Hoboken Memorial Day Parade tonight – bus routes changed

In case you didn’t know – the Hoboken Memorial Day Parade is tonight. Washington Street will be closed from 11th to City Hall. Festivities start at 6:30pm – and once again that giant flag will be erected at 10th and Washington Streets.

Also note that NJ Transit Bus Routes have been altered from 5:30pm to 10:30pm.

Make sure you take that into consideration when planning your evening commute.

• Buses traveling toward Port Authority Bus Terminal will travel on Observer Highway, make a right on Bloomfield Avenue, left on 14th Street, and then continue the regular route.
• Buses traveling toward Hoboken Terminal will travel on Willow Avenue, continue on Willow Avenue, make a left on Observer Highway, and then continue the regular route.

Memorial Day History

Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of an organization of Union veterans — the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) — established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan declared that Decoration Day should be observed on May 30. It is believed that date was chosen because flowers would be in bloom all over the country.

The first large observance was held that year at Arlington National Cemetery, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.

The ceremonies centered around the mourning-draped veranda of the Arlington mansion, once the home of Gen. Robert E. Lee. Various Washington officials, including Gen. and Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant, presided over the ceremonies. After speeches, children from the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Orphan Home and members of the GAR made their way through the cemetery, strewing flowers on both Union and Confederate graves, reciting prayers and singing hymns.

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Technorati Tags: 2013, Hoboken, May 22, Memorial Day, New Jersey, NJ, NJ transit, Parade, Washington Street

Hoboken energy waste? Pier C Park lit up, but still closed

Several Hoboken411 readers mentioned to me – that while Pier C Park along the Hudson River waterfront has remained closed seven months since Hurricane Sandy – it’s brightly lit up each and every day! Wonder why?

Some might argue that it’s “so boats can see it at night,” but don’t you find that to be a bit excessive to have the whole thing entirely lit?

Blinking beacon lights along the perimeter of the pier should be enough, and would consume a lot less energy, and allow more life to be realized from the lamps on the pier.

But then again, this is Hoboken…

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Technorati Tags: Energy Waste, Hoboken, New Jersey, NJ, PHOTO OF THE DAY, photography, Pier C Park

Sandy affected almost all piers in Hoboken, NJ

Hurricane Sandy did more than knock out the power and flood basements in Hoboken. She also did a number on our (shoddily designed) waterfront. As you probably already know, Pier C Park was messed up (and still hasn’t reopened), and now even Pier A Park seems be sinking – and apparently needs millions of bucks to be borrowed on the city credit card to make right.

It even appears that bricks are sinking along the waterfront walkway in between the two parks mentioned above. Our dogs picked up on this, because we didn’t even notice the skimpy single strip of so-called “caution tape” that was hastily implemented around this area:

Uptown Piers in Hoboken damaged by Sandy, too

Pier 13 – the hotly contested outdoor beer garden and lunch truck spot is also undergoing extensive repairs at the moment. Contractors on scene have been working at fixing the plumbing and structural aspects not visible to the eye.

This along with the two other piers that were not used much by residents (other than a small dog run, and the Yankee Ferry owners, who re-located to Maxwell Place Pier) have also been deemed structurally unsound.

Will these repairs be enough to ensure many more decades of use? Or will we be in this position again soon after a couple strong t-storms or nor’easters?

Technorati Tags: collapse, Hoboken, Hurricane, maxwell place, New Jersey, NJ, Pier 13, pier a, Pier C, piers, Sandy, Shipyard, Uptown

Stuiver ousted as Zany Zimmer Hypocrisy continues at HHA

Ever since Dawn Zimmer backed into the position of Mayor here in Hoboken, the “shadow government” has been trying to take over and control every board and organization. By “appointing” members who don’t belong (mainly because they have no qualifications), it can create quite a stir, as shown in the video below.

In this embarrassing video – the arrogance of Zimmer appointed Hoboken Housing Authority members shows – especially “Chairman” Jake Stuiver, who thinks it’s perfectly appropriate to lead a city meeting wearing a Hoboken bar t-shirt! Who does that? Other members were wearing suits and jackets!

Additionally – Stuiver was ordered to wanted to appoint puppet Greg Lincoln to chairman, despite him not completing the necessary classes. As a reminder, the Zimmer cronies voted off Marianne Camporeale for exactly the same reasons! Talk about blatant Zimmer hypocrisy!

Eventually – Jake Stuiver was booted, and stormed out of the meeting like a spoiled toddler. This brief video demonstrates how Zimmer, Dave Mello and the rest of the “lemmings” are totally out of touch with the needs of the Housing Authority residents. Just listen to the cheers!

In the end, the demeanor and actions exhibited in this meeting (and most others) demonstrates that Dawn Zimmer’s administration doesn’t care about leading or the residents they “serve,” rather that she and her officials only care about “ruling.”

Gets even worse at Hoboken council meeting on May 15, 2013

At this weeks Hoboken City Council Meeting, local resident Perry Belfiore was on fire!

He did a great job chastising the Zimmer council members for voting on a “side” rather than an “issue” because all they care about is maintaining their own majority and not supporting what the majority of the people want. The room was packed with HHA residents who came out to support the nomination and appointment of Barbra Reyes to the vacant HHA seat. Dozens of people spoke on her behalf providing wonderful praise for her volunteerism in the community. She is also a resident of the HHA which is what the community wants. (She spoke later in the meeting, and sounded lovely, in fact!)

Perry makes a point at calling out “Angry Dave Mello,” and then the rest of the lock-step “Zimmer Clan” went on to all vote NO against Barbara for the HHA seat, proving Perry’s point.

Ravi Bhalla and Mello then “speak” to Barbra – but they speak down to her in that sexist way they have because she couldn’t possibly understand the complexities of the HHA issues. She only “lives” there!

All the residents who spoke demanded that the Mayor leave her politics out of the HHA. All who endorsed Barbra Reyes said she has no political agenda. She confirmed that and said she has no political agenda as well.

After Belfiore spoke, you see council members “agreeing,” and even Bhalla said “you should not have politics in there,” then he sums up his conversation with Reyes from last week and said he can’t support her because she would not support the Zimmer agenda to have Carmelo Garcia removed! Michael Russo then slams Bhalla on demanding that an appointee follow his “political rule.”

But why worry? At least you know where Dawn Zimmer’s priorities are… dopey bike lanes and rentals! (And who’s riding on the wrong side here exactly?)

Technorati Tags: Carmelo Garcia, Chariman, Dave Mello, Dawn Zimmer, Greg Lincoln, HHA, Hoboken, Hoboken Housing Authority, Jake Stuiver, Marianne Camporeale, Meeting, New Jersey, NJ, Zimmer Hypocrisy

How do you like the 14th Street Viaduct design so far?

As everyone in Hoboken knows by now – the 14th Street viaduct uptown has been undergoing a restoration and expansion for the past year or two already. Estimated date for completion is sometime around January or February 2014. But what do you think of the actual design?

Is the fancy design necessary? Wasteful? Or good for property values?

Naturally – the most important part of a piece of infrastructure like this is functionality. Does it work? Will it last? How much will it cost? Who is paying for it? (Public money is being used one way or another – either locally, statewide or even federally).

But I noticed that this new structure – while coming along nicely, is receiving a fancy brick-work façade.

While I agree it will fit in a lot nicer with the other cookie-cutter condos in the area (and might even add a bit of “character” – and feel a bit more like a “neighborhood”), but I wonder how much extra money it added to the total cost, instead of say – a solid concrete structure.

And What about ongoing costs? Does this brick like outer shell require less or more maintenance in the future?

Lastly – do you think that a “fancier” viaduct actually augments this neighborhood, helping maintain or even increase property values?

What if it did cost a lot more to look this way. Are you OK with it? Or would you rather they just cover the fundamentals?

Technorati Tags: 14th Street Viaduct, construction, Hoboken, infrastructure, New Jersey, NJ, photography, Property values

Deadline approaching for Zimmer in Falco lawsuit

5/15/2013 Update:

Note that Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer and her lawyers have till the end of Thursday, May 23, 2013 to respond to the lawsuit brought forward by Police Chief Anthony P. Falco.

If you need to catch up – click here to read what this is all about.

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Technorati Tags: Anthony Falco, Anthony P. Falco, Dawn Zimmer, Hoboken, Lawsuit, New Jersey, NJ, Police Chief, Stan Grossbard