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Horsey’s Timely News Posts

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Property taxes: How N.J. citizens can take up the fight

by SmartyJones1 Min Reading

The Citizen’s Campaign, a group focused on practical steps New Jersey residents can take to impact their local community launched its first round of 10 ready for adoption ways to give citizens a grass roots way to counter rising property taxes.  Among them;

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Hoboken has already actually begun one with the energy audits announcing some substantial savings well into six figures when fully implemented.  But there’s clearly much more that can be done.  Here’s the video discussing in detail the approach and methods for implementing the improvement(s).

For more on how this is being accomplished in other municipalities in New Jersey, please check out the Citizen’s Campaign website.  Other local websites may wish to highlight it too.
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Judy Tripodi – Public Safety, medical costs and the future of Hoboken (pt. 5)

by SmartyJones1 Min Reading

In this final segment of the audio interview MSV inquires on the January 30th Budget Workshop and any role Judy’s team is playing in that upcoming event.  The next item is the earlier planned police personnel adjustments, and Judy explains why it never happened.

Concerns from the public about public safety being top heavy is the next topic.  The fiscal state monitor addresses this in detail and her desire to get management adjustments put into place via the existing civil service system. Read More...

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Sign of the Times: Flying in Formation

by SmartyJones1 Min Reading

Although the air traffic of helicopters over Hoboken had tailed off some of late, it’s picked up again.  Here’s today’s formation going up and down the length of the town.

The UK announced yesterday a terrorist “severe” alert and a new book released by a former speechwriter in the Bush Administration is challenging the current administration on the policy of allowing terrorists to lawyer up and not answer questions.  The book details an insider’s view on the enormous amounts of information obtained from captured terrorists and the numerous attacks halted.  On another front, the policy of giving the Islamic Nigerian terrorist full rights as an American citizen was questioned in a Washington hearing and not one of the administration people present including National Intelligence Chief Dennis Blair Head or Homeland Security could say who made that decision.  Attorney General Eric Holder has not been interviewed on the matter and has still not explained what rationale terrorists are being selectively given American citizenship rights for trial in the US.  Maybe he’s busy building a case to prosecute the very people who are working to protect the US. Read More...

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HUMC CEO Hatiras “Baffled” with a $3MM Surplus!

by SmartyJones1 Min Reading

Mark Maurer at the Jersey Journal is updating the HUMC story with more comments from the hospital CEO, Spiros Hatiras stating “Frankly, we’re baffled.”  The hospital administration then spent time today speaking to employees to respond directly to the suggestion in the report the hospital was closing.

The biggest news in the story is almost buried by the response to the State transition report.  Although it won’t be official until Wednesday, the hospital’s budget is stated to forecast a $3 million surplus! Read More...

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Mayor’s Office: Statement on HUMC

by SmartyJones2 Min Reading

Office of the Mayor announced:

=&0=&                 “I am in the process of reaching out to Governor Christie to personally express my Administration’s commitment to working with them to develop a Hudson County regional hospital plan,” Mayor Zimmer commented in response to news of the transition memo on health.  “The hospital provides an essential service to our community, and my administration is fully committed to giving the austerity measures recently implemented, such as a 10% wage cut, an opportunity to succeed,” Mayor Zimmer stated. “I am committed to working with the HUMC Administration, and the board of the hospital, including newly appointed commissioners, to improve financial oversight, implement an austerity budget, and coordinate with the State to work towards a regional county hospital plan.” Soon after getting into office, Mayor Zimmer learned the hospital’s financial situation was considerably more challenging than previously disclosed.  “The $7 million award from the Health Care Stabilization Fund provides the City with time to evaluate all options and develop a long term plan,” Zimmer noted.  “The operation of the Hospital and the potential liability of the City remains a primary focus of my Administration while we evaluate the financial and operational issues inherited from prior years,” she added. =&1=&: Mayor Zimmer spoke with the new Gov’s Administration today:  

Mayor Zimmer was very pleased with her conversation with new Governor Chris Christie’s Administration late this afternoon regarding Hoboken University Medical Center and other matters.  “I look forward to working with the Christie Administration on the challenges facing our City,” she said.  Read More...

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HUMC Heart Attack or Palpitation

by SmartyJones1 Min Reading

The Jersey Journal gave Hoboken a heart attack or maybe the semblance of one with heart palpitations in a shocking report from Gov. Christie’s transition subcommittee report on health.  The punch line that bowled this horse over, not a month after $7 million came in a grant from the state for the Hoboken University Medical Center is on page 5:

On December 22, 2009, the Corzine Administration announced $40 million in Health Care Stabilization awards to 9 hospitals. While many of the hospitals receiving aid met the above criteria, at least one hospital, Hoboken University Medical Center, will close in the next few months even given this grant funding. We view this as a misuse of limited state resources for health care stabilization. Additionally, NJDHSS allocated the entire stabilization pool instead of prudently holding back some funds to address additional fiscal crises that will arise. Joan Quigly who is both a state Assemblywoman and a head of external communications at the hospital has denied it this morning, telling the Jersey Journal,  ““It is certainly not going to close,” HUMC spokeswoman Joan Quigley=&3=&
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OK let’s eat!

by SmartyJones1 Min Reading

The Cablevision feud with the Food Network and HGTVappears to be over.  The BankRobber who happens to be on the road got off a plane and fired over the news of the settlement.

Okay, time to eat and does that mean we get to see Giada again?  Rock’in good news.

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Dealing with the cards dealt

by SmartyJones1 Min Reading

Councilwoman Beth Mason in an off the cuff interview on break before the City Council’s closed session last night spoke about the complex issues facing the city with the upcoming St. Patrick’s Day Parade.  She described the problems as weekend generated with drunken activity starting early in the morning, unruly house parties and the Port Authority providing additional trains into Hoboken all exacerbating a difficult management problem.

“The Parade isn’t the problem.  There’s drinking going on in the morning before the Parade… The Port Authority doesn’t help by scheduling more trains coming into Hoboken. The problem is the thousands of people (organizing) on Facebook.  And the house parties are a big problem.” Read More...

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Judy Tripodi – “Surplus to almost double in 2010-11”

by SmartyJones1 Min Reading

Judy Tripodi, fiscal state monitor speaks on a police organizational evaluation before the announcement of the police audit being approved by the State and is due later this month.  Forensic auditing is the next big topic reviewed and the concerns due to corruption is also part of it and Judy mentions the backend research efforts by Finance Director Nick Trasente.  There’s some additional discussion about forensic accounting completed in the Parking Authority leading up to the corruption uncovered on that front. Read More...

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’bout last nite – City Council Meeting recap

by SmartyJones1 Min Reading

If you missed the City Council meeting, you probably picked the best one in a long while.  It was short and lacked the intensity along with a big crowd to spur on the old Hoboken style showmanship we have come to expect.  Even when it’s been fairly unrealistic, its entertainment value is better than most TV fare these days.  No, we are not proclaiming our love for any of it.

Our new colleague at Hoboken.patch.com, Claire Moses actually has an excellent summary of the events in one comprehensive story.  If we could have saved those hours, we might have gotten in some exercise last night.  Oh well check it out and also see Mark Mauer’s detailed effort over at Hoboken Now. Read More...