only $10K in surplus Varano left. Not much to run a town. Varano's homies said NOTHING for years while our taxes kept going up. Semiraro and DiStefano are quick to pass judgement but can they offer alternatives, other than raising taxes? Mayor Amato, I believe, sincerely feels for the taxpayers of Berkeley. He know we don't have bottomless pockets to keep paying and he's doing his best by keeping Berkeley's expenses under the state 2% cap. Even the ever long-winded Sam Cammarato, Prez. of BT Taxpayers Coalition appreciates what the Mayor and Council are doing and, for once, I agree with him. Mayor Amato: keep doing what you're doing-a Great Job! Thank you.

Devil is in the details. Budget is flat but have ANY services been cut?

Thank you Mayor Amato for turning things around in Berkeley. It's nice to see we are moving in a positive direction, it's been a long time since we have experienced that. As for John Di, he must be a die hard Varano fan, best to ignore him. Honestly, he would have something negitive to say no matter what good you do for our community. I can speak freely for all of my family members and friends that reside in Berkeley when I say again, thank you for all your hard work,dedication,time away from your family,lack of sleep and the gray hair Im sure you will soon be getting for the sake of improving Berkeley township.

Ahh yes the Berkeley school system. Very much looking forward to November when we can elect some new members to the Berkeley school board. New blood seems to be working with a new mayor and council, let's try the same thing for the school board.