Sweeny calls for raising of Bayonne Bridge
Coinciding with a visit to Bayonne on Aug. 19, Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney said the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey should begin work to raise the Bayonne Bridge, calling it the common-sense solution to protecting jobs and keeping the state’s ports relevant as container ships grow in size.
“The longer folks sit around talking about what to do about the Bayonne Bridge is time that should be spent implementing a plan to raise the span,” said Sweeney. “The fastest, most efficient way for the Port Authority to protect jobs and keep these ports running is to raise the bridge. There’s no reason this project couldn’t be started tomorrow.”
Since June, the Port Authority has been undertaking a study of how best to accommodate the larger sea traffic that would be expected to pass under the bridge once a widening of the Panama Canal is completed within the next five years. Last year, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers presented a report that showed raising the bridge to 215 feet above sea level – 60 feet above its current height – would be the fastest and most cost-effective means of solving the problem.
Besides raising the entire structure, other options being investigated by the Post Authority in its own study include building a lift-gate into the current span or potentially tunneling under the bridge.
In May, the state Senate passed a resolution calling on the Port Authority “to formulate an engineering solution to the impasse at the Bayonne Bridge” so that it could have time to apply for federal funding to help pay for the project.
Former security administration employee charged with stealing laptop computers
Jennifer Steplight, 40, of Bayonne, has been charged with one count of embezzlement by a government employee and one count of false statements as result of allegedly stealing four laptop computers while she was a security officer at Newark Liberty International Airport, during a period of time from December 2009 to January 2010, said to United States Attorney Paul J. Fishman last week
Renaming of school ceremony scheduled for Sept. 23
The Bayonne School District is scheduled to hold the official dedication ceremony of the Nicholas Oresko School (Public School 14) on Thursday, Sept. 23 at 10 a.m. at the Nicholas Oresko School, located at Avenue E & 24th Street.
In June, the Board of Education voted to rename the district’s newest school in honor of Nicholas Oresko, recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor, for his uncommon courage and heroic actions during the Battle of the Bulge in World War II.
Will Bayonne become a windmill city?
With the Bayonne Municipal Utilities Authority poised to begin construction on its first windmill to help power its sewerage plant and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey planning as many as six more for its property in and around Bayonne, the city could become the largest producer of air-generated power outside of Atlantic City.
Steve Gallo, executive director of the BMUA, said that the land has been cleared near its 5th Street facility that would allow the construction of a windmill. Half of the $5.6 million cost will be paid out of the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The project would also receive an $866,000 rebate from the New Jersey Clean Energy Program. When fully operational, the city could save as much as $170,000 annually from receiving renewable energy credits and the BMUA could also sell the extra energy generated for even more revenue.
Gallo said studies show that the site can generate enough wind to operate the turbine, and while the city may consider more in the future if suitable sites are found, the Port Authority apparently has plans for as many as six for its properties.
Light rail gets funding to expand in Jersey City
Senators Robert Menendez and Frank Lautenberg announced last week that the U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded the NJ Transit Corporation $771,875 in funding to support rail projects in Monmouth-Ocean-Middlesex and Hudson County.
Of this, $237,500 will be used for the development of an alternatives analysis for the extension of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail (HBLR) to vicinity areas in Jersey City.
This funding will help finance the development of research to expand the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail (HBLR) to Route 440 in Jersey City, NJ and support plans for new residential, educational, commercial and retail development in this area approximately one-half mile west of the existing West Side Avenue HBLR station. Projected changes in population density levels require the study of improved public transportation to support this development. This research is also expected to help in the planning of existing residential, commercial and retails developments.
HCCC listed as ‘military friendly’ college
Hudson County Community College has learned that the college will be named to the “Military-Friendly Schools” List. The college was chosen from 7,000 institutions of higher education across the country to be included on the list, and the official designation will be made in September. Only 15 percent of all of the nation’s schools of higher education make the list.
HCCC President Dr. Glen Gabert said in order for an institution to be named a “Military-Friendly School,” it must welcome American military veterans, active-duty and reserve students and offer them the best education and value possible. The schools on the list must also provide military students with flexibility in their classes, access to financial aid, and additional gains, including an ongoing campus veterans’ program and credit for service.
The “Military-Friendly Schools” List is determined after thorough research by the G.I. Jobs Military Friendly Schools team. The research includes data collected from government agencies and private entities that administer education benefits, as well as a survey conducted by G.I. Jobs.
“Hudson County Community College provides active military personnel, reservists and veterans with a wealth of opportunities to further their military careers and to prepare for civilian careers through our associate degree and specialized certificate programs,” Dr. Gabert said. He noted that many of those programs — including Nursing, Paramedic Science, Homeland Security, Electronics Technology, Criminal Justice and Languages — prove to be of special interest to men and women who are currently serving our country or who have served.
“All of us here at the College consider it a privilege to serve the men and women who have played such an enormous role in protecting our country. Hudson County Community College has always been a military-friendly school, and we are very happy to be officially recognized for that,” Dr. Gabert stated.
Assault something out of Wizard of Oz?
Calling it political theater at its worst, a spokesperson for the campaign of Undersheriff Frank Schillari disputed assault charges filed against him by Hudson County Sheriff’s Office Chief John Bartucci earlier this week.
“This is something straight out of the Wizard of Oz,” said Paul Swibinski, of Vision Media, serving as Schillari’s spokesperson.
Bartucci has accused Schillari of assaulting him in the Hudson County Administration Building, which was recorded by security cameras. In the complaint filed with the Jersey City Municipal Court, Bartucci claims Schillari shoved his shoulder into Bartucci’s back. The case is expected to be heard on Sept. 16.
“We reviewed the tapes and it isn’t even clear that there was any contact with Bartucci’s back,” Swibinski said, saying Bartucci is a supporter of Schillari’s political opponent, Sheriff Juan Perez.
In the complaint, Bartucci said the alleged assaulted happened on Aug. 5 just inside the Pavonia Street entrance to the administration building. Both men have office space on the first floor of the building.
Schillari secured the Democratic nomination to replace Perez in the November in last June’s primary after Perez switched parties to run for reelection as a Republican.
Perez fired Schillari in March, after the Hudson County Democratic Organization switched its support to Schillari. Schillari promptly filed suit, which he dropped in April after he was reinstated.
The latest incident appears to have political overtones.
“This all nonsense, political theater, there is a security tape that I’ve seen, that doesn’t even make clear that Schillari shoulder’s made any contact with Bartucci’s back,” Swibinski said.