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City of Hoboken announces:

=&0=& Nearly 80% of streets will have bike lane designation On Wednesday, August 24, the Hoboken City Council unanimously approved the establishment of an additional 10 miles of bike lanes. “I thank the City Council for their unanimous support, Bike Hoboken for their tireless advocacy, and all the members of the public who turned out to support expanding our bike lane network,” said Mayor Dawn Zimmer. “As we establish bike lanes on nearly 80 percent of our streets, we are taking a big leap towards making Hoboken truly bike friendly. By slowing down traffic, bike lanes make streets safer for everyone including drivers and pedestrians, and this lays an even stronger foundation for our ongoing pedestrian safety efforts.” Hoboken currently has a total of 4.5 miles of bike lanes, including 0.34 miles of a Class I lane, 2.1 miles of Class II lanes and 2.1 miles of Class III lanes. Class I lanes are protected bike lanes such as the one on the southern end of Sinatra Drive. Class II lanes are striped bike lanes such as those that currently exist on Grand and Madison Streets. Class III bike lanes are also known as “sharrows,” or shared lane markings which are used on streets that are too narrow to accommodate striped bike lanes, such as numbered cross streets. The ordinance establishes Class II bike lanes on an additional 10 miles of streets including segments of Hudson Street, Garden Street, Park Avenue, Willow Avenue, Clinton Street, Adams Street, Jefferson Street, Monroe Street, Jackson Street, Harrison Street, Newark Street, 2nd Street, and 11th Street. The City will also be painting an additional 9.7 miles of sharrows on narrower streets that cannot accommodate a striped bike lane. In addition, the City intends to create a two-way protected (Class I) 0.43 mile bike lane along Observer Highway as part of a complete street redesign scheduled for next year. In total, this will result in almost 25 miles of streets with bike lane designations, or nearly 80% of the 32 street miles in Hoboken.

We’ll be back shortly with another round of all of the above and an attack on free speech brought to you by Tim Occhipinti on behalf of Beth Mason.

These two want to criminalize freedom of speech. Apparently they intend to enlist the local Hoboken Police Department as a tool of their intimidation.

This was demonstrated by Tim Occhipinti who attempted to pull off the stunt referencing a  Grafix Avenger in a satire series she feigns to the FBI.

Go on and bring it! Let’s have at it before the FBI weighs in on these Hoboken criminals. Read More...

City of Hoboken announces: The City of Hoboken is making preparations for the potential impacts of Hurricane Irene, which is currently forecast to reach the Northeast as a Category 2 hurricane between late Saturday and Monday. Residents are strongly urged to be prepared. “If we are hit by a hurricane – even a Category 1 – the flooding can be very widespread and severe,” said Mayor Dawn Zimmer. “Even areas of Hoboken that don’t normally flood could be under many feet of water, so residents need to prepare now and be ready to move their vehicles to higher ground or out of town if necessary. We will continue to monitor the situation as the storm progresses, and if conditions warrant it, will call for an evacuation, but at this time we are asking residents with family or friends in the area or the ability to stay elsewhere to consider leaving town early for the weekend. This is a threat that residents must take seriously.” Emergency evacuation shelters at the Wallace School and Hoboken High School are stocked with water and cots. Generators are in place for running emergency operations if needed. North Hudson Sewerage Authority is inspecting pumps and clearing catch basins. Evacuation plans have been reviewed and are in place if necessary. Residents are advised to monitor conditions and be prepared for the possibility of severe flooding, high winds, and loss of electricity. Residents should seriously consider moving their vehicles outside of Hoboken and should be prepared to evacuate if an evacuation order is issued. At this time, the City is asking residents with the ability to stay at another location outside of Hoboken to consider doing so. ·         =&1=& Vehicles parked on streets or garages may be inaccessible for several hours or days until flooding recedes. Residents are urged to park their vehicles on higher ground or in upper levels of garages, however in the case of a tropical storm or hurricane, the safest option to avoid flood damage to vehicles is to park outside of Hoboken. Residents who are able to stay with friends or relatives are urged to consider leaving town early for the weekend. ·         Due to the possibility for high winds, residents should bring in unsecured objects from patios and balconies and secure outdoor objects such as lawn furniture or garbage cans that could blow away and cause damage or injury. ·         =&2=& in their homes and any necessary medication in the event of an emergency. ·         =&3=&are asked to notify the Emergency Operations Center as soon as possible by calling 201-239-6643/6644. The EOC will be open 24 hours a day as of 9am on Thursday, August 25^th. For emergencies, residents should call 911 or the Hoboken Police Department at 201-420-2100 and Hoboken Fire Department at 201-420-2005/2007. ·         =&4=&from the City of Hoboken by visiting: http://local.nixle.com/city-of-hoboken/ ·         =&6=&

Tonight is a long agenda in the City Council’s sole August meeting but a lot of drama will revolve around Councilwoman Beth Mason’s proposal to cut all benefits to council members.  Oddly, she held the gavel and controlled the agenda for months prior to July 1st and even when she aggressively pursued cutting the mayor’s salary a second time in short order, the idea never crossed her lips.

The question is why now?

 As it turns out MSV has learned there’s more than one council member who is expecting a baby in the family.  Surely, Beth Mason has that information too. So is this more about inflicting financial pain on another’s family and others who don’t have access to their spouse’s wealth or high mindedness on the budget?  While Tim Occhipinti is along for the ride, (he gets benefits through his job and is following his paid marching orders) this is interesting as Councilman Mike Russo, no friend of the taxpayer may be forced to place his vote with his own self-interest at stake. As someone who has lived in subsidized housing his whole adult life and who has seen his family exploit the lay of the land over many years, that can’t be what he has in mind. Read More...

The City Clerk approved the petition submitted to put on this election day ballot whether voters wish to have municipal elections on the traditional November Election Day or keep them in the spring.

The City recently moved to fix a half-century problem and codify its charter.  The move to correct the longstanding error caused alarm among the Old Guard and its new soldiers who thought such a move was a counter to their goal of keeping lower turnout elections in the spring.

Frank “Pupie Raia and his petition drive “get no respect.” He’s bankrolled it but the local media doesn’t mention him and his money behind it. What’s up with that?

Both the Hudson Reporter and Hoboken Patch acted swiftly when this was brought to their attention and immediately questioned the City’s codification of the 1952 code. As for the Boys & Girls Club and the problems stemming from decades old lack of accountability in the use of a taxpayer paid building bringing in a charter school and  forcing out underprivileged children in the most vulnerable part of the community, =&0=&. Heres’s the City Clerks letter.  Notice who’s on the list of the committee and who goes completely unmentioned as part of the petition effort although he bankrolled it minutes after the City Council passed its resolution moving municipal elections to November: Frank Raia. Neither the Hudson Reporter or Hoboken Patch has even mentioned Raia’s name.  Who do you think was paying all the people from Bayonne on Hoboken’s streets and telling people the petition was for opposing PATH/toll hikes? Both publications were clearly “reached” by the Old Guard.  Hoboken Patch doesn’t name the concerned party while the Hudson Reporter describes them as “local activists.”

Look at the City Clerk’s list of who is notified in the letter.  You have Jamie Cryan, Franz Paetzold, Jennifer Grace and Frank Raia.  If you read the Hudson Reporter and Hoboken Patch, you’d never know it.  More importantly, you’d never know who was bankrolling the petition. The more you know…

=&1=&: Lucky for Hoboken, we have the enlightened, compassionate people running the local press.  What would we do without them?

In a memo to the City Council, Mayor Dawn Zimmer provides an update on various issues. The full text of the memo is included below. August 23, 2011 Dear City Council Members: I am writing to provide an update and additional information on a variety of issues. Parks and Pedestrian Safety My Administration has been trying to meet the Council’s deadline for 1600 Park set by a 9-0 vote on May 4th. In order to meet this deadline, everything had to go perfectly. I made the decision that for public safety reasons and in order to ensure that we have the best possible park design for the long term, we will delay the opening of the park rather than meet this artificial deadline. Originally, my Administration had proposed a series of short-term pedestrian safety measures including a striped crosswalk, other traffic calming measures, and police presence at 16th and Park while a traffic signal was installed. The County was not comfortable that these measures were sufficient, and we have agreed that the signal should be installed before opening the park. Although we coordinated with the County in the first months of 2010 for a signal at this location; unfortunately, the programming for such work prevents the installation of a traffic and pedestrian signal at 16th and Park until next year. I am asking for your help to expedite the process for installation of this signal. The City’s Transportation and Parking Department collected traffic data for that area to assess the best pedestrian safety measures to be installed for 1600 Park. Per our analysis, more than 95% of the cars in this area along Park Avenue speed (posted speed limit of 25 mph). The speed data for this traffic study is as follows: Park Avenue Viaduct Speed Data Average Speed: 34 mph 85th Percentile Speed: 39 mph Percentage traveling over 25 mph 95.6% Percentage traveling over 30 mph 78.0% Percentage traveling over 35 mph 37.4% Percentage traveling over 40 mph 8.4% At the speeds this traffic is traveling, the chance of a pedestrian accident resulting in a fatality is significantly higher than it would be at or below the posted speed limit. Although the need to install the signal will delay the opening of the field, I still want to expedite this process so the field can be opened for use in the late spring/summer of 2012. Unfortunately, the County’s signalization funding program would not allow us to have the signal constructed until late in 2012. My Administration has been working with the County to finalize an inter-local agreement that allows for the County’s funding intended for this signal to be used in kind for roadway improvements next year along Observer Highway that would otherwise be borne by the city. In exchange, the City would bond immediately for the traffic signal at the 16th & Park location. We expect the agreement to be finalized and on the next agenda, but in order to move forward with the funding of the signal, a bond ordinance for that signal is on for introduction at this week’s Council meeting. Because I have decided to delay opening up the park until 2012, this has given us the opportunity to contemporaneously revise the height of the field. As a result of concerns raised by some residents of the elevation of the field, my staff, the design professionals and I met with a representative of the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). At that meeting the DEP expressed new flexibility in environmental remediation measures, and we believe that we can lower the height of the retaining wall and field significantly while still maintaining the necessary environmental remediation controls. Although the field will still be elevated somewhat, these revisions to the design will allow us to make the field more visually connected to our waterfront. Previously we were moving forward with the field being built with the approved environmental controls previously allowed and approved by the DEP. In order to get the field completed by this fall, the City would have had to utilize those existing remediation measures that were already completed. To move forward and re-design the field, we will need to utilize the expertise of a Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP), as the DEP no longer does direct oversight of environmental remediation. This has created the flexibility and timeliness in remediation measures that were previously not available to us. We will be moving forward with redesigning the artificial turf field as is acceptable to the DEP standards and will make sure to work with the stakeholders on the various conceptual designs for their feedback before we go out to bid. In order to redesign and rebid, however, we have to rescind the contract with Applied Landscape Technologies. This firm was the lowest bidder and the bid was awarded to them at the July 1st City Council meeting. Subsequently we learned from the DEP about the flexibility in environmental controls possible for the site. Unfortunately, the change in design will change the scope of work significantly, necessitating the need to reject all bids and rebid the project upon completion of the new design drawings. This item is on this week’s agenda to rescind the bid. We will also need to revise the contract with Remington & Vernick to address the redesign and the use of the LSRP for oversight of the environmental work. We are awaiting their proposal for this additional work change order and expect to have that on the agenda for a revision to the contract at the September 7th Council meeting. Helping Community Organizations The agenda contains a resolution to approve approximately $48,000 in funding for the YMCA. This funding would come from our affordable housing fund which has a balance of $72,663.19 and which is not designated for any other use. These funds may only be used for affordable housing projects such as this one. The YMCA is seeking this bridge funding in order to close on the financing for the project which will create 96 single-room occupancy units of low and moderate income housing. Please review the attached memo from our redevelopment counsel for additional information. A resolution would also approve an application to COAH to request that the balance of our affordable housing funds be reallocated towards supporting the Hoboken Shelter. The shelter plays a critical role in our community, providing hundreds of meals every day, shelter for dozens every night, and valuable counseling and job training. Due to the economy, more families than ever are turning to them for help. We are also entering into a shared service agreement with Hoboken Charter and Elysian Charter to allow them to use the gym in the Multi-Service Center, and we are providing funding for the Jubilee Center, United Cerebral Palsy, HOPES, Nuestros Ninos, Miles Square Funding, Day Care 100, Hoboken Family Planning, and the Boys & Girls Club of Hudson County. Green Initiatives Green Team As part of our effort to attain Sustainable Jersey certification for Hoboken, we are required to establish a Green Team. I will be appointing members of the public as well as my Administration to the team, which will be tasked with leading and coordinating sustainability initiatives in our community. I welcome recommendations from the Council and the community. Residents interested in being considered for the Green Team should email Daniel Bryan (dbryan@hobokennj.org) with a resume and expression of interest. Bike Lanes An ordinance up for second reading would establish 10 miles of new striped bicycle lanes throughout Hoboken. The designated streets are all wide enough to accommodate a bike lane without eliminating any parking or travel lanes. Bike lanes have been demonstrated to be an effective, low-cost traffic calming measure. Hoboken streets with bike lanes have speeds approximately 4mph lower than similar streets without bike lanes. Hoboken is a flat, compact City that is ideal for bicycling. I urge you to support this effort to make our City greener, safer, and healthier. City Charter Recently, while doing research as part of the codification process to bring our code up to date, Business Administrator Liston discovered there was no charter in our code book. The City Clerk office was asked to research the issue as well, but also could not find the charter. While the City’s charter was established in 1952, it was apparently never codified previously. When our legal counsel drafted the charter, it was based on the Council’s recent passage of legislation moving elections to November. However we have since revised the dates in the charter to reflect the fact that the signatures to hold a referendum on changing the election date were recently approved by the Clerk’s office. New Jersey Symphony Orchestra Concert Last week hundreds of residents came out to enjoy the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra play a free evening open air concert on Pier A. The City sponsored this event from the Cultural Affairs trust fund and helped offset the $50,000 cost with more than $35,000 in donations from sponsors. Based on the unanimously positive response from the community, we hope to make this an annual tradition. Sincerely, Mayor Dawn Zimmer

City of Hoboken announces:

=&0=& According to the U.S. Geological Survey, a 5.8 magnitude earthquake struck in Northern Virginia at 1:53pm. Tremors were felt in Hoboken. Residents should be mindful that aftershocks may occur over the next few hours. Residents with concerns or reports of damage can call the Police Department at 201-420-2100. Get the latest Hoboken news: Email | Text |

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