Man seized at Ga. Army base has land mine, laser scope

Ok, accuse us of piling on.   If ever there was evidence that anyone outside of active military should live on active military bases, please read this story on an Anthony Todd Saxon, a civilian arrested in uniform at Fort Gordon (near Augusta, GA). Mr. Saxon had a land mine in his vehicle along with several grenades, night vision devices and a military laser targeting device, according to charging documents filed Wednesday.

This is not to pass judgment on the man or come to any false conclusions about this particular situation, but the evidence continues to mount that not everyone is equipped to on a military base, nor live on one full time, as proponents of Laurelwood civilian housing at NWS Earle have suggested. Remember, the personnel at the Naval Weapons Station are there to do a job, not to play cops 24-7 to a civilian town within its boundaries for the next 30 years -- an opinion validated by the Navy's decision to buy out the Laurelwood housing contract.

Weapons found in SUV trying to enter Tampa AFB

TBO.com reports on two individuals (a man and a woman) who were apprehended after trying to enter MacDill Air Force Base without proper identification late Monday afternoon with 13 loaded rifle magazines, two pistol magazines, military clothing and other "military-style equipment" hidden in their SUV. (Video on this from CNN.com).

Yesterday's incident is yet another example of the need for intense security at domestic military bases and why, fortunately, common sense ruled in the Navy's decision to reverse course on its initial ill-hatched plan to provide civilian renters (and their visitors) unimpeded access to Laurelwood housing and through the heart of Naval Weapons Station Earle through 2040. Anything that would put U.S. service members or regional and perhaps national security at risk makes no sense whatsoever.

Civilian housing, no matter how you slice it, has no place on an active military base, PERIOD - particularly one that has 300 bunkers full of ammunition and has a vital role in storing, moving and providing ammunition to the U.S. Navy fleet. NOPE will remain on alert through the conclusion of the Navy's buyout of the Laurelwood housing contract and demolition of the homes. Supporters, please stay tuned.

NOPE requests more documents from the Navy

Once again leveraging the Freedom of Information Act, NOPE yesterday requested documentation from NAVFAC, pertaining to a) any new supplemental lease agreements between the Department of Navy and Laurelwood Homes, LLC, since January 2008, plus b) any communications to determine whether the Navy has contacted or hired any third-party players, either to fund a buyout or teardown of Laurelwood.  We are fairly certain that "request a" can be fulfilled, but are taking a longshot on "request b".

The FOIA was extremely vital to NOPE in uncovering the original 1988 lease between the DoN and builder Dick Fischer Developments #3 (the operater today, and as of 1996, is Laurelwood Homes, LLC, run by Teri Fischer of Seattle, WA) and 64 subsequent supplements through January 2008.  Recall that Supplemental Lease Agreement 43 proved the real rationale for the Navy's vigorous pursuit of civilian housing at NWS Earle and proved NOPE's view that the Laurelwood EIS was a cursory, half-truthed document.

(We knew from the get-go that proposed civilian housing and unimpeded access to a Naval weapons depot was a bad idea, and the DoN withdrew its official decision, i.e. Record of Decision, in April; we now await a contract buyout, because the Navy, within a year of 9/11, signed away its right to revoke the contract when duped into allowing Laurelwood to refinance its mortgage.)

This time around, we hope to piece together whether Laurelwood is still receiving rental money from the DoN (recall that Supplemental Lease Agreement 43, as we reported in May 2009, also might have obligated the Navy to pay upwards of $20 million in additional rents to Laurelwood through 2017, based on certain housing occupancy provisions...though Laurelwood's attorney refutes this).  Still following the paper trail, NOPE would like to verify what has gone on more recently with the lease.

Regarding the documents pertaining to the Navy's involvement of a third party (and THIS is why it is vital for the NJ State Assembly's Military and Veterans Affairs Committee to pass A2014 once and for all and move it to Gov. Christie's desk for approval), NOPE is concerned that the Navy could look to fund the buyout of Laurelwood Homes, LLC, with an outside party's money and then perhaps re-use the houses in some other fashion.  It is sad that, as a community, NOPE is so distrustful of DoN leadership in Washington, DC, but remember that the Department's attorneys have misled us for years about the true motives for the Laurelwood housing complex (i.e., to get out of a bad housing deal and put the estimated $500 million mandate on New Jersey taxpayers), so we must be sure that the property is bought out and the homes leveled, so as to prevent any kind of security, financial or environmental hardships down the road.

We will shed light on any details of each FOIA request in the weeks ahead.

Follow-up to APP letter to the editor

The Asbury Park Press headline to my "letter to the editor" response to the newspaper's May 5 editorial "Navy waves the white flag" is a bit misleading (i.e. "NOPE" got plenty of credit from our elected officials at the April press conference to announce the Navy's impending buyout of Laurelwood), but I am appreciative that the Press ran the letter.

Please read each piece side-by-side. The moral of my letter (for anyone who misunderstood the context) is that the APP editors missed the boat on how literally thousands of members of the public (i.e., citizens who came out to rallies and briefings, signed petitions, called their elected officials, went out on 10-degree winter mornings to distribute leaflets and lawn signs, etc.), through a nonpartisan NOPE grassroots vehicle comprised of citizens and politicians alike, were vital in the outcome over Laurelwood housing.

Nothing more.

NOPE cannot thank the MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY enough for coming together in a crisis, and you deserve your due. The Asbury Park editorial missed this point.

Yes, Rep. Smith, the District 12 leadership and Colts Neck Township politicians' efforts were beyond vital (Mr. Smith's on Capitol Hill, in particular) as the editorial noted, but the APP failed to balance that by noting the efforts on the "other side of the aisle" from Congressmen Menendez and Lautenberg, Rep. Holt, and the Tinton Falls nonpartisan government who also were significant contributors to NOPE's sole mission to bring everyone to the table for a responsible solution to proposed civilian housing at NWS Earle.

The overriding theme is that the conceptual "NOPE"--a combination of the organization's leaders, the entire citizenry of the surrounding area and elected officials--came together and worked as one.

"Community" in the truest form.

Regards,
Bill Holobowski, Chairman

Judge dismisses CN suit vs. Navy, Laurelwood

The Department of Navy's promise to buy out Laurelwood Homes, LLC and reverse its own plans for unimpeded access and civilian housing at NWS Earle reportedly prompted dismissal of Colts Neck Township's lawsuit over the plan, according to the Asbury Park Press. Otherwise, we await the termination notice from the Navy and will keep NOPE supporters posted on any new developments.

Intelligence expert: No way to eliminate crime at military bases

In the wake of the fatal shooting of Vietnam veteran Ronald Bullock last Wednesday by an off-duty FBI agent at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida, Tampa Bay Online ran an interesting story about military base security that resonates with NOPE's concerns about unimpeded civilian access and housing at NWS Earle.

From the start, NOPE cautioned that the Department of Navy's ill-fated intentions to open 300 unused "Laurelwood" homes to civilians, whether run-of-the-mill civilians or esteemed military veterans with military IDs (as one local advocacy continues to push), was an extremely flawed and dangerious idea for a number of reasons; namely, the distraction to Earle's core mission to provide ammunition to the U.S. fleet, and the obvious overhanging security threat of allowing anyone inside a military base property line without background checks or passing through the main security gate.

The most telling observation about the Bullock tragedy comes from intelligence expert Fred Burton of Stratfor, whose commentary to Tampa Bay Online underscores NOPE's core concern that operating a 300-unit civilian Laurelwood would have been the equivalent of Earle running a small city, and that, as Mr. Burton observed, "there is no way to eliminate crime at military bases any more than you can in a small city."

In short, the Bullock tragedy highlights precisely why even veterans with military IDs (a component of the mysterious "Acccettola Plan" referenced in a recent Asbury Park Press letter to the editor) are not suited to live on an active military ordnance depot such as NWS Earle. There are clearly better venues for housing civilians, veterans or whomever than a place where explosives are handled 24/7.

Most citizens and elected officials (and, implicitly, the Department of Navy itself, in withdrawing the civilian housing plan and agreeing to a Laurelwood buyout) recognize this, but in light of recent off-kilter commentary from veterans housing advocates, we reiterate our view that the NJ legislature needs to pass S762-A2014 for the protection of our State's interested, and the Department of Navy needs to move forward on an expeditious buyout and demolition of the Laurelwood homes...to EVERYONE's benefit, namely its own.

NOPE Analyst Fulton Wilcox's response to Manning letter to the Asbury Park Press

NOPE is extremely fortunate to have an individual of Fulton Wilcox's character and professionalism. For those unfamiliar with Fulton's work or who are new to our case, Fulton spearheaded NOPE's business case for why the Navy's proposal for Laurelwood civilian housing and unimpeded civilian access through NWS Earle to the homes made zero fiscal (and mission-critical) sense.

Not only that, but Fulton had dutifully served in our armed forces and has a wealth of experience in military intelligence matters, and at times was confronted disrespectfully (namely, during our trips to testify in Trenton, by veterans housing advocates who we might add were reprimanded by Senate committee members for inappropriate conduct during testimony).  Our community is lucky to have such an upstanding citizen and is blessed by Fulton's leadership. He is a significant catalyst for why NOPE works.

Here is Fulton's perspective on why a recent "letter to the editor" from a Mr. James Manning was again out of line, and we hope his thoughts will appear on the Press' commentaries page in the days ahead.

***************************

"As a lifetime member of VFW as well as a business case “number-cruncher” supporting NOPE (Neighbors Opposed to the Privatization of Earle housing), I want to correct a misapprehension regarding the merits of renting Laurelwood housing located within Naval Weapons Station Earle to civilians and, more specifically veterans and homeless veterans.

Mr. James Manning in his recently published letter was mistaken in writing that “politicians did not know what is stake,” because the Navy very rigorously defined what was at stake note only for “Politicians,” but for citizens in NOPE. The Navy’s framing of the options did not invite nor permit any broad-based examination of a social or political nature. One reason NOPE itself was bipartisan (as was Congressional opposition to the Navy’s preference) was because the choices that the Navy defined simply defy conventional political categorization.

There is a misapprehension that because Laurelwood housing is “surplus” to Navy needs that, like other military surplus, it therefore must be “free” or at least “affordable” for use by veterans or in some other charitable context. Not only is Laurelwood housing not free, but because of its location within a working munitions handling facility it is burdened with extraordinary costs and risks compared to similar housing located outside such a military reservation. The Navy, out of worthy motives in the 1980s, inadvertently created a “money pit” from which it is presently trying to extricate itself, and it is hard to see the advantage of veterans groups jumping in.

The Navy described three options with respect to its “money pit,”, which perhaps can be thought of as Plan A, B and C. The Navy did not entertain the “Accettola Plan” as a Plan D., so what was at stake were the consequences of the Navy’s choice among these three options. Plan D could not win the Navy’s approval because the Navy defined what was in play.

To review briefly the Navy’s Plans A, B, and C.

Under plan A, known in the Navy’s jargon as the “Inlease” arrangement, the Navy contracted for the 300 Laurelwood rental units on a “take or pay” basis. After early full occupancy, for more than a decade under the “or pay” commitment the Navy has paid rent on hundreds of empty housing units. For both the Navy and the taxpayer, continuing to pay rent under Plan A for empty rental units made no sense. By the Navy’s account, it had investigated and satisfied itself that there were qualified and interested tenants for this “surplus” housing, so there was no prospect of occupying the 300 units. Although the Navy was determined to end paying rent under Plan A, it could not simply stop paying, so it wanted instead to implement Plan B – the “outlease” as described in the Navy’s terminology.

Under plan B, the private owner of the housing units would rent the 300 housing units within the civilian residential housing market. The Navy would therefore no longer have to pay rent to the owner, because the civilian tenants would do so. However, civilian tenants, their guests, tradespeople and others cannot access the secured base, so as a necessary part of plan B, the Navy had agreed to provide “unimpeded access” via an insecure entrance and access road from State highway 34. To isolate the insecure tenants from the secure base, the Navy at its expense would fence-in the 1.4 mile-long new road and the housing to create a civilian enclave within the otherwise secured base. The Laurelwood complex as well as what would be an extraordinarily expensive driveway all would remain under Navy/federal jurisdiction.

The Navy also possessed but did not admit to plan C - buy-out, meaning that the Navy would buy the 300 housing units (it never had relinquished ownership of the land). The buyout was always an elective option, but under the Navy’s contract, if by April 30, 2010 it had not put in place “unfettered access,” the Navy and the property owner both became obligated to end the relationship through buy-out. After buy-out, the Navy no longer has to pay rent under the “Inlease” terms nor will it incur the security risks and many costs associated with the “Outlease” and the unimpeded access road into the base.

NOPE’s primary objections to plan B - outlease and its reasons for preferring buyout were 1) security and safety advantages, and 2) the avoidance of many lifecycle costs, environmental impacts and complexities which made Plan B so expensive. For example, to meet Department of Defense and Department of the Navy security requirements, the Navy had to pick the longest, least convenient and most expensive of its access road options, increasing costs for both itself and the property owner and ultimately to prospective tenants. Consequently, the start-up cost of Plan B were quite large, beginning with a $10 million investment in the access road, roughly half to be paid by the Navy and half paid by the property owner.

Nothing that the Navy incorporated into its contract or into its public hearings regarding its preference for plan B was friendly to charitable endeavors, and at the time of the debates as to which option the Navy should choose all parties were struggling with how to reduce costs as opposed to having anything surplus to offer for “free” or at a discount. It appears that the Navy switched from its stubborn insistence on plan B – outlease to adopting plan C – buyout only because the complexities and startup costs of Plan B caused it to run out of time. Meanwhile, chronic terrorist interest in U.S. military facilities made it clear that meeting unavoidable security requirements is not an option, while Plan B added avoidable security obligations and competed for resources with mission-focused security.

In his letter, Mr. Manning expressed “shock” that NOPE or “politicians” encouraged the Navy to turn away from the “Outlease” option, but as the brief summary above highlights, the “Outlease” option itself was not deserving of NOPE’s support. What we know about the financial implications of “Outlease” does not suggest that it is friendly to the Accetolla Plan. For example, if the property went onto the rental market at market rates, for those interested in veterans housing it becomes just another commercial 300 unit rental property, except that it is disadvantageously situated in a military weapons handling facility.

If one looks at this situation from, for example, a HUD (Housing and Urban Affairs) perspective, the question becomes did it make sense for HUD to invest “fresh money” into a housing complex sitting in the costly and risky environment of a Naval munitions handling facility. Unlike the Navy, HUD has no prior commitments or accountabilities, so it can invest where its money produces the greatest good for the greatest number. It certainly seems doubtful that HUD or some other agency would want to put $5 million of “fresh money” into building an access road to a 300 unit complex. The same amount of HUD money invested in rental facilities and tenants not burdened with military and security complexities and costs might provide more housing for more veterans. Further, if HUD funded tenants and perhaps some necessary property improvements, that help tenants and perhaps the property owner, but also requires the Navy to pay the many “below the waterline” costs that in our view made “Outleasing” a net loser to the Navy.

NOPE took a bipartisan (and non-partisan) view of the options that the Navy created, and I believe that our preference for buy-out was consistent with the best interests of the Navy and other stakeholders such as State and local government."

Patience

Anyone who has been involved with NOPE can attest that our effort to prevent the Department of Navy from turning NWS Earle into a civilian free-for-all has been a lesson in patience (three years and counting). To be sure, dissecting the layers of local, state and federal bureaucracy remains a Herculean task and one that serves as a good lesson in civics and patience.

Those of use who continue to lead NOPE have fielded a host of questions, namely: "when is this whole Earle mess going to end?" Great question...but, remember, this is your government at "work."

Here are a three "short" answers, touching upon what NOPE would like to see:

• Expeditious completion of the Laurelwood buyout: From what we gather between media reports and updates from Congressman Smith's office, Mrs. Fischer, owner of Laurelwood Homes, LLC, filed a complaint with the Navy's Contracting Officer in April, setting the wheels in motion for a 60-day review in which the DoN and Laurelwood will discuss buyout terms. It is our understanding that Laurelwood would pursue legal action if the talks stall or fail to yield a settlement.
• (Remember, the buyout is solely the result of the DoN's incomprehensible decision in 2002 to give up its contractual right of cost-free contract termination when it allowed Mrs. Fischer to refinance her mortgage.  [Someone needs their head checked, having signed off on such a provision less than a year after 9/11].  And DoN officials lied to U.S. citizens and a Congressman about its motives for shirking our call for simply terminating the deal; officials told us they did not want to be "bad business partners"...no mention of a relinquishment of its "ace in the hole" - we had to OPRA documents to learn this.)
• Demolition of the Laurelwood homes: The NOPE effort will not rest until the homes are leveled immediately after the contract buyout and the land is "restored to its original state," as spelled out in all privatized military housing agreements. Our biggest concern and overhanging mistrust of DoN leaders in the Pentagon is that some "new" decision maker or military commander will have ulterior motives that compromise local security, environmental and business-case interests, and that we could find ourselves engrossed in another Earle housing mess once again.
• Passage of S762-A2014 by the NJ legislature and Governor Christie by the end of this legislative year (i.e. January 2011): It seems that the District 12 legislative team, amazingly, is implicitly declaring victory in the Laurelwood housing case by keeping mum that their legislation still sits idle in an Assembly committee that passed the measure this year (but seemingly had a change of heart this year). By that, we mean the committee, which simply needs to "post" the measure to the full Assembly for a vote (the same exact measure passed the Assembly unanimously last year) before the Governor can sign S762-A2014 into law, had two shots at posting the bill but punted. Sources tell us that there is a small caucus of newer Assembly members that now questions the measure, which is ridiculous, considering the bill is merely to do a cost-benefits and security impact study on the state level, which would complement the federal GAO study already underway. We would recommend you call Senator Beck, Assemblyman O'Scanlon and Assemblywoman Casagrande (732-933-1591) and ask why they are silent on the Assembly committee's failure. It is important that this legislation pass, to not only assess the impact to N.J. of the current unfunded mandate (i.e. Laurelwood housing), but also to set a precedent for future military decisions that could have an obvious adverse impact on our state's taxpayers.

As always, we welcome your feedback and questions, whether or not they our consistent with NOPE's mission. Feel free to post your thoughts here or via email at njNOPE@gmail.com.

Getting Hammered?...Huh?

There's nothing new to share on the Navy's impending buyout of the Laurelwood housing contract, which as we understand it is still being negotiated.  However, for the sake of fairness, we point NOPE supporters to a "Letter to the Editor" of the Asbury Park Press by a Mr. James Manning, of the VFW Dept. of NJ, whose misconstrued view of NOPE has always been as some sort of anti-housing advocacy.

This is entirely wrong, and Mr. Manning's contention that "veterans got hammered" because the Navy was alert enough to recognize that giving civilians, retired veterans or anyone able to cut a rent check unimpeded access and housing rentals through 2040 would have posed an utter distraction and potential threat to NWS Earle's core mission, which is to deliver ammunition to the U.S. Military fleet....PERIOD!

The commander and his team, plus private base security personnel and civilian contractors at Naval Weapons Station Earle, have an extremely important, specialized job to execute, and whether Mr. Manning and his group floating this mythical "Accettola Plan" (which none of us has seen, even though we've asked many times) agree with that logic frankly does not matter and hinges on being disrespectful, considering the two years of chronic bashing of NOPE, local politicians or others that do not share his cockeyed proposal of Earle as some sort of Department of Navy civilian-housing landlord as opposed to defender of our country.

Assembly Committee MIA...AGAIN...in Trenton

Relying on the legislature in Trenton to see through good legislation regarding the Laurelwood housing situation, at this point, is useless, because the Assembly's Military and Veterans Affairs Committee once again kicked the proverbial can down the road and yesterday failed to post, let alone pass, A2014 - the cost-benefits and security assessment measure put forth by Caroline Casagrande and Declan O'Scanlon. At the same time, there is not a peep from the District 12 team about their own measure or why it continues to fail to pass through the full legislature for passage by Governor Christie. This is inexcusable.

The whispers that we're hearing are that perhaps the bill is moot at this point, what with the Navy's decision to pursue a buyout of the Laurelwood contract, and that now one of the caucuses within the legislature is all of a sudden not so keen on the measure...presumably for the same ridiculous and unfounded logic of some local housing advocates that view a Naval weapons depot as an appropriate venue for civilians to live.

Either way, here we have our elected officials in Trenton, once again, failing to see through a measure that a) already passed through this same Assembly committee last year, b) passed through Senate committee in the last legislative session and c) passed through the full Senate by way of a 37-0 vote earlier this year. Yet, now there the Assembly committee sees fit to put A2014 on ice, even when it's clear that New Jerseyans will not incur any extraneous costs for the State Treasurer to go in and simply assess the situation.

Ah...Trenton once again proving to be a debacle, and continuously clueless about how the Pentagon continues to play New Jersey as an utter fool, with the Laurelwood civilian housing proposal and the nearly-criminal closure of Fort Monmouth as our most recent guide. Shame on the Assembly committee for failing to pass a no-nonsense measure that could serve as a viable precedent on which future NJ legislators can act the next time the Pentagon comes in and want to run roughshod over our fine state.

NOPE Supporters - Pick Up That Phone Today!!!

According to the N.J. Legislature website, the Assembly's Military and Veterans Affairs Committee is scheduled to meet this Thursday, May 13, at 10 a.m. in Trenton. NOW is the time for NOPE supporters to call Committee Chairman, Jack Conners (856-461-3997), and Vice-Chair, Cleopatra Tucker (973-926-4320) with a simple message: "please post A2014 in committee."

Supporters may recall us lambasting the Asbury Park Press editorial last week for heaping praise on the District 12 legislators for introducing their Laurelwood legislation in Trenton, but failed to state that S762-A2014 has not yet passed. Yes, the Assembly committee approved A2014's predecessor legislation in the previous Trenton session, and, yes, S762 passed the Senate this current session, but the current assembly committee needs to move A2014 forward before presumed passage by Governor Christie.

Of course NOPE applauds Senator Beck, Assemblyman O'Scanlon and Assemblywoman Casagrande for presenting the legislation and backs this measure, but continues to wonder why Trenton continues to drag its feet on passing A2014. Now, we need our supporters to remind Chairman Conners and Vice Chair Tucker of the importance of this measure, regardless of the Navy's impending buyout of the Laurelwood housing development at Naval Weapons Station Earle.

Even if S762-A2014 appears moot because of the Department of Navy's decision to buy out Laurelwood, NOPE suggests the legislation could prove vital in terms of protecting New Jersey's interests (i.e. establishing a precedent) in the event of future civilian housing proposals on our State's military bases. This needs to be reiterated by our supporters to the Assembly committee members that we call. Please make the call!

NOPE, Supporters Deserve Their Due

The Asbury Park Press editorial "Navy Waves the White Flag," published May 5, egregiously ignores NOPE and its supporters.

The leaders of NOPE never got into the civilian housing fight against Naval Weapons Station Earle for self-aggrandizing or publicity, but the Press's editorial board did the thousands in Earle's host towns who came out to NOPE rallies or joined our mission a huge disservice by backpatting a select few legislators and entirely ignoring community pressure as the lynchpin of our unlikely victory versus the Department of Navy on the Laurelwood housing issue.

Candidly, had it not been for NOPE's involvement and tenacity since January 2008, bulldozers would be paving the proverbial road to nowhere, and civilians would likely be living inside NWS Earle by September at a half a billion-dollar cost to surrounding communities.  At the same time, the local towns would have been embroiled in lawsuits and finger-pointing over who did who wrong back when the houses were built in the 1980s, or where civilian Laurelwood residents would go to school for the next 30 years.

In short, the APP editorial is a huge slight to the community activists and grassroots leaders of NOPE who dedicated thousands of volunteer hours between work and family obligations to the battle, while at the same time heaping credit on Colts Neck's governing body, which cost its townspeople roughly $300k (for a suit whose text looked similar at times to free research and views published by NOPE), and the District 12 team's legislation in Trenton, where the measure still lingers in Assembly committee almost a full year after introduction and may never be signed into law.

Whoever wrote the editorial really took their eye off the ball, in that the community spoke loudly and clearly enough for the U.S. Navy to hear and, augmenting the efforts of those we've thanked ad nauseum (our U.S. senators and congressmen, state and local officials, area school district leaders, businesses, and the thousands of nameless supporters, etc.) in the wake of the DoN decision to buy out the Laurelwood contract, together we are on the cusp of victory.

Perhaps the biggest "monkey wrench" (to coin the Press's parlance), NOPE supporters deserve their due.

Regards,
Bill Holobowski
NOPE Chairman

APP: Laurelwood owner seeking $42.5 million

Laurelwood Homes, LLC, can ask all it wants for the Navy to buy out the 30-year civilian-use phase of its housing contract at Weapons Station Earle, but the request for $42.5 million reported on by the Asbury Park Press is ludicrious. In short, the Department of Navy proved a decent business partner in signing away a vital contract provision regarding contract revocation in 2002, all for the sake of Laurelwood's owner, who practically begged to refinance the Laurelwood mortgage at a much lower interest rate.

Now, we have this private Washington-based contractor that owns the 1980s-era Laurelwood Homes attempting to fleece the U.S. taxpayer for a buyout of homes worth far less than Laurelwood's demand, and at the same time that the owner knows full well the Navy could have continued with its charade to open the homes to civilians and potentially sent Laurelwood to insolvency (remember, the owner would have had to construct a nearly 2-mile road, upgrade infrastructure, renovate the 300 homes and procure insurance...on an active Naval weapons storage facility), the owner comes forth with this nonsense.

Clearly, Laurelwood Homes, LLC is going to try to get the most out of its sinking ship as possible, but the dollar value appears insultingly high, and let us not forget that this contractor has already made $75 million on this housing deal (closer to $4 million annually in recent years, contrary to the constantly reported number of "a little less than $3.5 million.")  On the other hand, and assuming something prompted the letter and subsequent APP report, we can only imagine that the Navy's initial offer was insultingly low.

Come on, guys, get to the negotiating table and hammer out a fair deal already. Our community has been through more than enough with this Laurelwood headache. Arrive at a number, demolish the homes, and let's all move on with our lives already.

Revisiting one of NOPE's early themes against a proposed civilian town inside NWS Earle

By no means do we bring up this telling 2009 report from North County Times on crimes inside Camp Pendleton (Oceanside, CA) to disparage our military or to suggest this is comparable in any way to how military bases such as NWS Earle, etc. inside New Jersey operate from day to day.

To the contrary, we merely present it as an anecdote to one of NOPE's original objections to the Department of Navy's EIS-stated plan to provide unimpeded civilian access and housing to the Laurelwood complex at NWS Earle and how, functionally, opening the development to 300 new civilian families would have been the equivalent of running a small town inside an extremely secure Naval Weapons Station.

One of the notions lost on people who misguidedly charged NOPE as some kind of anti-affordable housing or anti-veterans contingent was that 24-hour policing of a civilian town inside a weapons facility, even to the layperson with no experience in military matters or law enforcement could easily see, would have been no easy task on Earle's commander and could clearly have compromised base force protection.

This is merely one reason why NOPE applauds the DoN's decision to buy out the Laurelwood contract, an outcome we eagerly anticipate and will keep supporters posted on in the days ahead.

Update on Status of Navy-Laurelwood buyout negotiations

As NOPE supporters know, April 30, 2010, was the contractual completion date of the military-use phase of the 52-year Laurelwood housing agreement, with May 1, 2010, marking the transition to the Department of Navy's original plan to provide unimpeded civilian access to housing through 2040. However, the Navy's announcement earlier this month of a buyout of the lease totally suspended the transition to the so-called "outlease" portion of the contract and civilian housing at NWS Earle.

In reaching out to Congressman Smith's office this morning for an update on the status of negotiations between the Navy and Laurelwood Homes, LLC, we learned that, likely a procedural move, owner Teri Fischer filed a complain last week with the Navy's Contracting Officer. In short, we are told that this gives the parties 60 days to figure out parameters of the buyout...and in no way marks a reversal from the expected outcome. We speculate failure to reach a deal in that time could spark a lawsuit by Mrs. Fischer against the Department of Navy, but that is merely speculation on our part.

Rest assured, NOPE will continue to provide updates on this case and, as always, reminds supporters - negotiators for the Navy and Laurelwood as well - of our business case analysis that the homes are likely worth $17-$20 million when factoring a host of financial considerations. The sooner the better for a buyout, in our opinion, and ultimately the leveling of the Laurelwood development and restoration of the property to its initial state. In the meantime, we wish everyone a good weekend!

Request of ALL NOPE supporters to make a few more calls

After the NOPE leadership team met Tuesday night to discuss regular business, legislative liaison Elaine Mann recommends supporters make phone calls ASAP to ensure that legislation on the Earle housing issue (and on the verge of reaching Governor Christie's desk) gets thru the Assembly and protects the state in the event that contract buyout talks between the Department of Navy and Laurelwood Homes LLC collapse.

As you may recall, owing to widespread community support, NOPE has been instrumental in getting our legislators in Trenton to recognize the significance of the Department of Navy's Laurelwood civilian housing proposal at NWS Earle and the inherent security, economic and environmental detriments to NJ. Assembly measure A2014 is sitting idle in Trenton as we speak, months after the full Senate unanimously approved the companion senate version, S762, and needs to be signed by the Governor to have lasting impact.

The Assembly Military and Veterans Affairs Committee, which approved A2014's predecessor legislation in the previous Trenton session, needs to move A2014 forward, and we ask that you call the following committee members with the simple message - "please post A2014 in committee":

• Chair: Jack Conners, 856-461-3997 (voted "yes" last session)
• Vice-Chair: Cleopatra G. Tucker, 973-926-4330 (abstained last session)

And after the bill comes out, NOPE supporters should contact:

• Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver, 973-395-1166 (voted yes in the full Assembly last session)

We understand that our supporters have made a lot of phone calls, some of which may appear redundant, but remind the supporters that NOPE cannot relent until, as NOPE legal counsel Jacque Hoagland quoted to the Asbury Park Press a few weeks ago, the wrecking ball knocks the last Laurelwood house down.

We thank you for continued support, and encourage you to call Mr. Conners and Ms. Tucker.

5 Business Days until Expiration of Laurelwood "In-Lease"

Of course, we're well aware that the Department of Navy has agreed in principal to buy out Laurelwood Homes, LLC, averting a significant security, financial and environmental threat to itself and Earle's neighbors, but we remain unclear whether this means an agreement has to be struck before the military-use phase, or "in-lease," of the 52-year Laurelwood contract officially expires at midnight this Saturday (May 1).

NOPE's emphasis this week will be tracking down, presumably through our elected federal officials in Washington, the state of negotations between the Navy and Laurelwood, and whether any failure to reach an accord before the end of this week signals trouble from a contractual and legal perspective. Stay tuned, but do not hesitate to reach out to your representatives with questions about this situation.

NOPE has MANY within our communities to thank...

Clearly thousands of people in our communities and dozens of organizations were receptive to NOPE's message and instrumental in our successful battle against proposed civilian housing at NWS Earle, whether through event hosting, participation in our briefings and rallies, or handing out petitions and organizing, just to name a few of the tasks in our arduous effort.

The lynchpin of our published campaign was Charles Basile and his family's Wall Street Group. Charles' company not only fulfilled every printing need, but he served as a key player on NOPE's leadership team, and if memory serves, his daughter Ashley designed the NOPE logo in early 2008. Special kudos to the Basiles for stepping up for their community and personifying selflessness and grassroots participation. 

From a facilities standpoint, NOPE wishes to thank Colts Neck library, Colts Neck high school superintendant Ross Kasun, former Tinton Falls business administrator Bryan Dempsey and technology coordinator John Legere, Seabrook Village's Angie Crippen and Gary Engelstad, and Ed Russo at Trump National for liaising NOPE's briefings and rallies at their facilities. Along the same lines, we cannot thank the elected leaders of the two towns for supporting our mission through resolutions, plus emergency responders (i.e. police, fire and first aid), for participation in our events. And Monmouth Regional School district was a huge asset in NOPE's presence at a Navy presentation in late-2008.

Tinton Falls superintendant John Russo, business administrator Tamar Sydney-Gens and BOE president Peter Karavites were tremendous in their support of our mission to convey the educational detriments within NOPE's objections to civilian housing, from taking part in our Navy meetings in Washington, D.C. to letting us send rally flyers home to Tinton Falls families through school "kiddie mail." The parent-teacher groups in Colts Neck and Tinton Falls also deserve a great deal of credit for their outpourings of support.

Dozens of local proprietors involved in business associations of Colts Neck and Tinton Falls let us to distribute NOPE literature and advertise our events, plus civic organizations like area Scouts and our own neighborhood friends helped us extend the message by spending hours - often in bad weather - handing out leaflets outside Dunkin Donuts and even the Tinton Falls borough landfill. And groups like the Colts Neck Sports Foundation, Old Towne Day, Tinton Falls Day, and women's clubs of both towns came up huge, especially since we worked on a shoestring budget emphasizing volunteerism!

Who can forget the NOPE t-shirts provided by Roberta and Matthew Berdel and Family Tee's, the nonprofit organization of Staten Island that employees people with special needs! Plus, all of the fair and balanced media coverage that we received from outlets such as Channels 8, 9, 12 and NJN, radio stations The Breeze and WOBM, and print-media such as the Asbury Park Press, Greater Media and Nassau Journals (i.e. Colts Neck Journal).

Recognizing there are dozens more that we could name, we apologize in advance for missing anyone in the aforementioned list, but rest assured that your value to NOPE's success was invaluable!

Everyone enjoy the weekend, and please stay tuned here for updates as we await word on the Laurelwood buyout and subsequent contractual teardown of the homes.

TF School Board Prez Hails Navy Decision: Red Bank Hub

As a neutral grassroots organization, NOPE broadly argued that the influx of hundreds of new prospective (and unexpected) civilian tenants to NWS Earle's Laurelwood housing for the next 30 years obviously would have stressed area school systems, but perhaps none more than in Tinton Falls.  In the end, we proved an essential liaison in what otherwise would have been an ugly, protracted and unproductive battle thrust upon otherwise cordial neighbors by Department of Navy leadership at the Pentagon.

Colts Neck officials, citing an arcane state law now on hold with an administrative law judge as a result of the Navy's decision to buy out Laurelwood, charged Tinton Falls as the one responsible for educating civilian Laurelwood residents, ratcheting up the tension in a 20-year battle between the towns over educational obligations and prompting Tinton Falls to pursue legal action to overturn the aformentioned state law that allowed the borough to accept K-thru-8th grade Navy dependents (5,000 and counting) from NWS Earle for the past two decades. (This law was apparently required in order to let Navy dependents stationed at Earle to leave their Colts Neck base to attend school outside the host township, after Colts Neck leaders in the late-1980s rejected educating military dependents in their district.)

Without rehashing the details of this long-running fued, we share this article from the Red Bank Hub, which highlight's TF BOE president Peter Karavites' satifaction with the Navy's decision to buy out Laurelwood, but balanced against the lack of trust in the Department of Navy stemming from its handling of the privatization of military housing at NWS Earle and how the BOE wants the ALJ to rule on the state law.

NOPE will keep supporters abreast of this case, but otherwise is extremely satisfied to have helped bridge the gap between Colts Neck and Tinton Falls and convince area officials that all parties needed to organize to fight what obviously was a recipe for disaster mandated by the Department of Navy.

News Transcript on Navy dropping civilian housing plan

Greater Media reporter Rebecca Morton did a nice job summarizing the recent announcement that the Navy will not go through with the Laurelwood civilian housing plan at NWS Earle. Here is her recap. Again, we will contine to track all development, including the impending buyout.

In the meantime, we are still compiling a "thank you" list to the many groups and individuals within our communities that helped NOPE along the way. Please stay tuned as we target a full list by Friday.

Awaiting word on the buyout parameters

Among the loose ends that NOPE anticipates having to tie up as we approach month's end are seeing through the buyout negotiations of the Laurelwood contract and expedient demolition of the Laurelwood military housing complex.

Clearly, the public (i.e. NOPE) will not be a party to private talks between the Department of Navy and Laurelwood Homes, LLC, owner of the 300 townhomes on NWS Earle in question, but we will beat the proverbial dead horse that the homes are worth $17-$20 million, at most. (This range factors a host of costs to Laurelwood against the equivalent annual rents of $3.5-$4 million that Laurelwood received from the Navy for the past 20 years).

NOPE will remain in contact with Congressman Smith and Senator Menendez in tracking the progress of the negotiations and anticipates host a press conference once an agreement is met.

In the meantime, Navy officials contacted us Friday regarding another NOPE Freedom of Information request pertaining to the Laurelwood refinancing agreement of 2002, in addition to the Navy's compliance with oversight recommendations put forth by the Inspector General in 2009, pertaining to the Myers outsource security firm that supplements Earle's base-force protection. These are issues that remain relevant to NOPE's primary concern that unimpeded civilian access and housing at NWS Earle are an obvious security concern.

NOPE appreciates the outpouring from the community!

The leaders of NOPE appreciate the inundation of support and gratitude from members of our community, some of which we would like to share heading into the weekend:

Many, many thanks to all who really got this grassroots action going and sustained it. Your hard work and great organizing skills really serve as an example of what can be done when people work together. Kudos to the committee members who really helped energize the communities. You have done an incredible service to our towns. Lucille Castro, Tinton Falls

I read the news in the Press over the weekend I was excited to see that NOPE made a difference. Great work. Milton Hubbard, Tinton Falls

You are all to be congratulated for your efforts on behalf of the residents of Colts Neck. Your effort was the greatest grassroots efforts I've ever seen or been associated with. There is no doubt in my mind that without NOPE, the result would have been unfavorable to CN residents. I realize that there's an agreement to be reached before this is finally put to bed but your effort is nothing short of fantastic. Best personal regards, Frank Leccese Sr., Colts Neck

Thank you for ALL you have done!!! The Warendorfs

CONGRATULATIONS on a job well done!!!!! Mike Terzano, Tinton Falls

Congrats to you and the entire NOPE team for doing such an amazing job winning this fight. Our family thanks you for saving our wonderful community from this potential disaster. Again, thank you for everything you have done. Kinds regards, Andrew Weisbrot

Congratulations and thank you for a job VERY Well done… God Bless you and all your efforts. Regards, Glen

Congratulations to all on a job well done and my continued support and appreciation of your efforts to monitor the impending buyout agreement. -- Barbara Finn, NOPE supporter

Awesome work by all involved, thanks to those who have worked so hard to bring this about, Jill Sammarco

Thank you for your tremendous, tireless effort. You are greatly appreciated and admired for all you have done. With sincere gratitude, The Chadwicks

Kudos to all!!! -- Mike Tormey

Sincere congratulations for such an outstanding effort and a positive outcome! Thank you for serving as the catalyst for residents to come together and help where they could. ALL of YOU deserve a pat on the back and the thanks of our town and elected officials. Without the work and leadership of your core group, this would have NEVER happened. Thank you! Susan Lewis

Congratulations!! Great grassroots effort. -- Anonymous

How about a shout out to Amod Choudhary who started the whole thing. VictoriaFoley (Editor's note: Amod helped to start the NOPE movement and will be cited next week as we compile our enormous "thank you" list.)

Heard the good news this a.m. Thanks to all of you who really got involved and persevered. Cindy Caizza

bnet: New Jersey Towns Battle -- and Beat -- the U.S. Navy

In our daily channel checks, this story from the site "bnet" (apparently geared toward a government-contractor business audience) is worth reading, particularly for an audience that might not understand the dozens of nuances of our unique case, but a bit misconstrued.

It seems the media - collectively newspapers, radio and bloggers - are dwelling on concerns about property taxes and financial issues. However, the lynchpin of NOPE's objection to civilian housing at NWS Earle has ALWAYS been security. (Yes, our business case was on target in identifying the financial pitfalls of the Navy's plan to convert military to civilian housing, but one of many focal points of NOPE's objections.)

Clearly, the Navy's decision to buy out the Laurelwood private housing contract is an admission that building an umpeded access road through an active weapons facility is not logical from perspectives of base and national security and Earle's mission to provide ammunition to the U.S. Navy fleet.

Still, bnet author Matthew Potter did a fair job of summarizing (very difficult in our 2+ year case) the recent turn of events, though we would add that NOPE was not specifically recognized as the catalyst to the Navy suspending its Record of Decision on Laurelwood. Although Howell, Wall and Middletown are cited as participants, most of us (locally) recognize the driving forces for NOPE were Colts Neck and Tinton Falls residents comprising NOPE.

Meanwhile, NOPE's leaders appreciate the outpouring of gratitude since Friday from hundreds of members of our communities, but we want to remind supporters that our organization will not rest until the completion of both the Navy's impending buyout of Laurelwood and the physical demolition of the homes. This is merely to ensure that no wrenches are thrown in to what has obviously been a methodical and arduous, but constructive, process and one that placed a fair measure of distrust in Navy leadership in Washington, D.C. However, Friday's announcement of a good-faith resolution with Laurelwood Homes, LLC, perhaps ushers a new era where the Department will prioritize its relationship with the good neighbors of NWS Earle's host communities who have embraced the U.S. Military's presence in Monmouth County long before many of us were here or even born.

Please continue to stay tuned here for daily updates, as in the days ahead we will also more-specifically recognize the community groups and NOPE leaders who helped our group succeed.

Crediting our elected officials

Last night, NOPE emailed our supporters a media press release, acknowledging the efforts of those who supported our grassroots community effort to prevent civilian housing at Weapons Station Earle, but the quick 350-word PR does not go into great detail. And, in advance, NOPE's apologies to anyone that we omitted by accident in the fast and furious revelations surrounding NOPE's case since Friday afternoon. Clearly, there are so many to thank.

In the days ahead we hope to highlight on this blog more specifically the key players and their efforts here, starting today with those on the federal, state and local legislative fronts and their notable roles, and for abiding by NOPE's steadfast mantra stressing nonpartisan, resolute and respectful participation in dealing with the U.S. Department of the Navy:

• U.S. Senators Robert Menendez (D) and Frank Lautenberg (D), including Senators Menedez's aides Kellie Drakeford and Keith Roachford: Instrumental in federal legislation (i.e. support of the Smith House bill mandating the federal GAO study into the security and business-case elements of proposed civilian housing that the Navy omitted from its Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)) and attendance at key events, such key NOPE rallies and a District 12 press conference in July 2009.
• U.S. Congressman Christopher Smith (R-NJ4), and aides Mary McDermott Noonon, Cate Benedetti and Jeff Sagnip, who battled the U.S. Navy on the Laurelwood plan long before NOPE's existence and were absolutely tireless advocates for NOPE: We, unfortunately, did not start our blog until July 2009, so there are so many elements not published here, but from setting up face-to-face briefings with the Navy Inspector General and top Department of Navy officials in Washington, D.C., to driving between D.C. and Monmouth County for dozens of our meetings, to supporting NOPE's rallies and initiating the key GAO legislation and other invaluable studies (i.e. IG probe into Myers Security) that will prove the security and financial merits of NOPE's case.
• U.S. Representative Rush Holt (D-NJ12), and former aide Steve Hildner, who co-signed letters of concern with Washington state's Norman Dicks (D-6) to Department of Navy leadership and especially recognized the inherent financial perils to constituents in NJ's 12th federal district and, in particular, the Tinton Falls School District
• New Jersey Senator Jennifer Beck, Assemblywoman Caroline Casagrande and Assemblyman Declan O'Scanlon (District 12), and aides AnnMarie Howley and Layli White, for sponsoring the companion Trenton legislation to the federal GAO study and for otherwise pitching a fierce campaign on NOPE's behalf in the State House to get the legislature and citizens to recognize the inherent security flaws of proposed civilian housing at an active weapons base and protecting NJ from an egregious unfunded mandate. And not once did one of them miss a NOPE-sponsored community event; surely, the trio were our champions on the state level.
• Monmouth County Freeholders, namely Lillian Burry, who, along with Congressman Smith not only objected to proposed civilian housing and unimpeded access to NWS Earle long before NOPE formed, but also participated in our meetings with the Navy in D.C., attended our rallies and championed our cause, and articulated NOPE's grassroots mission to county, local and civic leaders throughout this tough process.
• Mayors and councilmembers (past and present) in Tinton Falls and Colts Neck, including Tom Hennessey, Ben Forrester, Ken Florek, Peter Maclearie and Mike Skudera, as well as their Administrators Bob Bowden and Bryan Dempsey, who objectively and steadfastly stood behind NOPE each step of the way in passing numerous resolutions in our favor and for providing us the physical facilities to conduct our briefings and forums. Their backing really enhanced NOPE's validity in the early stages of the movement and proved invaluable in recognition among the local citizenry.
• Tinton Falls Superintendent John Russo, Administrator Tamar Sydney-Gens and BOE President Pete Karavites, who from the educational-concerns perspective not only took part in our D.C. meetings with the Navy, but spoke at our public sessions when asked, provided NOPE with invaluable confirmation of key financial and other data points to complement NOPE's business-case analysis, and helped our grassroots group to disseminate information about rallies and other key NOPE events thru school "kiddie mail" and via the district website. Also, ALL members of the BOEs and parent-teacher organizations of both Colts Neck and Tinton Falls.

Again, NOPE recognizes the efforts put forth by everyone (and we will articulate this more thoroughly in the days ahead, as we approach successful completion of our mission), but today reiterates heartfelt thanks to the aforementioned public officials who backed our mission.

Press Release from Congressman Smith

In the days ahead, we will get everyone up to speed on reactions from all officials who were instrumental in supporting NOPE's grassroots effort to get the Navy to end its public housing plan for NWS Earle.

Here is a press release from Congressman Chris Smith, and, otherwise, we have heard from Senator Robert Menendez's office and anticipate some kind of announcement or event from his office very shortly. We would encourage all elected officials who backed NOPE to organize a joint press conference, for it was the collective bipartisan efforts of individuals on many levels of government who made NOPE a success.

Meanwhile, we are trying to track down the full story for a headline posted Sunday to APP.com, which reads Tinton Falls board seeks ruling on defunct Earle plan. At the moment, we can only speculate this pertains to the Board of Education's legal efforts to reverse a state law that some interpreted to suggest the borough's K-8 school district could have been obligated to educate Laurelwood civilian residents, but will follow up with officials on this today as time allows.