New Jersey
Group urges watchdog to ax public contracts connected to indicted power broker • New Jersey Monitor
The New Jersey Working Families Party has asked a state watchdog to investigate and terminate any public contracts involving South Jersey Democratic power broker George Norcross and the five business associates recently indicted with him for racketeering.
In a letter sent Tuesday to acting state Comptroller Kevin D. Walsh, the group’s director, Antoinette Miles, said the corruption indictment should trigger “a strong enforcement response” to protect taxpayer money. She reminded Walsh that state officials, by law, can suspend and disqualify public contractors who have been indicted of any “offense indicating a lack of business integrity or honesty.”
“This indictment represents one of the most significant state public corruption prosecutions in New Jersey history,” Miles wrote. “These defendants hold leadership roles in institutions that continue to receive millions of dollars annually in federal, state, and local taxpayer dollars. This situation is intolerable and, if left unaddressed, will continue to erode public trust and risk taxpayer resources at the hands of an allegedly criminal enterprise.”
Laura Madden, a spokeswoman for Walsh’s office, declined to comment, saying: “Our policy is we can neither confirm nor deny matters like this.”
Attorneys for Norcross and his co-defendants didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
New Jersey Working Families Party has long lobbied state and local officials to investigate Norcross and his allies.
“We have known for years about the Norcross enterprise — how Norcross conducts his business dealings and how he wields influence within city government and with other business partners, as the attorney general so eloquently put it, to extort and extract from the city of Camden,” Miles told the New Jersey Monitor. “There are millions of dollars in public sector contracts at stake, and we need not only the attorney general’s investigation, but we also need to dig deeper into the various entities connected to Norcross, because the level of corruption goes a lot deeper.”
In June, state Attorney General Matt Platkin announced a 13-count indictment against Norcross that accuses him of overseeing a criminal enterprise by using direct threats and intimidation to win development rights along the Camden waterfront and then benefiting from more than $1 billion in state-issued tax credits.
Indicted with him were his brother Philip Norcross, who is CEO of the law firm Parker McCay; George Norcross’ attorney, William M. Tambussi of the law firm Brown & Connery; former Camden mayor Dana Redd; Sidney Brown, the CEO of privately owned trucking company and logistics provider NFI Industries; and John J. O’Donnell, CEO at the Michaels Organization, a residential housing developer.
The charges against them include racketeering, misconduct by a corporate official, official misconduct, financial facilitation of criminal activity, and conspiracy to commit theft by extortion and criminal coercion. Norcross and his co-defendants pleaded not guilty during their arraignments earlier this summer.
George and Phil Norcross, Tambussi, and Redd all hold roles in organizations that receive state and local funds that Miles said deserve the comptroller’s scrutiny:
- George Norcross chairs the Cooper health system’s board of trustees, while his brother is board chair of its charitable arm, the Cooper Foundation. The hospital receives tens of millions of dollars a year through Medicaid, and the comptroller’s office serves as the state’s watchdog against Medicaid fraud. Cooper Health acquired Cape Regional Health System this summer, an expansion of Cooper’s footprint that makes watchdog scrutiny more urgent, Miles added.
- Philip Norcross’ and Tambussi’s law firms have contracts with hundreds of public entities statewide. Tambussi’s firm also represents the South Jersey Transportation Authority, and Platkin’s office charged two commissioners at that authority with misconduct the week before the Norcross indictment.
- Redd heads the Camden Community Partnership, the taxpayer-funded nonprofit at the center of the indictment. Just this week, Camden City Council passed an ordinance to lift a cap on how much taxpayer money can be used to cover the legal expenses of current and past city officials, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
- Conner Strong & Buckelew, the insurance brokerage George Norcross helmed until he took a leave of absence a few weeks after the indictment, provides insurance and risk management services to hundreds of state, county, and local government entities.
Beyond contracts, Miles’ group urged Walsh to investigate all permit applications, approvals, and waivers or determinations that involved Norcross, his co-defendants, and the organizations where they work or hold leadership roles.
“The public deserves to have a full accounting of the amount of taxpayer money going to entities controlled by these individuals,” Miles said.
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New Jersey
Jersey Shore beach roped off to protect nesting birds just in time for Memorial Day weekend
They took them under their wing.
A large stretch of a Jersey Shore beach is roped off to protect a bird’s nest just in time for Memorial Day weekend.
A pair of American Oystercatchers made their home on the sand in Belmar — and New Jersey Fish and Wildlife is prohibiting beachgoers from trespassing in the area to protect them and their eggs, according to NJ Advance Media.
The agency erected signs at 7th Avenue Beach — one of the most popular spots in Belmar — that say “Do Not Enter,” and explain that the area is a nesting area for the shorebirds, which are protected under federal law.
The placards also warn that “harassing these birds, their eggs or their young” can incur a $50,000 fine or jail time.
The birds are not listed as endangered or threatened species in New Jersey, according to Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey.
However, their status has been to changed to one of “special concern.”
Many on social media agreed with the agency’s efforts to protect the creatures, which are known for their black and white body and long orange-red bill.
“Love love love this!!!! Beautiful birds! One of my favorite!” one gushed.
“Leave that cute birdie alone people,” another added.
Others thought even more safety precautions were needed.
“We should send a biologist or conservation police to guard the area,” one wrote.
DEP officials told the outlet that the length of time the area would be closed will be determined by whether the chicks opt to remain there after hatching.
If the baby birds decide to relocate to another spot on the beach, that new area will be closed off instead, the agency added.
It’s been nearly a decade and a half since the Brooklyn Nets moved out of New Jersey.
The organization has completely revamped its vibe since switching states, ditching the red, white and blue look for a very basic black and white colorway.
The Nets have also intermittently changed the colors of the banners hanging up in the Barclays Center from red, white and blue to black and white, much to the chagrin of traditional Nets fans.
Despite the Nets now playing in a bigger market and being far removed from their days in the Garden State, some fans seem to hope for the Nets to make their return across the river. New Jersey governor Mikie Sherrill was asked about the matter.
“I mean, would I support it? I ask about it all the time,” Sherrill said. “I love the idea. So, I have been pressing for that. I haven’t made a lot of headway yet; you know, maybe in my second 100 days.
“But I do think there is some work being done for some — I don’t know if I’m allowed to say too much about it — but some people are working on some different sports coming into the Rock.”
As time went on, the Nets eventually started to embrace more of their New Jersey roots, which started when they rocked a clean tie-dye jersey from the 90s during the 2020-21 season.
The next season, the Nets followed it up with uniforms commemorating their run in the 2000s, when the team got to the NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003 and endlessly broke the ESPN top 10 with each crazy Jason Kidd assist and Vince Carter dunk.
It’s fitting that Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, the latter of whom grew up in New Jersey as a Nets fan, got to rock these uniforms, helping boost the popularity of the New Jersey brand to a wide array of fans.
True Nets fans embraced the Continental Airlines Arena/Izod Center and the swamps of East Rutherford, getting to witness a winning basketball team for a fraction of the cost of the team mired in dysfunction that happened to play their home games at “The World’s Most Famous Arena.”
Not many marquee free agents would have signed up to play in New Jersey, but real fans remember the good times in the swamps, especially with Sly the Fox as the team’s mascot. Those times deserve to be remembered properly.
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ATLANTIC COUNTY, N.J. (WPVI) — Drivers heading to the shore on Friday afternoon saw slow-moving traffic for several miles coming off the Walt Whitman bridge, but many travelers said the start of the holiday weekend was smoother than they anticipated.
Aldara Madden, who was traveling with her friend Elana Maser, said the trip moved faster than she expected.
“I was expecting it to take a lot longer,” she said.
Maser added that they left school early to avoid delays.
“My mom and I do that every year and then we always stop here as our little pre-down the shore,” she said.
Others shared similar experiences.
“I’m coming from Bucks County, so I was worried there was gonna be some traffic but it really wasn’t bad at all,” said Erin McFadden of Churchville, who was headed to Ocean City.
AAA reported that while slightly more people are traveling by car this year compared to last, 2026 is projected to have the lowest year-over-year travel growth rate in more than a decade, excluding the steep drop seen in 2020 during the pandemic.
The organization attributes the slowdown largely to concerns over rising prices.
“Gas is ridiculously expensive and I think all the time before going anywhere these days,” said Debbie Maser of Philadelphia. “But this is our happy place and nothing can keep us away.”
A dreary weekend forecast may also be influencing travel patterns.
“I was thinking that, I wonder if there’ll be less congestion on the roads because of the weather,” said Kyra Wolin of Massachusetts. “It’s not looking to be too good this weekend with the rain.”
Still, many shore-bound travelers said tradition outweighs any concerns about rain or crowds.
“No not at all. You go down. You get it done,” said George Miller of Lansdale.
Eric Wolin of Massachusetts agreed: “Never, never. Margate’s a special place for us.”
As the unofficial start of summer begins, travelers said they remain committed to kicking off the season in their favorite spots, not letting rain, traffic, or high prices keep them away.
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