After More Than 6 Years, Cesaro Leaves Council

Tuesday night was bittersweet for Parsippany-Troy Hills Township Councilman John Cesaro, who was , effectively ending his term as a member of the Township Council.

Cesaro, who served for six-and-a-half years on the council, had a chance to address the public and his fellow council members at the meeting, which took place before the freeholders were scheduled to convene.

“It has definitely been a pleasure working with everyone here and, of course, with the past council people I have worked with,” Cesaro said. “To the people of Parsippany, hopefully there is no challenge from the floor in about an hour at the (freeholders’) convention. If there is none, I will be taking the oath of office tonight and resigning (from the council) at the same time.

Cesaro’s fellow council members echoed his sentiments of an enjoyable experience while they all shared the responsibility of serving the people of Parsippany.

“I’d like to thank John for his years of service to Parsippany, both on the council and beforehand,” Council Vice President Brian Stanton said. “He’s a great person, an asset to Parsippany now and will be an asset for a long time.”

Added fellow councilman Vincent Ferrara, “I’m going to lose a great friend (on the council), but I’m happy for you that you’re going to a new venture.”

Mayor James Barberio also was sorry to see Cesaro leave for his new position, but was looking forward to seeing his colleague move on to help the entirety of Morris County.

“John is definitely a committed individual; not just to the township, but he will be to the county,” Barberio said. “All the other towns in the county are going to be getting what Parsippany has been getting.”

It is those sentiments that made leaving the council difficult for Cesaro. On the other hand, the former councilman acknowledged that he is ready for new challenges.

“There definitely has been something on my back in the past 48 hours looming. I’ve been feeling a little upset that I’m leaving. I’ve put six-and-a-half years so far into this council, and I’ve tried to do best I could for the taxpayers,” Cesaro said. “I hope and I believe that I left Parsippany in a little better position than when I took it over, and I think it’s definitely with the help of everybody up here.”