Mayor to hold fundraiser/celebration TONITE downtown at Texas Arizona

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Dear Friends, Please join me for a fundraiser/celebration on Tuesday, June 18 at Texas Arizona (76 River Street Hoboken) from 6:30 – 8:30. There will be delicious hors d’oeuvres, open bar (beer and wine), great company and an opportunity to hear about all the positive things that are happening in our town.  The suggested donation is $150 per person ($200 per couple). My campaign is gearing up for another tough race this November. While my one opponent so far, Ruben Ramos, is focusing on trying to get politicians from outside Hoboken to “support” his campaign, I believe, as I always have, that Hoboken elections should and will be decided by Hoboken’s own residents.  County or State machine politicians pursuing their own outside agendas should not decide our future. I ask you to stand with me and my Council team to preserve and build on the enormous progress we’ve made over the past four years in restoring integrity in our government, reducing taxes, improving quality of life, making smarter development decisions and so much more.     We have had two successful fundraisers in the past few months, but still have a long way to go.  Please join me to celebrate all that we have achieved, and come together to rally for a strong win this November. The more the merrier so please spread the word to all your friends! See you next Tuesday! Dawn P.S.  If you can't attend, please send a contribution anyway. A check should be made out to Friends of Dawn Zimmer Hoboken Mayor and sent to: Friends of Dawn Zimmer Hoboken Mayor  45 Essex Street, Suite 204, 2nd Floor Hackensack, NJ 07601

Deconstructing the Hoboken411 by Terry Castellano

Councilwoman Terry Castellano signs on to screed of fabrications and inaccuracies on Hoboken411

Hoboken411 the cybersewer where politics is guided by Beth Mason's iron fisted seal of censorship is the vehicle for pumping out massive fabrications once again - apparently in the hope to knock down the Mayor Dawn Zimmer's high approval ratings leading into the November election.

It's the second time in recent months Castellano has a "letter" attached to her name appearing on Beth Mason's notorious vehicle attacking anyone seen in the way of  her power and agenda.  Even the manager of Hoboken's temporary post Sandy resource center was attacked in recent months in a hateful screed of lies by the notorious Masonista website.

Councilwoman Terry Castellano signed on to a screed of misinformation 
on Mason backed Hoboken411.  The website is known for attacking anyone
seen as contrary to Beth Mason's agenda.  Even a long time resident
managing Hoboken's Sandy resource center was slimed by Hoboken411's lies.

Let's deconstruct the items one by one with a fair use journalistic critique beginning with a claim the Old Guard council is "independent."

If the Hoboken Sopranos are independent then Tony Soprano should be elected pope.  

The crew has been working as a monolithic block against Hoboken's interests (even the City's solvency) since Timmy Occhipinti's campaign stole a special election with a record setting hundreds of paper ballots courtesy of the exploitation of the people in the HHA.

Prior to that, then Acting Mayor Dawn Zimmer who led the City Council saw all her attempts at consensus dismissed in an effort to destroy her reform agenda mayoralty out of the gate.  The FBI complaint against Patrick Ricciardi described a "schism" with several council members and in the Hoboken blogosphere.

Fact 1: Zimmer’s 5th “rubber stamp” vote Jim Doyle

Let’s begin with Zimmer’s appointment of Jim Doyle to the City Council last fall. We had no problem with the selection, only the process. Zimmer chose to usurp the democratic process by not allowing the voters to make the decision. Furthermore, there were a few key facts omitted from Mr. Doyle’s public resume that would shed some light on his independence, namely the fact that Jim was the emcee at Zimmer’s inauguration and that he was chosen by the Governor, at the request of Zimmer, as the mayor’s appointee to the Hospital Board. All facts that were not included in his resume, facts he was not sharing unless questioned. What else was not disclosed?
If an election had been scheduled in 30 days of the appointment, Jim would have gotten a unanimous vote to remain on the council until that date. The elimination of the election process deprived the public of being represented by the person of choice. That fact was the driving force behind the original court case for his removal which we independent council members have financed ourselves.
Ask yourselves, why would Zimmer not want an election? The answer, they want that fifth and deciding vote to push through their agenda, with no discussion or opposition. The fact that the rubber stamp is out of ink, frustrates the Zimmer faction, which is evident by their behavior as the Council meetings get more contentious.

=====

Okay first things first.  The Hoboken Sopranos never held this seat since 2009.  The ruse they want to fix it through an election is as one commenter slipped past the goalie - completely made up.  Jim Doyle is well known in Hoboken over decades. The Old Guard and Hoboken Sopranos know he can't be bought, isn't looking to cash in and won't sell out Hoboken period, so he's useless to them, end of story.  What they claim is a need for "independence" is they would like to have a reliable puppet re: Occhipinti in the role and if not, an empty council seat will do.

The idea Doyle's resume failed to add some social engagement is frankly silly as it was hardly a secret he worked at the public mayoral inauguration event.  There's the typical low grade Hoboken411 lies about the Governor being involved; other than signing off on the appointment this will surely be news to Jim Doyle.  Serving on a public board in Hoboken is hardly a secret.

The fallacy NJ law allowed for an election to the council vacancy is an easily disproved lie.  It's one Beth Mason has been using and no accident here, that party line found its way into Terry Castellano's version.  Castellano's and her colleagues are no doubt convinced the seat was filled with the idea of leading into the next election but that's entirely legal and actually not the case.  The seat was vacated by former councilwoman Carol Marsh who resigned due to a family tragedy impacting its livelihood.

The goal since Jim Doyle's appointment was ruled a valid process at the direction of the Hudson County Superior Court is to take away a fifth vote for reliable good governance.  That's why they continue suing the PEOPLE OF HOBOKEN for what Judge Bariso called the Hoboken Sopranos' "gamesmanship."

The Hoboken Sopranos are not suing to have a special election. They know this is a pure canard.

Fact 2: Unbalanced budget and tax increases

A 4-4 Council is a breath of fresh air, a fact never more evident as we go through the Budget process. As our questioning has disclosed, the proposed budget has been underfunded, not balanced. To make up the difference, the Zimmer faction purposed a tax levy increase. We independents purposed nine amendments to the spending plan to avert a tax levy increase, which drives the budget’s bottom line.
We are aware that the 10% County Increase, the 4% Zimmer Board of Education budget increase and the looming increases as a result of the Zimmer-driven property revaluation will financially devastate our taxpayers. We, on the other hand, are committed to doing whatever it takes to keep expenses down and finding ways to decrease spending.

=====

Patting yourself on the back for suing the people to advance obstruction is one thing but the lies on the budget will surely never end with the Hoboken Sopranos.  Here's the fact on the budget and the ongoing war: Mayor Zimmer presented a perfectly balanced budget as she has for several years and the proposed budget this years included a modest 2% tax decrease.  This is pure fallacy and a weak attempt to tie the mayor's timely tax cutting budgets in recent years to failures of the past.

On taxes, the mayor has no control over the County or BoE although the Russo clan is looking to play politics with that in a resolution Wednesday night.  What they don't do is go to the school board and suggest an alternative to the 4% increase there.  (The last time the Hoboken Sopranos crew went to the BoE was to stop November elections and it not only passed in the BoE here (and most of NJ) but was supported overwhelmingly by the public for its local municipal elections last fall.

The reval is going to be an issue for taxpayers: with some taxes going up, some going down and others not changing much as anticipated.  The reval is driven not by the mayor but county and state law.  Again, that's not something the Hoboken Sopranos want you to know and blaming the mayor for county and state law is rather pedestrian.

If Ms. Castellano is concerned on the reval's tax impact on Hoboken residents, then why is both she and her council allies trying to shove down the throats of Hoboken a tax abatement (PILOT) for an undocumented massive building overhaul and expansion in the Hoboken Housing Authority with Vision 20/20?

Vision 20/20 no matter the final size (uncertain currently) will add to the cost of public safety and education and deprive Hoboken of revenue in taxes with the tax abatement Councilwoman Castellano and the Old Guard council tried to ram through in a recent council meeting past midnight.
======

Fact 3: Desperate appeal costing property taxpayers in Hoboken

As I said earlier, council members, Mason, Occhipinti, Russo and myself are paying for the legal effort to maintain a council vacancy ourselves which means not one penny of taxpayers money is being spent by us. As you may be aware, during the first court hearing, county Assignment Judge Bariso ruled that the Doyle appointment was illegal and the “Zimmer Administration screwed up.” Subsequently, Zimmer levied an appeal, as she always does when she does not get her way, hired a high priced, politically connected Norcross law firm. The city estimates the cost of the appeal at $30,000 and counting.
Another benefit for Zimmer by keeping the appeal active is to make friends with political power brokers for the benefit of back room deals and political contributions. ( Nice “green reformer” you turned out to be Dawn.)
I hope these facts shed some light on how we independent stand. When anyone writes a letter of truth, you can expect a Zimmer tool to respond in an effort to mask and divert discussion. With this I have no problem, All it does if give me the opportunity to say yet again, the independents are paying for their own defense, shame on those who are lying to the public. And, yes, there will be another letter from me as countless residents have commented, saying that I am articulating what everyone is thinking.
Remember, that much overused, abused word from the distant past: transparency.
Look it up again, refresh your memories.”
====

This is touching how the Hoboken Sopranos are sticking together suing the people of Hoboken.  There's a hilarious truth here that the Hoboken Sopranos that "not one penny of taxpayers money is being spent by us."  

100% true - it's their legal action and appeals suing Hoboken people that is costing taxpayers more than $30,000 (and counting).

What Castellano is not saying is that the judge ordered her crew to attend and vote on the council appointment and then explained to them what the vote meant.  The lie of omission of course is that there's no admission that - THE HOBOKEN SOPRANOS ALREADY LOST THEIR LAWSUIT EARLY THIS YEAR!

The only reason the case continues to cost Hoboken, time, council votes (cast by Jim Doyle) and money is because the Mason family continues to file appeals.  No one has said anyone is paying for pursuing this lawsuit other than the Mason family which is underwriting.

The lawsuit is not to see any special election take place as Mason and her Hoboken Soprano allies state.  The Hoboken Sopranos are appealing to keep Jim Doyle off the council from voting; they hope right into the November election!

That's the true 411.

Related: The actual legal decision early this year approving Jim Doyle's appointment and decrying the Old Guard council's gamesmanship: http://www.hobokenhorse.com/2013/02/court-approves-jim-doyle-appointment.html

Grist for the Mill: Anthony "Stick" Romano gets his 15 minutes in Vision 20/20

Anthony "Stick" Romano is getting his 15 minutes in local attention as he ponders much like Hamlet his future and the desire to sit on the second floor mayoral chair at City Hall.

Over the weekend, he shared his Hamletian thoughts on running clearly showing with the summer months ahead in Hoboken and most looking elsewhere, he's not going to bow out until his full 15 minutes is up.

Romano didn't show much inclination to convince himself of taking on Hoboken's popular mayor in the form of Mayor Dawn Zimmer.  He sounded more like a man looking for a reason to not run but if there's anything on his wish list, he can't get it at City Hall if he doesn't run.

Unlike most who are intimate among the Old Guard, Romano doesn't bash the mayor.  He's spoken of Mayor Zimmer as being a formidable opponent months ago and is not bashful to speak of her current popularity and string of successes from saving the hospital to overhauling the City's finances, reducing spending and cutting taxes.  His view of her performance with Hurricane Sandy is like vast majority in and outside Hoboken - very positive unlike declared mayoral challenger Ruben Ramos who has come out from behind proxies directly criticizing the mayor stating Hoboken wasn't well prepared.

At the HudCo level, Stick can only contemplate what county politicos might do for him. Frank "Pupie" Raia is pushing him but there's only so much funding he can do himself even if he his very motivated to see Ruben Ramos stopped. (After seeing the Assembly seat under Brian Stack go to Ramos pal Carmelo Garcia, Raia is burning red hot embers for payback.)  With Romano acting as chair to the county legislature board of freeholders, a political problem is right up ahead as he'll need to vote on a big tax increase for Hoboken courtesy of the County fat cats who "slashed" a few million from their almost half a billion annual budget at the last meeting. (Have these people learned the term attrition or headcount reduction yet?)

If rumors weeks back hold true, the votes on the County budget were up in the air on passage meaning Romano can't throw away his with a no vote.  HudCo is very protective of its monopoly and doesn't like the idea of the chairman of the freeholders voting against their tax increases - makes the other monopoly players look bad.

Romano's zenith may already be passing with the County not being able to motivate him with a carrot as many are already getting behind Ruben Ramos, although the effectiveness of their support is unclear in an independent Hoboken where professionals are becoming more aware of local issues and the dangers the Old Guard brings on a regular basis and the poison pill they are desperate to inflict on the City.

That "Vision for Hoboken" as it turns out doesn't have flooding or taxes as its number one priority but Vision 20/20, an enrichment program for the Old Guard and their friends giving many a golden parachute to build new shore homes and a get out of dodge before it "hits the fan" - when the full impact is realized in piecemeal building approvals never presented as a whole or the resulting negative costs (in public safety and education costs) when Hoboken residents realize both their environment and taxes have been hoodwinked.  The Hoboken Sopranos call these side effects a benefit - more votes and more locked in public safety costs re: jobs.

The Old Guard intention is to shove down as much of Vision 20/20 down Hoboken's throat as possible, by hook or by crook, take unplanned midnight votes and avoid presenting to all the people what the true intentions on the expansion are until it's a done deal.

Of course none of this is on paper and no process is being followed least of all a required redevelopment plan of the entire Vision 20/20 project.  For something of this size and scope it's an affront to all Hoboken people.

That's one problem undeclared candidate Stick Romano doesn't have to answer to but if he runs, he'll probably try to run away from the controversy.  As it stands, mayoral candidate Ruben Ramos can't although his council slate must be aghast at being the "professional" looking cannon fodder expected to make palatable the Vision 20/20 scam.

You haven't heard one word from Joe Mindak and Laura Miani on any of this have you?  Welcome to Hoboken Old Guard politics kiddies. You've been adopted as the poster children to sell the biggest lie in Hoboken since four million quarters disappeared to a mob connected south Jersey arcade company.

Better get some of that Old Guard-Hoboken Sopranos speed fabricating coursework done and pronto.
See Tim Occhipinti as an example of how to claim integrity as a candidate and lie to the public's face at every turn.

If Stick Romano gets into the mayoral race, there'll be a huge Old Guard battle.
It'll be an all out war in the fourth ward for the vote-by-mail harvest, an OG exploitation staple.

Talking Ed Note: Beth Mason, the councilwoman who has to mull over more than Hamlet if it's okay to accept state and federal grants to repave Washington and Sinatra Drive has no such qualms when it comes to the massive plans for Vision 20/20.

For the councilwoman who almost always requires more information to do anything positive for Hoboken, she's been all in from moment one backing Vision 20/20 that has seen no redevelopment documentation, no plan to the public, no public input - zilch.

Mason stamped her approval on the massive scam anyway publishing it on the politically vile website Hoboken411 following with a letter in the weekend paper.

This of course comes at no surprise. Although Beth Mason has no need herself to cash in with developers and exploiting the fourth ward and all of Hoboken in such an enterprise, she's firmly in the grip of the grifting crew who does.  They are looking to cash in a lot more than they did on her gargantuan $50,000 plus in street money expenditures in 2011.

At the last council meeting, lots of whispering chatter on that end of the table, reassuring Mason she's so loved and part of Hoboken's #1 grifting family. Until she and her family checkbook are tossed overboard of course.

What's that saying about milking the cow for free?


Vote-by-mail satirical graphic, courtesy of Grafix Avenger.

A Hoboken tableau

Hoboken's charm and beauty must not be sold out for back door deals and shore homes - that's their vision in 20/20.

Photo courtesy Jhnny Newman - 8th and Washington - click to enlarge

HHA brings a message to the City Council

At the last City Council meeting, HHA residents came for the second time to press for approval on a plan that did not exist, offered no redevelopment details and no communication to the impact on neighborhoods and the City at large.

Of course this is Vision 20/20, a plan limited to presenting more than doubling the size of the existing HHA with over 1800 units with higher density.  HHA ED Carmelo Garcia's claim the HHA Board has options fails to show there was only ONE visual presentation offered to Hoboken - the one with 1850 plus units from the existing 806 units in the HHA downtown in a 2012 HHA meeting presentation.

One longtime parks activist witnessed the display at the council meeting and spoke during public portion saying respect is not a one way street adding they were "appalled" at what they were seeing on the dais and in the audience.

Councilman Dave Mello found himself the point of an ugly attack by HHA resident Michelle Lesane.  She accused the councilman of calling residents monkeys. That "slander" was directed at the councilman who happens to be a school teacher in the south Bronx, a minority community with large demands of teachers.

Watch how gleeful the Hoboken Sopranos are and ask what principle and policy do Beth Mason, Michael Russo, Terry Castellano and Tim Occhipinti represent?

The Old Guard wants to profit from and control Hoboken with Vision 20/20 its linchpin.  Beyond that, what other message do you think they are sending the larger Hoboken community applauding this behavior?

Trying to do the professional role of a HHA commissioner in Vision 20/20

The ABC's of how not to run a government meeting and Vision 20/20 fallacies

Commentary from last night's meeting from the front lines:

Last night's HHA meeting was on the sedate side. There was about three dozen HHA residents among the thousands in the authority in attendance and nary a Mason thug or political operative on her payroll in sight.

The significant agenda item was the fifth attempt of the HHA Executive Director to force through the reappointment of the HHA legal counsel. It's akin to a bad movie watching this process unfold like a scene cut off the cutting room floor of the movie Groundhog Day.

Director Garcia in the video below speaks about how he has "educated" the commissioners about Vision 20/20.  The battle ensuing with HHA commissioner Dave Mello is a first on several levels.  First, this came after the vote not to reappoint Charles Daglian as HHA counsel.  He remains as a holdover as he has for months.  (How many MSV has lost count.)

Second, Mello is holding a fully functional microphone.  The volume is actually set at the same level as the Garcia's - perhaps an all time first.  Mello recognizing this, refuses to yield on a point of order to the HHA counsel.

A band of residents MSV has dubbed Carmelitos yells out and causes chaos at a mere question from Mello.

Is this any way to run a government meeting?

It gets better - or worse depending on your point of view.

Garcia in the video claims Vision 20/20's size is dependent on what the HHA commissioners decide.  This is not met with receptivity by some of the commissioners.  On what basis can any commissioner trust anything Carmelo Garcia says when just the other day he claimed the HHA counsel contract didn't involve him but would reflect the will of the commissioners?  Would any rational person conclude that after five "shove him down your throats" votes on reappointing Charles Daglian?

Is that the reason why they were voting for the fifth time on Garcia's insistence they re-appoint Charles Daglian? If Mr. Garcia is unwilling to work with his employers - the HHA board on identifying and appointing legal counsel what makes you think he will be doing anything remotely desired on Vision 20/20 where millions, correction tens of millions of dollars are flying over (and under the table)?

Watch the video and ask yourself if you as a professional could handle the utter lack of professionalism in a meeting under these conditions?

Then watch as commissioners Dave Mello and Jake Stuiver ask basic questions of the legal counsel on the role of the Board Secretary Carmelo Garcia.  See if they get an answer on his role.

Talking Ed Note: The Chairman of the HHA currently is Rob Davis.  At times he makes an effort to get the noise level under control but he never issued any warning to members of the audience who would yell out continuously during the meeting.  What's heard here is with not even a half-filled room.

Mr. Davis needs to review the Robert's Rules and specifically the points of order.  This pretty much is required by all members on Hoboken government bodies.  Also, before a vote on any matter before the commissioners, members need to be invited to comment, ask questions or initiate discussion before a vote is called.  More than once, the Board Secretary Carmelo Garcia called the vote without the chair inviting his fellow members to do so.

Just another symptom of a far greater problem.

Garcia in the video again says someone claimed the HHA sought to triple the size of the authority.  This time he doesn't specifically make the false claim it came from MSV.

Garcia says the HHA Board of Commissioners with the City Council will decide the ultimate size of the authority.  He says he can provide studies from Harvard and Yale on mixed income housing.  Here's one study from Yale and it doesn't advocate anything along the lines of 50-50 low to moderate housing with market rate let alone 80-20 with the latter being market rate.




"The False Promise of the Mixed-Income Housing Project," a 2010 paper by Robert C. Elickson, Yale Law School.  (MSV has not read the complete paper but thinks the summary provides a strong reference point on the topic. Note the percentages here of low income housing are criticized and fall in the 10 - 25% area. This is not what Vision 20/20 proposed in the more than massive doubling of the size of the HHA.)

The only reason these fallacies are brought forward is to make the project bigger and the developer and those in Hoboken connected, richer.

MSV hears Hoboken411 has been brought back from obscurity to promote Beth Mason's propaganda on Vision 20/20.  The woman is cravenly pushing this ahead without any redevelopment plan even presented to the City Council.

Got transparency Beth Mason?
Utterly disgraceful.

Hoboken better prepare itself for war.  With the amount of money involved here, the Old Guard will fight to the death to line their pockets on Vision 20/20.

HHA counsel contract rejected 4-3

Two resolutions returned by HHA Chairman Rob Davis at the direction of the Board Secretary Carmelo Garcia to re-appoint Charles Daglian failed in consecutive 4-3 votes.

Reform members Mello, Lincoln, Stuiver and Burrell (via phone) voted against the re-appointment.
Stuiver called the act of bringing back the resolutions illegal.

Garcia read a legal review from an external lawyer on redoing a motion to reconsider or reintroducing a motion.

But the vote was on resolutions voted down at the prior meeting. Garcia's reading of a legal motion being returned was inert to the failed resolutions being reintroduced at the meeting.

A RFQ process will again be restarted. Law firms need to be given accurate information on the application process as in the recent past, some have not.

HHA ED Carmelo Garcia instructs HHA Chairman Rob Davis on how to present the legal contracts again
leading into Thursday night's meeting.

Talking Ed Note: A fast one failed - for the fifth time.  Will ED Carmelo Garcia get the message finally and allow another choice to be vetted through the RFP process or will he act insubordinately to the board?  He complains about the extra cost incurred of $1,000 a month but fails to note his obstinance is preventing the HHA Board from moving ahead replacing Charles Daglian who has clearly lost the support of the body.

Vision 20/20 was a topic of public speakers who were shown brochures of buildings from West Coast cities by the Board Secretary Carmelo Garcia.

Photocopies of what Garcia called a plan was announced and he said it was available but none was offered.  In a sidebar, the Director offered the latest annual audit report.  When received, it will be made available.

Complaints were made often and loud to the (reform) commissioners for not seeing approved Vision 20/20 at council meetings. The HHA residents don't appear to understand no funding has been approved for the first building and that no process has been completed on behalf of the full City of Hoboken.  They've been led to believe there is political reasons holding up Vision 20/20 without any idea on what constitutes a true redevelopment process.

At one point, commissioner Dave Mello tried to explain other buildings in town going up currently have undergone years long processes. The answer was not met receptively among a group of the approximately three dozen residents in attendance.

At the end of the meeting, commissioner Eduardo Gonzalez was nominated and unanimously elected Vice President of the HHA Board of Commissioners.

Mayoral candidate Ruben Ramos stopped by during the meeting and watched a portion of the proceedings.

Guest of the Stable: Kurt Gardiner tackles HudCo's proposed 10% tax hike for Hoboken

Last week, the spending juggernaut know as Hudco supposedly did Hoboken a huge favor by hosting a Freeholder 2013 Budget workshop meeting in Hoboken's City Hall. Mayor Turner of Weehawken and Mayor Zimmer of Hoboken attended and politely expressed their concern over the tax increase and overall expenditures. They have to be polite since they have to work with the county. As a private citizen I don't have to be so polite so here goes my stance on behalf of the Hoboken taxpayer....

Kurt Gardiner Remarks on

2013 Hudson County Budget
Kurt Gardiner is a potential candidate for Freeholder in 2014

I am writing this as a resident and taxpayer of Hoboken to speak out on the 2013 proposed Hudson County budget first revealed to the public on May 7th 2013. The initial version presented has an approximate tax increase on Hoboken residents of 10% versus prior year or an increase of about $5 million in the levy inflicted upon Hoboken residents. It is time to say enough is enough and that Hoboken in my opinion and that of other taxpaying residents I have spoken to, it has been taxed too much by the County. This is especially true due to the scant level services it receives in return on a levy which in 2013 is projected to be over $50 million raised from Hoboken residents.

Hoboken although considered relatively affluent in terms of property values and income in relation to the rest of the County, it was by far the hardest hit of all the municipalities and is still struggling to recover from Hurricane Sandy and its aftermath. A FEMA survey of Hudson County shows Hoboken in terms of the number of properties sustained 97% of the county's flood damages, next was North Bergen at 1.3%. The other municipalities each sustained less than 1% of the total damage to the county. Not everyone in Hoboken is rich and there is still a substantial middle class in Hoboken given the number of affordable housing options and many of them are still recovering. Sandy as storms go really hurt Hoboken and this tax increase is like pouring sea salt into those open wounds. 

As a progressive I don’t expect Hoboken to get every dollar back for the money it is taxed. The County provides many services to the poor and elderly that are disproportionally in other areas of the County than Hoboken and that need them more. I get that. While Hoboken certainly benefits from the County Jail keeping criminals locked up and mental health programs and facilities that amount does not come close satisfying the $50 million plus per year that Hoboken residents put in. 

Mayor Dawn Zimmer, leading by example and and making tough but smart choices has reduced taxes more than 10% in her 4 year tenure but the County has given Hoboken taxpayer a raise of just 10% in one year and an overall increase of around 20% over the same time period. To simply blame the increase on increasing Hoboken property values and on the State Formula is not enough. In a time where local and state governments have all learned to really tighten their belts and show some fiscal restraint, Hudson County still operates in a bubble of zero accountability and as a county jobs patronage mill oblivious to call for a more service based approach. Nothing embodies that more than the recent attempt to hire Anthony Romano political ally Michelle Russo, wife of former Hoboken Mayor and convicted felon into a Custodial Services job for which she had no experience. Thankfully, responsible Hoboken residents got wind of that patronage hire attempt and the county backed off. How many other such County appointments still fly under the radar? Things that make you go hmm.

Other examples of County waste or inappropriate allocation of funds include $12 million for the County Golf Course. In a time with a deep recession an expenditure of this magnitude is unconscionable but spend it the county did. A more appropriate allocation would have been to help Hoboken with the privatization of the HUMC Hospital when it was in jeopardy of closing and plummeting Hoboken into bankruptcy. While Anthony Romano’s allies on the City Council Minority, Tim Occhipinti, Mike Russo, Terry Castellano, and Beth “I’ll sue you and your little dog too” Mason and were obstructing the deal with the only legitimate bidder from getting accomplished, where was the County? Surely since over 50% of the patients at the HUMC at the time were not from Hoboken and the county should have had a vested interest. Right? The answer was the County was nowhere to be found during that time of crisis.

Those are just a few examples from the past.

More importantly: What should the county do going forward? ...

The fact is that there is still much bloat in the current budget and while this can’t all be addressed in one year it is time to start a change in the culture. There is at least one Freeholder, Bill O’Dea that in earnest is looking for both costs savings and realized revenue to reduce the current levy for all Hudson County taxpayers of which Hoboken is just a part. Where are the other Freeholders including Anthony Romano who represents Hoboken in leading the charge to smartly reduce expenditures? Both the executive and the remainder of the legislative branch need to step up and get results.

Anthony Romano, unlike Mayor Zimmer has yet to speak out to the Hoboken taxpayer against this colossal increase via a letter to the editor or a public statement. So far he has produced nothing. I know Romano is not a big internet guy but not even writing something in the Hoboken Reporter is an insult to the Hoboken taxpayer. Hoboken comprises approximately 7.9% of the population but pays close to 17% of the taxes and would in my estimation be lucky to see 2-3% back in services. I find this to be an utter lack of leadership from my elected Freeholder. Perhaps from his subsidized Marine View Apartment that could go to a more worthy recipient of the middle class, Anthony Romano literally and figuratively looks down on those who foot the bill. That is admittedly speculation on my part. Romano’s silence on this matter is implicit support for pillaging of the Hoboken taxpayer.

Other areas where the County could help Hoboken would be additional grant money for infrastructure improvements like Sinatra Park repairs, park acquisition for the Henkel Site which would produce real ball fields, Washington Street (which is no longer a county road but gets a ton of county use as Hoboken is the #2 tourist destination in the State of New Jersey), help for the Jubilee Center, Hoboken Shelter, and other worthwhile organizations that are struggling for Federal and State funds. Moving monies into these areas in future budgets would help offset that imbalance that I and other Hoboken taxpayers see in the current situation.

Opportunities for further reduction include tighter monitoring of employee overtime and filling of vacancies (aka a hiring freeze or a downright RIF). I honestly wasn’t shocked to hear that 8 employees in the Department of Corrections consistently get tons of overtime very year and they are the same employees year after year. Remember Patrick Ricciardi who amassed tons of OT for years in Hoboken and pled guilty to data theft? This smells of favoritism and needs to be investigated. I liked Bill O’Dea’s suggestions of a committee to review all vacancies as long as he is on it. As the only Freeholder who in my view is a true fiscal hawk (which is Hudson County is actually a good thing) having him the chair would yield desirable results in my estimation. Constituent Services is a redundant department and can be eliminated with improved communication protocols and the adoption of a 311 system. The elimination of that department would not mean everyone would not necessarily lose their job, just be redeployed.

I am perturbed that possible employee headcount reductions were not mentioned as a possible solution to reducing costs to the County taxpayer. The fact the County would take that off the table limits its ability to make more cost savings and shows that it is operating in a vacuum where money seemingly has an endless supply. We all know that is not the case. Employee headcount reductions should be a part of these savings.Having a county job should be a privilege and not an entitlement but more and more the entitlement attitude seems to permeate in Hudson County. It cheapens the whole notion of civil service. 

The other aspect of the equation that hurts not only the Hoboken taxpayer but Weehawken and Secaucus is the implementation of use of pilots. Hoboken and Jersey City were listed as two cities making extensive use of long term pilots is a report on New Jersey Tax Abatements written in 2010 by State Comptroller Michael Boxer. Jersey City in particular stands out as quoted in the 2010 report:

“Jersey City currently exempts approximately $2 billion of property value. In view of the city’s general tax rate of $6 per $100 of assessed value (6%), Jersey City is not collecting approximately $120 million is property taxes on the exempted property. In 2009, Hudson County received approximately 25% of the property taxes collected in the city. Using that as a baseline, the county did not collect approximately $30 million from Jersey City due to the city’s abatements. While the county still receives some amount through it 5% portion of PILOTS it does not make up for that $30 million in lost revenue. Instead, the other municipalities in the county make up for those dollars”. 

This year that would be Weehawken, Secaucus and Hoboken. Just to be clear the PILOTS in Jersey City and Hoboken were not created by the currently elected officials in Hoboken and Jersey City but they have choices going forward about how to handle PILOTS. I know we have a reform mayor reform in Hoboken that understands this and I am hopeful for fairer use PILOTS in Jersey City with newly Mayor. Time will tell.

We know life isn’t fair but something has to be done about PILOTS and the State formulation going forward. Since that is not in direct control of Hudson County, it is up to the county to do their best to help make up the difference. There is a overcapacity built in to our current corrections and juvenile facilities that needs serious examination for example. Operational audits from a respected firm or firms would go along way to finding additional savings opportunities without jeopardizing services. 

Again this isn’t about Hoboken getting back dollar for dollar, it is a about a better balance. Expenditures can be decreased and revenues realized. At the very least a hiring freeze and possible employee headcount reductions should be a part of it. It is high time Hoboken taxpayers stopped getting the short end of the “Stick” and have leadership that will understand the Hoboken taxpayer. I can’t wait for 2014 and it is not just about me necessarily running for office. I just want better representation for Hoboken. 

City partnering with Dept. of Energy, NJ utilities to develop resilient electric grid

Go to nixle.com

Thursday June 13, 2013 City of Hoboken www.hobokennj.org     Community: City of Hoboken, US Dept of Energy, NJ Board of Public Utilities & PSE&G Partner to Develop Resilient Electric Grid The City of Hoboken, U.S. Department of Energy, N.J. Board of Public Utilities, and PSE&G are partnering to design an energy resilient “smart grid” to improve Hoboken's resiliency to power outages. In the wake of Superstorm Sandy, the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability is supporting Sandia National Laboratories to aid the City of Hoboken in boosting the resiliency of its electric grid. This critical partnership brings the deep expertise of the national labs to address the critical needs of our nation's electric grid. "We are honored to partner with the Department of Energy, Board of Public Utilities, and PSE&G to make Hoboken a model for resilient electric grids using 21st century technology," said Mayor Dawn Zimmer. "Through this partnership, Hoboken will build on its proud history of innovation in technology by becoming one of the first non-military applications of Sandia’s design methodology." “We are proud of the reliability of our system, which has been nationally recognized,” said Ralph LaRossa, PSE&G president and COO. “But the extreme weather in the past two years calls for extraordinary measures to harden our systems. PSE&G is pleased to support this unique effort to improve the resiliency of the city’s critical infrastructure. This effort is a perfect complement to our proposed Energy Strong filing, which would protect Hoboken’s substations from the type of water damage we had during Sandy.” “Today’s agreement is yet another step in the State’s continuing efforts to address safety and reliability concerns related to the delivery of electric and gas service to New Jersey ratepayers,” said Bob Hanna, President of the N.J. Board of Public Utilities. “This collaboration will enable us to assess the potential benefits and costs associated with implementing distributed generation and smart-grid technologies to improve energy reliability and resiliency in the Hoboken service area and to apply the lessons learned to other cities and towns across New Jersey.” Sandia will bring their Energy Surety Design Methodology to partner with the City of Hoboken, N.J. Board of Public Utilities, PSE&G, Greener by Design and other stakeholders to develop a comprehensive plan to meet the critical needs of Hoboken in future events such as storms and other disruptions to the electric grid. The design methodology uses advanced, smart grid technologies and distributed and renewable generation and storage resources as a way to improve the reliability, security, and resiliency of the electric grid. Signing event remarks from Mayor Dawn Zimmer: “Today, as we sign our energy agreement, we officially launch an energy resiliency partnership between the City of Hoboken, the U.S. Deparment of Energy, Sandia National Labs, PSE&G and the N.J. Board of Public Utilities. Thank you so much to our DOE representatives, Ravi Gorur and Dan Ton, Ralph LaRossa, President & COO of PSE&G, and Robert Hanna, President of the BPU for being here with us today and making a commitment to collaborate on this smart grid energy project that could help to ensure communities like Hoboken are safer through future storms. Thank you also to my Resiliency Team members Stephen Marks and Brandy Forbes and the Greener by Design team headed by Adam Zellner for working so hard on this crucial project. As we all heard, Hoboken was devastated by Hurricane Sandy, so when HUD Secretary Donovan and Bill Bryan from the Department of Energy came to visit our City, I shared our residents’ challenges and eagerly offered Hoboken as a learning laboratory for energy resiliency. I have had the honor of serving on Secretary Donovan’s Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force, and I want to thank Michael Passante and his team for being here with us, and I thank them all for choosing Hoboken as an energy learning center. They wanted to do a pilot program for a smaller scale City impacted by Sandy, and Hoboken was a perfect match. After all that we went through, I was more than happy to partner with them on this exciting project. I also want to give a huge thank you to Governor Christie for supporting this project through the BPU’s involvement. Ultimately, I am determined to implement a smart grid and microgrid system for Hoboken. The State and the BPU are very important partners for this hefty energy goal of mine since it could involve the need for some adjustments to the regulatory process in order to achieve our objectives. Thank you to Senator Menendez and Congressman Sires for their support of this project – they wanted to be here but they are in Washington today. Finally, I want to give a very special thank you to the senior from Church Towers who made me even more determined to fight harder for Hoboken. One evening in the midst of Sandy, I went knocking on doors to bring food and tell residents about how Brad Paisley’s chef was going to be cooking up a storm in Church Square Park. He heard about Hoboken on the news and drove up from Pennsylvania with a truck filled with food and rolled out his portable kitchen. This senior thanked me for the food, but asked incredulously in tears about the management of her building: “How could they leave us completely in the dark? Look, not even the exit sign is lit up,” she exclaimed. “I am afraid to go down the stairs because I could fall.” As she cried in my arms, I assured her I would fight to find a solution. With her story and so many others like hers in mind, I am proud that a little over seven months after Sandy, we have created an energy partnership and agreement that will help to keep everyone safer through the next storm. As we stand here today, in this basement conference room that was the pulsing heart of an emergency command center, I want to briefly explain what we mean by a smart energy grid and how it could help our community. Having a smart grid means designing an electrical grid that keeps the power on through the storm for our most essential services. Our first responders at the Police and Fire Departments and here at City Hall must have power through the storms so they can effectively respond to all of the emergencies. It means keeping the power on at Hoboken University Medical Center so residents have an emergency center open and available when that emergency situation strikes. It means keeping North Hudson Sewerage Authority operational so that our flood pump keeps pumping out flood waters and our sewage can be treated instead of backing up onto our streets. Having a smart grid means making sure the hallway lights and exit signs are lit for my seniors who may not have the resources to evacuate. This smart grid, possibly connected to a microgrid system, could power emergency LED hallway lights and the community rooms where seniors gathered every day to share meals and shelter together through Hurricane Sandy. It could possibly power the elevators to make one trip down in the morning and one up at night so seniors are not stuck in their apartments waiting for the power to go back on. It could power the fire suppression system so we can avoid the unbelievably dangerous situation we had throughout Hoboken: Apartments filled with candles, no fire suppression or alert system, and irresponsible property owners who failed to even implement fire watches. Build stronger, and yes, communities like Hoboken could safely shelter in place. During Hurricane Sandy I was on a conference call with President Obama together with other State and community leaders, and the President was discussing the need to move people into shelters. I pointed out that in urban communities like Hoboken we needed to shelter in place because most people simply would not go to the shelters. President Obama listened and got us generators as quickly as he could, and now we are building on the sheltering in place approach with this project. This energy resiliency partnership is an essential component of a comprehensive approach designed to protect Hoboken. Our plan includes more flood pumps along our waterfront, large detention basins to retain rainwater under land we are trying to buy for parks, and expanded implementation of city-wide green infrastructure to capture rain water in every way possible. It also includes a series of protective barriers and hardening of existing buildings to protect Hoboken at the north and south from future storm surges. Since Sandy, Hoboken has had several major flood events. Unfortunately, when heavy rains and high tide come at the same time, we get flooded, including our PSE&G substations. We have applied for grant funding for our comprehensive flood plan, and I am very glad that PSE&G’s Energy Strong program includes a proposed action plan for Hoboken’s substations. I am a huge fan of that plan. As I participated in a crisis simulation workshop at a UN Conference on Resiliency a few weeks ago, I reflected on that fact that in addition to getting funding for the pumps, ensuring that Hoboken is energy resilient has to be my top priority for both our residents and our businesses that were so hard hit by the loss of power and the flooding. One way or another, I am determined to get this done by some combination of grants and public-private partnerships.”

Hoboken Housing Authority cleared in investigation of $100,000 federal stimulus expenditures

The odd trumpeting of HUD's Office of Investigation unit's examination into three areas related to expenditures on the federal stimulus has been the subject of some extracurricular spin in recent days. MSV obtained the report.  Here's the three items related to the investigation in the May report:

No one is arrested on the HUD investigations of $100,000 in federal stimulus fund expenditures.
Based on the political operative commenting here and crowing elsewhere, you'd think it's akin to earning a medal.
Tonight a definite round of law breaking is on tap when HHA counsel Charles Daglian will see a vote if
Director Carmelo Garcia has his way with five attempts to ram him down his boss' re: the HHA board's throats.

Talking Ed Note: It's unclear what prompted the investigation unit of HUD to look into how stimulus funds were spent. This clearly goes back several years when the almost trillion dollar package was passed in 2009 and has nothing to do with the controversy over spending more than $300,000 on elevator floors.  Or the documentation-less Vision 20/20 project.

After celebrating there's no convictions on expenditures from the federal stimulus program (it's unclear how much employment stimulus the expenditures created) let's move on to an illegal appointment again of the HHA Director's personal consiglieri - for the fifth time.

How is a contractor in the form of Director Carmelo Garcia respecting the wishes of his employers by attempting to circumvent the obvious will of that body which has repeatedly rejected his insistence Charles Daglian remain as the HHA counsel?

Is the HHA counsel contract under Carmelo Garcia some kind of lifetime appointment? 

On the matter of law, on basic common sense and ethics 101, NO HHA commissioner should be voting for the fifth time to reappoint Charles Daglian as HHA counsel.  To those who will vote for him again (illegally mind you) don't you have an ounce of self-respect for yourself or the oversight responsibility of being a HHA commissioner?

How does commissioner Eduard Gonzalez explain that on the campaign trail and his friends at the Quality of Life Coalition?  He's a candidate for the City Council on the Ruben Ramos mayoral ticket.

Had enough?

6:00 pm at 220 Adams Street tonight if you want to see the law broken in plain sight.  


Vision 20/20 eye chart courtesy of Grafix Avenger

Mayor Zimmer to Assemblyman Ramos: Help Hoboken protect its waterfront from construction piers development

Office of the Mayor announces:

Today the Assembly Environment & Solid Waste Committee is considering A-3933/S-2680 which would enable urban coastal communities to build residential and commercial development on existing piers in coastal high hazard areas.

The attached letter is being read to the Committee today by Mayor Zimmer’s Chief of Staff in order to convey Hoboken’s position with respect to this legislation and opposing Hoboken’s inclusion in the legislation.

Mayor Zimmer letter to Assemblyman Ruben Ramos 6-12-13

Talking Ed Note: MSV as a matter of policy doesn't comment on official government releases but will here to the extent of emphasizing the important intervention the mayor is taking to protect Hoboken.

Mayor Zimmer became aware of this statewide legislation barreling ahead and is seeking assistance from Assemblyman Ruben Ramos to adopt an amendment and stop Hoboken's waterfront from being targeted for further development re: the Monarch.

Hobokenites will look toward cooperation in seeing this exemption here through as it is already flying out of the station with passage in the State Senate and Assembly assured.