Town Hall

It's old, tired and soggy with drafts that'll blow papers off a desk. The log cabin municipal building has been condemned, but remains in use because officials are hesitant to tear down the beloved structure that defines this borough's character. When the building was condemned in July, officials were given six months to plan a permanent solution. On Oct. 14, the three-member council appropriated $50,000 to study the possibility of building a new municipal complex adjacent to the public works building on Stokes Road.

Starting Sunday, the Editorial Board looks at the issues in the presidential race and where Gov. George W. Bush and Vice President Gore stand on them. Also, next week, candidates begin answering citizen's questions on the Town Hall eDebates on www.quorum.org

Monroe Township Council last week awarded a $162,000 contract to Kanalstein, Timber, Danton, Johns, P.A., of Cherry Hill, to design a new municipal building. It is the same firm that in December completed a $10,000, 200-page feasibility study indicating the township's need to provide a new town hall to eliminate overcrowding and unify the offices. At that time, the firm presented several options: Among them, building a new complex over the police station with three floors of 10,000 square feet each and parking for 192 vehicles; building a four-story building to the right of the police station with parking for 187 vehicles on the ground level and 10,000 square feet of office space on the three upper floors; or building a new complex on township-owned land elsewhere.

ON THE FLIP SIDE, Philadelphia is doing a smart thing by hosting community meetings for homeowners who have questions about AVI. The first two were Thursday; a third will be on Saturday at Ss. Neumann and Goretti High School, 1736 S. 10th St. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Homeowners can bring their new assessments and ask experts about what it all means. Keep in mind that no one will be able to answer the question "exactly how much will I be paying in taxes?" at least until the actual rate is set. More of these sessions will be scheduled; meanwhile, another way for taxpayers to get their questions answered is by participating in a live toll-free telephone town-hall meeting Monday from 6:55-7:55 p.m. If you wish to listen in or ask a question, you have to register at phila.gov.

NEWTOWN, Conn. - More messages of hope and solidarity poured into Newtown on Monday as the town prepared to observe Christmas Eve 10 days after the elementary school massacre that claimed the lives of 20 first-graders and six teachers and administrators. Two dozen children and six adults arrived at town hall in the morning to deliver hundreds of handmade cards and snowflakes collected as they toured the state in a charter bus. One of the organizers, Gwen Samuel of Meriden, said, "We just want them to know they're not alone in their journey.

After nearly five years without a town hall, and its municipal offices scattered across miles, Moorestown could see construction of a new, 45,000-square-foot building start next month. Township officials opened bids from 21 construction companies Wednesday afternoon, with the low bid of $10.8 million submitted by the Sambe Construction Co. of Pennsauken. The bid came in well below the township's published estimate of between $11 million and $12 million, prompting Mayor John Button to say he was "very pleased.

Skirmishes between the mayor and the members of the Township Council may be nothing new. But according to some local officials, the rivalry between Mayor Jack Luby and council member Mary Duffy is beginning to interfere with the day-to-day operations at Town Hall, where the battle is being played out. Luby said he had had it with Duffy's alleged meddling in his administration's business. According to Luby, Duffy regularly appears at Town Hall during business hours, keeping watch and striking up conversations with employees who the mayor says have plenty of work to do without a council member peering over their shoulders.

The focus will be on financing when Monroe Township officials meet Tuesdayto discuss the proposed new Town Hall for the growing community. Current plans call for a 30,000-square-foot, three-story building to be attached to the police station on Virginia Avenue. The new building would house those township offices now in the Town Hall at 266 S. Main St. and the annex at 313 S. Main St. The new hall and the police station would form a municipal complex. Officials and staff have complained that the current facilities are cramped and inconveniently located.

Cherry Hill, a Bohemian mecca for artists? Well, maybe not Bohemian. But the affluent suburb does seem to attract its share of artists. A search by the Cherry Hill Arts Advisory Board turned up 80 artists among the town's residents. The board selected 55 of those for Cherry Hill's first juried art show, which formally opens at 7 tonight in the town hall on Mercer Street. Joyce Halpern, an art critic who helped organize the show, said the Arts Advisory Board decided to showcase Cherry Hill artists because it wanted to dispel the notion that culture was found only in big cities.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — A subdued and sparsely-attended town hall meeting with Gov. Christie in this Middlesex County township Wednesday had one noteworthy bit: several anti-Christie electronic traffic signs, set up by town workers at the behest of the Democratic mayor in apparent violation of state regulation. If you paused long enough as the words scrolled through, the signs read: "Welcome to P-Way Governor ... Please return ... 3.4 mil. in energy money back to taxpayers. " Another sign on the way out of the church where the event was held read: "Come back soon Gov. with energy money in hand.