CFO Tapped To Serve As Township Administrator Through 2012

Chief Financial Officer Frederick Ebenau will have an additional title at least until the end of the year - Township Administrator.

Ebenau had been serving as acting administrator since Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. was sworn in on New Year's Day.

Township Council members agreed to extend his stint another month in February and later approved Ebenau staying on as administrator through December.

"Fred has proved himself the last two months as a capable administrator," Amato said. "He's doing a very good job executing my administration's agenda."

Ebenau's base salary as CFO is $111,000 a year. He will be paid an additional $100 a day for his administrator duties, the mayor said.

"This gives us some flexibility with the budget, and allows stability within the township," Amato said. " Now employees and the public know Fred is the administrator."

Amato and the council will decide whether Ebenau should stay on as administrator when they review his performance in December.

"Berkeley is the sixth largest town in Ocean County," he said. "We want to make sure the added assignment to Fred's CFO title won't be too overwhelming to him. We will monitor it closely and reevaluate it in December."

Amato, a Republican, when he took over from former Democratic Mayor . He announced his key professional appointments several days before he was sworn in on New Year's Day.

Ebenau took over from former longtime Township Administrator Leonard W. Roeber, who submitted his resignation effective Dec. 31; Also gone were former Township Attorney Patrick Sheehan; Township Engineer Chris Theodos and Township Planner David Roberts. Most of them had been with the township for almost 20 years.

Theodos was replaced by Alan Dittenhofer of Remington, Vernick & Vena Engineers. Sheehan was replaced by Toms River attorney George R. Gilmore, the Republican party chief in Ocean County. Amato said then that the firm of Gilmore and Monahan has a large staff of attorneys with expertise in many areas.

Longtime Township Planner David Roberts was replaced by James M. Oris of T&M Associates. But Roberts will stay on for awhile as a consultant in the battle to win state approval for the Town Center plan, Amato said.