HOBOKEN—The city of Hoboken paid its former environmental services director Jennifer Maier $95,000 last August to settle a wrongful termination lawsuit she had filed against the city. The previously undisclosed monetary value of the settlement was contained in city documents provided to the Hoboken Reporter via an Open Public Records Act request on Tuesday, Feb. 17.
A previous OPRA request for the amount had been denied.
The settlement is one of a number of settlements the city has paid over wrongful termination lawsuits since Mayor Dawn Zimmer took office. Two weeks ago, the City Council approved a $700,000 settlement with Angel Alicea, the former Hoboken public safety director, whose suit was appealed by the city after Alicea won a $1.2 million total award by a Superior Court jury.
The settlement for Jennifer Maier was approved by the Hoboken City Council on Aug. 6 with six Council members in favor, council members Beth Mason and Tim Occhipinti absent, and Councilwoman Theresa Castellano abstaining.
Maier had been hired by Zimmer from out of town, and was not involved in Hoboken politics before her hiring.
In the complaint filed with her lawsuit against Hoboken, Maier alleged she was fired after Zimmer learned of a dinner Maier had with Alicea.
At the dinner, according to paperwork, Alicea allegedly told Maier he had been forced to resign after complaining about alleged untoward activities committed by superiors who worked for the city. Maier said in the complaint that she told Alicea “to do whatever he felt was necessary to clear your name, and to go ahead against Zimmer by filing the lawsuit.” Sources have said that another individual was present at the dinner.
Following the meal, Maier said she was accused of trying to “sabotage” Zimmer. She claimed the city subsequently limited her responsibilities and fired her.
Recently, since 2012, Maier has served as the borough administrator in Union Beach, N.J., where she has been cited in newspaper articles as helping the area recover from Hurricane Sandy.
As a condition of the settlement agreement, Zimmer and the city of Hoboken did not admit to any liability or wrongdoing.