Dear Editor:
In the 2nd Ward, a feeling of community thrives throughout our neighborhoods from Willow Ave. to the Waterfront. My name is Peter Biancamano and I am a fortunate son of the 2nd Ward, where I was born and raised. My interest in acting as a liaison between City Hall and my neighbors began in my position as a Democratic Committeeman, which I have held since the age of 18.
In 2011, I was elected to the Hoboken Board of Education. In this volunteer position, my fellow Board members and I spent hundreds of hours grappling over how to best serve the needs of our community’s children, while being cognizant of the tax burdens facing our city’s residents. Our work culminated in the hiring of our new superintendent of schools, who, I am confident, will lead our public schools along a path of greater accomplishments and increased accountability over the next five years.
Now, I am asking your support to serve the community that I have called home all my life, as your Second Ward Councilperson. I believe that a strong council leads to a strong community. We can and we must do better on many issues, such as working to relieve the onerous burden on single family homes before people are forced to sell due to increasing taxes. Just as I put aside political differences to work cooperatively to improve our schools, our city council needs members who can rise above their allegiances to work for the best interests of our residents.
We need a councilman who can represent our ward and the city interests on a broad range of topics, whether that is the maddening appearance of “no parking” signs on days when no work is performed or the lack of upkeep in the uptown parks. We all know that we have a parking problem and that our city is home to thousands of young children who use our parks daily. So, our local government should be especially concerned about the inconveniences to residents when there is necessary work to be performed and, for the sake of our youngest residents, we should ensure that Elysian Park is well maintained and that Legion Park is completed as promised several elections ago.
In too many instances, communication between the administration and the community has been lost. The residents of the Tea Building and the community as a whole deserve to know all the details regarding the Monarch project. The residents of Maxwell Place and surrounding areas deserve to know why communication was lacking from city officials regarding a new wet weather pump. While we all feel the need to find solutions to flooding and development, we also need to give consideration to our neighbors’ quality of life.
I look forward to discussing these and other issues with my neighbors during the campaign.
Always at my community’s service,
Peter Biancamano
Candidate, 2nd Ward City Council/BiancamanoForCouncil@gmail.com