Courier-Post from Camden, New Jersey • Page 18

enewal ol hone lor city ML. focus of prayer breakfast rem of the Epiphany, when the Three Kings broughi gifts to the Christ Child. "We pray the Lord will give us the gift of peace in Camden, an end to the violence; the gift of unity among political bodies, churches, social agencies and the business community; and a renewal of hope for the future. Too often, we fall into despair because we let the journalists shape the image of the city," McHugh said. Turning to problems of youth in the city, school board member Jose Delgado told the gathering "too many young people have already died spiritually, emotionally.

They have only the immediate excitement of being with their buddies while committing crimes." Delgado also decried attempts "by individuals ifl the black, Hispanic and white communities to paint everything in racial terms. We should be talking about buying in Camden, not buying from black businessmen or Hispanic businessmen or white businessmen." Rod Sadler, of Save Our Waterfront, said, "UnitJ-is the only true course for a city in trouble." Council President Milan told the group, "I've dedicated my life for the next four years to address the Issues in Camden; now, give me a chance tc prove myself." By THERESA A. GLAB Courier-Post Staff CAMDEN The main benefit of newly arrived state troopers will be to quell drug trafficking on city streets, Mayor Arnold W. Webster said Saturday. "I don't think there has been any other single activity that has had such a profound effect.

Drugs are the root cause of violence, unsafe streets and problems in schools and families," Webster said at a prayer breakfast at Holy Name Church. "If a man can't find work, he's going to do the next best thing: sell drugs. Camden is more a community of sellers than a community of users. We have a large number of people who come in (from the suburbs) to purchase drugs." The mayor and city councilmen were invited to the North Camden event because "our spiritual convictions have a lot to do with how we act in the public forum," said the Rev. Mark Aita, of Holy Name Church.

About 30 people attended, including Council President Milton Milan and councilmen Angel Fuentes, Israel Nieves and Ali Sloan El Sr. Bishop James T. McHugh, of the Diocese of Camden, reminded the listeners today is the Feast wjst fee1- 1'aCs Ji'vM By Christopher J. Lachall, for the Courier-Post: Discussion: Camden councilman Milton Milan (center) and the Rev. Mark Aita listen as Mayor Arnold Webster speaks at a prayer breakfast Saturday on the effect drugs have on the city.

iWebsterMayor says his shortcoming is being too ambitious caused by drugs." Despite such tough moments' the mayor said he has kept the faith. i "I firmly believe there is hope for this city, because I believe in' the people of this city," he said. "That's what makes me stay in here and fight." Is he willing to acknowledge any shortcomings? "I think I've been more ambi-'! tious than I should have been' Webster said. "The foundation that I needed was not there 1' The total foundation, meaning money, expertise, everything." Is he too thin-skinned? i "Thin-skinned?" Webster laughed. "If I was thin-skinned, there would be a lot more asS kicked around here." Will he serve out the remainder of his term? "Without question." Will he seek re-election in 1997? "It's a little early to say," the mayor chuckled.

"But I'm not that masochistic." Continued from Page 1B ithe council Jan. 1, promising the of governmental reforms that were the cornerstone of the mayor's own campaign, And later this month, a state of City Hall requested by "VVebster is to be released. A preliminary draft portrays government, with some noteworthy exceptions, a big mess, and the final report is not expected to paint a more pleasant Resents the ridicule But the mayor bristles at any characterization of his administration as embattled or belea-Cguered, and he is especially bitter at being belittled on the editorial pages. "1 think there has been a "contrived design to discredit Arnold Webster, by your newspaper, the Courier-Post, and by individuals who have historically held key positions in this city," Webster said last week in his City Hall office. "The old guard has tried to Establishment of the "Mayor's Mortgage Group" to help city residents become homeowners.

If there is any area where the mayor is willing to acknowledge that progress remains elusive, it is violent crime. He was asked why Camden had a record 60 murders in 1995. wish to hell I knew," Webster said. "To lose one life is sad. To talk about 60 is unimaginable.

"The root problem is drugs," he continued. "It's a problem that has invaded the entire United States. I don't know what Camden can do to solve it by itself. "We have brought to bear just about all the resources available to us," the mayor added. "I know there are those who say, 'Webster, what are you doing about I don't know what the hell else can be done.

"It hurts," Webster concluded. "I went out to Morton Street (scene of an apparently drug-related firebombing) last week and I actually cried at the devastation I observed there. The devastation make it appear that I don't know what I'm doing," the 65-year-old mayor continued. "They want to discredit what Arnold Webster stands for. "Their main objective is to do things the way they want to see it done," he said.

"They cannot have their way as long as an Arnold Webster, or someone like Arnold Webster, sits in this seat. "They have a master plan that does not speak to the needs of the people of this city," the mayor concluded. "Their master plan does not speak to the kinds of things I believe in." A veteran educator and city schools superintendent before his election in 1993, Webster is proud of what he calls his "history of doing for people" since moving to Camden in 1954. "I'd probably be a lot better off if I wasn't as sensitive to people's needs," he said. By his own description, Webster has helped "hundreds of young people get into college." He has offered financial assistance to families in need.

mayor declared. "We cannot continue to give away everything in this city. Projects in this city must pay their own freight." He said that's the emphasis of "Project Arizona," a somewhat named collection of downtown and neighborhood industrial and commercial developments unveiled last spring. All of them, Webster added, are "alive and well," including plans to lure a branch of Sylvia's soul food restaurant. Some plans realized "In spite of the obstacles, there is still evidence of progress," he continued, citing: The start of implementation of the $21 million federal Empowerment Zone program, which recently "leveraged" $600,000 for new mental health services for zone residents.

Completion of the preliminary phase of planning for the Camden (Health) Initiative, a state-required proposal to improve medical care delivery for city residents. He charged critics with ignoring this legacy in favor of a caricature that makes him look like an idiot. "They have made every effort to discredit me," he said. The criticism comes from, among other places, the Hispanic community. Many Hispanic leaders charge the mayor, who is black, with favoring his own race at their expense.

"One of the most depressing things I've heard is that I have created racial unrest," said Webster, who grew up in segregat-" ed Washington, D.C. "To hear this, at this point in my life, is a bit much. I don't think there is any evidence to say this is so." One reason he gets so much flak, Webster added, is that he has stepped on too many toes. He has "challenged and questioned" practices to which earlier mayors acquiesced, and now the big shots and their media allies. are striking "The projects that we do in this city must provide jobs that pay people a livable wage," the PlanMerchantville studies Alley Mex diamine hi ir Meeting The planning board will hold a public hearing on the proposed senior citizens' tower at 7:30 p.m.

Tuesday at Borough Hall, Centre Street and Maple 'I nriftiTAm''fv' By Tina Markoe, Courier-Post Continued from Page 1B and parts of two other lots. In atldition, it may require the purchase of all or part of nine privately owned lots. Portions of the Alley are owned by about 20 djfferent private individuals or corporations. The authority chooses a developer, but does not have to go through a formal bidding process. Then, it puts together a financial package which probably will call for the sale of tax-free bonds.

The sale is supported by the developer's portfolio and the proposed revenue stream generated from future rentals, not by local taxpayers. State law requires that additional money be made available to relocate businesses and compensate owners for revenue lost from the move. It can progress by notifying concept of a public-private partnership is a good one," Brennan said. "How else do I increase revenues in a fully developed town without raising taxes? This should give seniors a good place to live and increase the density downtown, which ultimately should benefit everyone. Some of the targeted properties have been for sale for years.

Despite the eminent domain issue, there's a real possibility there won't be much opposition," he said. Brennan, a Democrat, was quick to add that the project will cost local residents nothing. Former Mayor John Morrissey, a Republican, said he supported the concept, but the developer should be selected through open bidding, not as a possible payback for dropping a lawsuit. Figures show the borough's Change: Merchantville Mayor Patrick Brennan tours Gasoline Alley. The borough is considering building a senior citizens' housing complex and a promenade with about a dozen shops.

only those directly affected, not residents living within a certain radius of the project, which is standard under municipal zoning laws. It can negotiate a payment in lieu of taxes from the developer, because property taxes are not required in redevelopment areas. Two years ago, Borda offered to pay the borough $20,000 a year in lieu of taxes. This time, Mayor Patrick Brennan said, he will hold out for much more. "The details of the project are still in the planning stage, but the after him to sell his land since the late 1980s.

"I'm probably the largest landholder in the alley with about three-quarters of an acre. I'm not really interested in selling, but for the right price, they can have it. Last time, though, the offers were laughable," he said. son and Medford, not the low-and moderate-income units that are before the planning board. John F.

Meade, a native of Merchantville and the owner of an electrical contracting business at Gasoline Alley for 14 years, said Borda and others have been senior population has been declining significantly in recent years. Proponents say seniors have to leave because the borough lacks affordable housing. Morrissey said seniors leave because they are looking for more upscale retirement housing, such as those available in Cinnamin- JoblessThere is more to these layoffs than just getting rid of people' Selling your skills a job in itself After the months of rumors and mysterious meetings, the pink slips are out and you have one. You will soon be emerging from the corporate cocoon that has sheltered you for a decade or three, and you'd better be able to unfurl your wings and fly. For more than a decade, Richard H.

Price, an organizational psychologist at the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research, has conducted research on how to cope with job loss. Price offers the following advice: Recognize that you already have a new job: finding a job. Assess your transferable skills and personal assets as well as your professional experience. Your hobbies and volunteer work may qualify you for types of jobs you may not have otherwise considered. Mobilize support and help from others, including your spouse, relatives and friends, for practical assistance with resume-writing and transportation as well as job leads.

Give back to them, too, by helping out with child care, yard work, wrapping presents, doing errands. Plan for setbacks. You're bound to be rejected, not just once but again and again. Inoculate yourself against rejections by anticipating them and preparing a game plan on what you'll do next. Then, when the inevitable rejection occurs, you won't be flattened but will know how to proceed.

Even after you land a new job, recognize that it isn't likely to last forever. The labor market is more uncertain than it has been for a long time, says Price, and its not going to settle down any time soon. Jobs as we know them full-time, permanent positions with fringe benefits are disappearing. They're not just going overseas, they're evaporating. jContinued from Page 1B Sandy, a 51 -year-old process officer who has worked for for 27 years, for example, is jsure that she was wrong to refuse a recent buyout offer that would have allowed her to retire at 75 percent of her pension and with 57 weeks' severance ipay.

"I decided not to go just on the chance that I may be able to work for another three years, which is all I need for full retirement," said Sandy, who did not Jwant her last name used. She works at the company's Piscataway office. I Although her decision may cost her the equivalent of eight weeks' pay, she is among the luckier ones in that she will still collect 75 percent (of her pension if she is laid off. She and her co-workers, more than most caught mass layoffs, have the right to ask, "Why me?" after all, was a crown jewel among the companies. Such companies were supposed to be the salvation of the U.S.

economy "and its skilled middle class in a global economy third-world sweat shops have gobbled up so (many of the less skilled jobs. As the result of the court-ordered breakup of the old Ma Bell 'monopoly, had changed from a moribund futility to an aggressive, fast-growing leader in the (glitzy world of telecommunications. Yet its 40,000 lost jobs are just a small part of a (telephone industry downsizing. Already, the Com-i-munications Workers of America reports that the (380,000 phone workers it represents at and I'the seven regional Bell operating companies are (120,000 fewer than represented in the pre-1984 Bell System monopoly. And it's not over.

"There are going to be some painful times ahead. (Over the next three years, we'll probably see -100000" job cuts in thi telephone industry said is more than generous and the parachutes, golden. But white collar support staff and middle management were supposed to be different. Education, company loyalty and good grooming were supposed to guarantee inside work with no heavy lifting and job security. Disproportionately, but not exclusively, male, white and suburban, so many of today's downsizing victims have had every reason to believe that theirs would be a life of privilege and security so long as they didn't screw up badly or lose their health.

And the 20- and 30-year veterans receiving pink slips today came of age in the 1950s or 1960s, a time when a nuclear holocaust was thinkable but a decline in American prosperity was not. "This is a group of people who were doing very well," said Hughes, of Rutgers. "These people have good skills, a lot to offer. 1 "The problem is that their jobs have become obsolete, but their skills are transferable. "The 50-year-old white male who was in a managerial position he may well have a permanent loss in terms of standard of living," Hughes said.

Despite all the layoffs, most people in this group haven't lost their corporate jobs and "can expect to do quite smartly in the years from 45 to 60 if they remain in the system and are not downsized," he said. Those who have been eliminated often can blame their loss on technology. i "There is more to these layoffs than just getting rid of people to increase the bottom line," Hughes said. "Basically, it reflects a process of 'delayering' an entire class of middle management whose sole purpose was to gather data from below and create reports necessary to make corporations, which have a big communications problem, Jvork." Jeff Christian, of Christian Timbers a management consulting firm in New York. Sprint, MCI and the regional Bell System operating companies have all announced or executed employee reductions.

Managers, not linemen or other technicians, will be hardest hit. "They want to get rid of the 50-year-old middle manager. Executives in human resources, sales and finance are the most vulnerable to cutbacks," Christian said. It is precisely because such people are targeted that the level of workplace anxiety is so high. The hardcore unemployed, when they think about their career path, have always had reason to be depressed.

Blue collar industrial workers were blessed in this country for the three decades after World War II. But they have always realized that their jobs were tied to the assembly line. When demand for the products is brisk, there is overtime. In slow times, there are temporary layoffs, buffered by unemployment compensation, union benefits and, perhaps, money saved during flush times. At the other corporate extreme, high management positions might be unstable, but the compensation.