Election 2023: Laura Jannone, Candidate For Red Bank Council

RED BANK, NJ — Voters in Red Bank go to the polls May 9 for the first-ever nonpartisan election for Mayor and Borough Council.

The mayor and council positions are all up for election in May as part of the borough's charter change to a nonpartisan Council/Manager form of government, approved by a wide margin of residents in last November's election. The new government will be seated in July.

There are 13 council candidates and two candidates running for mayor.

There is a field of two teams, running as Red Bank's Ready and Red Bank Together, and one independent candidate, running under the designation Dedicated to Representing Red Bank.

Voters may vote for up to six candidates for council and up to one candidate for mayor.

Leading up to the election, profiles of all candidates who responded to a Patch questionnaire will be published. Responses were requested to be returned by April 16, and these profiles reflect issues as of that date. For those who did not yet respond, the dates of those responses will be noted in future stories.

Candidates were asked about their background and experience and their positions on two big issues in the borough - cannabis business regulation and short-term rentals, as well as their vision for the borough.

Today, candidate Laura Jannone of the Red Bank's Ready team is featured. She has not served in a government position previously, but she is a nursing educator and has worked for the VNA of Central Jersey as its COVID Outreach Manager during the pandemic:

Candidates provided their own answers to the following questions, with editing for style only:

• Name: Laura Jannone
• Address: 105 E. Bergen Place, Red Bank
• Position sought: Councilmember
• Are you an incumbent or have you been involved in other positions in borough or school government?: No. I volunteered for VNA of Central Jersey and Monmouth County Health Department giving COVID 19 Vaccines at Mega sites in Brookdale Community College and Bell Works with my undergraduate nursing students from Monmouth University. I also worked for the VNA of Central Jersey as its COVID Outreach Manager giving vaccines in several sites in Red Bank. I also serve on the NJ State School Nurse Association (NJSSNA) as their Standard & Practice Chair, recently rewriting their guidelines to include a Pandemic Chapter. I have served on the Board of Planned Parenthood of Central Jersey for two terms. I currently serve on the Monmouth County School Nurses Association (MCSNA) Executive Board and the Greater Red Bank's Women's Initiative Voting Committee.
• Campaign website: https://www.redbanksready.com/
• Background: I currently work "in my retirement " for the School of Professional Studies CUNY teaching nursing courses in their BSN and MSN programs online. I am currently teaching two graduate courses Nursing Theory to Practice and Advanced Nursing Research. I retired in 2021 from the Marjorie K. Unterberg School of Nursing & Health Studies at Monmouth University after 21 years. I opened the School Nursing Certificate Program and MSN in School Nursing programs there in 2000. I also helped to make a minor BS in Health Studies into a major there.
• Before going into academia, I was a practicing school nurse for 10 years in several positions, special needs school, high school and a grammar school. I have been a nurse since 1976, graduating from Christ Hospital School of Nursing in Jersey City. I earned my BSN in 1981 from Jersey City State College while I worked ICU-CCU at Clara Maass Hospital in Belleville. While raising our two daughters, now 36 and 38, I went back for my School Nurse Certificate and MS in Community Health Education, which I earned in 1999 from New Jersey City University. After being hired by Monmouth University in 2000, I went back to Teachers College, Columbia University PT, finishing my Doctorate in Nursing Education in 2006. My dissertation centered on smoking cessation in teens. I collected data in four high schools in Monmouth County, including Red Bank Regional High School. I earned a second Masters in Nursing Education at Monmouth University in 2008.
• Upon retiring I was asked to serve as the COVID Outreach Manager for the Visiting Nursing Association of Central Jersey from January 2022 to August 2022. In that position, I set up and worked at testing and vaccine sites throughout Monmouth County, including St. Anthony's Parish Center, Red Bank Primary School, Shrewsbury Avenue AME Zion Church in Red Bank. Here I got to meet many Red Bank residents. I also gave Monkeypox (Mpox) vaccines in Asbury Park.
• My husband Joel Jannone, MD, and I have lived in Red Bank for 23 years. When he retired from his primary care practice after 37 years in Lacey Township, he was hired at VNA of Central Jersey Community Health Center in Red Bank where he works two days a week. Our daughter Angelica lives in Seattle where she is a licensed acupuncturist and our daughter Gina lives in Durango, CO, where she works at Fort Lewis College she has a masters in International Studies.

1. Why are you seeking office or seeking re-election? Is there a particular issue or concern that you want to see improved in Red Bank that sparks your desire to govern?

I love living in Red Bank, particularly because it is a town where you can walk to everything. My husband and I grew up in walkable towns and that is why we decided to move to Red Bank 23 years ago after living in suburban towns where you had to drive to everything.

When I went for my doctorate degree I loved that we had a train station so I could take the train into NYC to take my classes at night. Red Bank is my home and we plan to stay here.

I would like to see Marine Park fixed up and made a beautiful park for people to enjoy the river like Riverside Park. I would like to see the Department of Public Works get better facilities. Besides the many activities we have downtown, for example Broadwalk, street fairs, etc., I would like to see more that bring the community together - such as Porchfest, for which my husband Joel and I were happy to host eight bands last year.

2. The short-term rental ordinance recently adopted by the Council brought out lots of opinion from the public, pro and con. What is your position on the adopted ordinance? If you are an incumbent, why did you vote for or against it?

I am in favor of owner occupied short-term rentals. I know it helps some in our community pay their bills. I am not for short-term rentals owned by outside corporations.

3. Another issue facing the borough is how cannabis sales or production is regulated. The recently adopted ordinance provides more regulation, but do you feel it addresses concerns both of the public and the businesses seeking approval?

I think the new proposed ordinance is too restrictive, especially because businesses have sought to get approval under the previous ordinances and have spent quite a bit of time and money going through the process of opening their business.

Because our two daughters live in states - Colorado and Washington - where cannabis has been legal for many years, I know from visiting them both that cannabis shops are really not a threat to the community. They are highly regulated. You cannot enter the retail shops unless you are 21 years old. Being a substance abuse coordinator and teaching Substance Use and Abuse at Monmouth University for 21 years, I know that cannabis is far less dangerous than alcohol.

Other candidates for the 2023 election

Here is the ballot lineup for mayor and council, chosen in a random drawing last month.

Mayor:

• First position, Billy Portman, Red Bank's Ready
• Second position, Tim Hogan, Red Bank Together

Council:

• First position, Red Bank Together
• Second position, Suzanne "Sue" Viscomi (Dedicated to Representing Red Bank)
• Third position, Red Bank's Ready

Click on the links below to read more about the candidates from past stories. Click on individual names that are highlighted to read their candidate profiles, as they begin to be published during the next three weeks:

Red Bank Together: Leading the team is mayoral candidate Tim Hogan, Riverview Medical Center president, along with incumbent Borough Council candidates Michael Ballard, Jacqueline Sturdivant and John Jackson. Rounding out the team is Sean Murphy, a Red Bank Zoning Board member; Linda Hill, and Erin Fleming.

Suzanne Viscomi: Viscomi, a Red Bank school board member, is running independently, with the designation Dedicated to Representing Red Bank.

Red Bank's Ready: Mayor Billy Portman for mayor leads the team. Running for council seats are current Councilmember Kate Triggiano; Ben Forest of the Red Bank school board; former Charter Study Commission Chairperson Nancy Facey-Blackwood; and David Cassidy, Laura Jannone, and Kristina Bonatakis.