JACKSON – The Jackson Township Council is backing the Ocean County Board of Freeholders’ support foe the establishment of the 4th Army Corps Headquarters at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in south central New Jersey.
On Feb. 25, council Vice President Alex Sauickie III, Councilman Andrew Kern, Councilman Ken Bressi and Councilman Martin Flemming passed a resolution which offers Jackson’s support for the initiative. Council President Barry Calogero was absent.
“Not only is Joint Base the largest employer of Jackson residents, surprisingly even more so than Six Flags Great Adventure, it has a positive impact on Jackson’s economy,” Sauickie said of the 65-square-mile military installation in Ocean and Burlington counties.
“More importantly, Jackson is proud to host the brave men and women who not only interact with our community on a daily basis, but support the vital missions that are critical to our national defense and community welfare,” Sauickie said.
According to the resolution, Joint Base supports 80 mission partners and is a critical asset for the Air Force, Army, Navy, Marines, Coast Guard and New Jersey National Guard.
The resolution states the creation of Joint Base from separate military installations in 2010 has resulted in increased coordination and collaboration between military services and achieved greater efficiencies.
According to the resolution, as part of an Operational Command Post in Europe, the U.S. Army is considering the activation of a 4th Army Corps Headquarters to be based in the continental United States. Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst is one of 31 installations being considered to house the headquarters.
In other business, council members passed a resolution in support of the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution which states that “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”
“As this council has repeatedly demonstrated in the past, it is in full support of those residents who have met the burden of proof to be law-abiding citizens and who should be immune from further state legislation and laws that are in violation of the Constitution. The focus should be on criminals and not on law-abiding citizens,” Sauickie said.
Finally, council members passed a resolution in support of continuing services to local senior citizens.
“Many of our seniors depend on government programs to help them continue to live in their homes and avoid things like nursing home placement. The state recently cut over $700,000 to county programs that provide these services, which is expected to have disastrous impact on thousands of seniors,” Sauickie said.
He said council members support the freeholders in their request for reconsideration by the state to restore the funds and the programs.
