Dear Editor:
Thanks so much to everyone who supported the second annual Family & Friends Thanksgiving Dinner for Hoboken Housing Authority residents. This year’s event was even bigger and better than last year’s, and everyone who attended had a wonderful time. We are all appreciative of those whose generous donations and volunteer service made the event possible. I’d like to especially thank my co-organizers, Carmelo Garcia and Luis Acevedo, as well as Mayor Dawn Zimmer and Health and Human Services Director Leo Pellegrini for all their support and provision of services. A complete thank-you list of donors and volunteers will be forthcoming, and anyone still able to kick anything in to cover some outstanding costs would be greatly appreciated, and can contact me to do so. This event is proving to be a great new annual tradition, not only providing a full Thanksgiving meal for many people but also bringing the community together for a fun and spirited gathering. I look forward to seeing it continue to grow for many years to come.
I’m also pleased to report that the Hoboken Housing Authority Board of Commissioners has adopted a new operating budget that reduces expenditures by nearly half a million dollars. We adopted the new budget for the fiscal year 2010-2011 at our Nov. 10 meeting. While the Hoboken Housing Authority does not derive any revenue from municipal taxes, about 60 percent of our costs come from federal grants, so I’m proud to have taken part in an act of tax relief and operational efficiency improvements, even if the impact is not directly on property-tax bills. I thank and applaud HHA Executive Director Carmelo Garcia, Chairwoman Jean Rodriguez and the rest of my fellow commissioners for all the efforts collectively made to tighten spending while continuing to improve the quality of life for our residents.
I’m also excited about an update to our waitlist preference system that will now include veterans among those whose status may now expedite an applicant’s process of obtaining an apartment. Currently, the preferences that factor into an applicant’s prioritization are disabilities and being a former or present Hoboken resident. At our meeting last week, which took place the day before Veterans Day, we passed a resolution updating our system, and I proposed adding an additional amendment for veterans, which we will vote on at our December meeting. It is important to remember that a great many people who served our country bravely and honorably, and in many cases suffered permanent injuries, now find themselves in economically challenging situations. We cannot allow these heroes to be left behind and forgotten. We who are in the business of managing government-subsidized affordable housing are in a position to honor our veterans by treating them with priority, and I am proud that the Hoboken Housing Authority is going to do just that.
Jake Stuiver
Hoboken Housing Authority Board of Commissioners