An NA Today Editorial:
BALWIERCZAK & YAMPAGLIA FOR BOROUGH COUNCIL.
Let’s keep North Arlington small, safe and suburban.
Restore responsible two-party government, end the massive overdevelopment of Ridge Road.
The choice for two seats on the North Arlington Borough Council is between embedded incumbents Brian Fitzhenry (R) and Allison Sheedy (R), versus Democratic challengers John Balwierczak and John Yampaglia.
The length of the term is three years and the salary is roughly $10,000 annually for this part-time position.
The Borough Council is the legislative body that operates the finances, annual budgets, debt and overall operations of this municipality of roughly 17,000 residents in the southernmost community of Bergen County.
The political make-up of the council comprises of six Republicans and no Democrats with a Republican mayor. No Democrat has served on the council since 2019 and no Democrat has been elected since 2016, some eight years ago.
That in itself is a reason to endorse the challengers so that North Arlington have responsible two-party governance, a healthy mix of Democrats and Republicans so that a system of checks and balances is evident, and that a bipartisan consensus be reached on those issues facing the community.
Currently, we have six council members, all Republicans voting the exact same way on every issue.
Literally hundreds, if not thousands of votes have been cast in 2024, all with the same result with all six members voting “yes” in the affirmative without dissent or discussion.
These council meetings are predetermined, with the same exact results at each and every meeting and the length of these meetings is barely an hour before an empty chamber with few residents in attendance.
With the passing of COVID-19, many residents have witnessed the explosion of apartment construction along Ridge Road in the hundreds, with hundreds more scheduled for 2025 on River Road, Schuyler Avenue and the Belleville Turnpike.
For at one time there was a bipartisan consensus that North Arlington was the gateway to Bergen County, a bedroom community to Manhattan that was affordable to blue collar families seeking a safe and suburban way of life.
But that has all changed under the political monopoly of all Republicans running North Arlington and urbanizing the municipality into an extension of Hudson County to the south or Belleville to the west, take your pick.
For what was mutually agreed upon as the premise of North Arlington has been turned upside down by the Republicans, and specifically Fitzhenry and Sheedy.
Having served for nearly a decade with no serious opposition, the two incumbents have casted votes that has North Arlington exploding as a city, with essential services stressed and property taxes on the rise.
For it is impossible to support all of this apartment style construction in the hundreds of units without impacting spending, the tax rate or the school population and increase in class sizes
For the notion what is taking place can be described as “smart,” is an insult to any clear-thinking resident of the borough.
When it takes twenty minutes to travel from Noel Drive to the Belleville Pike, North Arlington has a problem.
When you have bumper to bumper traffic along Ridge Road, North Arlington has a problem.
When you can’t find a parking space on your block, North Arlington has a problem
When you have home invasions and auto break-in’s like never before, North Arlington has a problem.
When you’re told redevelopment will stabilize taxes, but you really get massive overdevelopment and property taxes increase, North Arlington has a problem.
When you’re told private senior housing will result in construction in a flood zone for forty, 650 square foot, shoe box apartments, North Arlington has a problem. 
And when incumbents like Fitzhenry and Sheedy are so cozy with developers that they use their space for a clubhouse and also accept thousands in campaign donations at the same time, who is watching out for residents who state these apartments are too many and just too big?
Do the incumbents pay rent for these developer digs?
Do they even have a certificate of occupancy?
For just out of control can the situation become before voters say, enough is enough?
For the two incumbents have abdicated any sense of responsibility and just blindly vote yes for more traffic, congestion and density, and have stayed hidden from the public the entire campaign. They will not comment on this record, much less debate the Democrats face to face in this farce of a campaign. Instead, there mindless followers steal signs and we see placards in DPW trucks along Ridge Road!
For Brian Fitzhenry is a bare minimum, little effort, elected official with a sketchy attendance record with zero results!
What Fitzhenry does well is raise property taxes along with Sheedy and increased school taxes every year he was a member of the North Arlington Board of Education!
He was an original supporter of the failed EnCap housing scheme and hasn’t seen an apartment project he doesn’t support! 
And with MELRAYS, Boston Market and Italian Villa parcels all vacant and dormant, do you really want Mr. Fitzhenry and his propensity to “build, baby build” mentality remaining on the council for another three years as a “blank check” for more overdevelopment?
And his running-mate Allison Sheedy is no better.
She thinks attending picnics and parties sponsored by the borough wearing a councilman’s jacket is good government, and leaving the heavy lifting as actually understanding her role as an elected official for someone else.
For she has no opinion on the actual issues like overdevelopment she created in the first place.
For Sheedy is a show horse. Get her picture taken and get credit for the work of others!
Allison Sheedy in reality is a double-dipper. A dual job holder on two public payrolls at the same time.
The quintessential politician!
And not only is she lazy, but has to be paid by her own Republican Party $500 to work on an election where there was no opposition!
We wonder how much she needs to be paid this Tuesday to show-up for her own campaign?
For the word “volunteer” is not in the vocabulary of Mrs. Sheedy.
In contrast, both John Balwierczak and John Yampaglia have been campaigning for a year, having canvassed North Arlington four times.
Both life-long residents and graduates of North Arlington High School, they have assumed the campaign slogan of keeping North Arlington small, safe and suburban.
Balwierczak played varsity basketball for the Vikings and resides on Chestnut Street with his Mom. John’s father passed away last year and has dedicated the race to his Dad by becoming a full-time candidate.
In Yampaglia, he comes from a family of public service where his Dad was the municipal court judge and his brother who served as public defender and four terms on the North Arlington Borough Council. An attorney, Yampaglia has law offices on Park Avenue in Rutherford.
John has a diversified background as a small business owner with a barber shop in Cedar Grove that caters to professional athletes and members of the New York Jets. A certified teacher, Yampaglia has a BA and Master’s, the only candidate in the race with an advanced degree.
The two challengers are running a bold campaign in lieu of the unbridled construction of housing by Fitzhenry and Sheedy:
A moratorium on all new apartment construction.
The implementation of a comprehensive Parking & Traffic Study to alleviate the congestion along Ridge Road.
Permit parking for residents that will end the search for spots.
End the practice of rolling tax assessments that raised property taxes unnecessarily in 2024 with the support of Fitzhenry & Sheedy.
No more pay hikes for part-time elected officials like Fitzhenry and Sheedy who voted themselves a raise four consecutive times!
For the race to bring transparency and accountability to North Arlington couldn’t be more obvious.
Fitzhenry and Sheedy have served for a decade and can’t mumble, much less name a single accomplishment worth repeating.
The residents have been robbed a voice in this discussion of massive overdevelopment and time for a change is now. 
We urge the election of both John Balwierczak and John Yampaglia to restore public confidence in a community that has gone astray and run amok when it comes to this massive overdevelopment disguised as responsible redevelopment as parroted by these fundamentally failed and flawed incumbents that have been in office way too long.