Hoboken Library hosts Grand Opening for its high tech Creation Space
124 years after it opened, the Hoboken Public Library is finally starting to think outside the book. This past Thursday, the library held a Grand Opening for its Creation Space, a suite of high tech tools that is open to the public on the third floor every Monday from 1 to 7 p.m. It is absolutely free of charge.
The tools include a Makerbot Replicator II 3D Printer, a Makerbot 3D scanner, Arduino Starter kits for making your own circuits, button makers, Lego kits, Roominate Dollhouse Building kits, and Snap Circuits Jr. kits.
In addition there is a Photography Station complete with SLR camera and green screen and a Music Recording Station featuring a GarageBand-equipped MacBook, keyboard and mixer.
The library will also host cooking classes.
“Libraries have always offered an opportunity for self-improvement, and now we are moving into the future of that mission,” said Adult Services Coordinator Matt Latham, who led the design of the Creation Space.
Hoboken Public Library was one of 12 libraries to win a $10,000 competitive grant from the New Jersey Library Association to fund a maker space. That sum was supplemented by an infusion from the Hoboken Library Board of Trustees. Latham said the 3D printer alone cost around $2,000.
Hoboken Board of Education President Ruth Tyroler, Hudson County Freeholder Anthony Romano, State Assemblyman Carmelo Garcia, and Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer were all in attendance on Thursday.
For more information, go to hoboken.bccls.org/html/creation_space.html.
Former Mayor Peter Cammarano disbarred by NJ Supreme Court over corruption charges
Last week, the New Jersey Supreme Court disbarred former Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano, who resigned in 2009 and was sent to federal prison after accepting bribes from a government cooperating witness. The court delivered its unanimous opinion, authored by Judge Barry Albin, on Sept. 17.
Cammarano passed the New Jersey bar in 2002 and practiced with the firm of Genova, Burns & Vernoia before quitting to run for mayor in 2009. He had been elected city councilman-at-large in 2005, then defeated current Mayor Dawn Zimmer in a runoff election to become Hoboken’s 37th mayor.
Just 23 days after taking office, Cammarano was arrested for taking payments totaling $25,000 from government witness Solomon Dwek during his mayoral campaign in exchange for giving preferential treatment to Dwek’s purported real estate developments in Hoboken.
In 2010, Cammarano pleaded guilty in federal district court to one count of conspiracy to obstruct interstate commerce by extortion under color of official right. He was sentenced to two years in prison and two years of supervised release.
The N.J. Supreme Court had temporarily suspended Cammarano from practicing law in New Jersey after his conviction, but the Office of Attorney Ethics (OAG) filed a motion for final discipline with the Disciplinary Review Board, seeking Cammarano’s disbarment.
The Review Board voted 4-2 to impose a three-year prospective suspension, foregoing a full disbarment for Cammarano “because he was targeted by a government operation and was a passive participant in the bribe,” according to a summary of the Supreme Court ruling.
The OAG appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court, which heard arguments on April 9, 2014.
“An elected official who sells his office—who offers favored treatment to a private developer in exchange for money — betrays a solemn public trust,” wrote Albin in the court’s opinion. “This form of corruption is corrosive to our democracy and undermines public confidence in honest government, and its rippling pernicious effects are incalculable.”
Joseph Hayden Jr., Cammarano’s attorney, told NJ.com that he was “painfully disappointed” with the court’s ruling. He reiterated that Cammarano’s role in the bribery scheme was “passive” and said that Cammarano had never been in trouble before his 2009 arrest.
“I believe Peter’s a good person and will ultimately make a positive contribution to society,” added Hayden.
Cammarano has been disbarred in the state of New York since June 2010.
NJ Transit nets $146 million to flood-proof Hoboken canal
The Federal Transit Administration has awarded NJ Transit a $146 million grant to fund flood protection measures for the abandoned barge canal just south of Hoboken’s Lackawanna Train Terminal, U.S. Senators Robert Menendez and Cory Booker (D-NJ) announced Wednesday. The grant is part of a new $1.5 billion package of Sandy relief aid that will go towards restoring and strengthening New Jersey’s transportation system.
“New Jersey took it on the chin during Superstorm Sandy,” said Menendez. “The record storm surge flooded out train stations, destroyed rail yards and crippled our public transit system that millions rely on everyday to get around…This critical federal funding will help ensure the Garden State recovers from Sandy, stronger and better than before the storm.”
The Long Slip Canal was one of two main entry points through which the Hurricane Sandy storm surge flooded Hoboken and its surrounding communities. Preventing future breaches through the Long Slip Canal and Weehawken Cove was one of the central goals of Hoboken’s winning proposal in the recent Rebuild By Design competition.
The final proposal, which was prepared for the Lower Hudson by a design team led by the Office for Metropolitan Architecture, said NJ Transit was seeking funding to fill the canal at an estimated cost of $110 million.
Menendez and Booker credited New Jersey’s U.S. House delegation for working closely in support of the new grants. “Superstorm Sandy was devastating to New Jersey’s communities, infrastructure, and economy,” said Rep. Albio Sires (NJ-08). “These grants will provide critical funding and help New Jersey rebuild.”
Mayor Zimmer has met with NJ Transit representatives in the past to formally request that the Long Slip Canal be hardened or eliminated. She also wrote a letter in support of NJ Transit’s FTA grant request, according to her spokesman Juan Melli.
Melli said one of the key results of Rebuild by Design’s multi-stakeholder process was “breaking down the silence of each agency getting funding for their own purposes,” rather than coordinating to achieve shared goals.
The new FTA tranche will also fund $37 million in improvements to the Exchange Place, Newport & Grove Street PATH Stations.
Private chapel opens doors for annual mass honoring Sicilian saints
The Santa Febronia Society will hold its annual mass honoring Santa Febronia & Madonna del Tindari in Hoboken on Sunday Sept. 21 at noon. The event is one of just 13 times a year that the Society opens the doors of its private Roman Catholic chapel to the public. Santa Febronia & Madonna del Tindari are the patron saints of Patti, Sicily, and the Hoboken chapel was founded by immigrants from Patti in the early 1900s. According to Santa Febronia Society member Daniel Murphy, “the Madonna del Tindari has been venerated in Sicily for over 12 centuries. The original statue is believed to have come from Turkey and is made of Cedar Wood.” Refreshments and socializing will follow the service. All are welcome!
The Historic Chapel of Santa Febronia is located at 557 5th St., between Madison and Monroe Streets.
Hosts going all out for fifth annual Novel Night to benefit library
Novel Night, Hoboken’s renowned literary dining event to benefit the Hoboken Public Library, returns this year for its fifth edition on Saturday, Oct. 18. Attendees are invited into the homes of one of 21 Hoboken hosts – equal to the record number set in past years – to eat a multi-course meal inspired by a novel or work of non-fiction.
Organized by the Friends of the Hoboken Library, this signature fundraising event will help to fund the library’s ongoing renovation project. Past year’s events paid for a new door for the library.
This year, books on which dinners will be based include “Eat, Pray, Love,” “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish,” and “The Sun Also Rises.” A number of dinners involve novels set in India.
Reservations are currently open. Interested parties must download a form from www.hobokenfol.org/novelnight.html and select their top five choices from the list of options.
Tickets cost $100 and are tax-deductible. Reservations are due on Sept. 25. For more information, call 201-618-7849 or email novelnight@gmail.com
Celebrate Oktoberfest with Saints Peter and Paul this weekend
The Catholic Community of Saints Peter and Paul will team up with the Hoboken Catholic Academy for the Hoboken Family Oktoberfest, on Sept. 26 and 27 in the Saints Peter and Paul plaza at Fourth and Hudson streets.
Enjoy traditional Oktoberfest fare from bratwurst to strudel, along with some other great festival favorites. Featured beers include Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest, Paulaner Märzen Oktoberfest, Radeberger Pilsner, and Weihenstephaner Hefeweizen. Magners Hard Apple Cider as well as red and white wine selections will be available.
Live music will be performed by Nobody’s Sheriff and a kid’s village will be hosted across the street at Stevens Park. From bouncy castles to basketball, there will be offerings for every child.
The biergarten runs from 6-10 p.m. on Sept. 26 and noon to 10 p.m. on Sept. 27.
Hoboken announces free flu vaccine schedule
The city of Hoboken, in conjunction with Hoboken University Medical Center, will be providing free seasonal flu vaccines on a first come, first served basis for adult Hoboken residents on Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014 from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Assumption Hall at Hoboken University Medical Center, 308 Willow Avenue. Proof of residency is required.
In conjunction with Walgreens, the City of Hoboken will also give out free seasonal flu vaccines for senior citizens with Medicare (A & B) and/or New Jersey Medicaid in the Community Room of residential buildings around the city on Monday, Sept. 22 and Tuesday, Sept. 23. A full listing of can be found at www.hobokennj.org/2014/09/city-of-hoboken-announces-free-flu-vaccine-schedule-4/.
Senior citizens are asked to bring a Medicare or New Jersey Medicaid card as well as a valid photo ID with them on the day of the clinic. Pneumonia vaccines are also free with Medicare. Flu vaccines are also covered under Cigna medical, United Healthcare medical, Blue Cross Blue Shield of NJ medical and Aetna medical.
For more information, please contact the Hoboken Health Department at (201) 420-2375.
Final public meeting for Hoboken Cove Boathouse Sept. 22
Members of the community are invited to the final public meeting for the Hoboken Cove Boathouse on Monday, Sept. 22 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the community room in the Multi-Service Center located at 124 Grand Street.
At 7 p.m., Marvel Architects will give a presentation of the final design for the new boathouse to be located on Hoboken/Weehawken Cove at the north end of Hoboken’s waterfront.
The underlying goal of the boathouse is to provide water access and engagement through community non-motorized boating activities and educational events.
Choral ensemble celebrates its 20th year
Celebrating 20 years of the finest in choral performance, the 40-voice Schola Cantorum on Hudson has announced its anniversary season, which they’re calling “We Have Had Singing.”
The full season is produced in both Montclair and in midtown New York City, and will include the East Coast premiere of a 90-minute oratorio by John Muehleisen, “Pietá,” in March of 2015, in collaboration with two high school choral programs.
Schola singers hail from throughout New York City and northern/central New Jersey. Although many are trained soloists, about half of the membership represents experienced amateur singers.
Two appointments (one alto and one bass) will become available as of Sept. 29. Interested applicants should express interest in an audition to Christopher Greene, (973) 309-0406.
Founded by Deborah Simpkin King in 1994, Schola Cantorum on Hudson has grown into an organization embracing innovative programming of primarily new music, pro-active advocacy of new music, most notably PROJECT : ENCORE, and multi-faceted education/engagement.
Tickets, along with audition information, are available on the Schola website, www.scholaonhudson.org