Inside 50 days to deadline...wake up, Department of Navy!

NOPE suggests it is about time the DoN end its charade and announce progress toward a buyout and teardown of the Laurelwood housing complex on NWS Earle. This nonsense continues to tax state and federal legislators and local and state taxpayers' time and money, while at the same time we have been nothing but good neighbors to Earle for 70-plus years.

Recapping yesterday's unanimous approval of S762 by the full Senate in Trenton, the bill is awaiting a hearing in front of a state Assembly committee; we'll confirm a date once one is set, but remind our supporters the bill passed the last Assembly session 76-0. Again, approval and the signature of Governor Christie by month's end (or by the end-of-April "military use" phase of the 52-year Laurelwood lease) would signal a positive step for the community.

Separately, here is an interesting take on "Jihad Jane" (whom we wrote about earlier this week) from syndicated national columnist Eugene Robinson, and run in the Asbury Park Press.

NJ Senate Passes S762 by 36-0 Vote

The State Senate unanimously passed S762 around 3 p.m. We appreciate the efforts not only of Senator Beck, Assemblywoman Casagrande and Assemblyman O'Scanlon in pushing this measure (first introduced outside Earle's main gate in July 2009), but also thank the members of the NOPE community and federal legislators who put their support behind this nonpartisan bill, and especially leadership and countless volunteer hours that NOPE political liaison Elaine Mann put into this time-consuming endeavor.

NOPE will seek confirmation about next steps, but suspect the bill will now be delivered to the Assembly for its own review and vote (before reaching Governor Christie's desk), though we're not sure how long this will take. Recall that the Assembly in the last legislative session approved the measure (then numbered A4159 and since renumbered A2014) 76-0, so we expect much the same this time around.

It is critical for Governor Christie to receive and sign this bill ASAP, so that New Jersey's Treasurer can conduct an appropriate cost-benefits analysis of the unfunded mandate forced upon NJ taxpayers by the Department of Navy. And while the study is conducted, the DEP and DOT will be prohibited from issuing permits to the DoN to start construction of the literal 2-mile road to nowhere (Laurelwood) and the start of a very flawed DoN plan to grant unimpeded access to the privatized housing development on federal, military property through 2040.

S762 on today's NJ Senate calendar

Just reiterating what NOPE supporters already knew...but here's the legislative agenda for anyone interested in visiting Trenton this afternoon for today's 2 p.m. vote on S762, among other bills. We'll be sure to post the outcome later on.

"Jihad Jane"

The case of Pennsylvania woman and apparent Muslim sympathizer Colleen LaRose, who otherwise goes by "Jihad Jane," sheds anecdotal light on NOPE's longstanding contention, and lawmakers' growing concern, about how terrorist groups, according to this from the Asbury Park Press, "are looking to recruit Americans to carry out their goals." (Here's FOX News' take on Jihad Jane.)

To correlate Jihad Jane to NOPE's objection to the Navy's ill-advised plan to turn 300 Laurelwood military townhomes into rentals to civilians may seem a far-fetched to those who do not buy our argument that unimpeded civilian access thru NWS Earle poses security risks, but it is clear from this story that we are not immune to radical thinkers domestically, and opening Earle to anyone able to cut a rent check only raises the potential for espionage and terrorism. In short, as we have long argued, it is foolish to expose Earle's service members and surrounding communities to a significant threat, all for the sake of the DoN's inability to recognize that either buying out or voiding the Laurelwood lease is, by far, the best and only viable option.

NJ Senate to vote on S762 on Thursday

We received confirmation from the bills room in Trenton that the State Senate will vote Thursday at a 2 p.m. meeting on S762, regarding the cost-benefits analysis of proposed civilian housing and unimpeded access to Laurelwood homes at NWS Earle. See previous posts; we've more than beaten the horse on this issue.

More proof that the Navy lied to us and a U.S. Congressman about why it cannot revoke the Laurelwood lease

Through the Freedom of Information Act, NOPE obtained a May 30, 2002 letter from William Shook, attorney for Laurelwood Homes, LLC owner Teri Fischer to Department of Navy official Duncan Holaday, explaining why the Navy needed to sign away (which it ultimately did, without telling the public)its contractual right to revoke the 52-year Laurelwood privatized housing contract in order for Ms. Fischer to refinance her loan through a commercial lender.



There are a few morals here: 1) the DoN not only put the U.S. in danger (i.e. exposure to terror attacks on NWS Earle now that there will be unimpeded access to the Laurelwood development) by signing away a vital contract revocation clause, for no good reason other than to give one of its private housing contractors a sweetheart deal, and 2) during a face-to-face 2008 meeting with high-ranking DoN officials, lied to a U.S. Congressman (Chris Smith) and the public (NOPE representatives) - much as it did in its Laurelwood impact statement (EIS) -- about its motivations for going thru with the civilian-rental phase of the 52-year lease.

For those not close to our case since 2008, NOPE has objected from the get-go to a DoN plan to open NWS Earle to civilian housing, for numerous security, financial and environmental reasons, arguing the Navy should either by revoking the contract or buying it out. The Navy never told anyone it had signed away the revocation clause; NOPE found out when we obtained the lease agreement thru the Freedom of Information Act. Rather, it said the government could not afford to get out of the housing deal and did not want to be a bad business partner to military contractors.

That leaves the Navy with only the buyout option, and considering the silence from DoN leadership in Washington, NOPE can only suspect that the Navy is going through with its civilian rental phase of the Laurelwood lease. Citing the latest FOIA discovery, however, perhaps it is time for our federal legislators to call for a wider investigation of this matter, considering the thinking process (or obvious lack thereof) behind the Laurelwood housing contract mess, and to follow the money trail.

NOPE invites you to read the attached 3-page letter and share your thoughts with us.

Senate Budget committee passes bill requiring Earle probe

S762 was approved (11-0, with two abstentions) yesterday by the NJ Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee and, according to this press release from the District 12 offices of Beck-O'Scanlon-Casagrande, will go to the full Senate for vote on March 11. Kudos to District 12's team, and to the Manns (Elaine and David) and Wilcoxes (Fulton and Susan) for their testimony in Trenton yesterday on behalf of NOPE.

This is progress toward the much-needed, common sense cost benefits and security study by NJ's Treasury Department into the Department of Navy's plan to convert Laurelwood military housing into civilian rental housing within the next few months. NOPE is certain that, combined with the GAO's study on the federal level, government investigations into this debable will validate NOPE's contention that civilian housing at Earle is a disaster on many fronts.

NOPE supporters need to thank Elaine and Fulton

At the drop of a hat, NOPE political liaison Elaine Mann and business case analyst Fulton Wilcox are making their way to Trenton for today's 1 p.m. Senate budget committee meeting at which S762 will be discussed, contrary to what we expected. Originally, we were informed this was a closed-door meeting with no public involvement, but Elaine and Fulton answered the last-minute call from Senator Beck's office to attend for possible testimony. All NOPE supporters need to recognize the personal sacrifice of these two (and other) core committee volunteers, especially in our seemingly never-ending Trenton efforts.

We will provide updates later today on the outcome of this latest page in the S762 bill saga, which at this point we suspect could be moot anyway, considering word that we've gotten that the DEP's acting commissioner went ahead and checked off on Earle's permits for the proposed road to nowhere (i.e. Laurelwood). We are trying to confirm this information.

Another case of mistrust

Citing NOPE's ongoing objections to the Department of Navy's plan to convert underutilized military housing at NWS Earle into a free-for-all civilian community on an active Naval weapons base, and observations of the nearby Fort Monmouth relocation debacle and the U.S. Army's associated bill of goods, we turn supporters' attention to this story from CNN to highlight why local communities, such as ours, need to be skeptical of any DoD housing/infrastructure plans.

Residents and business leaders of Hinesville, Georgia, home to Fort Stewart, took U.S. Army leaders' word and patriotically supported their Military in building up the area's infrastructure ahead of a promised influx of 10,000 soldiers and their families. Area developers poured a reported $200 million into the infrastructure (i.e. sewer, utilities) to support the Army's need for area housing, only to the have the rug pulled from underneath them when the DoD altered course on where to send the soldiers. And, of course, the Pentagon washes its hands of any responsibility, arguing that it's best for the Army to give the answers. The Army, no surprise, was unavailable for comment to CNN.

Skeptics surely could argue that the developers did nothing more than speculate, but the CNN piece would suggest otherwise - that these people answered the Army's call to provide much-needed soldier housing (and other eventual services; i.e. schools). But, no matter how you look at it, the U.S. taxpayer is the one left holding the bag. As civilians, it is our patriotic duty to do all we can to support our Military's needs, much as we have locally for NWS Earle and Fort Monmouth dependents for decades. Yet, reciprocal consideration is absent when the DoD changes course on base staffing, ill-advisedly relocates a base for no apparently good reason, or goes full steam on projects that, ultimately, are ill-conceived and a waste of money.

This is precisely why Colts Neck, Tinton Falls and all of NJ is in the throes of the Laurelwood housing mess at NWS Earle - the DoN knew at the time that Laurelwood was being built in the 1980s that it was relocating the homeport of ships full of sailors designated to live at Laurelwood, yet it still went ahead with a costly housing project that, in the end, is now left for an unwitting base commander and area residents to deal with years down the road. Clearly, the Pentagon/DoD needs to articulate a clearly business strategy when justifying expenditures. Local communities should not be devastated by empty promises from military leaders, poor planning and political or leadership favors that, in the end, compounds years worth of bad decisions and complies with a model that maybe worked 50-75 years ago, but clearly does not in today's world.

T Minus 60 and Counting...

NOPE supporters and other welcome visitors to our blog (including distinguished members of the Department of Navy, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Congress and New Jersey legislature, among others) already notice the snarky ticking time bomb graphic to the left, but two days into March we would have expected some kind of commentary from the Navy in Washington on its plan to move forward with civilian housing at NWS Earle (i.e. whether it will still happen as planned or the parties are discussing a buyout).

That the DoN's silence is deafening is all the more impetus for NOPE to intensify its objections heading toward the April 30, 2010, expiration of the military-use phase of the Laurelwood pact and transition to the civilian-use phase thru 2040. This means that NOPE's thousands of area supporters need to be "at the ready" to take action in the next 60 days, so stay tuned here and with your direct NOPE contacts for more details.

In the meantime, Fulton Wilcox reviewed the bid documents on the NWS Earle security guard contract up for bids and notes "there is no provision for security Laurelwood or covering the gate openings/closings for trains or vehicles crossing the proposed access road." (We remind readers that the proposed 1.7-mile unimpeded access road to Laurelwood from just south of the main access gate on Rt. 34 will cross at least one - maybe two - rail lines inside of Earle over which the Navy transports high-powered munitions and other things that go "boom" to ships at Earle's waterfront base off Rt. 36.)

As civilians, we are unclear how to interpret this discovery, but it suggests that either the winning bidder a) will have no role in securing NWS Earle from a new civilian town inside the base, or b) has no clue that it will be responsible for supplementing the DoN's responsibility to police Laurelwood and the new, proposed unimpeded access road, in addition to its primary objective of augmenting base-force protection. We will review whether to contact the contract bidders to alert them to these possibilities.

In the meantime, NOPE will continue to monitor the contract security guard situation as part of our preparations for the 60-day countdown to proposed civilian housing at NWS Earle. Much like the temperatures outside, things will be heating up very quickly for NOPE thru April.

Quick update on NJ bill S762

The NJ Senate Budget Committee meeting scheduled for Thursday at 1 p.m. in Trenton is not a public session; it is a workshop, so to rectify what we sent supporters this morning by way of the NOPE newsletter, we will not be needed to testify. Meanwhile, Senator Beck's commentary on S762 on The Breeze this morning (follow this link, around the 14-minute mark) suggests the measure will be moved out of committee and expeditiously to the Senate floor for a vote, so NOPE will keep supporters updated on this front.

S762 now on the March 4 Senate budget committee docket

The Budget and Appropriations Committee has added S762 to Thursday's 1 p.m. meeting agenda (State House Annex, Committee Room 4, 1st Floor in Trenton). As noted here Monday (scroll down), NOPE maintains a guarded, somewhat skeptical stance about whether the bill to have our State Treasurer issue a cost-benefits assessment of the Laurelwood housing plan will become reality, but inclusion of S762 on the March 4 budget committee docket at least shows the measure is moving forward in Trenton.

The one thing NOPE remains unclear about (and may never get the answer to) in this whole process is how S762 will cost New Jerseyans anything...outside the scope of salary presumably already paid to our Treasurer and the staff of that office, and why the budget committee even needs to review this bill. If we get an answer to this, we'll let our supporters know.

Brief NOPE update from political liaison Elaine Mann

Elaine informs the NOPE community that Senator Beck will be a guest of Anita Velardo this Sunday morning at 8a on "The Breeze Knows" (107.1 and 99.7 FM) to discuss a range of topics, including S762--legislation in the Senate that would order the NJ Treasurer to conduct and issue a cost-benefits analysis of proposed civilian housing at NWS Earle before the DEP or DOT could issue permits to the Navy for construction of an unimpeded access road to Laurelwood homes.

Also on that front, the Colts Neck Town Committee passed a resolution last night in support of S762, on the heels of a similar move by Tinton Falls Borough Council. NOPE continues to appreciate the unwavering support of our elected town/borough officials in fighting the Department of Navy's plan to expose NWS Earle as the next Ground Zero and in the process stick us with a $300-$500 million unfunded mandate.

NWS Earle security guard contract bid update

At first glance, there is little new information to share from NOPE's routine check of the outsource security guard contract up for bids with the Department of Navy ("NECO") at Naval Weapons Station Earle, other than the award date (according to "A9" of this NECO document) will come sometime in March or April. We will update NOPE supporters of any otherwise notable findings once our Security Analyst, Jim Sfayer, and Business Case Analyst, Fulton Wilcox, have had a chance to review these highly technical documents (you can read them yourself, here).

Please revisit our January 4, 2010 blog for background on how the Myers Security contract issue bolsters NOPE's objection to civilian housing at NWS Earle. In short, NWS Earle outsources security guards to supplement base protection. NECO documents linked above shed zero light on the actual cost to the DoN or the value of the current contract to Myers, although a report from a 2009 Inspector General report put the Navy's price tag from 2004 through Sept. 2008 at $21 million, according to NOPE's findings.

Regarding this contract, and the entire civilian housing plan on an active weapons base, NOPE is concerned that the DoN lied to the public about the true cost to increase base force protection with civilian housing from 2010-2040. To be sure, DoN summarily wrote off the admitted need and cost for extra guards in its Laurelwood EIS as a purfunctory "don't worry...we can handle it." From a business case perspective, this is an utter cop-out.

As noted in Exhibit 2 of our Business Case Analysis of the Laurelwood civilian housing plan, NOPE estimates that security costs and the base commander's staff time will comprise roughly one-third of the low-ball $61 million cost to the Navy to go thru with the civilian "outlease" phase of the 52-year privatized housing contract. Such cost analysis was missing from the Navy's EIS, and NOPE suspects will come to light once the GAO issues its findings this spring and disprove DoN's contention that civilian housing at Earle makes fiscal (and security) sense.

The Department Navy, having already ill-advisedly signed away its right to revoke the lease (in 2002) during periods of declared national emergency, should finally come clean and discuss a buyout to the Laurelwood lease, and end this chirade once and for all.

Learning first hand why Trenton is a train wreck

The amazing part about NOPE is that, within a relatively small amount of time, our grassroots organization of moms, dads, senior citizens, distinguised military veterans and "average Joes" helped to get responsible, bipartisan federal legislation passed for the U.S. GAO to conduct a cost-benefits analysis of the proposed civilian housing at NWS Earle. However, we continue to spin our wheels in Trenton about companion state legislation - even when the responsible measure we support (S762) unanimously passed the full House and a Senate committee last session, only to be held up because of party politics.

Contrary to what we anticipated following S762's latest passage on Thursday by the current Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee, now we learn that the bill will not go to the full Senate for a vote, but is now referred to the Senate's Budget and Appropriations Committee, which we understand will meet next week - and where, for a 4th or 5th time in Trenton alone, NOPE - ALL volunteers with full-time jobs, family responsibilities, etc. - will need to commit more time to testify for the same darned measure.

New Jerseyans had better cross their fingers and hope the GAO study exposes the obvious flaws of the Laurelwood EIS (i.e. Department of Navy's plan to turn Laurelwood housing into unrestricted rental units to civilians), because our elected leaders in Trenton cannot figure out which was is up or down. Candidly, if and when S762 passes and is signed into law by Governor Christie, it will probably be too late; the study will NOT produce any results until at least six months AFTER Laurelwood can be rented to civilian tenants.

The intent of S762 (formerly known as S3017 until Mr. Codey and others politicized the issue during the 2008-09 session) was to simply delay required DEP and DOT permits (to the DoN and its housing developer Laurelwood Homes, LLC) until our own Treasurer could conduct a cost-benefits study of what NOPE clearly sees as at least a $300-$500 million (or more) unfunded federal mandate on New Jerseyans. More or less, NJ saying "wait a second, Uncle Sam, let's take a look at your plan and how it impacts us financially."

That's right, NJ - the DoN wants you to foot the half-a-billion-dollar bill for its own bad housing contracts, while at the same time compromising your security. Our leaders in Trenton, however, fail to recognize the urgency of this matter, and instead will move S762 to another committee for review, and then likely to the House for its two cents (after the House passed the earlier version of the bill by 76-0 in 2009).

Ah, efficiency at its finest in Trenton. Nonetheless, NOPE will be there - AGAIN - to testify for S762 if need be on the community's behalf. Do not worry. We will always watch our community's back.

NOPE welcomes new NWS Earle base commander

The Asbury Park Press this morning reports that Capt. David "Fuzz" Harrison was sworn in as the new commander at Naval Weapons Station Earle and that Capt. Gary Maynard is headed for greener pastures (and presumably fewer headaches) in Hawaii. NOPE welcomes Capt. Harrison and wishes nothing but the best for Capt. Maynard during his transition to Pearl Harbor.

The transition to Capt. Harrison is likely a non-issue regarding the Laurelwood housing issue, considering NOPE's recognition (unlike the media's, and APP's Jim McConville in today's report) that all shots on the proposed civilian rental are being called MUCH higher up the Department of Navy food chain in Washington, D.C. McConville could not be more wrong in reporting that Capt. Maynard "was also in the middle of a protracted and sometimes bitter dispute with Colts Neck residents over the Navy's proposal to lease to civilians its Laurelwood housing area." NO ONE started a dispute specifically with Capt. Maynard, an important member of our Monmouth County community. (Too, the "dispute" goes well beyond Colts Neck...all the way up to the U.S. Senate, in fact.)

No one was at loggerheads with Capt. Maynard, personally. The discrepancy remains squarely with the DoN, which put Capt. Maynard (and now Capt. Harrison) in the middle of a PR firestorm with not only the NOPE community, but more significantly, our representatives in D.C. (i.e. Senators Menendez and Lautenberg, Congressmen Smith and Holt), who have objections with the DoN's Laurelwood housing plan.

More interestingly in today's APP story, Mr. McConville reports that "a final decision on use of the housing complex is still yet to be made." We will follow up with Mr. McConville for clarification on his wording, but NOPE has been under the impression (as detailed by the Navy in its obviously flawed EIS) that the final decision has already been made - that the military-use phase (i.e. "in-lease") expires April 30 and the civilian rental phase (i.e. "out-lease") begins May 1, and civilian renters could reside at Laurelwood as soon as this September.

If Mr. McConville's quote is accurate, this could signal that the DoN is having a change of heart that, as NOPE has argued for 2+ years, civilian housing and unimpeded access (for anyone who can cut a rent check) inside an active Naval ordnance storage facility for the next 30 years, is a horrible move from security, business-case and environmental/health perspectives. We will alert NOPE supporters of any feedback on our followup with Mr. McConville.

S762 Passes NJ Senate Committee

Good news out of Trenton this afternoon...the Senate's Community and Urban Affairs Committee, now headed by District 1 Senator Jeff Van Drew, PASSED a proposed Laurelwood housing cost-benefits analysis study by the N.J. Treasurer 4-0 (with 1 abstention), known as Bill No. 762. (The companion Assembly measure is A2014.)

NOPE legislative liaison Elaine Mann, who testified at this morning's hearing along with business case analyst...and Army veteran...Fulton Wilcox (communications director Diana Piotrowski also attended), informs us that she has already reached out to new Senate President Steven Sweeney (District 3) to "post" (a procedural move) the bill for full Senate approval, which we hope for sooner rather than later. We are still looking into whether the Assembly will have to rehear the measure, but we'll keep everyone posted.

Again, S762-A2014 is a practical, common sense measure that, along with the U.S. congressional (i.e., Government Accountability Office, or GAO) study underway, will validate NOPE's concerns about civilian housing at NWS Earle as a serious security compromise and about a half-billion-dollar unfunded mandate to New Jersey. NOPE will continue to press the community's objections as we approach the Department of Navy's "out-lease" (i.e. civilian rental) phase of an antiquated 52-year housing contract with Laurelwood Homes LLC.

Listen, too, to "The Breeze" (107.1 and 99.7 FM), to catch their reporting of today's events, and featuring commentary from Fulton about NOPE's objection to civilian housing at NWS Earle.

NOPE ally seen as next head to defense subcommittee

Norman Dicks, a representative from Washington state and co-signor with Rep. Rush Holt of this April 17, 2009 letter to the Department of Navy installations chief requesting a cost-benefits analysis of the Laurelwood civilian housing plan, is poised to head the U.S House Appropriations Committee's defense subcommittee, according to The (Tacoma, WA) News Tribune.

Admittedly a highly speculative angle, this is potentially good news for NOPE and service members who work at NWS Earle who we understand do not want civilian housing, in that Mr. Dicks' control over the $650 million discretionary portion of the Pentagon's budget could prove favorable in funding that the DoN would need in the F2011 Defense Authorization to buy out Laurelwood Homes, LLC and make this ill-fated contract go away once and for all. The DoN's contention all along has been that it cannot afford a buyout, but perhaps with Mr. Dicks' recognition of the Laurelwood housing plan, an appropriate, expedient buyout will be budgeted. NOPE will stay on top of this story.

NJ Senate committee to address S762 on Feb. 18

NOPE will be in Trenton on Thursday, February 18, to testify - if needed - in favor of S762, the Senate measure to conduct a cost benefits analysis of the proposed Laurelwood civilian housing conversion at Naval Weapons Station Earle.

The Community and Urban Affairs Committee, which passed the measure unanimously during the 2009-10 legislative session, will again consider this bill (at 10 a.m., Committee Room 1 in the State House Annex in Trenton), which remains intact from its predecessor (S3017), which then-Senate President Codey refused to post for a full Senate vote for no good reason. Mr. Codey unexplainably set this important, rational and nonpartisan bill back by at least a month, in essence, but we are positive it will pass this time.

S762 would give New Jerseyans a true cost assessment of an unfundated mandate from the Department of Navy. NOPE, again, estimates the cost to all parties for the civilian housing plan (i.e. area residents, New Jersey taxpayers, the Navy, Laurelwood Homes) will run at least a half-billion dollars and must be considered before the DoN goes thru with opening its highly secure base to anyone that can cut a rent check.

Tinton Falls resolution passes, and NOPE will continue its EPA challenge by going to President Obama's "CEQ"

Confirmed this morning by Councilman Scott Larkin, the Tinton Falls Borough Council, as anticipated, last night passed a resolution supporting the Beck-Casagrande-O'Scanlon legislation in Trenton (S762-A2014) pushing for a cost-benefits analysis of the Laurelwood civilian housing plan at NWS Earle. NOPE appreciates the Council's continued support on all fronts.

Meanwhile, NOPE is drafting a letter to Nancy Sutley, Chair of the President's Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), which NOPE has learned from mostly fruitless dealings with the EPA, enforces the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, or "NEPA." We will post that letter here, once completed.

In short...through letters, a postcard campaign and phone calls, NOPE has long encouraged the EPA to withdraw its favorable rating of the Laurelwood Environmental Impact Statement, which violated NEPA, namely by obscuring the Department of Navy's true "purpose and need" for converting Laurelwood into a free-for-all rental complex through 2040. The EPA, however, argued in a December, 2009 letter that it does not have NEPA-enforcement powers, and therefore will not consider revising its rating.

So, NOPE is now going above the EPA and challenging President Obama's CEQ to probe this matter, which hopefully will prod the EPA, as our nation's environmental PROTECTION agency, to revise its Laurelwood rating with respect to information sufficiency, for the EIS commentary the EPA put forth was clearly based on misleading information provided by NAVFAC, a Naval agency. NOPE charges the DoN with misleading the public on its true need to rent military housing to civilians, which is solely to avoid a $3.5-$4 million annual rent payment to Laurelwood Homes, LLC...and nothing more.

Environmentally speaking, the "No Build Option" for what to do with the Laurelwood housing (i.e. do not build a 2-mile unimpeded access road thru an active and highly secure weapons base, do not let civilians live at NWS Earle) written off by the DoN as infeasible clearly is feasible based on what we now know (i.e. that the agreement automatically goes to buyout by May 1 if the Navy picks "No Build") and will have the least detriment to the environment...something the EPA should have recognized in its EIS response.

Maybe pressure on the CEQ helps...maybe it doesn't. Either way, NOPE will continue to press forward on this front and all others.

80 days and counting...(and two quick briefs)

The expiration of the Department of Navy's in-lease on Laurelwood housing and proposed conversion to civilian housing for the next 30 years is only 80 days away. NOPE continues to monitor any permit applications from the DoN and its developer, Laurelwood Homes, LLC, but has no new information beyond the Dec. 23 letter we blogged about January 23 and remains confident that the DoN-Laurelwood will relent to some kind of buyout compromise.

Meanwhile, we expect Tinton Falls Borough Council to vote on a resolution tonight in support of S762-A2014, the state's proposed cost-benefits study into the Laurelwood civilian housing plan at NWS Earle and its impact to NJ taxpayers. NOPE is optimistic about passage of the resolution, which is nothing more than an endorsement of Senator Beck's proposal in the Statehouse to study the merits of the DoN plan. As we have long railed, the DoN purposely omitted financial data and security cost ramifications of the plan from the Laurelwood EIS, and NJ taxpayers deserve to know how big an unfunded mandate they face as a result of the DoN's insistence on pursuing an extremely hazardous plan.

Finally, an interesting anecdote from California...where the Los Angeles times reports that the Navy has put an end to a free ferry service for the 130 or so sailors and civilian contractors who commute daily from mainland San Diego to North Island Naval Air Station. (Cali subsidizing the ~$150k annual cost as a means to ease road congestion around the Coronado base, which reportedly hosts about 35,000 employees.)

From our perspective, it is just interesting - bordering on laughable - that in the wake of the Fort Hood massacre that the DoN sees a such huge threat from a commuter ferry and cancelled a service used largely by its own employees, citing security concerns, but has no problems creating unimpeded access to NWS Earle, an 11,000-acre base that houses 300 bunkers of high-powered U.S. weapons stockpiles. On the one hand the DoN is making it harder on its own to get onto a Navy base (North Island), whereas here at Earle, the DoN is opening its arms so wide to anyone that chooses to traverse its property and visit Laurelwood as often as possible.

Anyone else out there following this logic?! We welcome your comments here.

AOL: Belgian Activists Breach Security Around U.S. Nukes

AOL News' Judy Pasternak reports that peace activists spent an unauthorized hour at an Belgian military base "within yards of U.S. nuclear weapons, raising questions about the security of American bombs stored at foreign air bases across Europe." The YouTube video that accompanies the stories is extremely chilling.

Granted, this was an overseas event and nothing catastrophic occurred as a result. However, this is not the first time a nukes base has been easily penetrated by peace demonstrators. Back in November, we shed light on five protestors in Washington roaming Naval Base Kitsap outside of Seattle for four hours, after cutting through at least three lines of security fencing. For equally comical and at the same time alarming reading, we encourage supporters to revisit that story.

This is not to suggest that we're residing atop nuclear stockpiles at Weapons Station Earle in Colts Neck (for we, as civilians, have no clue what is sitting in Earle's 300 or so military ordance bunkers), but for those who say NOPE is full of it for saying the Navy will have difficulty securing itself from civilian break-ins once Laurelwood houses are occupied by renters, keep in mind that the Department of Navy's "security measures" for segregating 300 new civilian renter families from the rest of its active base for the next 40 years will be 7-foot-high perimeter fencing and some extra security guards.

Then watch the YouTube video link on AOL's Belgian break-in story, and see whether you still agree with the Department of Navy's assertions from its Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) that 7-foot fencing, 30-foot buffer zones and a few extra guards will be enough to prevent anyone with ill will toward America from getting to the weapons stored at 11,000-acre Earle and turning Monmouth County into the next Ground Zero.

Navy's aircraft carrier intentions worth watching

The legislatively-mandated Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) was published Tuesday by the Department of Defense. There is nothing specific in the QDR to NOPE's agenda with NWS Earle housing, but it is interesting to note yet another case of U.S. Military leaders' poor infrastructure planning and egregious financial mismanagement, as exemplified locally by two cases - the $2 billion Ft. Monmouth closure (and move to Maryland), and the presumed $500 million-plus unfunded mandate for turning an active Naval weapons base into a civilian apartment complex.

In the QDR on p. 69, NOPE supporters should observe a seemingly matter-of-fact assertion that the Navy will "home port an East Coast carrier in Mayport, Florida." Seems harmless...and maybe justifiable (defensively speaking), right?

Well, according to Bill Bartel of the Virginian-Pilot, this single line in the QDR is drawing the ire of the Newport, VA region, home to all five U.S. nuclear carriers on the East Coast. The economic impact (and we know from our cases at Earle and Ft. Monmouth that the Military's cost modeling is inept) could be massive - $650 million and 11,000-job loss to Virginia.

Long story short...a nasty fight is brewing. The DoD says it needs to move the homeport to mitigate the risk of terror attack on Hampton Roads. Virginia legislators claim the Navy has given no justifiable research to prove the move is necessary, nor that the region is a terror target. It is possible that arguments on both sides are valid, fully or partially. Florida, meanwhile, is obviously excited by this prospects.

So who will "win"? Not the U.S. taxpayer, as we know.

A comment in Mr. Bartel's story, by a U.S. Representative Randy Forbes (R-4th District, Virginia and a member of the House Armed Services Committee), sheds light not on the victor, but on why these types of maneuvers get done. Rep. Forbes citing a first-person recollection of being in the White House "when President Bush looked over to the Florida delegation and said, 'we're going to get you that carrier.'"

Again, this QDR issue has nothing directly to do with Earle housing, but considering NOPE's experience with Laurelwood housing (i.e. Navy enters 52-year Laurelwood lease in the 1980s, knowing full well the homeport for the Laurelwood-resident sailors was going to be moved shortly thereafter from NWS Earle to Virginia) and the nearly-$2 billion Fort Monmouth debacle, it is worth watching how this Navy-Virginia battle will play out and comparing the ultimate outcomes.

NOPE outreach to Former NJ Governor Tom Kean

NOPE legislative liaison Elaine Mann attended a Monmouth University panel discussion on Tuesday featuring former NJ governor Tom Kean and focusing on the "politics of civility" (i.e. the rise in acrimonious politics on state and federal levels) and a decline in "good government."

Elaine informs NOPE supporters that the former governor and Chairman of the 9/11 Commission, in a sidebar discussion, expressed interest in the details of NOPE's objection to proposed civilian housing at NWS Earle and would follow up on our matter, aided by a packet of info Elaine provided. We will follow up with Mr. Kean, considering his expertise on terrorism and the advice he could provide to the community in identifying potential security threats of opening the Colts Neck weapons storage base to civilians later this year.

Separately, last night, Chairman Bill Holobowski briefed Tinton Falls Borough Council on the merits of passing a borough resolution to support S762/A2014 in Trenton, which would require the State Treasurer to conduct a financial assessment of the Laurelwood housing situation before New Jersey's DOT or DEP could issue permits to the Navy and its developer, Laurelwood Homes LLC, for the proposed conversion to civilian occupancy. NOPE is hopeful the Borough Council will approve the resolution at next week's meeting.

The State bill, much like the ongoing GAO study underway on the federal level, is a common-sense approach to studying how much the Department of Navy plan to convert Earle's military housing to civilian use will cost New Jersey taxpayers (NOPE estimates upward of $500 million). And unlike some extremely misleading info being circulated by select NOPE opponents, passage of such a bill would do nothing to sway any decision on the ultimate usage of the 300 Laurelwood homes. For those that still haven't read the government's documentation, the Navy's Final EIS from May 2009 makes abundantly clear that Laurelwood Homes, LLC has complete say over eventual tenants, which will amount to anyone that can cut a $1600-$2200 monthly rent check. So, to reiterate, S762 will do nothing but allow for a very useful study, to the benefit of New Jersey residents, especially in Tinton Falls and Colts Neck, that face a potentially crippling unfunded mandate.

Adding insult to injury...

At the same time the Department of Navy is slapping New Jersey in the face with an unfunded mandate (which NOPE estimates at about half a billion dollars and anticipates a GAO study will verify) for proposed civilian housing at NWS Earle and compromising its own and our security, a few miles down the road we have another case of egregious financial mismanagement and ineptitude surrounding the DoD's impending closure of Fort Monmouth.

Although different from the Laurelwood housing case at Earle, each case sheds light on why NOPE is adamantly opposed to the Navy's plans for Laurelwood housing and how poorly the U.S. Military manages budgets, and why local citizens should not only encourage their elected officials to be more vigilant about military matters that impact New Jersey, but also to become more informed and involved themselves.

In a report that should come as no surprise to anyone watching how the DoD has turned New Jersey into a bigger laughingstock, The Asbury Park Press this morning says the "price tag to close Fort Monmouth has jumped more than $100 million in the past nine months." With that, we now know that it will cost U.S. taxpayers $1.87 billion to relocate Fort Monmouth's mission to Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, or 137% more than the initial $789 million estimate in 2005. Of course, spokepeople for the U.S. Army were unavailable to comment.

And that's just the financial parameters of the move. Not mentioned is how the ill-informed BRAC decision-makers literally have set back the Army's mission by years and will drain the highly-skilled workforce at Ft. Monmouth by relocating the base, presumably for the sole sake of paying off favors to either Maryland politicians or key military brass. The notion of any kind of military benefit (in a recession, no less) of a nearly-$2 billion relocation expense is hogwash, when considering such funding could go toward better gear for our soldiers or attending to the needs of DAVs or other military needs.

In short, NOPE remains (and needs its supporters to remain) vigilant in pressing the Department of Navy to reverse its course on Laurelwood housing and to end the contract with its developer and raze the development. We would encourage you not only to stay tuned here and in the local media to this case, but within 90 days of the DoN's deadline to open the base ahead of planned civilian housing at NWS Earle this September to call your elected representatives in N.J. and Washington to press our opposition to privatization at NWS Earle! We need NOPE supporters to remain vocal, before we have another Fort Monmouth-type debacle (and likely even worse) on our hands.