Dear Editor: With regards to the recent attacks on the city of Hoboken’s Division of Housing Inspection I would like to clarify a few things. The numbers game that is being played with respect to the Division of Housing Inspection budgetary costs are untrue. The game that is being played is misleading to the citizens of Hoboken. The employees in this division have the most seniority in the city, up to 129 years of total service. The game is played like this! They add up the salaries and benefits which these senior employees accumulated through union negotiations and seniority, stating that is the cost of running the division. They do not, however, take into consideration the monies that are generated from these inspections, for permits, rent control inspections and court fines. All this money goes into the city’s general fund. Even in the worst of the cities economic times, there has always been a Division of Housing Inspection. They also play the word game. They assault the reputation and character of the employees by using insinuations and accusations. Also, the fact of the matter is, the state does not do these inspections free of charge. In 1972 when the city of Hoboken entered in the agreement with the State of New Jersey to conduct these inspections the money that we received from them was never meant to cover salaries. It was given to us to help with office equipment and/or supplies, if there was something we especially needed. The Housing Inspection office provides a vital service to the city of Hoboken. We make sure that the citizens of Hoboken live in a healthy and safe environment. When these buildings throughout the city are properly maintained, it keeps the city’s tax rate stable. Remember Hoboken in the seventies? Jude Fitzgibbons