Herald/Lantern/Dispatch 1 May '85 53

• ^ Container Axes Top Managers —

(From Page 1) that that schedule is "out" and the county has been paid off. "We felt it was an obligation long overdue," he said, "and if we were to take over the company, we wanted to bring things current." A GLASS DECORATING firm that would employ 100 was Beiseigel's idea three years ago. But financing was the problem, from beginning to end. Beiseigel was scurrying for funds in the fall of 1982 when former county Economic Development Executive Director Donald M, Kelly helped gather investors willing to put up $250,000 and get the firm going. They included Dwyer, A. Keith Rasmussen. Harry Scott, "Pete" Barnes. Roy Gillian, Charles Guhr and Louis J. Mazzarella. To get that money, Beiseigel, president, and Knox, executive vice president, had to give up 52 percent of the firm to the investors. Beiseigel, Knox and three other members of the management team — Ray Avis, P. Dale Sapello, and Joseph Smith — were to share the remaining 48 percent after they had served five years with the company, that would have been April 1. 1988. > Now Reiseigel and Knox are out. Avis reportedly retired April 28, and only plant manager Sapello and Controller Smith remain. A MONTH AGO, the Herald-Lantern reported that Beiseigel and Knox were again trying to raise money — this time to buy out their shareholders who, they said, were unwilling to put more money into the company. Knox conceded it would be "rough" and Beiseigel said it would require "creative financing." It never came, and Beiseigel and Knox lost their dream and their jobs. No one at the plant would talk to the Goal Suggestions (From Page 1) sion and three AAUW members are on the selection committee. Donna Szemcsak of North Cape May. Marcia Smith-White of Cold Spring, and Cindy Donahue of Upper Township. Marion Olsen, county extension home economist, and Pat Devaney, county Human Services administrator, are the other two members. WHEN THE COMMISSION was announced, last October, AAUW chairman Barbara L. Chocjacki of Ocean View said it would "let the freeholders know what we think women's needs are. We will originate and recommend programs to meet the needs of county women." She suggested day care and battered woman as "two leading issues, off the top of my head." She also said a (county-appropriated) "budget would be nice." There is currently a state Commission on Women which advocates women's issues and local commissions in 11 of the states' 21 counties. Another half-dozen are forming. "Hie county AAUW chapter has about 110 members and meets in the county library building at 7:30 p.m. every second Wednesday. Membership is open to any woman with a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college. Freeholders Slap — (From Page 1) , IN JUNE OF 1983. only three months before its merger with Atlantic County. PIC '^approved a $25,000 expenditure for * "marketing and public relations." More than $6,000 went to Coastline Advertising, owned by PIC board member Robert Laws And another $1,400 went to Group W Cable whose manager, Peter Berkowitz, also was a PIC board member. Neither is on the board now. n. . Among complaints was that Mavjomates, along with Catanoso. served on the Republican Steering Committee in North 3 Wildwood. Cape May County's PIC was an independent "priqje sponsor" for about eight months in 1982-83, a status it lost in mid-1983 • when state interpretations of federal regulations forced its merger with Atlantic County. Fears expressed by Catanoso^nd Mavromates at the(time that the county would lost funds, staff and programs because of the merger apparently proved unfounded.

Herald-Lantern, but Dwyer said there was "a small wort force there now and we'll gradually increase as we get things back on stream." Employment reportedly peaked at about 75 last fall. DWYER SAID the investors "felt it was losing too much money. It should be evident we felt the business was not being managed to its capacity. There were substantial Neighbors Differ (From Page 1| system "three or lour times a month." The association is currently appealing a CAFRA permit for the Court House Convalescent Center on Mataolia Drive, adjacent to Crooked Creek, a point Faust also made. Faust submitted soil analysis obtained from the Middle Township Planning Board, photo slides of the area during "the last big rain storm," and independent analyses of area wells in 1979 showing "high coliform count in quite a number of homes." FIVE OF SIX nearby property owners » testified with various concern about the proposed development. But the sixth, Robert Goodrich of 8 Cynwyd Drive, said he had no problems either with surface water or his septic system In contrast, Warren Bernard, who said he had a lot adjacent to the tract, said "Any time it rains, we have to pump the water out from underneath the house." He said when he uses his shower, washer, or dish washer, "water comes to the surface' in our lawn." Bernard said he took a soil sample at the proposed subdivision that morning and "it is solid clay and it is wet. "There's a holding pond on lot 21," he said. My wells were tested by the Health Department and we were told we had nitrates. If he builds there, it will create an unhealthy environmental situation. I suggest we get a sewage system to take away the sewage first." FAUST ECHOED that point "We have no objection to development if we can find a solution," he said. "We have a good MUA (Municipal Utilities Authority) system coming in two years. We can't understand why he can't wait for proper sewage." Henry Heacock of South Dennis Road testified that the land has "a high water table and a lot of it is normally flooded. A swamp stands there on Winding Way. A certain amount of the ground there is not buildable." He suggested Wright be limited to half of the 39 homes in his original proposal "I've been here five years," said Thomas J. Gallagher of Shadow Lane. "My neighbors tell me that six or seyen years ago they had rowboats going,up the street and homes flooded out." Gallagher said he was concerned about soil density and percolation. The state, he commented, was doing "a very sad job as far as the environment." DIANE METZ of Shadow Lane in Idlwood Lane said a drainage ditch there was "a swimming pool in the spring and a danger to children. " Wright said plans call for the current open drainage ditch to be replaced by twin covered culverts. Metz said her well was tested by the county Health Department in July 1982, "in the middle of a drought. The problem would be during g wet spring and that's when testing should be done." George Reichert testified that his well had not been tested since October 1982 "even though their permit said it would be." And, in response to testimony by Wright that the roads had been regraded and repaved, Reichert said "the township had to do that. The responsibility falls on the developer. 1 wouldn't like to see that in the new section." COUNTY PLANNING Director Elwood Jarmer said the county's subdivision and site plan committee will consider the Wright application on May 6 "In the a!<sence of data that we have a pollution proolem" he said. "My recommendation will be not to. disapprove. " Thirty persons attended the 35-minute hearing, presided over by Andre Heyl. , principal environmental specialist, ana John Boyle, senior environmental specialist. They said the public would havq another 15 te^s to offer additional comments. They said DEP also will await the county Planning Board recommendations and let Wright give "a final response" before making a decision.

losses that couldn't continue or we would have gone bankrupt." He said the decision to hire new management, Suvista Management Systems Inc. of Kenilworth, Union County, also will require the firm to "revitalize with additional capital." Dwyer said that would come "from additional loans to the' corporation by the shareholders. We are still resolving that. "There will be no bank borrowing." he added. Suvista was retained for "a fee based on performance," Dwyer said. "They have no shareholder status " SUVISTA PRESIDENT Stan Schlow said the firm was retained "because of our expertise in the field of glass decorating." The two-year-old, $10-million company recently bought a glass decorating firm called Modern Creative and plans to use those experts. Executive Vice President Peter Kohli will be in charge of the operation. Schlow said. Kohli said he and Schlow formed the company "to manage for people who didn't want day-to-day operation." He said Container first was approached with purchase in mind, but then they decided "not to buy but to help. Our goal is to make it a viable operation." Kohli said Container "is not in as good

shape as they'd like it to be. We're still trying to determine the problems. Right now we have a lot of^ork to do with existing sales, reestablishing contacts and relationships with existing customers." BEISEIGEL TRACED his troubles to the Kelly involvement. A hubub developed when it was revealed that Kelly's financial arrangements included a shareholder, status for an "M.B. Friend Co.." which turned out to be one of his friends, Lois Goodpaster of New Holland, Pa. Kelly was suspended by the freeholders, and in June, 1983, quit his post along with that of treasurer of the county's Regular Republican Organization. ~ Beiseigel said the bad publicity hurt the company's image and its ability to raise money. , "We should have had three times the amount we had to start out with." he said. "The Don Kelly thing was the biggest problem. It prevented us from doing proper financing." His most recent financial package, he said, was put together by the J DP Perfor mance Group, North Jersey financial consultants. But with the Lower lien. heSaid. he was stymied. "The truth is," he said, "we had an agree meiU Jan. 7 to purchase their (the snareholders') shares in the corporation. I guess theyVelt I was dragging my feet." \ V

Dennis Group Home Site

(From Page l) Daisy Mae Bodnar said for most of her 19 neighbors on Robin Drive. They presented a petition to Dennis Township Committee last week, opposing a group home in their small neighborhood off Route 657 because it lacks street lighting, sidewalks, nearby stores and local police protection. ROBIN DRIVE IS a dead end street in a secluded area, the petitioners argued, "and it's going to cause a lot more traffic...," Bodnar added. "That's one of our biggest complaints — the traffic " Her neighbors are also concerned, she continued, about the safety of their children and that the group home is "going to devalue our property. . "I know it's going to be a Tot harder to sell the house with a group home right next to you," she said. "There's nothing we can do." said township official Edward J. Meerwald Municipal zoning does not prohibit a group home in the neighborhood, he noted, "so I don't see what they (opponents) can do. I don't see what anybody can do." Marge Murray. ARC executive director, met with Robin Drive residents Friday to explain the group home program, answer questions about it and field complaints. SHE'S HEARD THEM ALL before. The proposed Robin Drive group home will be the fifth ARC facility in the county Traffic from the home there shouldn't be more than that frorfi a family with a teenage driver, she said. Finding a group home location with sidewalks, street lights and fire hydrants would be a chore in Cape May County where 90 percent of neighborhoods lack them. Murray stressed. Bad publicity might initially hurt property value, she added, but state statistics show that "this is not the case" after that publicity subsides. As far as mentally handicapped people posing a threat to children, Murray said "retarded people do not have a penchant for little children. * Her major argument is that the retarded, by law, have the same rights to a residence as other citizens. She's optimistic that the RoBlrf Drive group home will "go through " v, "Septic is always^ a big thing down here," she said of tjie* county.' But that doesn't seem to be a problem with the Robin Drive site. y IT WAS A PROBLEM with a Fishing Creek house that the ARC was eyeing as a Lower Township group home site in the summer of 1983. The association decided instead on a Secluded Lane house in Rio Grande where Middle lownship Mayor Michael Voll lives. Although with some neighbors, Voll was initially apprehensive about that home. "I must, out of fairness, say, you wouldn't . know that, group home was there," Voll observed Monday. The ARC operates group homes for men .4 there and in Goshen, co-ed apartments in North Cape May and a group home for women in Erma. Another organization," The Society for Retarded Children, hadtbeen eyeing a house on East Katharine Avenue in Seaville, Upper Townslpp, but began the search again last m^th after protests

from residents and a restrictive zoning ordinance adopted by that township's government. "As far as 1 know, they're still looking." said Murray News — Digest 1 From Page II* Philadelphia Zoo. in conjunction with Campbell's Soup Co's new international headquarters planned for the waterfront here. Nobody's sure when this will all happen but Joseph Salerno, president of Wildwood's Chamber of Commerce, said last week he was depressed and disappointed that the authority never responded to a local proposal that the aquarium be built on a former city dump. Assailant Sought UPPER TOWNSHIP - County Crime Stoppers are offering a reward for information regarding an assault on Old Stagecoach Road April 17 in which an unidentified juvenile was struck by a baseball bat Call 465-2800. Informants will be assigned code numbers so their identities will not be known. Whoops COURT HOUSE - Last week's Herald story on the resignation of county Purchasing Agent William F. Deaver reported that Freeholder Gerald M. Thornton "cut off" Deaver in midsentence at a meeting March 26. Thornton has pointed out he was on vacation couple thousand miles away at the time. It was Vice Director James S. Kilpatrick ~"Jr. who was presiding and brought that discussion to an abrupt end. Toxic Ghosts? SEA ISLE CITY — New Jersey * Natural Gas and Jersey Central Power and Light companies will begin inspecting the ground around the 39th Street ^ „ water tower next week for evidence of toxic residue from a former coal gasification plant there. Suspected cancer-causing substances could have seeped into the earth. The utility com panies want to talk to anyone who worked at the coal gasification f>Iant or knows something about it. . 4-2 for Homegrown OCEAN CITY — Future city employes will have a year to become resort residents and remain as such or risk loss of the jobs, according to an ordinance adopted 4-2 by city council Thursday. It voted unanimously, however, to delete a controversial section of the measure that gave promotional preference to resort residents. Police called that section illegal and unconstitutional when it was introduced last month.