3/11/2010 Update:

The financial footing of the City of Hoboken has a lot in common with the collapsing soccer field. Both were front-and-center at last night’s two-item Special Meeting.

Guess what your “Tax Cut” is now?

- Remember that 47% tax hike?
- Remember how Dawn Zimmer and her Council slate promised a 25% tax cut?
- Remember how Fiscal Monitor Judy Tripodi backed Zimmer up just days before the election?
- Remember how the introduced budget by outgoing Finance Director Nick Trasente included an alleged 8% tax cut?

Now with less the four months before the end of the fiscal year there’s a new set of budget amendments. Guess what the tax “cut” is projected to be now?

The new proposed tax cut? 0.54%!

No, not 54%. Not even 5.4%. That’s Zero-Point-Five-Four percent. One half of one percent, and even that could disappear before the fiscal year is up. It also means that if you weren’t among the many Hoboken taxpayers who successfully appealed your tax assessments last year, your taxes are going up! Feeling sold up the river? Your chance to complain comes next Wednesday night when the council holds it’s official Public Hearing on the $97.2 million final budget, which includes a $59.9 million property tax levy. You can’t say you weren’t warned. The budget amendments passed by a 7-1 vote, with 2nd ward Councilwoman Beth Mason the only dissenting vote. 1st ward Councilwoman Theresa Castellano did not attend the special meeting.

$12 million dog and pony show

The first item last night was a Bond Ordinance that would authorize the $12 million dollars in borrowing to repair the Sinatra Park soccer field and the Castle Point waterfront walkway. Companies itching to grab a piece of that pie were on hand to answer questions from the council about why they advised Mayor Zimmer to propose the $12 million in borrowing, but the public was not allowed to ask them anything. Instead, Council President Peter Cunningham decided to allow public comment only before the presentations, leaving members of the public to speak without hearing from he “experts”. Many of them complained about this arrangement, and at one point even 4th ward Councilman Michael Lenz agreed it may have been out of order, but Cunningham overruled him and continued on his charted course.

Speakers ranged from those who said the city can’t afford this blank check-style bond ordinance for a non-emergency, to a number of soccer moms imploring the council to fix the field no matter the cost. The fix was in even before the meeting, and ultimately the vote was 7 to 1. Mason again the only dissenting vote, saying the bond ordinance was premature. Mason also expressed concern about Hoboken’s growing debt in the face of the unresolved Hospital and Municipal Garage situations, which are more pressing concerns than a soccer field which may be out of commission for at least two more seasons.

Read the original preview, watch the video, and read the chat AFTER THE JUMP – and above all don’t forget who has been telling you the truth about the Hoboken Budget from the very beginning.

3/10/2010 Update:

$12 million bond and new Budget Amendments ahead

The Hoboken City Council will hold a special meeting tonight at 7pm, but you won’t find notice of it on the official city website. Nope, nothing at all about the Special Meeting to borrow $12 million for repair of the Sinatra Park Soccer Field, or the fact that the the official Amendments to the FY 2010 budget will be introduced.

The lead story on the official Hoboken City website is the announcement of a public meeting that took place Monday night for input on what color to paint the new downtown pump station. The pages that hold council meeting info are also without any mention of tonight’s meeting.

City Clerk Jim Farina posted it up on his bulletin board at City Hall, but the website controlled by the Mayor’s office has no mention of the meeting.

Finance Director leaves before budget is adopted

Finance Director Nick Trasente is getting out of the kitchen just as the heat is about to be turned up.

Trasente was hired unilaterally by State Fiscal Monitor Judy Tripodi, whose tenure appears to be winding down following the changing of the guard in Trenton. Tripodi hired Trasente at $125,000 and also brought in Tax Collector Sharon Curran to replace Louis Picardo.

Tripodi doesn’t attend council meetings, so Trasente ended up being in the line of fire. He’s been hired as the Chief Financial Officer of Middletown Township.

Being a CFO carries more job security than being a Finance Director.

Should Hoboken have a Finance Director?

Councilman Michael Russo – whose Uncle George DeStefano is Hoboken’s CFO – is calling on Mayor Dawn Zimmer to eliminate the Finance Director position (saving money) and focus on handing those responsibilities to the next Business Administrator.

Hoboken hasn’t had a BA since Dick England resigned from the position. Tripodi has been acting as BA since she came to Hoboken. Even going back as far as a year ago there were rumors that, if elected Mayor, Dawn Zimmer would name Michael Lenz to be her Business Administrator. With Tripodi winding down, watch for wheeling and dealing that could place the appointed 4th ward Councilman in either the BA or Finance Director’s office ahead of the November Special Election.

Meeting on the big budget items starts tonight at 7pm.

Video Archive and Chat Transcript


Until next week!

Hoboken NJ

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