Page 4 • Wednesday, November 28, 2018 • The Hammonton Gazette
20 years for Toddler Town Town council hears from Cappuccio
TODDLER, from Page 1
six years) alike.
“I want it to feel like a family. I
don’t want it to feel like a busi-
ness. I want you to feel comfort-
able when you come in. So, I just
try to make it like a fun, family-
friendly environment,” Privitera
said.
After graduating from college
with a degree in special education,
Privitera couldn’t find a job in her
field due to a lack of experience.
So, she ultimately decided to take
her brother’s recommendation and
explore the possibility of starting a
daycare business.
When a portion of a property
owned by Privitera’s uncle became
available on South Egg Harbor
Road, she and her cousin, Stacey
Donio, vowed to embark on the
business journey together and
founded Toddler Town.
“She was also looking for a job,
and I said, ‘If we don’t succeed,
then we go back into the work-
force.’ And 20 years later, here I
am,” Privitera said.
Toddler Town opened its doors
in 1998 with just one child en-
rolled. That number grew to ap-
proximately 25 children by the end
of the first week, and ever since
then, the business continued to de-
velop and build a reputation within
the community due to word-of-
mouth and personal references.
Today, there are more than 70
children enrolled at Toddler Town,
in addition to a seasoned staff of
10 full-time child care profession-
als, as well as five who are part-
time employees.
When reflecting on the past 20
years and the longevity that Tod-
dler Town has sustained, Privitera
said she has pleasantly exceeded
her own expectations and has thor-
oughly enjoyed being able to con-
tinually provide young children
with a safe and happy environment
in which they can learn, play, ex-
plore and grow.
“I didn’t think I’d be here for
that long but I’m glad. I love what
I do. I can’t believe it’s 20 years …
I’m hoping that I’m here for an-
other 20,” Privitera said.
In order to ensure the continued
improvement and quality of care
and education at Toddler Town,
Privitera and her staff began par-
ticipating in the Grow NJ Kids
program about five years ago. This
quality rating and improvement
system is a state-sponsored initia-
tive administered by the New Jer-
sey Departments of Children and
Families; Education and Health
and Human Services that provides
child care and early learning facil-
ities like Toddler Town with the re-
sources necessary to evaluate and
improve their programs, while also
giving parents information that
they can use to evaluate the quality
of these programs when selecting
where to enroll their children.
Privitera said the Grow NJ Kids
program has further solidified the
standard of care that Toddler Town
has provided for 20 years, espe-
cially for infants and pre-school-
aged children.
“They will learn the skills nec-
essary to go to public school. They
will be ready. They’ll learn the
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fundamentals: the colors, the
shapes, the numbers, the social as-
pect, how to socialize. We keep the
staff continuously trained on new
and upcoming ideals so they stay
current,” Privitera said.
With a significant milestone
now behind her, Privitera is fo-
cused on the next 20 years and is
hopeful to continue nurturing local
children in an individualized man-
ner that is equally exciting, inno-
vative and educational.
“I want people to know that I’m
just not a daycare. I truly do love
the children. I love what I do, and
I want everybody to feel like a
member of the family,” Privitera
said.
Toddler Town Infant Nursery
and Preschool is open year round
on Monday through Thursday
from 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Fri-
days 6:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Tuition rates start at $38 per day
for children ages 4 to 6, and range
to $47 per day for children ages 6
weeks to 1 year. Half-day tuition
rates are available, and Toddler
Town also participates in The New
Jersey Child Care Subsidy Pro-
gram.
For more information, visit tod-
dlertownhammonton.com or call
(609) 561-7300.
COUNCIL, from Page 1
047-2018 will be discussed during
council’s reorganization meeting
in January.
Resident and former council-
man William Cappuccio also
spoke during the public comment
portion at the end of the meeting.
Cappuccio, who resides on Chest-
nut Street, next to Kathedral Event
Center, claimed that the town’s
zoning officer has not properly en-
sured that Kathedral and its own-
ership adhere to the terms of the
change of use approval since it
was granted by the Zoning Board
of Adjustment in December 2017.
“When the change of use was
granted, there was several stipula-
tions … I had to hire an attorney
and I had to spend my money to
try to make the town enforce its
own zoning regulations,” Cappuc-
cio said.
According to town solicitor
Michael Malinsky, Cappuccio has
threatened litigation against the
town in the past. He therefore ad-
vised council not to respond to any
of Cappuccio’s questions. How-
ever, Cappuccio said he no longer
wished to sue the town due to the
financial burden it would entail.
“I have instructed my attorney
that I’m done with him. We’re not
going to sue the town because I
don’t have deep pockets to pay for
litigation,” Cappuccio said.
Cappuccio claimed that his
backyard became “a dump site”
after Kathedral placed stage props,
parking barriers and other debris
near his property line. He also ex-
pressed concern about Kathedral
receiving a liquor license, and said
residents did not get sufficient no-
tice of the matter before it was ap-
proved.
“There was no public input;
there was no input from the resi-
dents of the area. You have a little
league park next to it, you have a
library on the other side and you
have a Head Start school right to
the other side of that property line.
Something just doesn’t add up
here and I’m just wondering how
this is allowed to happen,” Cap-
puccio said.
Cappuccio implied that the
property owner received special
treatment when requesting a
change of use for Kathedral.
“I guess the phrase, ‘Love
where you live’ is good, but only
if you’re the chosen few,” Cap-
puccio said.
DiDonato said council will re-
view the file of Kathedral’s
change of use approval to deter-
mine if any regulations have been
violated or if there is a town ordi-
nance not being enforced. In the
meantime, he advised him to talk
to the property owner and try to
come to a peaceful solution to
Cappuccio’s issues.
“I’m not asking you spend any
money. I’m asking you pick up the
phone and call the owner and have
a cup of coffee with him. Talk to
him. Maybe you can come to a
meeting of the minds. It’s worth a
shot,” DiDonato said.
“I’ve talked to a lot of people
about the problems I was having
and had zoning officers and con-
struction officials from other
towns look at me like I’m crazy.
And [say] ‘That can’t be happen-
ing because that’s impossible.’
I’ve also been told throughout
South Jersey ‘Well, it’s Hammon-
ton. It’s like the Wild West. They
do what they want to do,’” Cap-
puccio said.
“There’s got to be a way a
homeowner and a business can co-
exist ... There’s got to be a meeting
of the minds,” Councilman Steven
Furgione said.
DiDonato said the council
serves as the body where appeals
to the zoning board (which has
been incorporated into the plan-
ning board) and could be sued if
comments are made about appli-
See MEETING Page 8