TOMS RIVER, NJ – It seems former Toms River Mayor Maurice Hill hasn’t received the message. He lost the election last June and the residents of Toms River voted him out of office.
Now, Hill and his defeated allies have launched a full-scale campaign to subvert the Toms River township government process. In January, Hill penned a letter to current council members begging them not to drop his certificate of occupancy ordinance that amounted to nothing more than a government overreach to financially shake down homeowners in the name of ‘public safety’.
That ordinance was of course overturned, now Hill and his former allies are hoping to throw as much on the wall against the man who kicked them out of office, current Mayor Dan Rodrick.
Since taking office, Rodrick delivered on his promise to reduce the size of government, which grew substantially under the former mayor with six-figure patronage jobs to friends, family, and political insiders. Shortly before leaving office, Hill handed out a series of five-figure promotions and thousands of dollars in what amounts to nothing more than Christmas bonuses to his close team of insiders who were facing the chopping block under the new administration.
Hill’s team and supporters are now leading a campaign of municipal sabotage, spreading rumors, distorting facts, and rallying Toms River residents. At a recent meeting, a Toms River police captain blew the whistle on a Hill-era scam that sends millions of dollars each year to former Councilman Kevin Geoghegan’s private for-profit medical transport business. Under that agreement, Hill gave Geoghegan a no-bid contract that allowed him to keep 100% of the proceeds of ambulance calls in Toms River, shortchanging the township more than a million dollars each year.
Toms River Mayor Dan Rodrick said that the contract is ‘under legal review’ at this time at that meeting.
During Hill’s tenure, the former mayor used open space purchases to reward political allies and friends with millions of dollars in land deals and land swaps in the name of ‘preservation’, but records show those deals were all made with political insiders on the receiving end of township money.
Mo Hil would want nothing more than current Mayor Dan Rodrick to leave office, because since taking office, Rodrick has been turning over every Mo Hill stone in town hall.
Rodrick has replaced many of Hill’s former confidants who were given lucrative jobs in town hall, replacing them with people who aren’t connected to the Ocean County “Good Old Boys” network that has held a firm grip on the township for decades.
After Rodrick defeated Hill, the former mayor said, “If Dan Rodrick becomes mayor of Toms River, I’m moving.”
Like those who claimed the same after former President Donald Trump’s 2016 election, Hill backed down on his promise and like them, has chosen to spend his days trying to subvert his successor in any way possible.
