TRENTON — Economic Development Acting Director Henrietta Owusu last night said she knew nothing about a $6,000 campaign donation made by a developer in line to receive a $36 land grab.
“It’s the mayor’s responsibility to know if a developer has donated money to his campaign. I’m a technocrat, it has nothing to do with me,” Owusu claimed.
Owusu admitted a personal “goof” regarding the fact that two-thirds of properties included in the deal exist outside a redevelopment area.
State law allows municipalities to sell property without public bidding only if “the lease or conveyance is made in conjunction with a redevelopment plan.”
“It was just my mistake,” Owusu said.
Owusu confirmed Mack’s intentions to replace her with a director.
“I’m well aware of the change. When he asked me to come on as an acting director, I told him that I would do this for six or seven months. My real love is planning, and I expect to have a job in that department,” Owusu said.
RJC Northeast is listed as a parent company of SR Development Enterprises LLC, a Glen Mills, Pa., business that maneuvered to gain control of 36 properties in the Walnut-Wilbur-Monmouth streets area for redevelopment.
RJC Northeast president Robert Jordan gave Mayor Mack a $6,000 donation, a contribution that would violate strict city pay-to-play rules.
According to reports, a Mack confidant asked William H. Young to contact Jordan and ask him to rework the contribution as a donation made by the RJC Northeast owner and his wife.
State law allows individuals to contribute $2,600 to political campaigns.
Mack allegedly intended to give back $800, an action that he hoped could rectify problems with the original gift.
Young, who had hoped to cash in on the deal by receiving subcontracting work for his International Renaissance company, declined the intercession role.
Owusu told city council members that SR Development intended to build affordable houses with an average cost of $99,000 per home in one of the city’s most blighted neighborhoods.
The deal appears dead in the water but that did not prevent a major verbal fight between East Ward Councilwoman Verlina Reynolds-Jackson and long-time Walnut Ave. resident, Dion Clark.
Clark said he “sat in” on original discussions regarding the redevelopment plan, saying that the original plan called for a giveaway of 100 properties.
“This is nothing but a scam and a fraud,” Clark said. “When (acting director) Owusu asked me about this, I told her I was totally against it. This is all about money. This is all about control,” Clark charged.
Clark recalled “good ‘ol days” when his neighborhood included Marucca’s Pizza Parlor, movie theater, and a litany of other businesses, beautiful homes and clean streets.
The community activist who lost his bid to claim Reynolds-Jackson’s seat admitted despair about a neighborhood overrun by crime, drug dealers, and empty homes.
“This area is like a cancer….I’m not proud of what my neighborhood has become,” Clark lamented.
Clark challenged city council members to take a ride into his community.
“Which one of y’all is going to ride up Walnut Ave. and show me all these wonderful things that are going to happen there?,” Clark chided.
“I’ll do that. I’ll do that,” Reynolds-Jackson shouted.
“No, honey. You can’t do that,” Clark responded.
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