Jersey City Councilwoman Melissa Holloway believes in educating the public and keeping her constituents aware of what goes on in and around City Hall. For all of her seven years on the council, Holloway said that the best way to do that has been for her to continue publishing her quarterly newsletter. “People in my ward were craving information on city government,” Holloway said. Holloway got the idea for the newsletter while serving as an aide to past Council President Cunningham, who used to write up an occasional flyer with news for his constituents. Holloway has taken the idea several steps further. Each season, Holloway will put together what she feels are the most important issues being discussed in the council chambers in City Hall. “I’m the only one [on the nine-member council] that does it,” Holloway said, citing the extra work that she must fit into her already-busy schedule. Seven years ago, “The Holloway Report” started as a 4-page newsletter. “People call it a magazine now,” the Ward F Councilwoman said. “Any kind of way that you can show people how government works, especially in Jersey City where it can get so complicated, is important.” The newsletter is distributed through the mail, with Holloway responsible for the content and copy of each issue. When an issue is late, constituents call and ask where it is, she said. Holloway has a mailing list that contains over 3,000 addresses that will receive the newsletter. In her ward, Holloway has over 60,000 constituents. The rest of the newsletters are handed out at community meetings and in City Hall to residents of other wards. “Information is power,” Holloway said, “and I want to empower them.” Every quarter, Holloway said, a new issue is produced. When there are important issues that she feels people should know more about, Holloway said she will issue a special edition, such as the January 2000 edition. In that issue, on the front page there is an announcement detailing what people must do to get jobs at the new MLK HUB supermarket. In a newsletter supplement that is mailed this week, Holloway notifies residents that there will be a meeting with lawyers on Feb. 10 regarding money that Breen Capital may owe back to them. In December a Federal judge awarded a $6 million settlement in a lawsuit filed by the City of Jersey City against Breen Capital. The city demanded money owed to them in a land deal, which Breen attempted to circumvent. At the conclusion of that suit, the government severed Breen’s business with city residents, who may have paid the company after the settlement. Holloway said that some residents may be entitled to get back some of that money. Holloway said that the biggest obstacle involved in organizing the Feb. 10 meeting has been the fact that many of the eligible residents have moved away. In addition, this being a state issue, the affected parties do not all reside in Ward F. “We, as a city,” Holloway said, “don’t know who they took money from and how much.” In the supplement, Holloway encourages residents to bring extra copies of any correspondence, checks, money orders or payment agreements to the meeting, which will also be attended by lawyers familiar with the case and the company. The meeting, Holloway said, will be a lesson for people on how to get money from Breen. Residents who are interested in filing a claim will have attorneys on hand collecting paperwork.
Councilwoman keeps ward informed with ‘Holloway Report’
