The City Council legalized new parking spots closer to street corners, authorized the purchase of two new police cars, and briefly discussed the cancellation of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade at a rather short meeting on Wednesday.
The St. Patrick’s Day Parade cancellation – or, as Councilman Tim Occhipinti labeled it, “the elephant in the room” – was discussed by residents and elected officials during the new business and public speaking sections of the meeting.
Last year, after multiple arrests during a wild day of drinking and partying in Hoboken, Mayor Dawn Zimmer announced that she would henceforth only approve the parade permit for a Wednesday, not a Saturday. The parade has been held on the first Saturday of March for the past 25 years. The St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee organizes the event, and it is not a city-run parade. However, the mayor can choose whether to issue permits for parades.
“I don’t believe it is the parade in and of itself that causes the mayhem in this city.” – Councilman Tim Occhipinti
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Occhipinti, an opponent of the mayor, said at the council meeting on Wednesday, “I don’t believe it is the parade in and of itself that causes the mayhem in this city.” He said he believes the city should “prepare for the worst that day.”
City officials have noted that extra, if not all, police officers will be on duty on the first Saturday of March to combat the potential for scores of partiers, despite the lack of a parade. The city may also see some partying on St. Patrick’s Day itself, which falls on a Saturday.
Occhipinti said after the meeting that he would support a parade on a Saturday again, with regulations, and said he wishes the city and the committee had come to an agreement.
But not all of Occhipinti’s allies on the council share his opinion.
After last year’s parade, before the mayor’s announcement, Councilwoman Theresa Castellano, an opponent of the mayor, said she believes the parade should be moved to a weekday.
After the meeting, Councilman David Mello, a Zimmer ally, said he agreed with the mayor’s decision because “something had to be done.”
Margaret O’Brien, a resident, spoke during the public portion of the meeting about the parade.
She said in response to the parade committee’s decision to cancel the parade, the groups should march in nearby Jersey City.
“We marched in the 1960s with Jersey City and that can be done again,” she said. “That would solve some of the problems…there’s not many places to drink in Journal Square.”
Elizabeth Adams, another resident, believes the city could have a parade as long as there are certain regulations in place. The regulations Adams mentioned includes having police checkpoints, not selling liquor on the day of the parade, and not selling liquor in restaurants until 5 p.m. or after the parade is over. Last year, bars were able to open at 9 a.m. on the day of the parade.
Zimmer said that the city will begin planning its own St. Patrick’s Day heritage celebration. Zimmer said in a press conference earlier this month that the aftermath of the parade “feels like an uncontrollable siege of our community,” which forced her hand to move the parade to a weekday.
Corner parking measure passes
The City Council voted unanimously to allow extended parking zones, or legal parking spots near some corners, between the hours of 7 p.m. and 7 a.m.
Under the new local law, an extended parking zone exception allows parking within 25 feet before a crosswalk and 15 feet after driving past a crosswalk. The measure may add 850 parking spots in the city.
Corner areas that will not be considered extended parking zones will be painted red, said Councilman Peter Cunningham, while the others will remain painted as they are now. They will not be re-painted, so residents will have to estimate if they are in a legal area.
All of the council members in attendance, including both the mayor’s allies and her frequent opponents, voted to approve the ordinance.
“This is great; we need more of this,” Castellano said. “[We’re] looking through the city to see where we can create more parking; that’s what we’re supposed to be doing.”
“This is not a blanket pass to park on any corner,” said Councilman Michael Russo. “If you have concerns when this gets implemented [about if you’re allowed to park], you’re better off to not park in that [spot].”
New police cars added to the fleet; other business
Also at the meeting:
• The council approved a one-year contract to Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield to provide employee health care insurance.
• The council approved the purchase of two police cars at a total cost of $57,321.
The new cars will replace two of the older cars, Public Safety Director Jon Tooke said.
• A resolution to approve an insurance broker contract for Fairview Insurance was pulled from the agenda before the meeting by the administration. A memo from the mayor to the council indicated that the city has decided to rebid the contract because legal issues have been raised by one of the bidders. The mayor wrote that the city does not believe the claim has any merit, but the city decided to rebid the broker contract to protect the city from legal exposure. The original proposed broker, Fairview, is well connected to New Jersey Democratic politics. The city’s current broker, Brown & Brown, agreed to stay on while the process continues.
• The city will submit a grant application to the New Jersey Department of Transportation for the completion of pedestrian safety upgrades near Wallace Elementary School by Willow Avenue between 11th and 12th streets.
• Councilwoman Beth Mason was absent from the meeting, because she attended a county planning board hearing on the controversial proposed Monarch at Shipyard project. The board tabled the Shipyard matter. See the briefs section for more information.
Ray Smith may be reached at RSmith@hudsonreporter.com