Acting Mayor: Florham Park to Keep 'In Right Direction'

Florham Park officials "will continue to keep our borough moving in the right direction" after the mayor and a councilman stepped down from the governing body in a matter of days, Acting Mayor Mark Taylor said in a news release.

R. Scott Eveland resigned his position as mayor Monday and, coincidentally, Councilman David Wikstrom submitted his resignation late last Tuesday, Borough Administrator Bill Huyler announced.

The Florham Park Republican Committee is expected to nominate three candidates for each of the vacancies, and then the sitting council members would appoint one of the nominees to each of the vacancies.

Huyler said Eveland "indicated that his new position in the Jersey City School District was very demanding and that he did not feel he would be able to continue to do justice to his position as Mayor."

Wikstrom, whose term was up at the end of the year, wrote in his resignation letter, quoted in the borough's announcement, he was focusing on his family and career, and he felt it would be best for the council if he stepped down:

After much contemplation, I have decided to resign my elected position of Councilman of the Borough of Florham Park effective tomorrow, Wednesday, March 27, 2013. My tenure at the Borough has been both rewarding and filled with accomplishments. I am proud of my record and being part of a Council which decidedly made it a goal to always “move forward.” Accordingly, I feel the Council will be best served by my resignation at this time since I have decided to not seek re-election and focus on the paramount interests of my family and career.

After the council appoints candidates to fill the vacancies, voters would have a chance to elect a candidate in the November General Election to fill the remainder of Eveland's term, which expires at the end of 2015.

Wikstrom had decided not to run for re-election. Taylor's council seat also is up for vote and Taylor and Thomas B. Michalowski filed by the Monday afternoon deadline to run as the GOP ticket for those two seats. John Upton and Peter Nicolas filed to run as Democrats.

Florham Park's seven-member governing body is all-Republican.

Huyler said Taylor assumed the position of Acting Mayor upon Eveland's resignation, and he will remain in the position until the political process and election determine who will fill the vacancy until 2015.

Taylor said in the news release Eveland "will be sorely missed as Mayor of Florham Park" and his accomplishments "will live on for years to come."

"To his credit, Scott has a flair for getting things done and the renewed look of Florham Park is the product of his vision," Taylor said. "We all wish him well in his new job in Jersey City. Although he will be sorely missed, we will continue to keep our Borough moving in the right direction. Florham Park is a Community of Volunteers and with the help of many, we have made it a wonderful and harmonious place to live."