Last year the 10 year anniversary brought out a big crowd with politicians lined up to speak to the large collected audience at Pier A for the occasion.  The most noteworthy official in attendance at the remembrance was then NJ Attorney General Paula Dow, the highest ranking law enforcement official in the state.

Police manned the entrance to Pier A Park and we saw one of our favorite officers in full uniform looking sharp and crisp and we chatted briefly.  Upon entering the park, we crossed the narrow path and one Matt Calicchio, the Mason Civic League employee. Read More...

                           

Hoboken resident Greg Bond’s tribute to the 9-11 Tribute of Light.

In honor of all those murdered that day, we also honor those in Hoboken who perished. Please hold all of them and their families in prayer.

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Office of the Mayor announces:

Mayor Zimmer welcomes Solomon Steplight as new Finance Director Mayor Dawn Zimmer announced that Transportation and Parking Director Ian Sacs will be leaving his position on October 15, 2012 and that she has appointed Solomon Steplight as Finance Director effective today. Director Sacs recently informed Mayor Zimmer that he and his family are moving to Europe. He has agreed to assist with completing major ongoing projects on a consulting basis. “Ian put Hoboken on the map as a leader in progressive transportation initiatives,” said Mayor Dawn Zimmer. “He brought us new technologies like multi meters and an online permit sale system, started a nationally-recognized car-sharing program, set into motion years of roadway safety design improvements, expanded customer service hours, made our streets more accommodating for all users and reduced car crashes with pedestrians and bicyclists, eliminated garage waiting lists, and expanded our shuttle system and bicycling infrastructure. I can’t thank him enough for all he has done for Hoboken.” “My choice is best for our family, yet nonetheless difficult,” said Director Sacs. “I thank Mayor Zimmer for the opportunity to serve Hoboken; it has been a sincere pleasure working alongside her team of stellar professionals.” Mr. Steplight’s strong managerial experience includes serving as Assistant Finance Director in Newark and as Director of Finance, Strategy and Administration at a national nonprofit organization. His resume is available on the City website: www.hobokennj.org/docs/mayor/Steplight-Resume.pdf. “I thank Director Trasente for his service to Hoboken through a difficult time, for being a part of putting our finances back on track, and for agreeing to assist through a transition period,” said Mayor Zimmer. “During his time as Finance Director, we have made City Hall more efficient and seen a significant reduction in the municipal tax levy.”

Solomon Steplight the new Finance Director with Mayor Dawn Zimmer

City of Hoboken announces:

Today an order to show cause, verified complaint and brief were filed with the Court on behalf of the Clerk of the City of Hoboken in relation to the rent control ballot question. The City believes that the proposed wording for the rent control ballot question as presently written is confusing and misleading. The only way to protect the rights of the voters is for the ballot question to be framed in a simple and fair manner. “Regardless of which side people take on the question of rent control, voters deserve a clear understanding of the issue on which they are being asked to vote,” said Mayor Dawn Zimmer. The proposed public question as submitted by the Petitioners to the City Clerk reads as follows: Shall the City of Hoboken continue annual rental increase protections for current residents of rent controlled properties but allow property owners to negotiate rents for vacant apartments and exempt buildings with one-to-four units and condominium units from the rent leveling ordinance by adopting the proposed amendment to Chapter 155 of the Code of the City of Hoboken? The Clerk proposes the following public question:

Shall Hoboken’s Rent Control law be amended to provide that upon vacancy, buildings containing 4 or fewer units that are now covered by rent control become exempt from the City’s Rent Control laws, and that buildings containing more than 4 units that are now covered by Rent Control, upon vacancy, be permitted to charge the new tenant a market rate rent, while continuing to be covered by the other provisions of the City’s Rent Control laws such as the limitations on annual rent increases and other tenant protections? Read More...

City of Hoboken announces:

=&0=&^TH=&2=& The Hoboken community will come together to share in its annual September 11th Interfaith Memorial Service for the victims, their families, the City of Hoboken, and the entire nation. Fifty seven Hoboken residents were lost on September 11, 2001. The service will take place on Tuesday, September 11th at 6:30 pm. on the southeast corner of Hoboken’s Pier A Park – the site of a makeshift memorial on September 11, 2001. All are invited to attend.

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The United States Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey announces:

Trenton, N.J., Mayor, Brother And Associate Arrested And Charged With Conspiracy To Extort Bribes

September 10, 2012

Eight Others Also Arrested in Separate, Trenton-based Oxycodone Distribution Conspiracy
TRENTON, N.J. – Trenton Mayor Tony F. Mack, the mayor’s brother, Ralphiel Mack, and his close associate, Joseph A. “JoJo” Giorgianni, were arrested by federal agents this morning and charged by criminal Complaint in connection with a scheme to extort payments of more than $100,000 from others who were purportedly developing a public parking garage, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced. The Complaint charges that over the past two years Mack, 46, and his associates negotiated with two individuals who were cooperating with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and FBI and agreed to expedite approvals and sell city-owned property at a fraction of its value. Giorgianni also was charged in a separate Complaint along with eight other defendants with conspiracy to distribute oxycodone pills in the Trenton area. The following defendants also were charged in the drug conspiracy Complaint:

Name	Age	Residence
Mary Manfredo	65	Lawrenceville, NJ
Anthony Dimatteo	31	Trenton
Ralph Dimatteo Sr.	62	Trenton
Giuseppe A. Scordato	47	Hamilton, NJ
Carol Kounitz	57	Hamilton, NJ
Stephanie Lima	41	Yardville, NJ
Mark Bethea	45	Trenton
Eugene Brown	70	Atlantic City, NJ

All 11 defendants are scheduled to make their initial court appearances this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Douglas E. Arpert in Trenton federal court. “Time and again, we have seen public officials in New Jersey who are all too willing to sell their power and betray the public’s trust,” U.S. Attorney Fishman said. “Here, the Complaint charges that Mayor Mack and his coconspirators were willing to let city property go for a fraction of its worth. And he allegedly chose as his middleman a convicted felon who was simultaneously heading a conspiracy to traffic in prescription medication. Neither selling one’s oath of office or illegally selling prescription medication is acceptable on the streets of Trenton or anywhere else in New Jersey.” “The citizens of New Jersey’s state capital deserve far better than politicians and cronies who aspire to the Boss Tweed-style, Tammany Hall politics of patronage, graft, and corruption,” said Michael Ward, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Newark Division. “Public service is not an open invitation to enrich one’s self via illegal means. At no time should elected officials have need for middlemen, ‘buffers,’ and coded conversations.” The investigation, which lasted nearly two years, included the execution of search warrants, court-ordered wiretaps and consensually recorded conversations. The extortion conspiracy count with which the defendants are charged is punishable by a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The Extortion Conspiracy According to the Complaint filed against Tony F. Mack, Joseph A. Giorgianni, 63, of Ewing, and Ralphiel Mack, 39, of Trenton: As mayor, Mack influenced actions taken on behalf of the City of Trenton, including matters concerning the disposition of city-owned property. Giorgianni, a convicted felon and the proprietor of a Trenton sandwich shop called JoJo’s Steakhouse, is Mayor Mack’s associate. Ralphiel Mack is Mayor Mack’s brother and was employed by the Trenton Board of Education as Trenton Central High School’s head football coach. The Macks, Giorgianni and others conspired to corrupt certain functions of Trenton city government in favor of a purported developer who was seeking to build a parking garage on a city-owned lot on East State Street. In reality, the developer was cooperating with federal authorities. During the course of the negotiations, which lasted almost two years, the defendants agreed to accept more than $119,000 in bribes, of which $54,000 had been paid at the time of their arrests. To attempt to evade law enforcement detection, the defendants employed intermediaries, used code words, and attempted to limit their discussions of the scheme over the telephone.

Beginning in September 2010, Giorgianni had several recorded meetings with an individual who was cooperating with law enforcement (CW-1), during which Giorgianni agreed to serve as an intermediary, or “buffer,” for cash payments to Mayor Mack in exchange for the mayor’s support of a parking garage project. During these meetings, Giorgianni described his intent to promote and facilitate a corrupt system of government in Trenton. During a Sept. 14, 2010, meeting, Giorgianni stated that he conducted business in the City of Trenton the way “Boss Tweed” ran “Tammany Hall,” and provided examples of how kickbacks should be received in exchange for city contracts. Read More...

The Boys of Summer have struck again and this time it’s Trenton Mayor Tony Mack placed under arrest along with others including Mack’s brother for corruption involving a developer.

The mayor is accused of taking $119,000.  In Hoboken, the Old Guard calls that plural sum “a mistake.”  Gosh, these stories are so easy, they write themselves, over and over.

Video Trenton Mayor Tony Mack perp walk courtesy of NBC News 4 New York Read More...

The Post Labor Day window was the predicted timeline for the Old Guard to unify behind one candidate and marshall its efforts to unseat Mayor Dawn Zimmer reclaiming City Hall, the $100 million budget and the jobs going with it.

A week after the holiday, a referendum on the ballot will likely see the scheduled May municipal elections move to November and with it chaos is already breaking out in the Old Guard ranks.

Last month a source with a window into the Old Guard’s room revealed the yelling had already started with the last Old Guard meeting ended. Read More...

City of Hoboken announces:

=&0=& Interested Community Members Invited to Apply for Training The City of Hoboken seeks to continue to build its Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and has scheduled a CERT training program for community members interested in volunteering. CERT training promotes a partnering effort between emergency services and the people that they serve. The goal is for emergency personnel to train members of neighborhoods, community organizations, or workplaces in basic response skills. CERT members are then integrated into the emergency response capability for their area. If a disastrous event overwhelms or delays the community’s professional response, CERT members can assist others by applying the basic response and organizational skills that they learned during training. These skills can help save and sustain lives following a disaster until help arrives. CERT skills also apply to daily emergencies. If interested in joining CERT, please download and complete the application (www.hobokennj.org/docs/publicsafety/CERT-application.doc) and return by email to certteam@hobokennj.org. Participation in CERT requires the successful completion of a training course on a range of subject matter specific to emergency response and disaster relief. All classes will be conducted at the Hoboken Volunteer Ambulance Corps, 707 Clinton Street starting at 7:00 pm and ending at 9:30 pm. The training schedule is as follows: 10/23/2012 – Disaster Preparedness 10/30/2012 – Fire safety 11/6/2012 – Disaster Medical Operations 1 11/13/2012 – Disaster Medical Operations 2 11/15/2012 – Light Search and Rescue Operations 11/29/2012 – CERT Organization 12/6/2012 – Disaster Psychology 12/13/2012 – Terrorism and CERT A final exam will be at the Hoboken Volunteer Ambulance Corps at a date to be determined. Participants =&1=& attend every module of training as well as participate in the final emergency simulation exercise in order to receive certification as a fully trained CERT Team member. Upon completion of the training, each participant will be issued a CERT Member Emergency Kit to maintain for future deployments. =&2=& Email | Text |Website | Facebook | Twitter | RSS