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Mahwah Mayor First Bergen Official in Over 25 years to be Recalled from Office

William "Bill" Laforet

photo Mayor Bill Laforet

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Mahwah NJ,  Mayor Bill Laforet was recalled from office on Tuesday night. The defeat for Laforet who twice won reelection was spearheaded by a local group called MahwahStrong.
The Mahwah mayor will become the first public official in Bergen County to be recalled in over 25 years.

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Mahwah Mayor Will Not Challenge “Recall Petition” in Court

William "Bill" Laforet

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Mahwah NJ , Mahwah Mayor Bill Laforet comments on recall :

While I vehemently disagree with Clerk Coviello’s perfunctory response to my objections in regard to her certification of the recall petition, I will not see my town foot the bill to defend against a legal challenge to such certification which I believe I can win in court.

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Mahwah Settles “Eruv” lawsuit , Activist Look to Remove Mayor

Eruv Derek Michalski

February 2,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Mahwah NJ, Mahwah settled the “eruv ” lawsuit but local activist look to remove Mayor Laforet.

In a press release from the local group MahwahStrong said ;

The Board of Directors of MahwahStrong has reviewed the settlement agreement announced this evening. The settlement states that the eruv will currently remain in place. The PVC pipes will be painted at the BREA’s cost but Mahwah must pay $10,000 in attorney fees.

Mahwah taxpayers have funded over $200k in legal fees and endured over six months of acrimonious dialogue from within our town government. Throughout this process, MahwahStrong had a positive expectation based on the Town Council’s pledge to protect our community. The settlement put forward falls far short of our expectations.
While we partially fault the council for mismanagement and lack of transparency in managing this issue, MahwahStrong believes the issues revolving around the ERUV were created, approved, undisclosed, and manipulated by Mayor Bill Laforet. He was the first to learn of the intent to install the Eruv. He initially opposed it and then reversed his position. He then faulted the council when it served his political agenda. Among other culpabilities, he is largely responsible for an avalanche of negative press about our community that has damaged our reputation and potentially impacted property values.

In order to correct the dysfunction of our local government, we need to remove the cause of internal division. It is essential that Mayor Laforet be recalled and we stand by our decision to back the recall efforts.

MahwahStrong has been investigating its own legal initiatives which will be discussed at the appropriate point in time.

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Recall Effort Underway in Mahwah

recall-stamp-640x574[1]

January 21,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Mahwah NJ, Recently, a group of Mahwah residents announced an initiative to recall Mayor Bill Laforet. The group now needs to acquire approximately 4,200 Mahwah resident signatures within 160 days in order to have the recall placed on the November election ballot. All petition signers must be registered voters and time is of the essence.
The Recall Committee seeks to end to the mayor’s “Incompetent management, poor judgement, abuse of power, lying and promoting divisiveness”. More information is available on their website at www.RecallMayorLaforet.com.

A previous effort to recall Mayor Bill Laforet in Mahwah, New Jersey, from his position was launched in March 2015.The recall did not go to a vote after supporters ended the recall attempt on August 3, 2015.Laforet is targeted for recall due to allegedly overstepping his authority by firing the town’s Public Works Director after pornography was found on the director’s computer. On May 13, 2015, supporters purported to have gathered “hundreds” of signatures.[4] Recall supporters ended the recall effort on August 3, 2015.

The Recall Group reached out to MahwahStrong seeking support for their initiative. Mahwah Strong is a group of local residents who have come together for the purpose of preserving the welcoming, inclusionary lifestyle of Mahwah Township.

The Board has concluded that the Mayor’s actions, statements and representation of our community have been largely inconsistent with the goals of MahwahStrong and contrary to the best interests of our Township and its taxpayers. His inability to coexist with the Town Council is disruptive and compromising important work and the future of our community.

The Board of MahwahStrong has determined that change is in order. It is our goal to reclaim Mahwah and remove what divides us. Accordingly, we are endorsing and lending the support of our organization to the recall effort.

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Mahwah mayor, top cop accused of plot to discredit a rival

Ridgewood_-Village_Hall_theridgewoodblog

Mahwah’s mayor and police chief were behind a plot to discredit a public works official and political rival, pressing false allegations that he viewed pornography on a township computer that ultimately led to his death, a lawsuit alleges. Peter J. Sampson, The Record Read more