I write this letter in support of Deputy Mayor Mario DiNatale and Andi Ayes for Voorhees Township Committee.
In his nine years serving our community, DiNatale has worked hard to provide the quality of life and level of service Voorhees residents expect and deserve, while generating revenue and controlling spending.
DiNatale has helped reduce the number of township employees by 25 since 2006 with programs such as side-arm trucks for trash collection. He supported Voorhees partnering with a company that allows us to purchase utilities directly from the providers, saving $150,000 per year.
He has been a passionate proponent of shared services, saving the Township $400,000 by joining county dispatch and joining eight other municipalities for trash disposal, saving $138,000 last year in tipping fees. Other such agreements exist with Eastern Regional High School for snow removal, Gibbsboro for leaf removal, and Laurel Springs for trash removal.
DiNatale has supported the township’s five-year road improvement and maintenance program, using grants to improve traffic flow at intersections such as Cooper and Centennial and worked to have the County pay for the ongoing facelift of Route 561.
He has supported moving Town Hall into the Voorhees Town Center, leading to an increase in businesses and ratables. In 2010, PREIT, the owner of the Town Center, paid $772,000 in taxes based on the assessed value of the property. This year, as a result of new business at the Town Center, PREIT will pay $2.1 million in taxes, benefiting both the Township and our schools.
DiNatale worked closely with Virtua to bring their $500 million medical campus to Route 73. The project created 1000 new jobs and millions in tax revenue as well as a $10 million sewer upgrade at no taxpayer cost. The new hospital has also led to the opening of several other businesses near the campus.
DiNatale has also supported a new community playground at John Connolly Park, the turf field at the Giangiulio Complex, turf fields at the Rabinowitz Baseball Complex, upgrades at the Lions Lake Softball Complex and improved lighting at the Maiaroto Soccer Complex.
Environmentally, the township has preserved 203 acres of land during DiNatale’s years of service, remediated the former Abbott’s Dairy near the Coliseum, turned a former sewer plant into Hale Park in the Ashland neighborhood and worked with our Environmental Commission and Rutgers University in the transformation of the former Buzby Landfill into the Voorhees Environmental Park. DiNatale also supported the Township’s transition to single stream recycling.
He has been a passionate advocate of our community events, including the Summer Twilight Series and Halloween in the Park. He supported the establishment of the Citizens Cultural and Diversity Committee and the Teen Advisory Committee.
He has also been a vocal opponent to the proposed Wal-Mart at the former Echelon Mall, the proposed Super Wawa on Burnt Mill Road and the proposed Super Wawa on Route 73 across from Sturbrige Lakes.
