Nicholas Giordano

Position: Franklin Mayor
Age: 44

Political History: Borough Council President, present; Franklin Borough Councilman, 5 years; Recreation Liason, Budget Committee, Personnel Committee, Public Safety Committee, Awards Committee, Republican Committee

Occupation: Works in sales, technical support and customer service.

Education: Franklin Elementary, Wallkill Valley Regional High School, Lincoln Technical Institute, Sussex County Community College.

Family: Married to Jennifer for 20 years.

Top three issues: 1. Taxes and mismanagement: Of course taxes are a huge problem, but these are results of the other systemic problems as a result of the mismanagement by the current/recent past administration. Here are some examples of what is wrong: Franklin has spent $450,000 in police OT due to the current administration's mismanagement and interference in the hiring process over the last 2 years. We spent possibly over $100,000 fighting our own DPW employees over petty personality conflicts. This being a theme in Franklin; where we combined the DPW and the Water Dept. manager position, saving nearly $100,000, only after a year of wrangling because of petty personality conflicts. We have the location, 35,000 cars a day pass through Franklin. Franklin IS and should be THE place on our side of the county for business. We need to revise the way we treat business, simplify our land use boards. 2. Franklin has no plan. I will ask for a 3 and 5 year plan for our town. Not just a plan for streets, personal or capitol; but a real plan to reduce the spending by 3 percent over a 3 year period. Each department should be able to trim 3 percent from its budget without impacting service, employees or safety. Now if this is NOT achievable, make a plan to get us there, not an excuse. 3. Let's make a better Franklin This isn't the town I know and love! Honestly, it's not hard to believe though. Franklin had the best fields, and the best town day. But the current administration has willfully neglected our recreation areas. We are losing residents daily because we aren’t creating the right place for families. In Franklin it's easier to write a letter complaining about a TV set than it is to volunteer, it’s easier to complain than try to fix the problem. We need to elect people that will work together, not have their own agenda and personal vendetta. Franklin deserves open and honest government.