The Hoboken City Council convened on Wednesday evening for another heated meeting and considered three last minute pieces of legislation to cut costs at the highest levels of local government.
The local arts scene also received some attention, a local youth cheerleading team was honored, the discussion of campaign finance “wheeling” continued, and a bond issue for new multiple space parking meters passed.
Council President Beth Mason introduced two ordinances and a resolution during the meeting that would cut the pay of the mayor, trim the city’s director’s salaries, and also re-negotiate the city attorney’s fees, respectively.
Mason said she has been advocating a decrease in salaries “at the top” for a long time as a “way to save the taxpayer’s money.”
Mason said she has been advocating for a decrease in salaries “at the top” for a long time as a “way to save the taxpayer’s money.”
____________
Mason’s proposed ordinance would have lowered the salary to $100,000.
Councilman David Mello called the proposed legislation “gamesmanship,” and believes by reducing the mayor’s salary it could preclude people that aren’t independently wealthy from serving as mayor.
“It’s inappropriate, it’s gamesmanship; the timing was the epitome of gamesmanship and it needs to stop,” Mello said.
Councilman Peter Cunningham called the resolution and ordinances “preposterous.”
Councilwoman Theresa Castellano supported Mason’s ordinance to lower the mayor’s salary.
“It’s very appropriate to reduce salaries at this point and time,” Castellano said.
Mason also proposed lowering the director’s salaries from $103,000 to a range of $70,000 – $90,000, as well as lowering the Business Administrator’s salary from $150,000 to a range of $80,000 to $100,000.
The vote to lower the mayor’s salary failed on first reading, as did the ordinance to lower director’s salaries.
A city attorney, Melissa Longo, said the resolution to lower the salary of Corporation Counsel Mark Tabakin shouldn’t be introduced for several reasons, including the fact that the council doesn’t have the authority to negotiate contracts.
“The council can only approve or vote down contracts,” Longo said. “There is no contract before you to vote up or down.”
Mason said after the meeting that the council can terminate contracts and re-negotiate them.
At the request of Councilman Nino Giacchi, the resolution was pulled and forwarded to his finance subcommittee.
Wheeling revisited; voted down again
The controversial issue of “wheeling” legislation was raised once again during the April 20 meeting. “Wheeling” is the practice of funneling money through Political Action Committees (PACs) to circumvent contribution limits.
Cunningham said he brought the legislation back to the agenda in light of the recently released surveillance tapes from 2009 that show Councilman Michael Russo meeting and discussing potential development favors with F.B.I. informant Solomon Dwek, who was disguised as a developer. Russo was never charged with any crime.
Under the proposed legislation, PACs that are self-funded by 75 percent or more would be limited to donating $500 to a candidate in an election, compared to the current $8,200 limit for PACs. Also, PACs that receive 50 percent or more of their funds from outside of Hoboken would be limited to $500 donations per candidate.
However, the council voted down the legislation again, as the members in the majority said they would like to wait and hear input from the local organization People for Open Government on the legislation.
“Essentially, as the law pertains to us, as a governing body, we have to take the action,” Councilman Ravinder Bhalla said. “I hope at least on first reading we can pass this ordinance so that when we get to a public hearing it can be vetted further.”
Giacchi said he “endorses the theory” of “curing some of the defects with campaign finance” but said he would like to wait for an outside organization like POG to contribute to the ordinance.
Councilman Tim Occhipinti, whose campaign last fall received substantial contributions from Mason’s PAC, said he also wanted to wait to hear POG’s input.
Mason said the ordinance targets those who self-fund PACs, including herself.
The legislation failed after Castellano, Giacchi, Mason, and Occhipinti voted against the ordinance. Councilman Michael Russo was absent due to the death of his grandmother.
Special cops voted down
Bhalla and Cunningham presented an ordinance to establish special police officers in the city to work alongside the Hoboken Police Department at a rate of $15 per hour.
Zimmer sent a memo to the council before the meeting, and said “in light of concerns from the community on various public safety issues,” her administration “determined it is important to provide Class II officers” for increased safety.
Over the past few weeks, there have been a string of reported robberies, home burglaries, and muggings throughout the city. The special officers would supplement the current police force.
Castellano criticized the ordinance before the meeting, calling it “an example of City Hall trying to fight crime on the cheap.”
Ed Drishti, the president of the Police Superior Officers Association, opposed the plan.
“Nine months ago we were talking about layoffs,” Drishti said. “Now we want to hire these specialists…why don’t we just get the Guardian Angels to come to Hoboken?” he said sarcastically.
“[You] decreased the police department, and crime is up,” Drishti said. “It’s not fear mongering. The facts are there, you see it every week in the paper.”
The ordinance was voted down on introduction.
Muni meters coming to a sidewalk near you
The city will continue phasing out single space meters in Hoboken, and instead replace them with “muni meters”, such as the ones on Washington Street downtown.
“We demonstrated an increase of revenue of slightly over 40 percent,” said Ian Sacs, Director of Parking and Transportation, referring to phase one of the program.
The muni meters, which require motorists to purchase a receipt and place it on their dashboard displaying an expiration time, allow people to use credit cards as well as quarters. Sacs said that in the first phase of these meters being installed, 44 percent of all parking purchases were paid for with credit cards.
Sacs also noted the meters would pay for themselves in a period of about one year with additional revenue.
Castellano believes the issue should have first gone to subcommittee, and voted against the $1.6 million bond, which passed 7-1.
Other business
The council voted to begin an interim cost agreement with a prospective redeveloper, Big Twinkie, to examine the possibility of a new arts center in Hoboken.
The council also honored the Hoboken Dynamic Cheer Team in a proclamation at the start of the meeting. The council stage was filled with youth cheerleaders who recently won first place in a national contest last month.
“These teams have been working every day and often times into the night,” Mason said. “It’s nice to have girls be awarded as much as the boys for team sports.”
Ray Smith may be reached at RSmith@hudsonreporter.com