A wreath was placed at Piping Rock Park in Rumson, where a plaque honors borough residents who lost their lives in the September 11, 2001 attacks. (Photo by Dustin Racioppi)

By DUSTIN RACIOPPI

It was a week that started fraught with emotion, as news broke in a national address by President Obama late Sunday night that a commando team had wiped the face of evil in the Western world, Osama bin Laden, off the earth.

For those around The Green, it was a bittersweet measure of justice, as scores of residents in our area lost their lives in the September 11, 2001 attacks masterminded by bin Laden.

It hit particularly close to Middletown, which lost 37 people in the attacks. We were out Monday morning talking to those who paid their respects at Middletown’s serene 9/11 memorial garden, near the train station.

And the week went on from there.

A pair of Sea Bright firefighters are in hot legal water for allegedly roughing up a fellow volunteer. The first court date was Thursday, which featured a dramatic video of the scuffle.

It took until the eleventh hour, but one of Middletown’s police unions struck a deal with the township to save four jobs that had been at stake. Then, at the twelfth hour, the other police union came to an agreement to save the rest of the jobs on the chopping block. There were casualties of the township’s budget crunch, though. Eleven other employees, through retirements and layoffs, are no longer on the payroll.

Speaking of M’town police, they could potentially be busy with an additional workload writing red-light tickets if the town installs traffic cameras, which seems likely, we’re told.

Fair Haven’s first day of private trash collection, estimated to save the borough between $100,000 and $200,000 over the next few years, was Monday.

Police blotters: In Red Bank, cell phones and clothes were swiped from borough eateries; a Middletown cop got hit with a weed whacker; and in Fair Haven, somebody stole $70,000 in silver bullion from a residence. Interesting, we know. Police had no further details on that one at week’s end.

Pink Alert: Photos from the Pink Week Girls Night Out celebration, and a small set of photos from Pink Week, which came to an end Saturday.

In Fair Haven, longtime educators Gene and Debbie Trotta knocked the dust off the old Masonic lodge on River Road, and now they’re running a pristine pre-k, fulfilling a vision 20 years in the making.

For theater buffs, the Two River Theater Company announced its 2011-12 lineup of shows; Tom Chesek had the details. And to close out this season, Chesek writes about the Tony-d lineup in Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris.

Red Bank restaurateur George Lyristis got ink pixels twice this week. The first story focused on his purchase, along with a group of backers, of Teak. Later in the week we had a story on Lyristis and a group of restaurant owners who vow to take back the business Red Bank’s lost to Shore competitors Asbury Park and Pier Village in Long Branch with a marketing campaign.

In other Red Bank food news, we might have a cupcake war on our hands. And the Red Bank Farmers’ Market made its 2011 debut.

A hotel development plan on the north side of Red Bank got shelved at the borough’s zoning board meeting, while a proposal to open a bait and tackle shop on East Front Street was OK’d.

A couple months ago we had a story about a group of residents worried about a 342-unit condo plan at the Avaya property. They’re still worried, and they turned out en force to let the planning board know about it when the application went before the board. Township officials aren’t happy about it, either.

As if you’re thinning wallet isn’t proof enough that gas prices are at ridiculously-high levels, we’ve got a pic to prove it.

In case you missed Saturday’s Taste of Sea Bright, well, you’re beat ’til next year. But you can read about it here and prime yourself for the next Taste.

Monmouth Boat Club held its annual Long John Regatta last weekend. Peter Lindner shows in some well-snapped shots how it went.

Want to see some old-school photos? Head to Borough Hall in Little Silver Thursday and check out Red Bank Regional’s latest-generation lensers.

A crash in Rumson sent one to the hospital Friday.

Considering how the week started, a timely and relevant Where Have I Seen This?