CHRIS KELLY staff Caroline Rosen, 13, dances the samba as part of the celebration of world cultures at the Eighth-Grade Carnival held at Markham Place School in Little Silver Feb. 25. More ... Beck & O'Scanlon plan: Cuts, caps & restructure GOP legislators offer alternatives to Corzine's toll plan BY JENNA O'DONNELL Staff Writer       State Sen. Jennifer Beck and Assemblyman Declan O'Scanlon suggested "making smart, thoughtful cuts" to the state budget as an alternative to Gov. Jon Corzine's toll increase plan at a meeting Feb. 21 in Tinton Falls. Beck and O'Scanlon greeted a crowd of about 100 at the Mahala F. More ... Design of new Sea Bright complex a work in progress Ideas, input aired on placement of boro facilities BY MELISSA KARSH Staff Writer       Like the pieces to a puzzle, Sea Bright Borough Council members and residents tried to fit together a plan for the placement of new and renovated municipal facilities at the Feb. 21 Smart Growth Committee meeting. The Borough Council posed the question, "Where will the new municipal facilities be... More ... Sea Bright retailers form new business alliance Long-term goal is to bring events to the borough BY MELISSA KARSH Staff Writer       SEA BRIGHT - A newly formed business community group is "taking a bite out of Sea Bright"with newideas to spice up the town and its businesses. The Sea Bright Business Alliance is made up ofmembers of the Sea Bright business community and the young organization already boasts 11 members who have... More ... Spiffed up Woman's Exchange reopens Little Silver shop has been benefiting charities for 75 years BY MELISSA KARSH Staff Writer       LITTLE SILVER - After 24 years at the same location, a longstanding borough nonprofit has gone through some changes over the past month. The Woman's Exchange of Monmouth County, 32 Church St., closed in mid-January for renovations and reopened its doors Feb. 18 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony att... More ... Election hearing rescheduled BY MELISSA KARSH Staff Writer       SEA BRIGHT - A hearing on the validity of the Sea Bright mayoral election results has been rescheduled for a second time. The hearing was originally scheduled for Jan. 30 but was pushed back to Feb. 21. The newly scheduled hearing will take place Feb. 29 at 2:30 p.m. before state Superior Court ... More ... Centennial plans taking shape in R.B. Parade, community picnic among 100th year festivities BY MELISSA KARSH Staff Writer       RED BANK - Centennial preparations are under way in Red Bank with the official 100th Anniversary logo to be announced this week. The 100th Anniversary Committee was appointed by Mayor Pasquale Menna last March and has been working on events to take place in 2008 to commemorate the borough's cent... More ... Skudera: Council should have '08 budget in hand Council members want time to study boro spending plan BY JENNA O'DONNELL Staff Writer       TINTON FALLS - Borough officials discussed the lack of a budget at the Feb. 19 council meeting. Council President Mike Skudera brought the subject up during the miscellaneous business segment of the meeting." About the budget," said Skudera to Mayor Peter Maclearie, "I'm wondering when we can ge... More ... Fair Haven taxpayers in line for tax relief 2008 budget trims taxes; hearing set for March 10       FAIRHAVEN- TheBoroughCouncil introduced an $8.4 million spending plan last week, which could decrease the tax rate by half a cent per $100 of assessed valuation if approved. The budget,which represents a $1.14million increase from last year's municipal budget of $7.3 million, was introduced by a ... More ...      CHRIS KELLY staff Matthew Laytham, Oceanport, and Kelly Mooney, Tinton Falls, ride down Wolf Hill in Oceanport Feb. 22 after the season's first snowfall. More ...      CHRIS KELLY staff David Rosone, 14, shows pride for the country he represents, Venezuela, for the Markham Place School Eighth-Grade Carnival on Feb. 25. More ... Demolition contract awarded       TINTON FALLS - The Borough Council awarded a contract for the demolition of the former borough hall building at its Feb. 19 meeting. Star Contracting Inc. of Hillsborough, was awarded the contract with the lowest responsible bid of $42,000. More ... Shopping locally to help women globally       RED BANK - Every year on March 8, millions gather in rallies and parades around the world to honor the achievements of women on International Women's Day, an occasion relatively unknown in the United States. Fair trade retailer Ten Thousand Villages will join forces with the National Coalition Ag... More ... B'nai Israel to host interfaith dialogue       RUMSON - A founder of Oz V'Shalom/Netivot Shalom and Kabillat Yedidya will discuss "Interfaith Dialogue in the Holy Land" March 5 at 7:30 p.m. at Congregation B'nai Israel in Rumson. Dr. DeborahWeissman's discussion will examine some of the following questions: All around the world, religion is ... More ...