PETERSBURG — Mayor Curtis Corson is facing a challenge in the Republican primary on June 2 from township gadfly Nathalie Neiss.
Candidates had to file their petitions by March 23 and the winner would run in the general election Nov. 3.
“I am running because I believe residents deserve honesty, transparency and leadership that listens,” Neiss wrote in a letter to the Sentinel announcing her candidacy.
Corson is a farmer and business owner who was sworn in to his latest term in January 2024. At the reorganization meeting, he was chosen by his peers for the top position, which he held previously in 2022.
While Corson has been a member of Township Committee for more than a quarter-century, former mayor Rich Palombo held the top spot for more than two decades of that time and Jay Newman was chosen in 2023 and 2024.
The lifelong resident has deep roots in the township as a 13th-generation resident. His children are the 14th generation of Corsons to live locally and his grandchildren are the 15th generation.
Corson, 62, served on Township Committee from 1996 to 2014 before losing re-election on a ticket with Newman.
He then was appointed in 2016 to fill the unexpired term of former committeeman Jeffrey Pierson after Pierson was elected to the Cape May County Board of Chosen Freeholders (now Board of County Commissioners). Corson ran and won a full term in 2017, 2020 and 2023.
He said he would like to continue serving on Township Committee because he has the time and the commitment, and wants to see some major projects to fruition.
“I care about our community,” Corson said.
The mayor listed finding a solution to major erosion in the Strathmere section of the township as one of the things he would like to accomplish if re-elected.
“We’re looking for a more permanent solution. I would like to see us start facilitating some kind of hard structure instead of pumping sand,” he said.
Corson also mentioned ongoing work to establish parking near the Upper Township Community Center, noting the township is negotiating with a neighbor to try to buy land for a lot.
Neiss, 75, is a widow and mother of three sons. She has been part of the community since the 1950s, when her family bought a home in the township where they spent summers and weekends throughout the year.
She and her family made Upper Township their primary residence in the mid to late 1990s. Her middle son attended Upper Township Middle School and Ocean City High School and her youngest son was completely educated in the township and OCHS.
Neiss stated during a Township Committee meeting March 9 that she has been attending township meetings since 1997, when she ran unsuccessfully for a seat on committee.
Neiss said she has experience in land use planning from Lancaster, Pa., where she served as a Democratic committeewoman and vice president of the school board.
Neiss has focused her campaign on updating the township Master Plan, which is supposed to be re-examined every 10 years.
She feels the township is approving redevelopment agreements in lieu of updating its Master Plan, which she called “the structure of the whole community.”
“A town should grow with care and sense, not inch by inch. A Master Plan should light the way. It marks where homes and shops should be, where schools and services best serve the community, where sidewalks, bike paths give a safer way and helps connect the town each day,” Neiss wrote.
She feels development is happening haphazardly without an overall guiding document.
“Without a smart plan, the strain does show. In traffic, crowding, overflow. Higher density cannot stand without support. A Master Plan is not just lines, it shapes the place where we live — homes, schools, roads, paths, light and safety. It must not sprawl. I livable town is built with care. Infrastructure must match the pace, with room to live and breathe,” she wrote. “I will continue to promote family values, common sense leadership and a commitment to Upper Township community that has been my home for decades.”
Corson said the Master Plan is not something that is prepared and put on the shelf, but instead guides changes in all aspects of the community.
“Almost every meeting we are tweaking and changing things,” he said. “You’re always looking at something if you’re doing your job right.”
Township Administrator Jimmy Van Zlike said the Master Plan was last formally re-examined and adopted in March 2020.
“While the New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law requires a re-examination every 10 years, the township has consistently maintained a more frequent schedule to stay ahead of state standards,” he said. “Our records show formal re-examinations or significant amendments were completed in 2006, 2011, 2018 and 2020. We are also currently working with Colliers Engineering to update several specific elements, including Land Use and Conservation, as part of our ongoing planning efforts.”
– By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff