Dec 6, 2006 10:25 pm US/Eastern
Kuwait Offers $3.7M For Police HQ In N.J.
Outgoing Mayor Of Lake Como Angers Many Over Deal
by Jay Dow
LAKE COMO, N.J. (CBS) ―
CBS 2 has discovered secret negotiations between one New Jersey town and one Middle Eastern country. But this is not regarding members of the military or the war on terror.
Who needs state taxpayer dollars when you've got a good friend with deep pockets from Kuwait?
That's right. After squeezing Trenton dry, and getting turned down by Oprah and Bill Gates, Lake Como Mayor Larry Chiaravallo says he wondered who might give the town a few million dollars to pay for a new police headquarters.
"So, I figure, where's the money?" Chiaravallo said.
The obvious choice? The oil rich country of Kuwait.
Chiaravallo, who is leaving office next month after serving two terms, said he's spent the last several years talking to several Kuwaiti diplomats about the proposal.
He broke the news to his colleagues on Tuesday night, during his final City Council meeting.
It did not go over well.
Newly elected Mayor Michael Ryan is not a fan of the plan.
"He was definitely thinking out of the box. I just wish we were aware of how far outside the box he was," Ryan said.
Reaction on the street was mixed.
Business owner Jay Patel said, "Of course I would support that because we'd get some money to do something good."
But Wendy Smith didn't buy it. "I'm very skeptical. Un-American. Sorry."
What is clear is that the officers who serve Lake Como's 2,200 residents could use more space. Chief Rosman Cash showed off the current headquarters' small rooms
"This is the police station," he said.
So what would Kuwait get for its $3.7 million? The mayor says just a plaque hung somewhere on municipal property that thanks Kuwait for its generosity.
So why would Kuwait give Lake Como the money?
Chiaravallo said that diplomats told him the project would be a small gesture for America's role in liberating Kuwait during the first Gulf War.
When asked if there might be a second career for him as a lobbyist in Washington, Chiaravallo replied, "Oh boy. No, I'm too old for that."
Chiaravallo said he wants the next administration to use his international connections to help this very local cause.
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
