Ocean County commissioner electrified over JCP&L outages, power grid issues

Asbury Park Press

By Erik Larsen

TOMS RIVER — Citing ongoing service issues, the acting director of the Ocean County Board of Commissioners said at Monday’s organizational meeting that the county must pursue legal action against Jersey Central Power & Light.

“I say that we immediately file a suit against JCP&L in the amount of $1 billion,” said Commissioner Frank Sadeghi, who was appointed deputy director of the board and took over as its chair in the absence of Board Director Jack Kelly.

While some commissioners nodded in the affirmative to Sadeghi’s expanded comments on the issue, the board took no action on Monday. Sadeghi said the county government will find a way to get the attention of the electric company whose corporate parent, FirstEnergy, is headquartered not in New Jersey but in Ohio, he noted.

“JCP&L continues to invest in our infrastructure along the Jersey Shore and throughout our service territory to enhance service reliability and meet the current and anticipated future demand for electricity,” said Chris Hoenig, a spokesman for JCP&L. “We look forward to working with our elected officials at the municipal, county and state level now and into the future.”

Lakewood, New Jersey’s fastest growing town, has seen its population explode by 46% in the last decade, exceeding 133,000 residents with estimates topping 150,000. Sadeghi, a local civil engineer and businessman, argues that JCP&L’s investment in the area has not kept pace with this dramatic growth, resulting in demand exceeding supply.

Sadeghi observed there have been ongoing power outages — most recently in the Manchester and Lakewood areas — and that more than a dozen commercial construction projects planned in Lakewood are on hold because JCP&L is unable to provide electricity to power them.

“They cannot complete these office buildings,” Sadeghi said.

The commissioner complained that the county government arranges meetings with JCP&L executives, they have conversations about what needs to be done but ultimately nothing gets done.

New commissioners sworn in

The organizational meeting also saw the commissioner’s oath of office administered to newly-elected Commissioners Robert Arace and Jennifier Bacchione, both Republicans. Both commissioners had actually been sworn into office on Friday. The five-member board has been all-Republican since 1993.

In his public remarks, Arace said he believed further investment in infrastructure was required to meet the demands of a growing population. He also said protecting open space elsewhere to preserve the county’s natural character and environmental integrity was just as necessary. Additionally, Arace endorsed the expansion of the county’s vocational schools, “to equip students with the skills and opportunities needed to thrive in today’s workforce.”

On the other end of the generational perspective, Arace said he would ensure robust services for the county’s senior citizens to protect “the dignity they deserve in their golden years.” Ocean County is home to more than 200,000 people who are 65 and older.

“I promise we will not let you down,” Bacchione said. “We’ll do everything possible to provide you with government you can respect and the government you deserve. I will work with my fellow commissioners to make county government more responsive and transparent to the needs of our residents, including our seniors and veterans.”

Bacchione said the county government needed to find a solution to its homeless issue, which she said “has gotten worse over the past few years.” She also criticized Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration for turning New Jersey into what she said is a “sanctuary state,” which she opined had burdened school districts with tens of millions of dollars in additional costs and increased the cost of living for everyone.

Arace was assigned a portfolio that includes parks and recreation, culture and heritage preservation, senior services, veterans services and Ocean Ride (the county’s modest public transit system).

Bacchione’s portfolio includes public health, the county clerk’s office and county election board, business development and tourism, the county’s public library system, the Ocean County College Board of Trustees and County Connection.

Sadeghi said that Kelly, 73, — appointed director of the Board of Commissioners for 2025 at the meeting — had been unable to travel to the county seat from his home in Eagleswood due to Monday’s snowstorm.