HOBOKEN — Hoboken Mayor Steve Cappiello ran the city from 1973 to 1985 and played a part in local politics for years before that and afterward. On Thursday, at the age of 89, he passed away, sources said.
Cappiello presided over the mile-square city during a period of unprecdented growth and change. In a Reporter interview in the year 2000, he said “When I started, it was difficult for us to fill up the garages on Hudson Street. We had to encourage people from New York to park there because it was cheaper and we were still spending $650,000 a year to maintain them.” When he left, development was speeding along.
Cappiello, a former police sergeant and 10-year city councilman, said that his style of governing the city was very different from the mayors who succeeded him. “I went to maybe 10 percent of the city council meetings,” he said in the 2000 Reporter interview. “While they were going on, I was usually out doing something hands-on like shoveling snow, or riding around in a police radio car, or maybe even going over to the fire station for a meal.”
Looking back on the time that he spent in office, Cappiello said that he was most proud of the agreement that his administration brokered with the Port Authority to revitalize the then-crumbling waterfront. “There was a lot that happened behind the scenes that people were not aware of,” he said. “There were several congressmen who were reluctant to let the piers be placed in the city’s hands because they hoped to get projects of their own, and of course there were the mayors of Elizabeth and Newark who were jumping all over the Port Authority asking for something for them too. But the trick was just to do what you could to get the most for your city.”
Cappiello’s reign ended in 1985 when many believed that he was allowing development to get out of hand. Residents concerned about gentrification, condo conversions, and suspicious fires elected Tom Vezzetti, dubbed “the wackiest mayor in America” by one newspaper. Vezzetti, who won by approximately 350 votes, was seen as a reformer who would protect long-time tenants. Cappiello remained involved in town affairs and worked at City Hall as president of the employees’ credit union.
In 2000, Cappiello said that development was a big issue again in town, and that it would probably have to slow down so officials could ascertain its impact on the infrastructure.
In the interview, he said, “I’ve been a very lucky, lucky fellow. I’ve got a wonderful wife and a solid family and that is really all that I need.”
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