Fond farewell

Four years ago, John Madden assumed the leadership of Middlesex Borough government. The sitting mayor had just been indicted and the COVID-19 pandemic loomed only three months away.

On Tuesday, Dec. 19 – nearly four years to the day that Madden took the helm – friends and colleagues bid him farewell.

Madden presided that night over his final Borough Council meeting, but will remain as mayor until year’s end. Those wishing him well included members of both political parties with whom he had worked during his political career. They included Republican Dunellen Mayor Jason Cilento and former Borough Attorney Ed Johnson, a Democrat.

Madden’s successor as mayor, Jack Mikolajczyk, will be sworn in on Jan. 2.

During remarks to close his final session, Madden recalled that he was looking forward to political retirement in 2019, when instead the Middlesex Borough Republican Organization endorsed him to run against sitting Democratic Mayor Ron DiMura. At that time, Madden was council president, with one year left on his second council term.

Madden joked that he must have been “delirious” to consider a mayoral run, adding that he was surprised when voters picked him over DiMura in the 2019 general election.

After his indictment, DiMura resigned effective Dec. 18, 2019. Madden presided over the council’s meeting the prior evening. He recalled having no mentoring or mayoral training, due to the circumstances.

“It was time to roll up my sleeves and take the plunge,” he said.

Madden remembered it being “perilous times” for the borough financially as Standard & Poor’s called about a possible drop in the borough’s AA credit rating and surplus had been depleted in prior years.

The Covid pandemic hit in 2020, and revenue from fees and other sources “nosedived,” he recalled.

After a tax increase in his first year, Madden noted that municipal taxes stayed flat for two years and the borough was able to retire debt.

Madden recalled the accomplishments of his mayoralty, including: consolidation of the Planning and Zoning boards into a single Joint Land Use Board; completion of the revaluation to equitably spread the property tax burden; revision of the Lincoln Boulevard redevelopment plan; and the Route 28 streetscape work.

He credited his wife, Barbara for her support, calling her an “indispensable voice of reason.”

Cilento applauded Madden for his advice, calling him “a man of integrity and honesty.”

Council President Michael Conahan cited Madden for his “tireless dedication” to the borough. Conahan estimated that Madden spent 5,000 to 6,000 hours working for the community during his mayoralty.

“You brought integrity and transparency back to the mayor’s office,” Conahan said.

Reminder

Subscribe to Inside – Middlesex. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. It is absolutely free.