HobokenLocal

Lost Empire

2010-08-24T04:49:00.000-07:00

A proposed tower on 33rd Street, two avenues to the west of the Empire State Building, will fully or partially obscure the view of the historic building for many in Hoboken, Weehauken and Union City.

According to its developers at Vornado Realty Trust, 15 Penn Plaza is a "major office tower" that would rise opposite Pennsylvania Station to a height just shy of the Empire State Building's 1,216 foot spire.

For thousands of people in Hudson County this means that cherished views of the landmark building will be eclipsed by a glitzy office tower with zero historic or emotional relevance.

See the illustration below. (Those living in the red shadow will lose site of the Empire State Building; those in the gray shadow will have only a partial view):

(Click on image for a larger view)

5 Questions 4 Hoboken -- July 16 edition

2010-07-16T11:25:00.001-07:00

Below is the very first installment in the occasional series "5 Questions 4 Hoboken."

Each of these questions has been Tweeted to Hoboken's online community, which includes many in City Hall (I'm flattered to count the Honorable Mayor Zimmer and City Council members among my "followers").

Please feel free to answer them in the comment thread below. If you want to answer via Twitter, I ask that you use the #5Q4H hashtag, so everyone can follow the discussion... and, hopefully, learn the answers.

I'm especially keen to hear from elected officials and others on the city's payroll.

1. Hoboken's Bridge to Nowhere

Why have we had to wait so long for the Pier C Park to open? It was built to near completion months ago. Now, work seems to have stopped and it tempts pedestrians from behind chain-link fencing.

2. Collapse

Why weren't funds also allocated to repair the walkway collapse just North of the new waterfront promenade that skirts the Stevens physical plant? It's an eyesore going on several years now and it seems a planning bungle to build something new while ignoring the washout just adjacent to it.

3. Restless

Why can't we make public restrooms a requirement of developer-built parks? These developers have the resources to cover their construction and general upkeep. So why don't they?

4. Docked

What's the current redevelopment plan, if any, for the old Hoboken Ferry Terminal? Surely this aging beauty deserves a better fate than a parking lot for city vehicles.

5.Your Turn

Who will be the first Hoboken official or politician to answer any of these questions for Hoboken? Speaking for myself and others, we'd love to learn more about the fate of our fine city.

Again, you don't need to be a politician or city official to answer. Please feel free to fill me in. Or just add some questions of your own. I'll put them in the next installment of 5 Questions 4 Hoboken.

Thanks.

Hoboken 'Thumping' by the Numbers

2009-11-04T04:24:00.000-08:00

The numbers with nearly 100% in:

A more than 20% margin of victory in a race with seven candidates. I'd call that a "thumping" by Dawn Zimmer.

(Image courtesy Hoboken Journal)

Mason: Signs of Deception?

2009-11-03T14:18:00.000-08:00

You've probably seen the signs.

They urge Hoboken to vote for Beth Mason alongside governor Jon Corzine. The easy assumption is that Mason is aligned with Corzine, endorsed and approved by the governor.

But as seems to be the case in Hoboken politics, appearances can be deceiving... and so can campaigns.

I asked a senior campaign representative at Mason's office to confirm whether Corzine's camp had endorsed Mason. "Yes. Though he probably doesn't know about it," he replied, adding, "You know how that works."

A local Democratic Party official in Corzine's campaign had another story to tell. "To the best of my knowledge the Corzine campaign has not endorsed a candidate for mayor in Hoboken," he said.

So I tried again -- calling Kimberly Cardinal, Mason's press officer, for confirmation. I have yet to hear back.

This is what we do know. When Governor Corzine and Newark Mayor Cory Booker visited Hoboken last week, the governor endorsed no one.

According to Democratic party strategist Raj Mukherji, a mayoral endorsement wouldn't make sense. "Hoboken is a solid Democratic base for Corzine," Mukherji said. "Why would he want to split that base by endorsing one candidate over another?"

That's a question only Mason's campaign can answer. And I'm still waiting for that call.

Rep. Sires Forgets Whom He Really Works For

2009-10-18T06:24:00.000-07:00

Every now and then Democrats in Washington forget whom they really work for.

Friday was one such day as several dozen Democratic representatives buckled to phone and cable lobbyists and signed on to a letter designed to sow doubt about Net Neutrality.

Sadly, One among them is new Jersey's own Albio Sires, "serving" the 13th District including Hoboken, Jersey City, North Bergen, Bayonne, parts of Newark and surrounding areas.

Too often, in complicated matters of communications policy, members will take industry lobbyists at their word and sign on to whatever is foisted upon them. The phone and cable lobby funnel so much cash into campaign coffers that it’s easier to wave off the wonkery and just go along.

But Sires should have thought twice before signing onto a letter (pdf) that defies the wishes of progressives, President Obama, other Democratic leaders, and the tens of thousands of people who helped put him into office.

The letter was orchestrated by the phone and cable lobby as a warning shot across the bow of new Democratic majority at the Federal Communications Commission.

The FCC’s three Democrats are poised to fulfill Obama's pledge to make Net Neutrality a reality. It's an action that has received strong support from Democratic leadership across the board. If the FCC Dems succeed it would mark a massive win for the millions of people and many progressives who have fought so hard for this.

But deep-pocketed telco lobbyists have launched an all-out assault to derail the FCC. Phone and cable companies have hired more than 500 lobbyists, spent tens of millions of dollars, and unleashed sleazy Astroturf groups to mislead politicians, distort the facts, and resurrect long-debunked myths.

Sires has been on the receiving end of these industry handouts, and it's starting to show.

Another letter signer, Rep. Jared Polis of Colorado, may have just realized his mistake. He is now in damage control on DailyKos where he wrote:

I strongly support Net Neutrality and have been working on a letter to circulate advocating a regulatory approach that keeps the internet public and free… I'll post my own letter on dailykos later this week, and encourage you to ask your reps to sign it.

This new letter from rep. Polis is a good start and Rep. Sires should sign onto it. But if Polis and Sires truly want to make amends, they should sign on with Rep. Waxman, Eshoo and Markey as co-sponsors of the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2009 (HR 3458). He should also write a separate letter to Chairman Genachowski of the FCC pledging his support of strong Net Neutrality rules.

The fight for Net Neutrality is very real, and it's getting nasty. You can send a message to Washington by adding your name to the 2-million-person call to action.

And if you see your representatives' names at the bottom of that telco letter, you might want to give them a call and remind them who's really the boss.

Sires can be reached by dialing 202-225-7919. If you want to call his local offices in Bayonne, dial 201-823-2900.

The Wheels Come Off the Machine

2009-07-23T06:30:00.000-07:00

Does Cammarano Arrest Mark the End of an Era?
(scroll down for updates)

Only 21 days in and Hoboken’s Cammarano era has come to a sudden and stunning close as the city’s freshman mayor is hauled in by the FBI to face charges of corruption.

Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano is among more than 40 people rounded up on Thursday by FBI agents. Those arrested face charges related to their alleged involvement in a convoluted money laundering and property development scheme.

In custody alongside Cammarano are Assemblyman Daniel Van Pelt (R-Ocean), Secaucus Mayor Denis Elwell, Ridgefield Mayor Anthony Suarez, Jersey City Council President Mariano Vega and Jersey City Deputy Mayor Leona Beldini. According to the Newark Star-Ledger, the FBI sweep continues.

Hoboken's Walk of Shame

While Cammarano has yet to be indicted -- and remains innocent until proven otherwise -- the charges confirm suspicions that he was deeply engaged with a Hudson County political machine that treated back-slapping cronyism and influence pedaling as status quo.

The actions he's accused of would be more shocking to locals were it not for the state's history of crooked politics, which has landed more than 130 Jersey officials in jail since 2001, and conditioned us in Hoboken to accept corruption as a natural feature of the landscape.

But this could soon change. Cammarano’s future as mayor of Hoboken remains murky. Much depends on the outcome of the ongoing FBI investigation. Guilty or not, it's fair to say that the prospects of this onetime political hopeful are now D.O.A.

Cammarano, 32, was thought by HobokenLocal to be simply naïve – an ambitious young politician swept up by a system that would do whatever it takes to further his career.

Aligning one's political prospects with the Hudson County political establishment had been a sure path to electoral victory. But this arrest, and the widespread corruption it allegedly involves, may prove the end of politics as usual in our city of 40,000.

Some of you may scoff at that. But remember: Cammarano narrowly defeated rival Dawn Zimmer after a recount of questionable absentee ballots gave him the edge over her majority earned in the voting booths.

Zimmer's success -- even in a losing effort -- proved that the machine's hold on local democracy is increasingly tenuous. Cammarano's fall may be its final undoing.

= = = =
UPDATE: 9:00am ET, July 26 -- Yesterday I posted the following analysis at DailyKOS and the Huffington Post. In summary: Cammarano's downfall is an opportunity for New Jersey's progressive movement. It's our chance to pry the state's Democratic Party from the patronage machine that has put "business as usual" before accountability. Time to get organized, not only to remove Cammarano from office, but to put in place new leadership and principles and build a future where other Cammaranos have no place in politics. Stay tuned.

= = = =
UPDATE: 9:00pm ET, July 24 -- Another citizens petition calls for Cammarano's immediate resignation. The goal of 10,000 signatures is ambitious given the city's population (39,853). Despite Hoboken411's claim to the contrary, online petitions do work if tied to smart offline organizing. A broad and well orchestrated statement of public condemnation could go a long way towards showing our indicted mayor the door.

Cammarano's support from outside and within the machine is disintegrating. Members of his 88-member transition team are already de-camping. One, Phil Cohen, put it succinctly in his resignation letter to the mayor: "Having read the Criminal Complaint unsealed yesterday by the United States District Attorney, I believe it's not possible for you to serve as an effective leader of our city."

Meanwhile, two other mayoral candidates, Beth Mason and Dawn Zimmer, have indicated that their campaigns were approached by a property developer looking to exchange money for political favors (the same "cooperating witness" identified in the Cammarano complaint). Both said no. Cammarano, however, reportedly took the bait again, again, and again.

= = = =
UPDATE: 1:00pm ET, July 24 -- Making a brief statement before the cameras today, Mayor Cammarano denied any wrongdoing and said he has "no intention" of resigning. "I believe I am fully capable of filling out my oath of office while this case is pending," Cammarano said. Others -- including City Council President Dawn Zimmer, the Hoboken Republicans, Councilwoman Beth Mason, Councilman Peter Cunningham and the organizers of several citizens' petitions -- have called for the mayor to step down immediately.

Were the mayor to follow his own advice, dispensed earlier this month when Hoboken Housing Authority Commissioner Hector Claveria was charged with accepting bribes, Cammarano would show "zero tolerance" for himself and resign at once. Apparently King Peter III is above his own decree.

= = = =
UPDATE: 6:00pm ET, July 23 -- The nature of the complaint against Cammarano are detailed by the Hudson Reporter including an allegation that he claimed that those who stood up against him in the mayoral election would be "ground into powder" once he entered office. "The way I operate politics, anybody who helps me, I help them," Cammarano said. U.S. Attorney Ralph Marra referred to these quotes and others attributed to Cammarano as evidence of "arrogance and a shocking betrayal of the public trust."

Cammarano Machine Takes One on the Chin

2009-06-10T02:40:00.000-07:00

As of 5:30 am on Wednesday neither Dawn Zimmer nor Peter Cammarano has conceded in the Hoboken's mayoral election. according to the Associated Press.

Councilwoman Zimmer surpassed all expectations by winning at the polls (with a slim margin of more than 200 votes), but Councilman Cammarano edged ahead by 67 votes after absentee ballots were counted. Several dozen "provisional ballots" still need to be added to the mix.

Provisionals were cast after a voter's qualifications were challenged at a voting station. Both campaigns had monitors at stations throughout the city Tuesday, and I witnessed a voter challenge by a Zimmer monitor shortly after polls opened.

City Clerk Jimmy Farina told the AP that the candidates will head to court Wednesday to determine the provisional count.

Elsewhere the machine took a beating. Zimmer's slate of City Council-at-large candidates -- Ravi Bhalla, Dave Mello and Carol Marsh -- handily defeated Cammarano's crony line up, solidifying a progressive voting block on the council, and making it increasingly difficult for the patronage system to gain control of city spending.

While final results aren't in it's clear that Tuesday's vote was a significant victory in the long-term fight to reform local politics. The machine is breaking down in Hoboken. With more and better organizing of citizens, it may soon fade toward irrelevance.

Grassroots v. Machine

2009-06-08T18:28:00.001-07:00

The machine was in full swing today as many of the city's police and fire department personnel took time off from protecting and serving to pass out glossies of Peter Cammarano.

Some donned blue (the Cammarano campaign T-shirt that is) while others had their Hoboken Police and Fire Department baseball caps, decals and shirts on show.

It's a formidable force for the campaign, though some officers didn't do their candidate well by loitering around ferry terminals and NJTransit bus stops in packs of five or six.

Let me paint the scene: four to five guys standing around shooting the bull; one guy actually working to hand out campaign material.

Does that inspire you to vote Cammarano on Tuesday?

For me it offered up a glimpse into the bloated future of a Cammarano administration. As local resident Oanh Nguyen pointed out in her own flier to citizens:

"Cammarano says that he will work towards lowering taxes, but I do not understand how that will happen if in his history as councilman, he has not done much that has helped the City save money."

Nguyen, who like me is getting involved in local Hoboken politics for the first time, has done so by passing out fliers to her neighbors (She slid one under the door of my apartment this evening).

"I am concerned that Peter Cammarano and his machine may fool people into voting for him," she wrote. "And a vote for him is a vote to continue the same old politics as in the past."

I wish I had a link or pdf file to share you the whole of Nguyen's handout. She makes a sincere case for voting down the machine, one that's far more convincing than the blue Cammarano guys hanging out at the bus stop.

Others should follow Nguyen's example, pick up their phones, call five friends and urge them to vote. Nguyen inspired me to do more. Now it's your turn.

Break the Machine ... and make Hoboken better

2009-06-07T09:10:00.000-07:00

I’m spending my Sunday sharing information with neighbors about the upcoming election. I have printed 500 fliers and will be handing them out in key areas around the city.

I encourage HobokenLocal readers to do the same (Follow this link for a pdf of the flier which you should feel free to use). Then follow me on Twitter to join the discussion.

Canvassing is a proud American tradition that dates back to Thomas Paine and the 18th century pamphleteers. Imagine what Paine could have done with access to the Internet!

Here’s the copy of my flier:

Who Am I?

I am a non-aligned Hoboken resident who has devoted this day to do what I can to improve life in our community.

I supported Barack Obama in 2008, but this is the first time I have become involved in local politics.

It cost me about $12 to print 500 of these fliers, and a day away from family to pass them out to people like you. In exchange I ask you to take five minutes today to read this, and additional time on Tuesday to Vote.

If you want, you can do more. Please print out a stack of these fliers (or craft your own) and hand them to the people in your neighborhood. And then tell me about it!

Why Do I Care?

On June 9, Hoboken faces an important choice. We can choose candidates who represent a break from the patronage system that is sucking our city dry. Or we can elect the status quo by voting for Peter Cammarano and his crony slate.

Cammarano presents himself as a force for “real change,” but don't believe it. His political pedigree is a textbook case of the machine in action. He has ascended by seeking favor from behind-the-scene power brokers – including property developers, real estate and insurance companies, career politicians, and city employee unions.

This is not speculation. It is written into the financial reporting required of all candidates. It is also reflected in the back-slapping endorsements that Cammarano has received -- all people who expect a return on favors if he is elected.

Patronage machines use these types of insider networks to hold our democratic process captive. Over time, the machine breaks faith with the public and seeks only to serve itself. Hoboken's political machine has elected nearly every mayor over the past 75 years. Look what it has gotten us:

A crony entitlement system where 80% of the operating budget pays for personnel costs -- at salary levels far out of proportion with other U.S. cities.
Fiscal mismanagement so severe that in 2008 the state had to step in to take over the city’s budgeting.
Lack of transparency in decision making and governance that has spawned dozens of law suits against the city.
Short-sighted urban planning, which favors extravagant "luxury" developments that inject short-term cash into a corrupt system, over any longer-term vision for a better city.
Neglect of infrastructure that has darkened our drinking water, flooded our basements and streets, and short-circuited our electrical grid.

Hoboken simply cannot afford more of the same. We Cannot Afford Peter Cammarano.

We can break the machine and build a better Hoboken by voting on Tuesday, June 9. It doesn’t matter if you were born in Hoboken or are a recent arrival. All votes count the same. Please choose wisely.

Cammarano Supporter Channels Dick Cheney

2009-06-06T04:14:00.000-07:00

Here's one Peter Cammarano operative in action via Twitter:

If Michael Stefano's rhetoric sounds an echo, there's good reason. Former Vice President Dick Cheney has deployed similar scare tactics against the Obama administration.

Cheney recently took to the air on CNN's "State of the Union" to claim that Obama's policies have made Americans less safe:

President Obama campaigned against [Bush security policies] all across the country. And now he is making some choices that, in my mind, will, in fact, raise the risk to the American people.

Admittedly the circumstances are different, but the tactics the same. The politics of fear can be an effective tool if not called out for what they really are.

Opening the Thread

2009-06-04T04:38:00.000-07:00

We hit the trifecta for gay marriage with strong statements of support from mayoral candidates Peter Cammarano, Dawn Zimmer and Governor Jon Corzine

That's the good news. Here's the bad.

Cammarano's efforts to keep his machine's dirty tricks at arms length are coming across as shrill and disingenuous.

Cammarano knows that the 527s behind the smear-mail are part of the same machinations now propping up his campaign. These practices are standard operating procedure among more ethically-challenged campaign apparatchik.

If Cammarano wanted to put integrity behind his rhetoric of reform, he'd start by being transparent and forthright about his ties to entrenched special interests in local real estate development, old-boy politics, and insurance brokerage. These lobbies have coddled the candidate, placing his run for mayor at odds with the actions needed to advance real change for Hoboken.

Meanwhile Keith Carbone, the machine operative allegedly behind the attack mailers from the Astroturf group "Building America Committee," has dropped from the radar.

Friend me Keith, please.