Dear Editor:
Mayor Zimmer’s comments about “postponing a positive result for political reasons would be irresponsible.” don’t seem to make a lot of sense. Jumping into a contract that guarantees a 1.8% increase in ’18 and then 2% each year after for up to 6 years doesn’t strike me as responsible for the taxpayers of Hoboken. Doing it quickly, as the mayor exits the political scene-is even more irresponsible. And worry some. What is this contract hiding and what don’t we know? Here’s what we do know: Seller beware: The NYT reported that private equity firms typically make 8-18 percent profit from privatizing water, all the while taxpayer bills shoot up (Camden, Bayonne serve as great examples of this—with Bayonne rates rising 28% after privatization).
They have (bad) company: Atlanta also had issues with Suez. An investigation found that $80 million in extra payments to Suez were never signed by the mayor—then he was charged with accepting $13K for trips to Paris from Suez. You’re paying for corporate mistakes and malfeasance: Rockland County (plenty of water here) had to fight Suez after Suez spent $54M on desalinization plant—a massive waste of money in the northeast where waterfall is plentiful. NY made Suez kill the project, but allowed them to bill taxpayers the $54 million that was wasted on a project that was never needed, but was started regardless. The Non Profit Food and Water Watch has issued a report stating that there is no evidence that private companies manage municipal water better than the municipalities themselves. Being that so much money is already being paid to Suez, our rates are guaranteed to go up, and the city is jamming a resolution through quickly, that affects us for many years, doesn’t it make sense to take more time and evaluate if this is the right move for Hoboken instead of letting our outgoing mayor quickly sweep this under the rug?
Tim Devalroger
