Public meeting on temporary boathouse scheduled for July 15
The City of Hoboken will hold a public hearing to discuss the placement of a Temporary Community Boathouse and an anticipated Permanent Community Boathouse, both at the Hoboken Cove, and the already existing Park Master Plan for 1600 Park and Hoboken Cove. Members of the public are invited to attend the meeting to discuss a temporary pavilion for the future resilience center and community boathouse, as well as input on the future anticipated permanent structure and their relation to the master plan.
The proposed temporary structure would be one standard 20’ x 8’ x 8.5’shipping container fitted with racks for 12 kayaks and space for paddles and life vests. The proposed permanent structure would be a two story building capable of storing up to 80 kayaks.
The meeting will be held on Wednesday, July 15 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Multi-Service Center, located at 124 Grand St. If you cannot attend this meeting, as an alternative, please submit your written comments directly to the Director of Community Development, Brandy Forbes via mail at 94 Washington St., Hoboken, NJ 07030.
Hoboken Housing Authority chairwoman announces run for council seat in November
Apparently, in Hoboken’s heated political climate, it’s never too early to announce a run for City Council. Six seats are up for re-election this November in the mile-square city’s nine-member council. Currently, Mayor Dawn Zimmer’s allies have the majority of seats.
On Monday morning, Hoboken Housing Authority (HHA) Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Dana Wefer announced in a press release that she plans to run for 4th Ward council in November. The seat is currently held by Timothy Occhipinti, who usually has been allied with those who oppose Zimmer’s policies. Wefer is seen as a Zimmer ally.
The HHA oversees the low-income public housing projects in the mile-square city.
The 4th Ward is the southwest section of the city, which includes much of the city’s public affordable housing. The 4th Ward election is often one of the most heated in Hoboken, as the area is seen as a hotbed of votes, contracts, and controversial get-out-the-vote efforts.
Wefer said her campaign would focus on the issues of taxes, development, and transportation and parking. “The 4th Ward deserves a representative who can effectively advocate for solutions to the big problems, such as taxes and parking, as well as quality of life issues, such as street cleanliness,” Wefer said in the release.
On her website, she said that she advocates residents paying $250 per year for street parking.
“Raising the cost to $250 a year, or 50 cents a day, with means testing for very low income residents, will ease some of the congestion on the streets by encouraging residents who have access to garages to park there instead of the street,” the site notes. “The higher cost will also disincentivize having multiple cars on the street.”
The release said Wefer will officially launch her race with a kickoff at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, June 14 at the Brasserie de Paris.
June 20 carnival held by Mile Square Theatre
This month, Mile Square Theatre, one of the Gold Coast’s leading performing arts organizations, will add another cultural event to the region–The Hoboken Hoopla Carnival, an afternoon of activities that celebrates the human impulse for creativity and expression.
The carnival will feature a wide range of entertaining summer activities and will be great fun for kids and families—bouncy houses, a dunk tank, petting zoo, face-painting, carnival booths, a beer garden, activity booths from arts-related businesses and non-profits. Street performers will stroll through the crowds and there will be a music stage.
The Hoboken Hoopla Carnival will take place on Saturday, June 20 from noon to 6 p.m. at Maxwell Place Park, located at 1025 Maxwell Lane.
First public golf course in Hudson now open
The Skyway Golf Course at Lincoln Park, 515 Duncan Ave. in Jersey City, begins accepting applications for membership starting Monday, June 15. Proof of residency is required. The facility, located on the west side of Lincoln Park, is the first public golf course in Hudson Copunty. The 3, 257 yard nine-hole course consists of three par 3’s, three par 4’s, and three par 5’s and offers views of the Pulaski Skyway and the Freedom Tower in lower Manhattan. For more information call (201) 763-7520.
Community invited to kickoff meeting for Rebuild by Design project
All members of the community are invited to attend a public kickoff meeting for the Rebuild by Design Hudson River project (Resist, Delay, Store, Discharge), which will be held on Tuesday, June 23 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Babbio Center on the Stevens campus.
In attendance at the meeting will be representatives from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, which is managing the project, the project consultant, and officials from Hoboken, Weehawken, and Jersey City. Following brief presentations with project updates, members of the public will have an opportunity to ask questions of representatives from the DEP, project consultant, and government officials.
“This has been an incredibly difficult week of flooding…I thank Carter Craft and Helen Manogue for their contributions in putting together a diverse group of more than 30 residents to serve on the Hoboken Citizens Advisory Group,” Mayor Dawn Zimmer said. The group is being co-chaired by residents Carter Craft, LaTrenda Ross, and Council President Ravinder Bhalla. The group will help to gather input from the community and provide feedback on the project, along with the entire community.
The Resist, Delay, Store, Discharge project will protect Hoboken, Weehawken, and northern Jersey City from flooding. The comprehensive strategy uses both hard infrastructure and soft landscape for coastal defense (resist), recommends policies to enable the urban fabric to slow down water (delay), and includes a green circuit to trap water (store) and water pumps to support drainage (discharge). The DEP will receive the $230 million in funding from HUD and is the lead State agency to plan, design and construct the project. The award is expected to fund the implementation of the “Resist” element of the strategy. Details of the proposal can be found at www.rebuildbydesign.org/project/oma-final-proposal.