Ehrlich resigns council after decade of service
Councilwoman cites business relationship with new mayor as reason
BY KATHY CHANG
Staff Writer

KATHY CHANG Councilwoman Caroline Ehrlich announced her resignation at the Nov. 21 Woodbridge Township Council meeting, citing a possible conflict of interest with newly elected Mayor John E. McCormac because they are business partners in the consulting firm the McCormac Group.

For Woodbridge Councilwoman Caroline Ehrlich, it all started at the dinner table 15 years ago.

"My family always talked politics around the dinner table," said Ehrlich, who has lived in the Colonia section of Woodbridge for 34 years. "My son, Sean, who was 14 years old at the time, was very interested in politics, so I told him that we would go volunteer together in a local campaign."

However, after almost 11 years of serving the township (she became a councilwoman at large in 1996), Ehrlich announced her resignation at the Nov. 21 Township Council meeting. She will serve on the council until Jan. 10, 2007.

"Serving the citizens of Woodbridge Township has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life," said Ehrlich.

Part of the reason why Ehrlich made the decision to resign was because she and Woodbridge Mayor John E. McCormac became business partners of the McCormac Group, a consulting firm, on their last day serving the state on Jan. 17, 2006. McCormac served as state treasurer for four years and Ehrlich served as his chief of staff.

"Because we are business partners, people could perceive that as a conflict of interest," said Ehrlich. "It is important that elected officials adhere to the highest of ethical standards - standards which both Mayor McCormac and I believe must not be compromised. It is what the citizenry expects and deserves from its elected officials."

From volunteer to candidate

Ehrlich went from the dinner table to the dais at the urging of another Woodbridge politician, James E. McGreevey.

Ehrlich and her son decided to go talk to each candidate running for mayor in 1991 and then decide who they would volunteer for.

"We kept hearing about this young guy that was running [James E. McGreevey, who was also a state assemblyman at the time]," said Ehrlich. "We ended up talking to him first and we began stuffing envelopes for his campaign. And when McGreevey became mayor, he took on my son as an intern."

Ehrlich, who was the director at the Oak Tree Nursery School in Edison at the time, got to know everyone in the mayor's office and the mayor as well.

"I was just doing the mommy chore of

picking up my son from his intern job, but I got to know everyone better," she said. "When McGreevey ran for re-election in 1995, he asked me to run for councilwoman."

Ehrlich said that over the past 10 years her goal was bringing the community together.

"Out of all the projects I have done, I think raising over $250,000 and organizing hundreds of volunteers to build the Woodbridge Community Playground at Merrill Park in Iselin was my shining moment," said Ehrlich.

"A resident came up with the idea, and McGreevey told me to run with it and I did," she said.

For the first time this year, Ehrlich got a chance to use the playground she helped build.

"My kids [daughter Kim and son Sean] were already in college at the time it was built," said Ehrlich. "So I never had a chance to use the playground that I'm so proud of. But this past year, I was able to bring my 15-month-old granddaughter, Mollie Cook, to the playground. It was wonderful."

A track record of service

As councilwoman at large, Ehrlich helped to establish the "Christmas in April" program in 2001 with McCormac and Donna Brightman, the executive director of the Woodbridge Housing Authority. The program renovates homes for senior citizens and disabled people who are unable to do it themselves.

She played a leading role in the creation of the Woodbridge Community Center, which opened in 2002, with programs for all ages run by the YMCA and United Skates of America, including roller skating and ice skating, a swimming pool, gym, walking track and computer lab.

Ehrlich united the residents of Woodbridge Township to design the theme [history of Woodbridge] and paint the tiles for a community art wall in the Community Center.

She established Senior Citizen Month offering special social and health programs throughout the month of May, which led to the establishment of Youth Month. And she also spearheaded free computer training for senior citizens and raised funds to donate a defibrillator to each senior citizen club in the township.

Ehrlich developed the Volunteer Directory, giving the residents of Woodbridge a comprehensive resource for opportunities to volunteer. The directory can now be found on the township's Web site, www.twp.woodbridge.nj.us.

She also started the movies in the Alvin P. Williams Park in Sewaren for the summer months.

Ehrlich said there is a sadness leaving the council, but she is not going anywhere.

"I will still continue being involved," she said. "I will not stop going to events and I will still see all the council people. It might feel weird not doing anything on a Tuesday night, but I will be helping out in the township in a different capacity."

McCormac has asked Ehrlich to chair a Planning and Policy Advisory Committee for the township.

Looking over the past 10 years, Ehrlich, who is 56, takes her life's opportunities in stride.

"I always told my children, 'Never close a door to an opportunity’ " said Ehrlich. "I am fortunate that a lot of doors opened for me."

Ehrlich hopes her successor continues to work on projects that bring the community together.

"I hope that the projects that I have put in place continue," she said. "I definitely want to see the Senior and Youth months continue and see more senior programs implemented at the Community Center. And I want to see the nationwide Cut-It-Out program that I initiated for Woodbridge come into fruition. The program trains hair stylists and manicurists to assist women who are victims of domestic abuse by learning how to detect it and then how to refer them to the proper resources."

Ehrlich said now she will concentrate on her two businesses, the McCormac Group and the Ehrlich Group.

"I am president of the Ehrlich Group, which is separate from the McCormac Group," she said. "It is a consulting firm that specializes in insurance."

The Democratic Committee will pick Ehrlich's successor in the same process as they did for the late Mayor Frank G. Pelzman.

The committee is permitted to submit up to three names.

"The earliest they can submit the names to me is Jan. 11," said Township Clerk John Mitch. "Then they have 15 days from the day the seat is vacant to decide who will fill Caroline Ehrlich's seat and up to 15 days after for the governing body to appoint the person."

Ehrlich's successor will finish her remaining term, which ends Dec. 31, 2007.