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A key appointee in the city government — City Attorney Frederick C. Raffetto — appears set to continue in his post when the City Council and its new majority are sworn in on July 1.

New majorities on a municipal governing body often change their outside professionals, such as attorneys, engineers and auditors. But Raffetto [above] has the support of both the three newcomers and the two returning incumbents who last appointed him.

In Asbury Park, the terms for professionals run from January 1 to December 31. Nonetheless, when the new Council takes office in July it may replace the professionals mid-term, said Raffetto. A prior council cannot bind its successors to professionals not of their choosing, he said.

A full council is elected every four years in Asbury Park.

“Fred is very matter-of-fact and for him it’s all about the law. He’s very knowledgeable and he’s very thorough in his job,” said reelected Councilman John Loffredo, who was on the Council that first appointed Raffetto in 2004.

“He is the most professional professional I’ve ever met,” said incumbent Susan Henderson, who was reelected with Loffredo on the Forward Asbury ticket. “Every ‘i’ is dotted. Every ‘t’ is crossed. He makes sure you’re on target. He’s amazing.”

Incoming council members John Moor, Amy Quinn and Myra Campbell will be the new majority on the governing body. The three ran on the One Asbury ticket.

Moor [below] supports Raffetto’s continued tenure. In addition, he wants to keep all the outside professionals in place at this time.

“We’ve got to show the state some stability. We’ve got to show the redevelopers some stability. We’ve got to show some stability to everyone. At this point in time, I’m not for replacing any of the professionals,” said Moor, who is expected to be named mayor at the July 1 swearing in.

Moor reserves the right to change any professionals if merited by his experience working with them, he said.

“I always have that option,” said Moor.

Quinn also supports Raffetto. “Speaking for myself, I’m in favor of keeping Fred Raffetto,” she said.

Campbell agrees with Moor about not changing the outside professionals at this time, she said.

Raffetto, 47, is a partner in the law firm of Ansell, Grimm and Aaron, Ocean Township. He has been a lawyer in New Jersey since 1991. Raffetto also serves as the municipal attorney for Spring Lake Heights, Jamesburg and Hightstown. He is a resident of Spring Lake Heights.

The new council majority does plan to change a key position by not reappointing City Manager Terence Reidy, who has agreed to stay on to assist in any transition. In Asbury Park, the City Manager serves as the city’s chief executive officer, with the statutory power to run the municipal government day-to-day.

In addition, there will be a further change in the city’s executive staff caused by Police Chief Mark Kinmon’s decision to retire at the end of the year.

There has been a legal challenge to the May 14 election results filed by Daniel Harris III [right], an unsuccessful candidate on the A-Team ticket. Harris wants counted the 332 vote by mail ballots and 32 provisional ballots that were rejected by the Monmouth County Board of Elections.

The ballots in dispute are enough to change the election results. The first hearing in Harris’s challenge is scheduled for July 2, the day after the council swearing in.

 

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