Former K. Hov official hired as mayor's aide BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer Jeffrey A. Nadell LONG BRANCH - A former official of developer K. Hovnanian Homes was hired last week as an aide to Long Branch Mayor Adam Schneider. Jeffrey A. Nadell was appointed by Schneider on July 24 to fill the recently vacated position, according to a press release from Schneider's office. Nadell will draw a $73,500 salary. Nadell will replace Mike Muscillo, who left the position in May, according to a spokeswoman in the office of city Business Administrator Howard Woolley. "Jeff will be working on issues and projects that matter to the more than 30,000 people who live in our community," Schneider said in the press release. Nadell was formerly the director of urban opportunities and legal counsel for K. Hovnanian, a designated developer along the city's oceanfront. K. Hovnanian is the designated developer for the Beachfront North Phase I and Phase II and the Beachfront South oceanfront redevelopment zones. The Beachfront North Phase II project has been challenged in a lawsuit brought by property owners fighting the taking of their homes through eminent domain for the upscale condominium project. At the July 4 Long Branch City Council meeting, Ocean Boulevard resident Harold Bobrow asked, "Will Jeff Nadell recuse himself from issues of Beachfront South [redevelopment zone]?" City Attorney James Aaron replied, "Absolutely, yes, and other matters." Nadell, a resident of Ocean Township, has also served as a member of the Ocean Township Planning Board and assisted municipalities and townships in completing numerous multi-use projects across the state, according to the release. "As a practicing attorney, Nadell will be able to save the city money by reviewing many agreements and contracts that would customarily be done by an outside law firm," Councilman Anthony Giordano said in the release. "In addition, his extensive real estate and business experience is needed to help coordinate, identify and resolve all of the complex financial, planning and permitting issues related to making the Long Branch pier a reality," Giordano said. At last week's council meeting, Woolley said the city received some 80 résumés to fill the position of aide to the mayor. "Jeff is filling a vacant position - at the same salary - that we need to fill in order to continue to move the awarding, planning, finances and many other details associated with our present growth forward in a professional manner," Schneider said in the release. "We are deeply aware and understand that some view these projects with suspicion," Schneider added, referring to six redevelopment projects, some of which are under way, along the oceanfront and lower Broadway. "Jeff's job is to ensure that we connect all the dots so that everyone in our community benefits from these activities," Schneider said.