Iraq. Weapons of Mass Destruction. J-Lo. That's what the nation will think of when it thinks of 2003.
But what will we think of locally? It might be the weather. Severe snow storms hit the shore in winter, the summer was rained out, and temperatures in December have flip-flopped all over the place.
Other notable events include the progress to schools, in Long Branch and the surrounding towns; and the locals who were affected by Iraq.
Here are some of the highlights:
January
- William Richards is announced as the new Public Safety Director in Long Branch. Richards, an officer with 28 years of experience, replaced Louis Napoletano, who resigned a couple of months before.
- Funeral services are held for retired Cpl. Earl Langley, who passed away Dec. 29, 2003. Langley was department chaplain.
- A 19-year-old Long Branch man was arrested and charged with shooting a transvestite in South Beach, Fla.
- A rash of cat burglaries hit the city. Towards the end of the month, a man is arrested and charged with 22 burglaries.
- New Jersey Natural Gas Company tests the air by Seaview Manor and determines that the air is safe in all but one unit.
- A building in Eatontown is evacuated after the owner removed soil from the basement to expand it. The borough says that made the building structurally unsound, and released dangerous chemicals that were in the soil.
- A hot water pipe burst in a Monmouth Beach condo, flooding the place with steam and water. The owner was in the area, and just happened to check the condo, which was his vacation home.
- Elwood Baxter, a former Oceanport Mayor, is presented with the Mayor's Lifetime Achievement Award. Baxter continues to volunteer in the borough, serving on the planning board and other organizations.
- The Gateway Country store, Rt. 35, was hit by thieves who cut telephone lines and forced open doors. Computers, televisions, cash and digital cameras were taken.
- An ATM with $16,000 cash was taken from the Cabaret Go-Go in Eatontown.
- A cold spell hits the area. Rivers turned to ice, and people took advantage of a rare skating opportunity.
- A fast food delivery man for a Long Branch restaurant was attacked by teenagers in an alley. Using Caller ID, police determined who committed the crime.
- In order to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, Long Branch takes $5.6 million out of Monmouth Community Bank. Several councilmen owned stock in the Long Branch based bank.
February
- Within a 10 day period, three water lines break in the city.
- Oceanport First Aid Squad reports that 2002 was its busiest year ever, and 2003 was shaping up to be almost as active.
- West Long Branch asks Gov. McGreevey and Rep. Frank Pallone for help getting aid from FEMA. Otherwise, they say, their budget will have to cover the unanticipated $350,000 cleanup cost of the Aug. 2, 2002 storm. They are unsuccessful in getting aid.
- The Long Branch Housing Authority creates a non-profit subsidiary, Maestro Community Development Corp., to design affordable housing.
- Oceanport Councilwoman Barbara Silkworth resigns, stating she had gotten a new job and was unable to continue serving the borough due to time constraints. Silkworth had been on council for eight years. Patricia Cooper is selected to fill the remainder of her term.
- An Eatontown man was arrested and charged with attempted kidnapping and stalking after trying to abduct a dancer who worked at several go-go bars.
- The Shore Regional faculty beats the students in their second annual basketball game, 72-71. Money raised in the match went to Big Brothers Big Sisters and the family of a firefighter who died on 9-11.
- huge snowstorm hits the area, swamping local public works departments. Over 3,000 tons of snow were removed from Broadway and Brighton Ave. alone. Cleanup costs in the city are estimated at $130,000.
- The country is put on orange alert for the first time. Local stores sell out of duct tape and plastic wrap.
- Eatontown, Oceanport, Tinton Falls and Little Silver team up to work on keeping Fort Monmouth from closing. They say the fort pumps $2.5 billion a year into the county's economy.
- The Housing Authority says that at least several tenants will be evacuated as a result of remediation.
- An Ocean Township resident, who used to teach at Long Branch High School, is arrested on charges that she supplied alcohol, marijuana and pills to minors at a party. She was also charged with grabbing a teenage boy's buttocks. In May of 2002, she was fired from the school after almost identical charges about parties at her house.
March
- Eatontown's taxes increase 3.7 cents, the first increase in five years. Most other municipalities also have tax hikes, citing increased insurance costs and contract-required salary increases.
- Applied Company, which is developing Pier Village, announces that Tim McLoone is their first client. McLoone, local philanthropist and owner of McLoone's Riverside Dining in Sea Bright, says that the name of the new 13,000 square feet restaurant will likely be McLoone's Oceanside Dining. The cost of construction is estimated at $2-3 million.
- An Asbury Park man allegedly steals a sedan parked in front of Jersey Shore Medical Center and announces led police on a chase through five towns, including Ocean Twp. and Eatontown. When police blocked off his route, he drove at the officers, who fired at him.
- Oceanport holds its second annual Women's Day Program, 'Women in a Post 9-11 World.'
- Oceanpointe Towers tenants ask council for more security in their building.
- The Housing Authority calls an emergency meeting to create a relocation plan for the 46 families at Seaview Manor. It is unsafe for them to be on site while construction work takes place, officials say.
- Building and fire officials from around the state meet in Long Branch to challenge a revised state building code, saying the changes make it easier for fires to start in residential buildings.
- A fire destroys a 159-year-old home in West Long Branch. A college student inside the home had to climb out the second story window and was rescued by landscapers.
- An Eatontown Boy Scout restores historic Locust Grove Cemetery, which dates back to at least 1779.
- The West Long Branch Foundation donates $36,250 to the Board of Education to buy computers and video equipment for classrooms.
- City Council discusses a proposal to ban smoking on the beach.
- The Sheriff's Department's 9-1-1 class, teaching children what to do in emergencies, educates its 10,000th pupil at the Monmouth Beach Schools.
April
- 'The Federal Courts reject an application for 'Delilah's Den,' a proposed nude dance club, in Eatontown.
- ''Long Branch Fire Lt. Steven Fitzpatrick retires after 20 years. He had been involved in litigation with the city over matters neither side would discuss publicly.
- Congressmen Rush Holt and Frank Pallone propose using Fort Monmouth as a Homeland Security Lab.
- Board of Education elections are held in the city. Candidates included challengers Harold 'Pudgy' Cooper, Lorenzo 'Bill' Dangler and Joe Huff vs. incumbents Mary George, Bill Knox and Lucy Perez. The incumbents won all three seats.
- A traffic light outside of Oceanport Borough Hall is turned on, after months of delays. It was supposed to be turned on in Dec., but weather delayed electric and road work.
- Alex Rivera, a Long Branch born U.S. Marine, makes national news as 'The Dancing Marine,' when he entertained Iraqi children by dancing and singing. NBC, Telemundo, and other stations televise this.
- ÊWest Long Branch officials complain about the condition of Norwood Ave. A contractor is leaving large pipes on the street, something the borough normally forbids companies from doing. However, this contract was made by the county.
- Sgt. Michael Maita, who grew up in Long Branch, was wounded in Iraq when what appeared to be an ambulance opened fire at his convoy. Maita was shot in the hand.
- For the second time in less than two months, a whale washes up on a Long Branch beach.
- ÊAn unusual white substance is found floating on Lane's Creek, which feeds into the Shrewsbury River, and a strange yellow substance is seen floating with it near the river. The yellow substance was determined to be pollen.
- Sallee Tee's Restaurant, Monmouth Beach, frees Louie, a lobster who weighed more than nine pounds. Louie was returned to the Atlantic, instead of feeding 8-10 people.
- After some discussion, Long Branch bans smoking on its beaches.
May
- At a meeting on the concerned citizen coalition, people criticize the Seaview Manor relocation plan, saying itÕs impractical given the scarcity of public housing in Long Branch.
- The FBI raids the Long Branch home of Jeff and Eileen Booth, searching for guns. The family owned a home in Vermont, which was unknowingly rented to a man with over 120 guns, so the local house was targeted to see if they were involved.
- Undercover police in Eatontown make six arrests of people trying to buy alcohol while under age.
- A man is arrested after threatening to shoot an Eatontown taxi driver.
- Oceanport revises its ordinances on 'open house' signs. They were technically illegal before the changes, but that was hard to enforce. The new ordinance restricts size and time of placement.
- The city schools announce they will be getting 'Dark Fiber,' a high speed internet connection, dug around the city.
- Shore Regional's proposed budget, which was defeated in April, is sent to the state to evaluate. Some boroughs recommend little change, but Sea Bright calls for massive cuts to prevent a large tax increase there.
- The Michael Thorne Sholarship 4 mile run/walk is held in Long Branch, drawing an unusually large crowd for a first year race.
- Groundbreaking takes place for Beachfront North. When the project is complete, there will be a series of townhouses and condos for sale, given names designed to evoke the heyday of Long Branch in the late 19th century. When the first batch was ready, they sold almost immediately.
- West Long Branch officials say that the borough's policy of letting employees begin work before getting a background check needs to be revised.
- Long Branch schools send their plans for new and improved buildings to the state commissioner, who expresses approval.
- Ten people were arrested after a party on Morris Ave. got out of hand and turned into a brawl.
- The annual Oceanport Lions Fair has a mediocre year, due to several days of rainy weather. Other organizations complain that the wet weekends have hurt businesses that are normally getting ready for summer.
- A man who wanted to commit suicide but couldn't get the nerve to do it robbed money in an attempt to get the police to shoot him. Police chased him down, unharmed, and returned the cash.
- Council votes not to vacate Lakeside Ave., a paper street on The Ranch property in Elberon. They say they haven't had enough time to review the proposal.
- An Ocean Township woman is arrested and charged with stealing more than $80,000 from an Eatontown Nursing Home in a three-year period.
- Oceanpointe's management tells council they can't afford to hire more security for the building. They say it isn't economically feasible to spend much more than the $80,000 a year they currently invest in security, and they would consider changing the building's use if told they must make changes.
- Brighton Avenue gets a new parking plan, called 'Pair Parking.' Some store owners say it actually cuts down on spaces, rather than increasing it as it was supposed to.
June
- Eatontown chooses not to change its rules on park access, despite the fact the current ones could open them to a lawsuit. Borough officials said they want to let local teams have the fist chance to use the sports fields. They later change their mind, on the advice of their attorney.
- Casey Jones, a city institution for 31 years, is sold. The new owners promise to keep it the same as it was.
- Oceanport unveils a monument to those who lost their lives on 9-11.
- Star of the Sea Church, Long Branch, holds a special mass to celebrate its 125th anniversary. The mass is part of a special, year-long celebration.
- Two prisoners being transported to the Monmouth County Correctional Institute are found smoking crack.
- Henry Shaheen, 90, of Monmouth Beach, dies. Shaheen had been the mayor of West Long Branch from 1968-1983.
- The Gas Company holds a meeting with local residents to explain what they will be doing to remediate the area by Seaview Manor.
- Eatontown schools set up a memorial in memory of two employees' relatives who died what fighting in Iraq.
- Several people phone in a report that a plane had landed in the water of the coast of Long Branch, but a search of the area reveals only some balloons.
- The city reveals the results of the bad weather on beach attendance: last year, in the first four weeks, the city collected $36,000 from beach goers. This year, the city collected less than half that, $14,000.
- In other wet weather notice, officials warn people to keep an eye out for mosquitoes. The rainy weather makes ideal breeding conditions for them.
- Lights by the baseball field at Valenzano Park are tested and declared ready for use. The lights had been the source of some controversy earlier, but those issues had been resolved.
July
- The Housing Authority says that relocation from Seaview Manor isn't forcing people out of Long Branch. They say only one person has left the city, and that was by their own choice.
- Byron and Inez Wortman celebrate their 75th anniversary. The couple has lived in West Long Branch since 1942.
- Vice President Dick Cheney drives through Eatontown and West Long Branch on his way to a Rumson Party. Traffic was backed up by police and secret service.
- The Monmouth County Chapter of the Sons of the Revolution buys bronze medallions to place on Revolutionary War Veterans graves to mark the 225th anniversary of the end of the war. Twelve of those soldiers were buried in West Long Branch.
- More than 120,000 people attend Oceanfest, the city's annual Independence Day celebrations.
- Alex Rivera, the Dancing Marine, is honored by the Latino American Committee.
- Two men from Ocean Township were arrested and charged with bias crimes. It was reported that they had gotten into an argument with a group of Jews, spat at them, threw coffee at a car, and later came back and broke some car windows. However, sources say the two were at a party when the incident occurred, and it was actually committed by some high school students.
- In what may be a first in New Jersey, Eatontown bans the use of self service cigarette machines entirely. The borough also prohibits smoking within 2 feet of playground equipment.
- A Dunkin Donuts and a Subway open up opposite the Long Branch train station, in a site that had long been vacant.
- The door to an armored car somehow opens, and coins stored inside spill onto the road in West Long Branch.
- Three significant fires occur in the same week, one in Long Branch, where firefighters rescue a woman and daughter; a boat fire, also in Long Branch; and one in a West Long Branch house.
- Alex Rivera is honored at the Gull's Nest, Sandy Hook. That same week, he is arrested and charged with brandishing a gun, based on calls from witnesses. Rivera said he had a toy BB gun in the car, and had never pointed it at anyone. The charges were later dropped.
- Fights broke out at the Eatontown movie theater. Eight police departments were required to break it up, and ten were arrested. Two police officers sustained minor injuries.
- The mall, theater and Eatontown officials meet to discuss what can be done to tighten security.
- Groundbreaking takes place for Proctor Estates, 48 units of moderate income housing in the city.
- West Long Branch again wins the annual city vs. borough Bocce match. This was a close match, but the borough won the last game by two points.
- Two Monmouth Beach residents, Helen Marsh and Marian Mihm, turned 100 this month.
- Vincent 'Vinnie the Hot Dog Guy' Limongelli dies at the age of 72. Vinnie was known for a battle with the city to keep his cart and truck. Later that week, his home burns down.
- A Tinton Falls man who went for a swim on a Long Branch swim was reported missing, and pool shoes were found washed up a few hundred feet from where he entered the water. Police call of the search of the ocean after a couple of days, but do not know whether it is a drowning accident or a missing person. Some say it is a suspicious incident.
- Two men sitting in an Eatontown back yard were shot, putting one in serious condition. Multiple guns were used in the shooting.
- The city's school undergo millions of dollars in upgrades. While some schools are closed for the summer to make renovations easier, over 1,000 students attend the school's summer camp programs.
August
- Monmouth Park Race Track holds its biggest race of the year, The Haskell. Although it brings a lot of revenue into the track, especially with an appearance by Funny Cide, winner of the Kentucky Derby and Preakness. Local businesses, however, report that they don't see a rise in business, as traffic was all directed onto the highway.
- The missing swimmer turns up wandering the streets of New York. He claims to have amnesia, and no memory of what happened. An investigation into the amnesiac swimmer reveals that he had taken out a $1 million insurance policy a month before he went missing.
- In another missing swimmer story, a woman who supposedly committed suicide by walking into the Long Branch ocean in Feb. 2001 is found alive in Canada, after he daughter had collected $300,000 in life insurance.
- Congressman Frank Pallone and environmentalists hold a meeting at Franklin Lake to protest Bush's 'Clean Skies' program, which they say will actually increase air pollution, particularly mercury levels.
- FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) and Monmouth Beach officials say the borough is not in danger of losing its flood insurance. In June, letters had been sent out to all residents saying the borough had not supplied information. The borough said that information had since been supplied, and the letters were sent out due to a miscommunication.
- The West Long Branch Schools System holds a media tour to explain the need for renovating the school system. Citing overcrowding and equipment dating back to the 1950s, they ask voters to approve a $5.5 million bond for a new school wing and major renovations to the current sections.
- Highland Avenue, Monmouth Beach, residents say they don't want a new park built on their street, as it could cause traffic jams. Borough officials say they had not decided to build one, but were instead asking for an all-purpose open space tax in the upcoming Nov. elections.
- A 22-year-old man who had escaped from a halfway house in Newark leads police on a two hour chase through several counties before killing himself in Ocean Township.
- City Council members, after examining the plans for vacating the paper street at The Ranch, grant approval to the developer.
- The Long Branch Sewerage Authority explains why it has taken so long to work on a stretch of Norwood Avenue. Other companies got involved replacing their underground utilities while the road was dug up. Work on the road began in Nov. 2002.
- A fire in a multi-family dwelling on Second Ave. left about 20 people homeless.
September
- The 80-year-old bridge in Oceanport on East Main Street is closed for revisions. This has a drastic impact on local businesses, since people coming from Fort Monmouth must go 15 or 20 minutes out of their way to get there.
- Shore Regional High School says that it did not receive any bids for bus routes for several parochial schools. About 140 students are affected.
- A stable hand is found dead at Monmouth Park Race Track. Within six hours, another Track employee is arrested and charged with stabbing him.
- Gov. James McGreevey visits Max's Famous Hot Dogs on Labor Day.
- The Department of Transportation announces it will make changes to the Route 35-36 intersection in Oct. 2007, instead of 2009, as originally announced. These improvements will include making left turn lanes instead of jug handles.
- Monmouth University's new president, Paul Gaffney, welcomes incoming Freshmen.
- Brazilian Independence Day is celebrated in Long Branch with soccer matches and parties. More than 12,000 attend.
- Residents in Elberon complain that college students renting houses are ruining the neighborhood.
- Armed robbers hold up the Branding Iron BBQ, West Long Branch, tying up an elderly couple.
- West Long Branch residents complain about loopholes in zoning ordinances, that permit, among other things, high-intensity lights to be put up at a basketball court in a residential neighborhood.
- The Tradewinds Beach Club, Sea Bright, closes. Plans call to build 22 new, million-dollar homes on that property. Members, who had been going there for decades, are upset.
- The West Long Branch Historical Society hands out plaques to seven 'Century Homes,' buildings that are over 100 years old.
- People all over New Jersey brace for Hurricane Isabel, which according to some predictions might head straight through the state. The actual day of the hurricane, however, is sunny and warm.
- A special police task force is created to monitor the housing authority announces it has had good results so far. In the first two weeks, they arrested 36 people on drug possession and similar charges.
- The first night game is played in Valenzano Park. The home team won Ñ Shore Blue Devils, 10; Jackson Cyclones 2.
- The bond referendum for the West Long Branch schools passes.
- A groundbreaking ceremony is held for the Long Branch Middle School. The new school, which will cost $50 million, is funded by state money.
- City Council hears a presentation from Taxi2000, which proposes the city develop a monorail-type system of automated taxis to take people around the area.
- The state publishes a list of all registered sexual offenders on-line. It reveals that locally, Eatontown, Oakhurst and Long Branch all have past offenders considered a moderate risk.
October
- The West Long Branch Fire Departments hold a wetdown to christen their newest firetruck, a $517,000 truck that can hold 2,000 gallons of water.
- A drug bust in Long Branch seizes more than $40,000 worth of drugs, including 829 decks of heroin.
- The New York City Fire Department thanks Oceanport, Long Branch, and other towns who helped in the aftermath of 9-11.
- Residents of Nolan Drive ask that a dirt path connecting their street with Monmouth Road be made for official use only. There are young children who play on the block, which should not be used as a cut-through to Wall Street, they say.
- The annual walk for Ronald McDonald House draws over 2,000 walkers, an increase of 500 from last year. Monies raised benefit the house.
- Several Latinos in Long Branch are threatened with a gun, beaten up and robbed by two men. Police arrest one of the two suspects within a few days of the incidents.
- Shore Regional Field Hockey Coach Nancy Williams wins her 600th game of her career.
- As part of Fire Prevention Safety Week, Monmouth Medical Center announces a new program to give smoke detectors to all families with newborns in the hospital.
- The first 26 units for Beachfront North are put up for sale, and sell out immediately.
- By a vote of 4-2, Oceanport Council introduces an ordinance to create a fire committee, and tell how fire chiefs will be elected. They say it is necessary to resolve differences between the two companies. Two months after it is ratified, some are still unhappy.
- Make a Difference Day is observed in West Long Branch, where they clean up Franklin Lake, and Oceanport, which holds a Community Day.
- The Eatontown Planning Board votes to approve the downtown area as a redevelopment zone.
- Ocean Township announces it is taking a tougher stand on 'animal houses.' Police formed a special task force, which issued 65 summonses to college students in the first 10 days.
November
- Election day results:
- In West Long Branch, Councilmen Richard Cooper and Bill Deisinger, a Democrat and Republican, win in an unopposed election.
- In Oceanport, Democrats sweep. Councilwoman Maria Gatta is elected mayor. Her running mates, Lucille Chaump and Linda Johnson, win council seats.
- In Eatontown, the incumbents, Republican Charles Riddle and Democrat Charles DaVis are both re-elected, but DaVis is in a close race with third-place candidate Joe Aretino. It is not until a recount that DaVis is declared the winner by seven votes.
- Loews Theater experiences another round of violence over a weekend. This occurred in the middle of discussions between the theater and police on how to tighten security. They agree to have more officers on hand and make other changes.
- Monmouth University outlines a plan to build another dormitory. Local residents object to several aspects of the plan, saying it will increase traffic in the area.
- A plan to sell some borough-owned property in Eatontown is scrapped after several council members say they believe it is more important to prevent overdevelopment. The mayor said that next year, if they don't get some extra form of income there will be a six or seven cent tax increase.
- The fire chief in Eatontown is arrested and charged with taking goods from the firehouse and selling them on e-Bay, an internet action site.
- A groundbreaking ceremony is held at the Long Branch Public Library, which will undergo $1.6 million of renovations to modernize the building.
- Loews Theater's new security policy is tested, and found successful. Following the realease of the controversial movie 'Tupac: Resurrection,' two arrests were made, and no fighting broke out.
- A Long Branch woman pleads guilty to stealing nearly $300,000 from local companies where she worked.
- The school system discusses a referendum to build a new acquatic center in Long Branch, in conjunction with the city, as part of redevelopment. Proponents say that many of the children in the city don't know how to swim, but opponents say that it will raise tax dollars.
- During a Dec. 9 vote, the proposal is rejected by a wide majority.
- Oceanport businesses announce they are hurting due to the bridge detour. Some say business is down as much as 60 percent. Council looks into ways to help them.
- For the second time in two months, a fatal motor vehicle accident occurs on Rt. 35 in Eatontown. The first occurred when a car swerved to avoid another which had made an illegal left turn. The second occured due to bad weather conditions, when a car crashed into a pole.
December
- Residents on Marine and Ocean Terraces and Seaview Ave. form an alliance, MTOTSA, to protest redeveloping their neighborhood. They argue that unlike previous redevelopment areas, they have a viable community which should not be turned into townhouses.
- The city says it will restudy the situation, but it may be too late to change plans.
- Long Branch Covenant Church, which has been in Long Branch for 20 years, breaks ground on their own building.
- A man working at construction site in Eatontown falls four stories and is in critical condition. His safety harness had not been properly secured.
- The Long Branch Parking Authority announces its plans for next year: a commuter parking lot by the train station, and parking meters along the beachfront and in West End.
- Ronald W. Fitzpatrick, a volunteer firefighter in Long Branch and West Long Branch, dies while fighting a fire on Broadway. Fitzpatrick had been a firefighter since 1959, and was a former captain of the Newark Fire Dept. More than 1,200 firefighters attend his funeral.
- Two cars are totalled when a bus driver loses contol on an icy road, and crushes the parked vehicles against a house.
- The Pride in Eatontown Committee gives its annual awards to local businesses. Truffles, Tower Market Plaza, is voted Òmost improved,Ó and Osteotech, Industrial Way, is voted Òbest maintained.Ó
- Oceanport officials announce that with the grant money from Green Acres and what it had budgeted, they have enough to complete work on Blackberry Bay Park.
- A Condominium Coalition is formed in Long Branch to represent condo and townhouse owners.
- Suspects from the Branding Iron BBQ robbery in Sept. are arrested. They were allegedly involved in several other robberies of local restaurants, including a recent one at Kentucky Fried Chicken, and police said they had been planning more.
- The state issues a Òletter of grantÓ indicating it approves the concept for the new Long Branch High School. When constructed, the $72 million building will be able to educate 1,500 students.
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