Rumor has it that Dawn Zimmer plans to step down as mayor of Hoboken shortly, setting the stage for a special election that would likely coincide with the six City Council ward elections in November, 2015.
Mayor Zimmer, when contacted, asked what the reason would be for her to step down, suggesting that there was no validity to the rumor.
One theory is that Zimmer would resign in order to order to pave the way for Councilwoman Jen Giattino as the next mayor. This would allow Giattino, currently council president, to gather experience as a mayor ahead of the special election, while still allowing the Zimmer camp to retain control of the city.
She would serve as acting mayor and City Council president the way Zimmer did in the wake of the arrest and resignation of former mayor Peter Cammarano.
The move could galvanize the Zimmer forces in off-year elections when they need someone at the head of the ticket.
If Giattino’s public comments can be an indicator, she may be even less sympathetic to affordable housing in Hoboken than Zimmer, but some believe she may be more pro-business. (Giattino, a registered Republican, was one of the few Hudson County politicians who openly supported Mitt Romney over President Obama in the last election.)
The resignation, if it ever happened, could once more split the anti-Zimmer forces, who are still in disarray not only from the 2013 mayoral election but also from the recent Board of Education election, in which they retained one of their two seats.
At this point, both Freeholder Anthony Romano and Assemblyman Carmelo Garcia appear to be best poised to run if Zimmer resigns.
The problem is that not everybody in the Zimmer camp wants Giattino to be the next mayor, and rumor suggests that Councilman David Mello may want a shot. As a possible chair of the Hoboken Democrats, he will have a base that Giattino cannot count on, even though the municipal elections are technically non-partisan.
A Zimmer resignation may be a move to strengthen Giattino’s position against alternative candidates in the Zimmer camp. This warfare in the Zimmer camp promises to strengthen Michael Russo on the City Council.
All this, of course, depends on whether the rumor is true.
When is a green Christmas not green?
Some people near City Hall in Jersey City wonder what happened to the traditional Christmas tree, discovering instead that the front of City Hall has been decorated with a piece of artwork that looks a little like the crash site of an alien space craft. So instead of Santa’s elves, maybe we should expect pod people to appear.
This is a general change of culture in that part of the city and may reflect a change in the future from traditional events. Some parades that usually marked the year may also soon vanish in favor of vendor-sales events that will both generate funds for the city and help spur sales for local merchants.
One excuse for eliminating the entertainment-based celebrations of the past is the high cost of providing public safety along parade routes.
All this comes at a time when vendor tents are popping up like mushrooms in many of the city parks, serving in some cases as farmer’s markets – although new rules will dictate what kind of products can be sold in anything labeled as a farmer’s market.
The rules will also require these markets to accept various vouchers allowing poorer people to also purchase healthy foods.
Unfortunately, these markets in some areas compete with existing markets, raising concerns of people such as Councilman Michael Yun about the competition and the domination of public parks by vendors. But the higher cost of farmer’s markets will likely keep many of the poorer people from extensive shopping as they try to stretch limited vouchers, and so farmer’s markets will likely most benefit the new urban dwellers currently in the process of gentrifying areas around some of the more popular parks.
Return to the light
There’s a recent effort by Phil Kenny to rescue his political aspirations after his plea deal in the Bid Rig II federal sting in 2009. He served slightly less than the two years in prison he was sentenced to serve.
Many people are trying to rebuild reputations after the federal sting – which was apparently political – snagged them.
Kenny is a particularly nice human being who was on the road to political success when he got caught up in the web of bribery along with a host of other Hudson County political people that included Cammarano, Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell, Jersey City Deputy Mayor Leona Beldini, and Council President Mariano Vega. Even some community activists were snagged, such as Lavern Washington, one of the truly great and well-meaning people in Jersey City. Some won their cases or had them thrown out, such as former state Senator L. Harvey Smith and former Assemblyman Louis Manzo.
Whether the sting operation was part of a campaign to get Christopher Christie elected to governor is largely beside the point, said one savvy political Hudson County figure.
“These people got in trouble because they took the money that was offered,” this man said. “Those that didn’t take the money didn’t get in trouble.”
Kenny is fortunate that he lives in Jersey City, which has become a haven for damaged public officials seeking a second chance. Some of these figures even wound up back in the same job they were driven out of by their illicit activities. Jersey City actually has a second chance program for ex-cons. In this case, the idea misses the mark. The program is designed to help rehabilitate people who struggle to get jobs and start their lives over, not for people who have betrayed the public trust.
This makes you wonder if we might seen a return of former Hudson County Executive Robert Janiszewski any time soon.
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.