I snapped this picture over the weekend. The sign is prominently posted on the front of the old Foodtown supermarket and announces that a new business is coming. One reader recently said in an e-mail she heard an Aldi's was coming. Anyone else heard anything? Wick Properties offices are closed for the weekend, so we can't check with them for comment today. What would you like to see there? Tell us in the comments below!

  We've had well-publicized warnings of no lifeguards on duty and treacherous rip currents in Ocean County over the past few weeks. Yet some visitors continue to venture into the surf, get into trouble and have to be rescued, putting a strain on emergency responders. Do you think there should be a law on the books establishing fines for anyone who ignores the warnings, goes in the water anyway and has to be rescued? Let us know what you think in the comments section and take our poll below.

  Gov. Chris Christie recently called Navy Seal and Iraq war veteran William D. Brown Jr. "an idiot" after Brown spoke against Christie's plan to merge Rowan University with Rutgers at a town meeting in Roebling. Listen to the tape and let us know what you think of the exchange between the governor and Brown.

  Millions around the world will flock to churches on Feb. 22 to observe Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, which ends 40 days later on Holy Thursday, the prelude to Easter. And many will give up favorite foods or other worldly pleasures. But according to Catholic Online, Lent is more about turning lives over to Christ and giving up sin in some form. "The goal is not just to abstain from sin for the duration of Lent, but to root sin out of our lives forever," according to the website. Are you planning on giving up anything for Lent? If so, what will it be?

  Super Foodtown in Bayville is gone for good. Food Circus executives decided earlier this year the store was no longer profitable. The store closed two weeks ahead of time last Saturday. What kind of anchor store do you think would work well in the Baywick Plaza on Route 9 in Bayville? Big box store? Another supermarket? Barnes and Noble? Tell us what you would like to see in the comments below!    

Police Chief Karin T. DiMichele now presides over the 66-officer Berkeley Township Police Department. Mayor Jason J. Varano says the selection of who should replace longtime Chief John C. Weinlein III was his to make, under the Faulkner Act. Members of the GOP-controlled Township Council disagree. They introduced an ordinance at the July 26 council meeting that would give them more input into appointments and the right to reject candidates the township administration has chosen. Who do you agree with? Berkeley Patch welcomes your input.

Hot town, summer in the city Back of my neck getting dirty and gritty Been down, isn't it a pity Doesn't see to be a shadow in the city All around, people looking half dead Walking on the sidewalk, hotter than a match head - by Regina Spektor, sung by the Lovin' Spoonful, 1966    You couldn't have picked a worse day for a power outage. The pick-up truck that slammed into a utility pole on Route 9 yesterday afternoon left 1,700 people in the dark last night, without air conditioning. Tell us how you dealt with the mess.

The long-awaited Carabelli report on how the controversial revaluation was conducted last year found that the bulk of property assessments were done correctly. Mayor Jason J. Varano recently criticized the council for spending $20,000 on the review by Martin Appraisal Associates and another $20,000 to hire an out-of state legal firm to determine if there were any contract violations with Certified Valuations Inc. Do you think the council should have spent the money on the reviews?

The Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station in Lacey Township is the oldest nuclear plant in the United States. It has the same type of reactor and containment system as some of the nuclear plants in Japan that are currently in jeopardy. Do you have any concerns about the safety of the Oyster Creek plant?

I had reservations about including the "Jersey Sore" column in the Berkeley Patch right from the get-go. However, I opted to include it because it seems some people actually watch the show. We've had varying comments, some good, some bad, whenever a new column appears. Let me know what you think about the column. If enough people don't care for it, I will remove it from the site.

Berkeley Township and Central Regional school officials say the arrangement, with nine students attending Toms River schools without paying tuition, will hurt taxpayers in the other four sending districts.  What do you think? Tell us in the comments!

It took the Berkeley Board of Education a year and a half to decide on former schools superintendent Joseph H. Vicari as the district's next interim superintendent. Current Interim Superintendent Arleen J. Lippincott will no longer have that title on April 1, when Vicari returns. The school board authorized board attorney John C. Sahradnik to begin contract negotiations with Lippincott back in October. But in December, board President James J. Brynes and board Vice-President John Bacchione invited Vicari to a personnel meeting. Vicari shortly after volunteered to return as superintendent free…

Should the Berkeley Board of Education accept former schools superintendent Joseph H. Vicari's offer to work free of charge until a permanent superintendent is found?Acting Interim Superintendent Arlene J. Lippincott has been working without a contract since July 2009.Lippincott, who is paid $100 a day for her superintendent duties, is also the principal of the Bayville Elementary School, with a $120,000 salary.A previous school board declined to renew Vicari's contract in 2008, a move Vicari has claimed was political.The board voted at the Feb. 3 meeting to bring Vicari back as interim …