RED BANK - The future is looking large for the Count Basie Theatre. In news exclusively broken by the Asbury Park Press on Sunday and announced at a Monday morning news conference, the theater is looking to convert its area of Monmouth Street into a full-city-block arts and education complex. The expanded Basie will include an outdoor arts plaza to the east of the theater, as well as a two-story glass lobby and brick pavilion facade with an elevator, new bathrooms, a bar, classrooms and dis- plays celebrating artists from the region. The current theater will receive stage and lighting upgrades, as well as a new dressing room, an artists’ lounge and an expansion of the load-in area as part of the three-year, $20 million expansion project. At the former Wawa lot to the west, the Basie will become home to offices, classrooms and a new multi- use performance space with a capacity of between 500 and 600 standing or around 350 seated audience mem- Count Basie Theatre unveils expansion plans ALEX BIESE @ABIESEAPP “That’s a place where anything could happen. You could have anything from up-and-coming artists to an Elvis Costello wanting to debut a new album, maybe come down here.” STEVEN VAN ZANDT, E STREET BAND GUITARIST See BASIE, Page 12A An investigation finds the number of police killed in high- speed car chases is 15 times what the FBI reports. Page 1B Feds undercount deaths in chases ROYALS METS WORLD SERIES A WORLD (SERIES) APART RUSS ZIMMER Press reporter, Royals fan since 1982 Press reporter, Mets fan since 1989 MIKE DAVIS JAMES CONNOLLY/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER APP’s reform petition tops 12,000 signers. 4A FIGHTING N.J.’S PROPERTY TAX CRISIS ASBURY PARK PRESS APP.COM $1.00 TUESDAY 10.27.15 VOLUME 136 NUMBER 257 SINCE 1879 ADVICE 6D CLASSIFIED 7D COMICS 5D HEALTHY LIVING 1D LOCAL 3A OBITUARIES 8A OPINION 11A SPORTS 1C TECH TUESDAY 6A WEATHER 8C A Middletown attorney who was serving as munici- pal judge in nine Monmouth County municipalities has been suspended without pay from his judgeships pend- ing an investigation by New Jersey’s Advisory Commit- tee on Judicial Conduct. Richard B. Thompson, one of the area’s more hand- somely paid public officials, was temporarily suspend- ed without pay Friday from serving as municipal court judge in Bradley Beach, Colts Neck, Eatontown, Mid- dletown, Neptune City, Oceanport, Rumson, Tinton Falls and Union Beach. He earned $217,500 in 2014, when he sat as judge in six municipalities. Superior Court Judge Lisa P. Thornton, assignment judge for Monmouth County, signed the suspension or- der after it was brought to her attention that Thompson “may have violated the Code of Judicial Conduct by failing to follow the statutes, policies, and procedures for sentencing penalties and fines, in violation of Can- ons 1 and 2 of the Code of Judicial Conduct,’’ Thornton wrote in her order. A message left on an answering machine at Thomp- son’s office on Monday was not returned. Thornton did not elaborate on the possible violations in her order, and a call to her chambers referred ques- tions to Winnie Comfort, a spokeswoman for the Judge is suspended from 9 town court jobs Richard Thompson to be investigated by N.J. panel KATHLEEN HOPKINS @KHOPKINSAPP See JUDGE, Page 12A It’s been a lonely existence for Kansas City Royals refugees like me, having left my birth- place more than half a lifetime ago. I find I’m the only one in the stadium wearing Royals powder blue when I have an opportunity to see them close to my home. But that’s all in the past now and, oh boy, what a time it is to be a citizen of Royals Nation. I know fans of the New York Mets are feeling it too, as they also have emerged from the pro- verbial desert to the doorstep of glory. Led by Daniel “Barry Bonds” Murphy, the Mets are bringing the World Series back to Queens for the first time since Game 1 starter Matt Harvey was a Yankees fan. All that stands between Terry Collins’ young squad and the organization’s third Commission- er’s Trophy is the American League champion Royals. Let me, your local Royals fan, try to make sense of one half of this upside-down world where the Royals are playing the Mets to Sorry, Mets fans — the citizens of beleaguered Royals Nation are ready to (finally) rejoice RUSS ZIMMER @RUSSZIMMER See ROYALS, Page 7A An Amazin’ time Edelson on Mets fans’ storybook ride. Page 1C What to watch for when the Series begins. Page 3C When you’re in love with a loser, you cry a lot. And I’m in love with the New York Mets. I cried when some dude from Berkeley named Al Leiter pitched them to the playoffs in 1999 (I was 10). I cried when Johan Santana pitched the team’s first no-hitter (I was 23). And the last time the Mets were in the World Series (I was 11), I wept with an impressive amount of vigor. Nothing makes a kid lose his wonder and innocence like watching his favor- ite team lose to the Yankees. But here we are 15 years later, and my loser is on the verge of becoming a winner. The New York Mets are in the World Series, and I can’t reconcile it. The Mets losing are all I know. It’s always been hard for me to understand how some teams’ fans accepted nothing less than a world title every year. But now that the Mets are four wins away from it, I finally get it. They are four wins away from forgiveness for Aaron Heilman (2006 goat) and Armando Those who gave their loyalty to perennial losers are hoping for the big payoff this season MIKE DAVIS @BYMIKEDAVIS See METS, Page 7A Teams’ true believers face off TOM SPADER/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER The board of trustees and donors on the Count Basie Theatre stage to announce the plans for its $20 million expansion.