Official release:
, and will allow for a community dialogue to discuss the prejudices and injustices faced by the LGBTQ community.
Official release:
Councilman DeFusco: No ‘Smiley Face Killer,’ but Hoboken’s Waterfront needs more security, life-saving initiativesHOBOKEN — There may be no “smiley face killer” on the waterfront, but the number of people dying off the shores of Hoboken is still alarming. Law enforcement agencies do not believe foul play was involved
Official release:
Dear Friends and Neighbors, Two really important engagement initiatives for you and our community. First, please sign the petition to keep Union Dry Dock from being developed into a refueling station for NY Waterway. We need more signatures!! The link is below, and it’s quick and simple to do. It’s important to keep the pressure on the Governor’s office while NY Waterway mounts a campaign against our efforts. https://betterwaterfront.org/?page_id=10483&fbclid=IwAR3aMQo4pFnDS2SUWl4oRB2nHVlCLZPpGbjFNgodFf0gP0egY4XXD1BfKGw Second, tomorrow morning at 8am, I will host with the Mayor and Chief Ferrante, Coffee with a Cop at Anthony Davids. Wednesday, May 29nd, 2019, from 8am-930am Anthony David’s at 953 Bloomfield Street Host: Councilman Peter Cunningham In Attendance with Chief Ken Ferrante will be Mayor Ravi Bhalla, Captain Tory Pasculli (Training and Administrative commander), Lieutenant John Petrosino (Traffic Commander), Sergeant Jonathan Butler (Day street supervisor), Officer Dylan Archilla (Traffic officer and member of the Hudson County regional Collision Team, and recent recipient of a Hudson County 200 Club Valor Award). This is a great national initiative that Chief Ferrante has been at the forefront to enhance the relationship between our Police Department and community on local issues and how we can all work together to solve them. These have been a great success throughout Hoboken, and hope to see you there tomorrow morning. Please circulate and let me know if you have any questions!!—
Peter Cunningham
=&0=&
=&1=&
Sunday afternoon, two men in their early twenties coasted by on a scooter designed for one. As they went by upper Hudson turning south on Sinatra Drive, they received an unsolicited warning.
“That’s dangerous and illegal,” a voice called out.
The taller man, a passenger, turned around and gave a smug stare.
“You could get a summons too,” came the audible response.
More smugness from the rear “passenger” on the e-scooter suffering abuse.
Not 20 yards down the roadway, the driver began to make erratic movements to and fro. Was it intentional or due to the uneven section of the road?
Freedom is never free.
“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.“ =&0=& =&1=&
Official release:
A good turnout Tuesday at 10th and Willow begins the long march to November and Mayor Ravi Bhalla’s political options out of Hoboken.
Call it the backup plan if he’s trapped in the Mile Square City forcing a run for re-election in 2021.
| The current City Council will never back Ravi Bhalla’s broken promises like his second job with a politically connected Republican law firm. It’s one real reason he wants compliant replacements. |
Officially, the campaign is for a November council slate for six ward seats. On this ticket with the exception of Phil Cohen, nary a single individual is known to the wider community. There’s nothing in the way of ever backing The Reform Movement, fighting on any important Hoboken issue let alone any issue in this decade on behalf of the Mile Square City.
Official release:
Dear friends and neighbors: It has been both a short and long 48 hours (as of this writing). By now I am sure all of you have had at least one direct experience with our new E-Scooters – whether witnessing a safety breach or riding one or both. Here is just one example of the many that I witnessed myself over the last two days of people running straight through stop signs (click to watch the short video): The volume of emails, calls and messages I have received has been exceptional given the short duration. Hoboken PD has indicted they received over 1,000 emails to traffic@hobokepd.org in the first day. Like those I received, the majority, but not all, are from people who are concerned, against, opposed, and/or want to see the E-Scooters thrown in the river. And I would say that I personally fell into that camp as well. A few have told me they are fun or cool. Truth be told, I have not yet ridden one mainly because I lack confidence in my own abilities to stay upright on one, but I will give it the ole college try soon. I am not writing to tell you what you already know. That the rollout was terrible, lacking the education and enforcement plans and a commitment to safety that had been promised to the City Council when we voted 8-1 on the PILOT (for clarity – I voted ‘Yes’ only after I introduced and we discussed the topics of education and enforcement and we received the promises from the administration and HPD). Or that it seems like everyone in town lost their manners, marbles and respect for their neighbors in the last two days with these EScooters – whether ignoring stop signs and traffic lights, riding on sidewalks (illegal) and the wrong way on one way streets (always illegal), letting their teens have their sign-in and riding through Church Square Park (minimum age is 18, riding in parks is illegal), or letting their six year old join them on the scooter without a helmet (or even with one! Illegal!) and then just leaving scooters in the middle of sidewalks and directly in front of entrances to buildings. Seriously… WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED?!?!?!?!? Day one was ridiculous but behaviors seemed to improve some on day two – I saw plenty of people riding safely, still a minority though. And we learned more. We learned that there were 2,500 rides on day one by 1,700 people that traveled over 2,700 miles. That is a lot given these were only on 250 scooters (these stats just for the Lime E-Scooters). That means people seem to like riding them. We also learned that most people still don’t know what the rules are because their only way of knowing was if they happened to pass by the Lime table near Pier A, read the signs on the Lime scooter itself, or read the city’s informative nixle alert/email (that didn’t go out until the end of the first day of the pilot). So we confirmed what we already knew which was that we need education and enforcement for this to have any chance at success. But I actually learned the most in my 40 minute conversation with Shari Shapiro of Lime yesterday afternoon and also reading the state legislation for the first time. She called to ask me if she could address any questions or concerns and she got an earful from me. But to her credit, she was patient, listened and provided a lot of information that I wasn’t previously aware of that I think is helpful. The conversation started with me asking about how Lime can make sure our youth cannot access the scooters. We ended with a long list of suggestions and recommendations on what Lime can and should do as quickly as possible to meet the needs of Hoboken, which may be different than other communities they serve. Here is a summary of some of what we discussed:
The e-Scooters are a boomlet of transport within Hoboken but there’s a learning curve for users. Some will have to learn the hard way.
Some riders do not want to use the roadways as intended and obligated under ordinance. They are riding on the sidewalk and creating a nuisance and danger to pedestrians and themselves.
Hoboken Police Chief Ken Ferrante offered this report:
Good morning Michael, I am able to report that as of this minute @HobokenPD has not received any reports of any injuries to riders or pedestrians. The two companies involved are ramping up community education. Please send formal complaints or comments to Traffic@hobokenpd.org https://t.co/Q9tythG1SR— Chief Ken Ferrante (@KenFerrante) May 22, 2019
If you see someone riding on the sidewalk you can take a photo and then send it with the time and location to the Hoboken Police Department and to the e-Scooter company. A video is not needed but may be useful.
Official release:
Dear friends, Just like many residents in the neighborhood, I’m very disturbed and alarmed that PSE&G has cut down approximately a dozen seemingly healthy, mature trees located primarily along the 100 block of Jackson Street. Although initially approved by the city, I am grateful that after being alerted to this, the administration has changed course and has paused all work on Madison and Jackson until a new plan is agreed that will minimize destruction to the trees. In a city like Hoboken trees and green space are essential for our quality of life. I’m appreciative of the efforts of everyone committed to making sure this situation is made right and that these trees are replaced with new ones that are of a similar quality to the trees cut down. Accordingly, PSEG will be replacing trees they remove on a 3:1 ratio. As part of this project, work had been underway by PSE&G to pull wires on Jackson Street between First and Seventh and set up new poles. This work has been paused as well and when it returns, be aware each block will be closed to traffic, one at a time, as the crews move along the road. You can find out more about this project here including the city’s recent action to pause the work until a better solution can be identified. I will be working with my Council colleagues to address the policies that led to this unfortunate situation and make sure something like this will not happen again. Thank you for your advocacy and patience during this projects. Please share this with everyone you think might be interested in or affected by this information. And don’t hesitate to reach out to me at any time to discuss this or any matter that is important to you. Regards, Ruben Ramos Hoboken City Council, 4th Ward *Please follow me on Facebook and Twitter to see more updates on Hoboken.