John P. Curley

John Patrick Curley is an American Republican Party politician from New Jersey, who served on the Red Bank, New Jersey Borough Council and is currently a member of the Monmouth County, New Jersey Board of Chosen Freeholders.

Background

A lifelong, fourth-generation resident of Monmouth County, John Curley grew up in Shrewsbury, New Jersey and is a graduate of Christian Brothers Academy and Thomas Edison State College (TESC). At TESC he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government.[1] He currently lives in Middletown Township and is a trustee of the Christian Brothers Academy Alumni Association and a former trustee of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, Central Jersey Chapter.

Curley is vice president of his family’s car dealership located in Lakewood, Jim Curley GMC, Buick and Kia.

Political

Red Bank Council

Elected in 2002 as a Democrat, John Curley later became a Republican and served on the Red Bank Borough Council for more than five years. During that time he also served as a member of the Red Bank Zoning Board of Adjustment and was council liaison to the local Planning Board, the Historic Preservation Commission, Special Improvement District and the Public Works Committee.

As a Red Bank councilman, Curley won passage of a resolution to place a cap on all municipal spending accounts. He also challenged placement of a helipad on the Navesink River, and worked to stop a bulky solid waste station abutting a residential neighborhood. Additionally, he organized a grass-roots effort to prevent a financially flawed parking garage proposal from creating a potential liability for Red Bank taxpayers.

Concerned about transparency in government, he also fought to change the time of the Red Bank council meetings to increase the public’s participation, and throughout his career as a councilman, he was a strong advocate of zero-based budgeting and spearheaded the adoption of strict anti pay-to-play ordinances.

He was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for mayor of Red Bank in 2006.

Monmouth County Freeholder

In 2008, he ran for the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders and narrowly lost to Democrat Amy A. Mallet. That year, John Curley relocated to Middletown and resigned from the Red Bank Borough Council.

In 2009, he was again the Republican nominee for freeholder and won by a margin of more than 30,000 votes.

Freeholder John P. Curley was sworn into a three-year term on the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders on January 7, 2010. Currently in his first year in office, he is the liaison to the following departments: Bridges, Buildings & Grounds, Fleet Services, Emergency Management, Engineering, Fire Marshal, Fire Academy, Highways, Public Works, Reclamation Center, Shade Tree Commission and Weights and Measures.[2]

Notes and references