John Walsh and John Sabia also participated in the meeting,
but they are not in view of the camera.
Comments
Is Mr. Walsh our new tourism director, or is that part of his duties as the mayor’s assistant? I cannot find any resolution or appointment that names an actual tourism director. It is my understanding that the previous director is no longer there. Did she not leave notes or train a replacement? We used to have an agency that did advertising and event marketing for us. The commission might want to bring in some professionals, one who can run events and track whether the boro’s ad dollars are working or not and where our visitors are coming from.
#1-Exactly! It’s getting old with the hiring of employees based on friendships or favors. People should be hired based on experience, but we know how the town of Belmar is….and it goes back to former administrations….IE Colleen Connelly
Sparks marketing made all the money when they were our marketing firm. That was under Dorehty/McGovern. Belmar got nothing.
Also why do they want to move the seafood festival back up to Silver lake beachfront??? That was a nightmare for the residents, lost revenue for the beach and a parking and traffic was a mess. Road closures and extra policing costs. Not to mention it did not help our downtown businesses at all.
If you google Mr. Walsh the first things that pop up are his you tube performances, one dressed up as donald trump, etc., it’s not a very professional look for Belmar. I think this makes the Borough look like a joke.
I would like to know what Mr. Walsh’s qualifications are to be hired as a full time borough employee making 55K with benefits. Does he have any government experience? Does he even have experience as an assistant? Has he ever even worked in an office? Why was this position not posted? Why were other borough employees or residents not given the opportunity to apply for this position? The Mayor’s answer that it is his “confidential assistant” doesn’t fly by me. And why was Mr. Walsh’s appointment not on the public agenda? So much for our new mayors transparency. Can I change my vote? Oh wait the machines may have counted it twice, so did our mayor get two of my votes?
To the new administration: I am one of the many people that worked to put an end to the Doherty administration’s questionable activities. I voted for Walsifer and supported him until it became clear that his administration was engaging in the same type of behavior. So I voted for you. Please take heed. The blue print of mistakes is there for all to read. Please avoid the easily avoidable. Do not hire friends and campaign workers. Please don’t make us go through this again in four years. We are tired and we can’t keep doing this dance over and over again. Please. Be. Good.
#4-His videos are far from entertaining. I am for freedom of speech but now that he is “head of tourism” he should be advised to refrain from posting anything political in nature that are derogatory to one party. If he is so inclined to post perhaps he should turn in his resignation
We could give them the benefit of the doubt and say that maybe they are looking for an experienced Tourism Director and Mr. Walsh is filling in for now, but it sure doesn’t sound that way. I’m sure Mr. Walsh can make some great promo videos for us, he clearly loves it here and is good at it (politics aside), but I’m not sure tourism is his wheelhouse. Maybe he will prove us wrong?
#3, yes, Sparks, thank you. If they weren’t worth the $$ then off with them, but surely someone else might be at least helpful?
I have no issue moving the Seafood Festival back to the beach, but I agree with Mr. McKim, it’s turned into a carnival, with many more outside vendors than local establishments. I will only go on locals night, and even then, I did not attend the festivals in the parking lot. The Pt. Pleasant seafood festival in the Fall is spread out down Arnold Avenue, and is a much more pleasant experience, even though it’s nowhere near the beach. And the crazy food prices, which I’m going to guess might be even more ridiculous this year. Seafood is expensive, but if I’m paying $25 for a hot dog bun sized lobster roll, there should be more lobster than roll. It’s not even worth it to go anymore.
The time to have discussions about events is immediately after the previous one, a “quarterback meeting”. The time to discuss what worked and what didn’t after the first Farmer’s Market season should have been last Fall when it was all fresh in everyone’s minds. Surveys go out to vendors, did they like it, yes or no, would they come back, what can be done better, that kind of things would they change. If you have to scrap the event, then scrap it. Did the town make money on it? No? Move on. And you don’t need to live stream each and every event. Take some pictures, post a “happening now, come on down” and be done with it. No one is watching every live stream from a farmer’s market. If they are, they need to get out more.
John Sabia does a great job on promo videos and special events. It seems like a duplication of services.
I don’t know John Walsh. But hearing about him around town and seeing his videos on social media make me think he is not the best candidate for the job representing the people of Belmar. I also don’t like the fact that this appears to be a political payback job to an unqualified campaign manager. I voted for Jerry but right now I wish I didn’t. Same ole same ole.
#12 very well said. I agree with all your points. I happen to be very much against moving the seafood fest back to the top of Silver Lake, but not if the conditions you laid out were met. Have it in May when we could use a boost in tourist dollars, restrict it to Belmar restaurants and businesses. Maybe leave off Geico Insurance and Seamless Gutter companies.
#11 Entertainment is subjective. I find his videos highly entertaining and quite funny. It’s like shooting fish in a barrel, but still, they’re good.
Having said that, if he is going to represent the town in an unelected position, he should not post any political skits, or posts, or comments. On that, we agree.
People. BREATH. This new admin hasn’t even been in office for a month yet and they’re being torn apart. I don’t remember all this harsh criticism when Walsifer and crew were taking over. As for the Seafood Festival. Have it on the boardwalk/beach centrally located at 10th and Ocean. It’s called a SEAFOOD Festival for a reason. It needs to be by the SEAshore. Shut down parts of Ocean Ave. to foot traffic only.
it’s easier to have liquor consumption at Belmar Plaza … using Beach Haus or 10th Avenue Burrito’s liquor license … with a simple notification for use of the contiguous properties.
Why is everyone obsessed over this John Walsh guy? Did I miss something? So he is listed as the Mayors Assistant, who said anything about tourism director? And let’s say he is this title of tourism director, what does a personal social media count have to do with anything? Do you really believe people google “Mayor of Belmar’s assistant” prior to visiting our town to base their decision on their travel? What am I not understanding? Is it the title you are upset about? What’s wrong with the mayor having an assistant? Or is it his social media that you are upset with? I thought we had this thing called freedom of speech. Are you not allowed to post on social media if you are an employee?
Hate the idea of the festival moving back to the ocean. The traffic and parking were a nightmare. The residents in that area were trapped and the expense to the taxpayers is very high. Extra police. Tons of garbage, NO parking. Over time pay n street closures. And seafood is served all over the place, not just in view of the sea! Point Pleasant is in town. How does our town benefit at all??? I could care less we should ditch the whole thing.
“we should ditch the whole thing.”
—————————————
I agree sir. There’s the added point that it is not safe to entertain large crowds in a town anymore during the summer. At any given point, a spark could ignite a riot that our police and EMT services are not equipped to handle. It’s just too risky anymore.
#21, I couldn’t agree more ! Let’s ditch the parade as well. Can someone explain why Belmar even needs a tourism director or commission ? Do we really need to promote Belmar to attract people here ? Seems stupid.
#20, it’s because the new mayor was elected on the idea that he would be transparent and do away with the cronyism, and his first order of business was to hire his campaign manager for an unadvertised borough job with a good salary and benefits. Same old, same old.
There is a rumor Mr. Walsh was also unofficially appointed to fill the vacancy left by our previous Tourism Director. A rumor, since we haven’t officially heard otherwise. I expect this would be addressed in the near future, in the spirit of transparency. Do we need to promote Summer tourism? Maybe not. People are going to come here either way. But we need someone experienced to oversee the events we do put on, and to come up with other possibly smaller events or promotions outside of the Summer season to help out our local businesses, like Mr. Brandl suggested.
#20 No problem if the mayor wants an assistant, as long as the assistant is paid out of the mayor’s pocket. Or the salary comes from cutting some other expense. Being mayor of Belmar doesn’t require a personal assistant. Never did.
As for the SM post, I couldn’t care less. I agree that no one will give two s@#%* about it. No point in freaking out about tourism director job until it becomes something slightly higher than a rumor. But we do t need a tourism director. That’s the ocean’s job. Mr Doherty’s little obsession with tourism outreach made us close the damn town. There is such a thing as the Law of Diminishing Returns.
(If there is a typo that needs to be corrected here, contact me in a comment, Editor.)
Belmar is a civil service town so there are rules and regulations that must be adhered to. Not sure this administration is following the guidelines set forth by the Civil Service Commission. I could be mistaken, but I believe the town of Freehold Boro is a civil service town so the new BA should be very familiar with these guidelines.
I agree. The seafood festival has run its course and places undo pressure on our DPW, first responders and most importantly our residents. Not even mentioning the huge expense! As stated, Belmar has an ocean and a marina where most towns don’t to draw tourists. The seafood festival and even the parade should faze out. They only benefit the bars and some businesses but certainly not the residents.
Belmar has a ‘Strong Mayor’ form of government (1 horse town) … the Mayor sets the Agenda … with resolutions & ordinances … and the majority council members usually salute what gets raised-up the flagpole … minority council members often go-along to get-along.
Inasmuch as the Mayor runs the Borough … I have no problem with the Mayor’s need of a confidential secretary … as long as the employment is at-will.
Regarding Tourism … I never made a nickel in Belmar … if the regime wants to bankroll Tourism … use mercantile license fees.
Hey at least the BA was not given an assistant, and a car like EK and Cinelli had. Why bash the hell out of this new mayor and council less than a month into their rolls. It seems the people of Belmar know how to manage the town, because the last 4 administrations all people did was p*** and moan about things. Can anyone in this town just be happy? Life is far too short for so much animosity in a 1 square mile town.
“Can anyone in this town just be happy?”
—————————————–
Sir, agreed, but happiness can only come when we get an experienced man to run the town rather than these men (Deleted by Editor.)
#26- Civil Service? Nice try. On 12/06/2022 Walsifer and crew passed Ordinance 2022-20 sidestepping Civil Service rules to hire a Police Officer. So apparently the OLD BA was very versed on loop holes. Be careful what you wish for. Gee, I wonder why Ord. 2022-20 happened.
Is Mr. Walsh our new tourism director, or is that part of his duties as the mayor’s assistant? I cannot find any resolution or appointment that names an actual tourism director. It is my understanding that the previous director is no longer there. Did she not leave notes or train a replacement? We used to have an agency that did advertising and event marketing for us. The commission might want to bring in some professionals, one who can run events and track whether the boro’s ad dollars are working or not and where our visitors are coming from.
#1-Exactly! It’s getting old with the hiring of employees based on friendships or favors. People should be hired based on experience, but we know how the town of Belmar is….and it goes back to former administrations….IE Colleen Connelly
Sparks marketing made all the money when they were our marketing firm. That was under Dorehty/McGovern. Belmar got nothing.
Also why do they want to move the seafood festival back up to Silver lake beachfront??? That was a nightmare for the residents, lost revenue for the beach and a parking and traffic was a mess. Road closures and extra policing costs. Not to mention it did not help our downtown businesses at all.
If you google Mr. Walsh the first things that pop up are his you tube performances, one dressed up as donald trump, etc., it’s not a very professional look for Belmar. I think this makes the Borough look like a joke.
#1-I would love to know if John Walsh has experience and/or qualifications in tourism.
I would like to know what Mr. Walsh’s qualifications are to be hired as a full time borough employee making 55K with benefits. Does he have any government experience? Does he even have experience as an assistant? Has he ever even worked in an office? Why was this position not posted? Why were other borough employees or residents not given the opportunity to apply for this position? The Mayor’s answer that it is his “confidential assistant” doesn’t fly by me. And why was Mr. Walsh’s appointment not on the public agenda? So much for our new mayors transparency. Can I change my vote? Oh wait the machines may have counted it twice, so did our mayor get two of my votes?
Resolution 2023-26 lists members of the Tourism Commission. John Walsh is not on the list.
I think the job title is ‘Confidential Secretary’ … just like Della Street
Same old shenanigans.
To the new administration: I am one of the many people that worked to put an end to the Doherty administration’s questionable activities. I voted for Walsifer and supported him until it became clear that his administration was engaging in the same type of behavior. So I voted for you. Please take heed. The blue print of mistakes is there for all to read. Please avoid the easily avoidable. Do not hire friends and campaign workers. Please don’t make us go through this again in four years. We are tired and we can’t keep doing this dance over and over again. Please. Be. Good.
#4-His videos are far from entertaining. I am for freedom of speech but now that he is “head of tourism” he should be advised to refrain from posting anything political in nature that are derogatory to one party. If he is so inclined to post perhaps he should turn in his resignation
We could give them the benefit of the doubt and say that maybe they are looking for an experienced Tourism Director and Mr. Walsh is filling in for now, but it sure doesn’t sound that way. I’m sure Mr. Walsh can make some great promo videos for us, he clearly loves it here and is good at it (politics aside), but I’m not sure tourism is his wheelhouse. Maybe he will prove us wrong?
#3, yes, Sparks, thank you. If they weren’t worth the $$ then off with them, but surely someone else might be at least helpful?
I have no issue moving the Seafood Festival back to the beach, but I agree with Mr. McKim, it’s turned into a carnival, with many more outside vendors than local establishments. I will only go on locals night, and even then, I did not attend the festivals in the parking lot. The Pt. Pleasant seafood festival in the Fall is spread out down Arnold Avenue, and is a much more pleasant experience, even though it’s nowhere near the beach. And the crazy food prices, which I’m going to guess might be even more ridiculous this year. Seafood is expensive, but if I’m paying $25 for a hot dog bun sized lobster roll, there should be more lobster than roll. It’s not even worth it to go anymore.
The time to have discussions about events is immediately after the previous one, a “quarterback meeting”. The time to discuss what worked and what didn’t after the first Farmer’s Market season should have been last Fall when it was all fresh in everyone’s minds. Surveys go out to vendors, did they like it, yes or no, would they come back, what can be done better, that kind of things would they change. If you have to scrap the event, then scrap it. Did the town make money on it? No? Move on. And you don’t need to live stream each and every event. Take some pictures, post a “happening now, come on down” and be done with it. No one is watching every live stream from a farmer’s market. If they are, they need to get out more.
John Sabia does a great job on promo videos and special events. It seems like a duplication of services.
I don’t know John Walsh. But hearing about him around town and seeing his videos on social media make me think he is not the best candidate for the job representing the people of Belmar. I also don’t like the fact that this appears to be a political payback job to an unqualified campaign manager. I voted for Jerry but right now I wish I didn’t. Same ole same ole.
#12 very well said. I agree with all your points. I happen to be very much against moving the seafood fest back to the top of Silver Lake, but not if the conditions you laid out were met. Have it in May when we could use a boost in tourist dollars, restrict it to Belmar restaurants and businesses. Maybe leave off Geico Insurance and Seamless Gutter companies.
#11 Entertainment is subjective. I find his videos highly entertaining and quite funny. It’s like shooting fish in a barrel, but still, they’re good.
Having said that, if he is going to represent the town in an unelected position, he should not post any political skits, or posts, or comments. On that, we agree.
Mayor…I hope you’re paying attention.
Our Seafood Festival began in 1987 or 1988 and it was held at Silver Lake in September.
People. BREATH. This new admin hasn’t even been in office for a month yet and they’re being torn apart. I don’t remember all this harsh criticism when Walsifer and crew were taking over. As for the Seafood Festival. Have it on the boardwalk/beach centrally located at 10th and Ocean. It’s called a SEAFOOD Festival for a reason. It needs to be by the SEAshore. Shut down parts of Ocean Ave. to foot traffic only.
it’s easier to have liquor consumption at Belmar Plaza … using Beach Haus or 10th Avenue Burrito’s liquor license … with a simple notification for use of the contiguous properties.
#17 you’re an *****
(Asterisks are mine, Editor.)
Why is everyone obsessed over this John Walsh guy? Did I miss something? So he is listed as the Mayors Assistant, who said anything about tourism director? And let’s say he is this title of tourism director, what does a personal social media count have to do with anything? Do you really believe people google “Mayor of Belmar’s assistant” prior to visiting our town to base their decision on their travel? What am I not understanding? Is it the title you are upset about? What’s wrong with the mayor having an assistant? Or is it his social media that you are upset with? I thought we had this thing called freedom of speech. Are you not allowed to post on social media if you are an employee?
Hate the idea of the festival moving back to the ocean. The traffic and parking were a nightmare. The residents in that area were trapped and the expense to the taxpayers is very high. Extra police. Tons of garbage, NO parking. Over time pay n street closures. And seafood is served all over the place, not just in view of the sea! Point Pleasant is in town. How does our town benefit at all??? I could care less we should ditch the whole thing.
“we should ditch the whole thing.”
—————————————
I agree sir. There’s the added point that it is not safe to entertain large crowds in a town anymore during the summer. At any given point, a spark could ignite a riot that our police and EMT services are not equipped to handle. It’s just too risky anymore.
#21, I couldn’t agree more ! Let’s ditch the parade as well. Can someone explain why Belmar even needs a tourism director or commission ? Do we really need to promote Belmar to attract people here ? Seems stupid.
#20, it’s because the new mayor was elected on the idea that he would be transparent and do away with the cronyism, and his first order of business was to hire his campaign manager for an unadvertised borough job with a good salary and benefits. Same old, same old.
There is a rumor Mr. Walsh was also unofficially appointed to fill the vacancy left by our previous Tourism Director. A rumor, since we haven’t officially heard otherwise. I expect this would be addressed in the near future, in the spirit of transparency. Do we need to promote Summer tourism? Maybe not. People are going to come here either way. But we need someone experienced to oversee the events we do put on, and to come up with other possibly smaller events or promotions outside of the Summer season to help out our local businesses, like Mr. Brandl suggested.
#20 No problem if the mayor wants an assistant, as long as the assistant is paid out of the mayor’s pocket. Or the salary comes from cutting some other expense. Being mayor of Belmar doesn’t require a personal assistant. Never did.
As for the SM post, I couldn’t care less. I agree that no one will give two s@#%* about it. No point in freaking out about tourism director job until it becomes something slightly higher than a rumor. But we do t need a tourism director. That’s the ocean’s job. Mr Doherty’s little obsession with tourism outreach made us close the damn town. There is such a thing as the Law of Diminishing Returns.
(If there is a typo that needs to be corrected here, contact me in a comment, Editor.)
Belmar is a civil service town so there are rules and regulations that must be adhered to. Not sure this administration is following the guidelines set forth by the Civil Service Commission. I could be mistaken, but I believe the town of Freehold Boro is a civil service town so the new BA should be very familiar with these guidelines.
I agree. The seafood festival has run its course and places undo pressure on our DPW, first responders and most importantly our residents. Not even mentioning the huge expense! As stated, Belmar has an ocean and a marina where most towns don’t to draw tourists. The seafood festival and even the parade should faze out. They only benefit the bars and some businesses but certainly not the residents.
Belmar has a ‘Strong Mayor’ form of government (1 horse town) … the Mayor sets the Agenda … with resolutions & ordinances … and the majority council members usually salute what gets raised-up the flagpole … minority council members often go-along to get-along.
Inasmuch as the Mayor runs the Borough … I have no problem with the Mayor’s need of a confidential secretary … as long as the employment is at-will.
Regarding Tourism … I never made a nickel in Belmar … if the regime wants to bankroll Tourism … use mercantile license fees.
Maybe we need to change the form of government to truly see real change. Who wants to start a charter study?
Hey at least the BA was not given an assistant, and a car like EK and Cinelli had. Why bash the hell out of this new mayor and council less than a month into their rolls. It seems the people of Belmar know how to manage the town, because the last 4 administrations all people did was p*** and moan about things. Can anyone in this town just be happy? Life is far too short for so much animosity in a 1 square mile town.
“Can anyone in this town just be happy?”
—————————————–
Sir, agreed, but happiness can only come when we get an experienced man to run the town rather than these men (Deleted by Editor.)
#30-I was not aware that EK had an assistant? Who was it? What did they do? Book his ******* *****?
(Arterisks are mine, Editor.)
#26- Civil Service? Nice try. On 12/06/2022 Walsifer and crew passed Ordinance 2022-20 sidestepping Civil Service rules to hire a Police Officer. So apparently the OLD BA was very versed on loop holes. Be careful what you wish for. Gee, I wonder why Ord. 2022-20 happened.