Will there be a Margate candidate forum? Will all 4 candidates participate? Election day is MAY 14. Click below and listen to the DownbeachBUZZ podcast.
One candidate is ready to go. That would be Calvin Tesler. But the 3 incumbents; Becker, Amodeo and Blumberg seem to be dragging their feet. We spoke with Margate Homeowners Association (MHA) President Jay Weintraub. We discuss the upcoming candidates forum, and why 3 of the 4 candidates are reluctant to participate. Listen here >
May 4 is the planned date for the Margate Candidate Forum at Ross School. It’s sponsored by the Margate Homeowners Association.
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Some of the questions we fired at Jay:
- In your opinion, are the 3 incumbents ( 3 amigos ) trying to avoid a public forum to MEET THE CANDIDATES?
- What took campaign manager, Tim Perskie, so long to get back to you? DownbeachBUZZ and another media outlet were informed of the possible ‘No-Go’ from 2 of the 3 candidates…..before the MHA did.
- Did the MBA have a lock on these political forums? Did they have one planned for this 2019 election season?
- May 4: Margate Candidate forum at Ross school.
- May 14: Margate election day
- Calvin Tesler: the only challenger.
On April 3, DownbeachBUZZ received an email from Tim Perskie. He said said MAY 4th was not good for Becker & Blumberg.
Interesting to note, Tim Perskie works for Wavelength Communications of Philadelphia. A marketing agency focused on political campaigns. John Amodeo is an owner/principle of that company. Odd, that the campaign for Becker, Amodeo, Blumberg ticket…..is virtually non-existent. No website. No marketing materials. Really nothing that we can see or hear.
The Margate Homeowners Association is growing at a fast clip. Barely a year old…..the org is doing quite well.
According to Weintraub, Tesler has confirmed his attendance in writing, but he has yet to hear from the campaign manager for the Amodeo-Becker-Blumberg team.
Weintraub posted on social media: “We are waiting for Mayor Becker, Commissioners Amadeo and Blumberg to return their letters of commitment as promised by their campaign manager Tim Perskie last week”
According to Weintraub, Perskie did not respond to multiple e-mails and phone calls.
The 2019 candidates forum was spearheaded by the MHA, Margate Homeowners Association.
Even though multiple communication between Perskie said Weintraub were had, Perskie now believes MHA’s current talk of the candidates’ forum may have been premature.
“Mike and Maury are away on May 4th, we need an alternate date” says Perskie.
To date, DownbeachBUZZ have been made aware of the following reasons why the MHA efforts are not needed.
- May 4 is the the Margate city-wide yard sale, and it may not be convenient for residents to attend.
- Ed Berger of MBA, Margate Business Association, always does the candidate forums? Was he gonna skip 2019?
The 3 Margate incumbents were hoping to have no opposition. Can’t blame them.
But with a precipitous decline in full time Margate residents, elections will become easier to win for incumbents that cater to this smaller sliver of taxpayers.
Approx 3+ weeks ago, MHA President Jay Weintraub invited all 4 candidates to attend a forum on May 4 at the Ross School, some of the candidates are not available on that date, from what we were told from Mr. Perskie.
Timeline:
- Feb 15: MHA had breakfast with Mayor Becker. He was OPEN to a forum.
- March 11: MHA left message with Mayor’s office to follow up on forum discussion.
- March 13: Perski calls MHA. Mentioned MBA and Ed Berger usually does this stuff
- March 21: Ed Berger & MBA agree to join MHA’s efforts in sponsoring a non-partisan, candidate’s forum.
Margate Homeowners Association candidates’ forum.
Approx 3+ weeks ago, MHA President Jay Weintraub officially invited all 4 candidates to attend a forum on May 4 at the Ross School.
According to Weintraub, Tesler has confirmed his attendance in writing. The MHA has yet to receive confirmation from the campaign manager for the Amodeo-Becker-Blumberg team.
Weintraub posted on social media: “We are waiting for Mayor Becker, Commissioners Amadeo and Blumberg to return their letters of commitment as promised by their campaign manager Tim Perskie last week”
The 2019 Margate candidates forum was spearheaded by the MHA, Margate Homeowners Association.
Even though there were multiple communications between Perskie and Weintraub, Perskie now believes MHA’s current talk of a candidates’ forum may have been premature. According to Weintraub, Perskie did not respond to multiple e-mails and phone calls over the recent past.
To date, DownbeachBUZZ have been made aware of the following, possible reasons why some don’t appreciate the MHA efforts.
- May 4 is the the Margate citywide yard sale, and it may not be convenient for residents to attend.
- Ed Berger of MBA, Margate Business Association, always does stuff like this. MHA not needed.
- The 3 incumbents want to run & control the forum.
- The 3 incumbents not comfortable facing a room full of voters
As we all know, the 3 incumbents were hoping to have no opposition. Can’t blame them. But with a precipitous decline in full time Margate residents, elections will become easier to win for incumbents catering to a smaller, declining sliver of taxpayers.
Dear Calvin, I have lived in Margate since 1959. It’s a wonderful well run run town! Our past and present commissioners have done a fine job managing Margate City. I understand your a Pennsylvania resident that just moved here full time. And You like the rest of the rest of the Summer Vacation home owners think that because you pay taxes here and abuse our town and services should have a say in how we run our town! Really? The Margate Homeowners Association, Do you mean the Philadelphia/Margate Homeowners Association? Sir I’m 94 years old and smart enough to see what’s going on here. Get a platform and tell us what you stand for!FYI Calvin Margate happens to be the BEST run City in Atlantic County and has been for a Long time! Also Thank your Police Chief, Retired Chief Tabasso and Public Works Director! They have done an OUTSTANDING JOB for years! We the Local year round residents who vote decide who runs this City, not the Philadelphia visitors who think they own our City!
“Abuse our town and services…” You maybe 94 years old, but you’re definitely out of line with that comment!
I’d like to add that the summer homeowners pay the same taxes and use LESS of the services provided so your comment is pure crap!
Love you Mary!
Out of line?She said “DEAR”????
It may be time for a change, but Calvin, are you really a FULL-TIME Margate Resident?