Month: November 2017

News

Grist for the Mill: Carmelo million dollar back door payoff through the HHA?

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While the Ravi-Russo deal exclusively reported here last week generated most of the recent heat in Hoboken, now comes word of an almost seven figure payoff to Carmelo Garcia being prepared through the back door using the Hoboken Housing Authority.

The HHA is the federal housing agency in town left in financial straits after Garcia had seen the remainder of his contract as Executive Director of the agency terminated in August 2013. The agency as the City, the HHA board members, Mayor Dawn Zimmer, Stan Grossbard and former HHA chair Jake Stuiver were all named defendants in the Garcia civil lawsuit. Read More...

News

Almost a cool million for Carmelo, First Amendment trashing and the Ravi flyer suspects

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Is a sweetheart of a Hoboken payoff for almost a cool million about to be made to Carmelo Garcia? That’s what’s being heard on the Mile Square streets after his squalid years long civil litigation and depositions finally took place with Mayor Dawn Zimmer preparing to exit office next month.

Carmelo Garcia: expecting Hoboken to show him the money?

Word of the almost seven figure settlement from non-governmental sources arose last week.  In late 2013, Carmelo Garcia filed what was seen by many as a political lawsuit after his contract at the Hoboken Housing Authority was terminated earlier that summer. He filed it against the City of Hoboken, Mayor Zimmer, her husband Stan Grossbard and the HHA. The complaint was thrown out of court on the first attempt, refiled and mostly thrown out on its second filing. It was later withdrawn and refiled a third time. The HHA would then file a civil lawsuit of its own making specific complaint against Garcia operating as its executive director. Read More...

News

Thanksgiving Grist Special: Ravi Bhalla backs Michael Russo for Council President!

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MSV fired up the barbie one last time before the Thanksgiving feast to share this gristy chewable to mix with your cranberry sauce. You’ll need something to wash this one down as it confirms what you’ve been told consistently through the election.

A source says Ravi Bhalla, the Hoboken mayoral-elect is pushing Councilman Michael Russo to succeed the highly respected Jen Giattino as Hoboken City Council President come January.

Rumors at the last council meeting of a deal between Russo and Ravi Bhalla began circulating almost immediately before the meeting had even finished. Read More...

News

In the aftermath of the fallout, born is the Hoboken Resistance

Reform is kaput. There’s nothing more to say about the movement after more than eight years on MSV where the death knell saw one mayoral candidate member turn on another in a cynical divisive mission to exploit and wreck any challenge to the baton handoff last June before City Hall.

The nuclear fallout from injecting the poison of partisanship into Hoboken’s non-partisan election and decimating Reform is past. The fallout is here. What’s left? It must be a return by Hoboken citizens to a focus on government accountability. Read More...

News

Mike DeFusco asks for unity in face of being attacked as racist; Ravi Bhalla declines unless he “is absolved”

New Business last night opened the door to the fallout from the Hoboken mayoral campaign. Councilman Mike DeFusco took the floor asking Councilman Ravi Bhalla to come together as a community and stand together as they were both harmed in the last midnight flyer. He played voicemails on his phone lambasting him as a racist he said he had received that day.

Councilman Ravi Bhalla voiced regret for the attacks and declined to support DeFusco until the results of a police investigation saying he would “if he was absolved.” Read More...

News

Ravi Bhalla: “We are non-partisan local officials”

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The Hoboken mayoral election is over and the fallout from the nuke deployed has only begun to rain down on the victims and the victors. Councilman Ravi Bhalla was successful in bringing all the advantage of outside money, a shadowy union connected PAC and establishment influence but lacking confidence for reasons unknown, introduced the poison of party partisanship into Hoboken’s distinctly non-partisan municipal election.

With the mayor’s success and support waning, the ultimate in destruction was launched to smear and do harm to the superb contributions of a critical reform legislator who was not only a friend to Reform but also a personal friend to Ravi Bhalla for over six years: council member Jen Giattino. Read More...

News

Peter Cunningham: Here’s to the victors and “one of the ugliest campaigns” in Hoboken history

Official release:

Dear friends and neighbors,  Tuesday night’s post-election results were sobering to many of us.  The message of hope we tried to deliver from our candidates for Mayor and Council was overshadowed by factors in which we had little control.  Given the short runway and limited funding sources at the start, we were severely handicapped, but felt strongly about overcoming these odds.   With the exception of time, money, and party affiliation, I wouldn’t change a thing.  There are always parts of a campaign to tweak, but the major things were out of our control.  The Bhalla campaign knew that and took a bet which paid off.  Unfortunately, the overall result was one of the ugliest campaigns on record in Hoboken.  Even though we didn’t win, I am happy to congratulate the victors.  I hope our campaign message of inclusion, accountability, and constituent services will resonate as priorities with the Bhalla Administration.   My door is open to each of of the newly elected with any help I can give.    Lastly, I extend my thanks to: my family and all of the other candidate families who also experienced the stress of a campaign day in and day out; Jen, Jim, Jason and Sal for being great candidates, our volunteers who demonstrated a commitment like none other, our Campaign Steering Committee, and above all, you the voters who believed in Jen and her team.  We love you for your support and hope to earn it again in the future.   Councilman Peter Cunningham cunninghamforhoboken@gmail.com
News

Toxic “person of interest” identified in midnight flyers?

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MSV can exclusively report the Hoboken Police Department has obtained critical new evidence in the midnight flyer attack on Councilman Ravi Bhalla.

The new evidence provides clarity in the ongoing investigation identifying new leads. Rumors of additional police interviews reportedly have taken place in recent days with more expected leading to a person of interest.

Two midnight flyers appeared in the last Hoboken mayoral campaign with one coming days before the election last Tuesday attempting to link Councilman Ravi Bhalla to terrorism. The flyer backfired leading to an astounding turnout of over 15,000 Hobokenites going to the polls. Fully a third sympathetically voted to elect Bhalla Hoboken’s first Sikh mayor in a six person field. Read More...