Below you can see a news release from Jay Finnigan's campaign for Hanover Tp (NorCo)Supervisor. He's currently the Township Manager, and would be required by state law to step down if elected.
When I wrote for a local weekly, Hanover Tp was my first beat assignment. It quickly became my favorite local government and I regarded my trips there as mental health breaks. The Supervisors were all dedicated, but could laugh at themselves. And they did.
Finnigan went years without raising real estate taxes. He erased all debt, something I've seen nowhere else. Services remained outstanding because the late Vince Milite and he regularly manned the plow trucks.
I think Finnigan might have wiped out a mailbox or two, but he blamed Milite.
I don't live in Hanover Tp. But this is a no-brainer.
From Jay Finnigan's Campaign for Township Supervisor: Jay Finnigan, Hanover Township –Northampton County is seeking his second term as a member of the Hanover Township Board of Supervisors. Jay was elected Vice Chairman in 2003 and Chairman in 2004. He has served as the Township Manager since 2006, after leaving the Board.
Jay was previously employed by D&B, Inc. (Dun & Bradstreet) for 25+ years, lastly serving as Director, Sales Policy & Planning in the Bethlehem, PA facility. He had previously held management & sales positions in Boston & Springfield, MA; New York, NY, and Hartford, CT.
“My goal is to continue to make Hanover one the most desirable communities to live and work in the Lehigh Valley”, Finnigan commented. He continued, “families want to move to Hanover as evidenced by the increasing value of home sales and the low number of days on the market.”
Among the accomplishments he cited are:
• Maintained a flat tax rate for all eighteen years as manager
• Chief plaintiff and organizer in the lawsuit that kept NIZ tax dollars in Hanover and other Northampton County municipalities.
• Significant improvements to the Township’s Infrastructure
• Spearheaded the land acquisition for First Responder Park, Armed Services Park, and the expansion of Pharo Park
• Solid growth with a balance between Residential and Non-Residential property
• Expanded community based events
• Has a solid working relationship with surrounding municipalities, county, state, and federal government
• Maintained and improved the level of service of Township staff
• Development of the Township Website (currently being updated as part of 2023 budget), introduced Constant Contact and Nixle.
• Secured funding for three electronic message boards
• Secured grants for police vehicles and accident reconstruction equipment Challenges ahead
• Continuing to provide superior services while maintaining a stable tax rate
• Ensuring the proper development of remaining undeveloped properties
• Continuing to provide superior public safety to the residents and business community
• Maintaining a great quality of life in the Township as the communities to Hanover’s north, east ; west continue to develop
• Continue to work with PennDOT to ensure improvements along S.R. 0987
When asked why he was running, Jay stated the following:
“I could no longer sit back and watch the image of the Township be tarnished by those holding an elected position who should be doing everything in their power to enhance our image.”
“I could no longer sit back and watch the integrity of the Township staff be impugned by those in elected office.”
“Having served previously I know what a Township Supervisors role and responsibilitiesare and it is clearly evident that some shrink away from their role and responsibility.” “You can’t hold an elected office and not engage the Township Staff on a regular basis. Showing up for one or two meetings a month and believing that is acceptable, isn’t acceptable! Claiming a lack of transparency when you’ve met with the Township Manager twice in five and a half years is totally unacceptable.”
Affiliations:
• President, Delaware Valley Hockey League
• Chair, Northampton Tax Collection Committee
• Member & former President, Lehigh Valley Ice Hockey Officials Association
• USA Hockey Certified Coach, Instructor and Official
• Member, USA Hockey Congress
• AHL Supervisor of Off Ice Officials
• Former President, Bethlehem Blast Youth Hockey
• Former Coach, Bethlehem Blast Youth Hockey
• Former member, Hanover Township Recreation Advisory Board
• Chief Fundraiser, Hanover 200th Committee
Personal Information:
Married: wife Mona; two sons, John and James
Education:
BS, Business Management, Bentley College, Waltham, M
25 comments:
An early mancrush of yours. He was a decent supervisor. Wonder who he is describing. Word is he was never impressed with Warren. Of course, most people said th same thing. He will fit in well in Northampton County as another McClure surrogate.
I personally think he is a devout ahole. However, there is no doubt that he has done wonders. If I were a resident, I'd vote for the ahole.
Who is he running against?
He's wrecked more than mailboxes while driving that truck.
I'd like to see him take over in Bethlehem Twp and clean house!
Who is he running against?"
Susan Lawless.
Has done a great job making Hanover a nice modern place.
Finnigan and Jack Nagle are running against Susan Lawless and Jean Versteg. There is also a race to fill Warren's seat that was vacated when he moved.
Finnigan has done some good for the Township, but I think his time has come and gone. He and his buddies on the Board have eroded the zoning protections against warehouses on the airport land slowly over the last 10 years, and have opened the door to large warehouses being built along the Airport Road corridor. This is after a 2017 Morning Call article where Finnigan is quoted as saying he will not support warehouse development on the Airport land. (https://www.mcall.com/2017/04/04/hanover-township-wont-allow-airport-to-build-warehouses)
Residents have formed groups opposing the latest rezoning and are overwhelmingly against the large warehouses proposed by Majestic Realty. This issue will be Finnigan and Nagle's downfall.
Finnigan and Nagle also dragged their feet with the Community Center reopening and the rebuilding of the pool. In fact, Nagle was initially against the pool being rebuilt and the borrowing of money to do it. This actually ended up costing the Township more due to higher costs after the pandemic and higher interest rates when they went to market for the borrowing.
Word on the street is that Finnigan wants to choose one of his buddies as the next Township Manager, so that is why he is running.
Lawless has been a responsive member of the Supervisors. She is smart and understanding of the issues facing the Township. I find her to be worthy of re-election, as she has been supportive of the new pool, the community center and appears to be against allowing warehouses on the Airport Road corridor.
We read so much about all the corruption and ineptitude in Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton, its easy to forget all the many local Township governments have really competent/service oriented employees providing high levels of service and responsive locally elected supervisors. You hardly ever hear much about any of these Townships as the staffs and elected officials quietly go about the business of serving the public. Hanover Township, Northampton County is a perfect example.
Oh Jean….
@4:21AM - Isn’t he running for Hanover Twsp supervisor? What has that got to do with the comment about being a Northampton County “McClure surrogate”?
If only he lived in the city of bethlum
It is quite obvious that one of Mr. Finnigan's opponents have weighed in with their usual negativity. The pool never would have been built during the pandemic. According to the Township minutes, all public records, the Township did not award contracts because of the costs associated with the proposal. The fact is the Township benefitted when they signed the loan at 1.47%. Let me state that again 1.47%. I just called and asked the rate. There are just as many residents, or more, in favor of the Majestic proposal because like me they believe in job creation and economic development. I hope this is not another issue ruined because of a vocal minority.
I think someone needs to read minutes. They speak volumes.
Jay is a personal friend of mine however I lost a lot of respect for jay when he handed his son a job in the township…..nepotism should be illegal
Anon 12:55, the pool closed in 2019 and it took the Township until 2022 to vote on even rebuilding it. The Supervisors left a lot of kids hot for 5 summers already. If they would have moved quicker to rebuild it, it would not have cost nearly as much and the rate would have been similar. The City of Bethlehem built a nicer pool for less during the same time.
I have seen no residents in favor of the Majestic plans. I have been to the meetings and not one resident has ever spoken in favor.
It's funny that Jay is in favor of Majestic when in the late 1990s he led the charge against the Jaindl development proposed for Hanoverville Road. I guess that was close to his house and Majestic is not.
And let's not forget the fast one the Supervisors pulled with the old Best Western Hotel, rezoning it to allow for warehouses without much fanfare last year, to now have a proposal to tear down the hotel for a warehouse from Arcadia. And then Jay took money from the owner of Arcadia in March for his election. Convenient.
I have lived in Hanover Township, for 35 years. I must say that this story does not reflect the growing community distrust of Mr. Finnegan and his cronies on the BOS. The actions they have taken over the years to appoint and control both Zoning Board and Township Planning Commission allows them to IGNORE residents concerns, and to cater to currently 3 warehouses developers. They proceed in secrecy without any community notifications or participation until the residents catch up with their actions and try to have input. Majestic is getting a pass on being a good neighbor or offering anything useful to our lovely community.
10 warehouses alongside 4 beautiful neighborhoods is inappropriate and will forever ruin this community. I wish your original story would have been more balanced.
I can’t speak about Mr. Finnigan, but I do recall that during Covid in 2020, Ms. Lawless had commented on Facebook something along the lines that musikfest should go on despite Covid. The thing that struck me as odd was that she failed to disclose that her partner is the CEO of Artsquest, and when someone made a comment pointing that out, she blew it off as irrelevant and of no one’s business. Sorry, can’t trust someone in a position of authority who’s only looking out for their own intere$t$ and not the community at large.
Oh Susan…….
What is the issue in Bethlehem Township, why are you hoping for someone to clean house?
No it’s called if he handed his kid a job over other people who were most likely more qualified then that man child
It is quite apparent that the entire airport road project is being distorted. I've sat through two of Majestic's presentations and see that they've eliminated Big Box warehouses that have plagued Bethlehem Township, Macungie, Allen Township, etc. If you want good jobs like the manufacturers Hanover has always produced than you will support this proposal. The land has been been zoned for development for almost 30 years. Majestic's proposal increases the distance to homes and neighborhoods, shrinks the amount of building space and gives the board of commissioners more control. Why did the Valley survive the pandemic, because we had good jobs at places like Stuffed Puffers, Fresh Pet, Just Born, and many others. The zoning Majestic wants eliminate buildings like Federal Express in Allen and Amazon in Bethlehem Township, plus some other uses. Please seek information and be informed. I also went to the meeting in Pharo Park, which was nothing more than a campaign rally for certain individuals. DON'T BELIEVE THE LIES!
First, the person Jay refers to as a mostly no-show is Susan Lawless. Who was not there when Majestic gave their presentation to the BOS. Again.
As for hiring his son, I don't agree with that either, but he's not the only one. The current Chairmans son the former chairmans son are all on the "road crew".
I have read all the zoning ordinance stuff and watched the Majestic presentation. What the opponents are worried about appears to have some validity, if you take the Majestic wording to worst case. Attend the public meeting and air it out.
I know Jay. I don't always agree with him but I do know he has done a lot for Hanover and now we get a chance to get all that expertise on the BOS. He'll likely be Chairman. Others are just bomb-throwers who sit on the sidelines. Susan Lawless was in the meeting where Majestic and Hanover jointly came up with the proposed ordinance revisions and did not object---then. This anti-warehouse thing is a scare tactic used for political campaigns. Nothing new there. We don't need another Jeff Warren--an elected guy who wants the title, never shows up then quits (and he's done it before elsewhere). We need dedicated people and we have them---all but one currently. Let's not elect 3.
I received an ugly personal attack aimed at a candidate. I will publish it, but you have to ID yourself first.
Define “personal attack” please
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