I Jerome Leslie Eben, FAIA, PP, a licensed architect and planner for 35 years, with over 50 years of experience in both professions, has served on the Planning Board with the best interests of the people of West Orange as my priority. I was a member of the Planning Board with a 98% attendance record. The Mayor has chosen not to reappoint me, with all my professional experience and knowledge simply because from time to time I did not agree with the direction of the township. I was known for my due diligence, spending hours of time reviewing documents, visiting every site numerous times and then at the appointed meeting asking informed questions of the applicants and their expert witnesses, which included architects, planners, landscape architects, engineers and traffic consultants, followed by rigorous closing comments before voting. In the case of the Essex Green-Executive Drive declaration as “An Area in Need of Redevelopment”, on December 6, 2017, I VOTED NO! While I am deeply concerned that this will open the floodgate of tax abatements for rich developers, my NO vote was based on our Town Planning Consultant, Mr. Grygiel’s biased report as follows: 1. It came to the wrong conclusions, did not prove that Essex Green/Executive Drive was “An Area in Need of Redevelopment”. In fact, it proved the opposite. The area must be blighted and it is not. 2. I objected that the Township retained Mr. Grygiel’s firm to write the report in the first place which put him in conflict with the public interest, since it is his role to advise the Planning Board independently. 3. Mr. Grygiel’s firm was hired before the September 19, 2017 Town Council vote to approve his hiring, a blatant insult to the public. 4. Mr. Grygiel’s ethics as a planner are now in question. 5. No other planning consultant would agree to complete such a report in only 3 weeks, which is the time it took for Mr. Grygiel to produce his report. 6. I objected that Councilwoman McCartney, who serves on the Planning Board, did not recuse herself after she had publicly stated she was for the project and should have been prevented from asking the questions she did during the meeting after making the empty statement that this is the "only way the Township can hope for redevelopment and still be in on the discussion;" 7. Mr. Harvey Grossman who is supposed to be the public advocate did not protest the Chairman's action, allowing Mr. Andrew Trenk, son of the Township’s attorney and chief proponent of the project, or Councilwoman McCartney to vote, despite their being compromised for the obvious reasons.