PACKED HOUSE, BIG NIGHT FOR YAMPAGLIA, NA DEMOCRATS!
NORTH ARLINGTON – If there was any hint of party disunity or disruption, those rumors were roundly squashed as North Arlington Democratic Mayoral candidate Mark Yampaglia was greeted to an enthusiastic packed house of Democrats and county leadership tonight at La Venere Ristorante located on Schuyler Avenue.
With Freeholder Steve Tanelli enthusiastically endorsing the local ticket of Yampaglia and running-mates Pete Massa and Josie Papile, Bergen County Chair Lou Stellato also called upon all responsible Democrats to “take advantage of this unique opportunity to retake the Mayor’s office and get back a majority on the Borough Council.”
Local Chairman Nick Antonicello was thrilled by the size of the crowd and support Yampaglia has generated at this stage of the campaign.
“Campaigns are marathons, not hundred-yard dashes. Mark is committed to the long haul that begins with walking the entire summer and building a real foundation for the fall effort. Mark was endorsed by our screening committee and by the entire municipal committee and then overwhelmingly endorsed by North Arlington Democrats in the June 5th Primary. There is only one real Democrat running for mayor and his name is Councilman Mark Yampaglia,” offered Antonicello.
“All of our resources and support will be behind this ticket of NA Democrats who have the support of the entire county organization. There is no ambiguity as to who Democrats support. Freeholder Tanelli’s presence and endorsement along with Chairman Stellato should drown out any other voices that are neither credible nor legitimate,” said Antonicello to an approving throng of local Democrats.
Those in attendance came to hear Councilman Mark Yampaglia make his case why North Arlington needs a better direction.
“We need cooperation with our local schools, parents and pupils. I attended NAHS and I support good schools that increase home values and a better North Arlington. I want responsible redevelopment, strong services and a better relationship with Freeholder Tanelli so that we can construct a bike path at River Road and transform our waterfront. I want more pocket parks and we need dog parks too. We need a permanent Farmer’s Market and a new plan to deal with snow removal and parking. We need to embrace ride shares and promote bicycles in the warm weather months. We need to promote our new status as one of the great quality-of-life communities in all of America,” said Yampaglia to a very supportive crowd.
“I’ll be a bipartisan problem solver that will share the credit and choose the best proposal or idea no matter where it’s derived. I’ll work with Republicans as well as Democrats. The support of a Dan Pronti will be just as critical as the support of any Democrat. I’ll demand unity and leave politics at the door when we start governing come January of 2019,” noted the Democratic challenger.
Both council candidates Pete Massa and Josie Papile were excited by the opportunity to serve.
“I’ve been here my entire life. I went to local schools and Queen of Peace HS. I became a cop and was promoted to the rank of sergeant. My law enforcement resume extended to state service and I served as a local PBA President and later became a school trustee, vice-president and president. I supported the first successful schools referendum that created the Middle School we have today. I’m an adjunct professor of Criminal Justice and value the benefits of higher education. I increased test scores and stabilized property taxes when school budgets appeared on the ballot. I served as a councilman and two-term Mayor. We stopped EnCap and we kept North Arlington small, safe and suburban,” noted Massa, an Eighth Street homeowner.
Josie Papile looked forward to serving in a public capacity after years in private financing as the CFO of Paragon Sports of Manhattan.
“Josie was impressive tonight. She works with budgets in the hundreds of millions of dollars. She will be uniquely qualified to control taxes and spending and ensure every tax dollar is spent wisely,” offered one Democrat in attendance.
Freeholder Tanelli was asked to assess the chances of the local ticket.
“I’m very impressed. Mark was my running-mate three times and he knows what it takes to win. This is a highly educated and impressive team of NA Democrats committed to running an issue-oriented campaign. While some may think their underdogs, one would be foolish to underestimate this team. I look forward to going door to door with Mark, Pete and Josie and winning this campaign from top to bottom.”
To reach Councilman Yampaglia, call (201) 602-2612.
