Couple found dead after apparent murder-suicide
Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio confirmed Tuesday that a Jersey City couple was found dead in their home earlier that morning in what is believed to have been a murder-suicide.
DeFazio said Jason Felder, 35, and his long-time girlfriend, Sarah Spencer, 29, were discovered in their Storms Avenue home around 9 a.m.
DeFazio said it is believed, based on the investigation, that Felder killed Spencer and then killed himself. Both were pronounced dead at the scene. DeFazio said no motive has been established.
DeFazio said a .357 caliber revolver was recovered at the scene. He said the victims’ bodies were discovered by their son.
The murder of Spencer is the 15th homicide in Jersey City so far this year. Felder’s death has been ruled a suicide.
Anyone with information about the incident can call the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office Homicide Squad at (201) 915-1345.
JC resident pleads guilty to accepting $11K in kickbacks, including couch
United States Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced Monday that Thomas Giblin, 37, of Jersey City, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Dennis M. Cavanaugh to receiving kickbacks and committing embezzlement.
Fishman said in November 2004, Giblin, while employed as administrator of the Local 68 Education Fund, hired an audio-visual company to design and install electronic, audio, and visual systems at the Education Fund’s premises in West Caldwell.
In exchange for the Education Fund paying the audio-visual company $315,000 for their services, Fishman said Giblin received free and discounted audio-visual materials, and components worth $10,000 in August 2005 were installed in his Jersey City condominium by the company free of charge. Fishman said Giblin also removed a couch from the Education Fund office, costing approximately $1,329, and placed it in his Jersey City condominium.
Giblin faces a maximum prison term of three years and $250,000 fine for the kickbacks, and five years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine for removal of the couch.
Giblin is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 29.
Can low-rise buildings be converted to high-rises? Public hearing to be held
Mayor Jerramiah Healy and the Department of Housing, Economic Development and Commerce/Division of Planning have announced that the city will hold public meetings related to whether owners of buildings in the city can transfer the “air rights” above them to developers who want to build higher.
Technically, the hearings concern the use of “Transfer of Development Rights” in Jersey City. Under TDR, the owner of an older, low-rise building can sell the air rights above his building to a developer wanting to build a high-rise building with more floors. The TDR is actually often offered by a municipality that does not want a historic building to be destroyed by being sold to a developer. As an alternative, the owner can just sell the air rights, keeping the historic lower part of the structure intact. This allows the older building to remain intact and its owner to still make a profit.
At the Jersey City hearing, the public will have an opportunity to comment on possible high-rise development as well as preservation of downtown areas such as Jersey Avenue from 10th to 18th streets and the area around Gregory Park Apartments on Montgomery and Henderson streets.
In 2009, the Jersey City Division of Planning received an unspecified grant from the N.J. Office of Smart Growth to conduct a comprehensive planning study to use Transfer of Development Rights in an urban setting. The meetings will be held this coming Thursday, Aug. 19, 6:30 – 9:30 p.m. at the Golden Door Charter School, 180 9th St., and on Aug. 26, 2010 6 – 9 p.m. at City Hall, 280 Grove St.
To RSVP for one of the meetings, e-mail Ivan Freire at freirei@jcnj.org.
JC animal shelter seeks adopters and foster homes
The Liberty Humane Society animal shelter in Jersey City is looking for good homes for the many cats and dogs currently living at the shelter and is asking the community to consider adopting or temporarily fostering a cat or dog this summer.
All adopted pets are spayed or neutered, vaccinated and micro chipped. The adoption fee for dogs is $175 and for cats it is $120. Adoption fees are reduced half price ($60) on Tuesdays for cats one year or older.
To find out more about adopting, fostering or volunteering, call Liberty Humane at (201) 547-4147 and press 0, or visit the website www.libertyhumane.org. The shelter is open every day for adoptions except Wednesday. Adoption hours are 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. except for Tuesday and Thursday, 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. The shelter is located at 235 Jersey City Blvd., directly across the street from the Liberty Science Center parking lot.
JC event to discuss urban farming
The Jersey City Green Team announces “Farms in the City—Know Food, Know Freedom,” an event to be held Aug. 21 from 2 – 6 p.m. at Hudson County Community College Culinary Conference Center on Sip Avenue in Jersey City.
This event is open to all and community members are invited to come out and share ideas for reinventing a green Jersey City. To take part in the event or to get more information, contact Gillian Allen at (646) 388-1825 or email: Gillian@jcfoodcoop.com.
RSVP’s must be received by Aug. 16.
Free classical music concert coming to downtown JC
The downtown Jersey City classical music group Con Vivo Music presents a free concert of Spanish art songs by the duo, mezzo-soprano Rebecca Comerford and guitarist Dan Lippel, on Aug. 19 at 8 p.m. at Kannibal Home, 213 Montgomery St. (just west of Grove St.).
Con Vivo, founded by violist and artistic director Amelia Hollander, is a collective of musicians that includes some of the NYC area’s finest soloists and rising stars. Con Vivo brings the communal spirit of chamber music to the fast-growing and unique setting of Jersey City.
For more information, visit www.convivomusic.org.