Hoboken Councilwoman Vanessa Falco, who has long-time family roots in this town, knows that some of the people who have historically added to the fabric of Hoboken – artists, blue-collar workers – may have to leave town if their apartments become unaffordable or unliveable.
As a tenant of affordable housing on Jefferson Street, and as chair of the Affordable Housing Subcommittee on the council, she said during a Monday public meeting that since she moved into her unit 13 years ago, no other affordable housing has been completed.
“I felt it would be helpful to involve the community on affordable housing and not just through a subcommittee of three people working on this complex issue,” said Falco.
Monday evening, residents and city officials met to discuss the beginnings of a working group to establish goals for the City Council’s subcommittee on affordable housing and help tackle some of the issues. Click here for more.
With the deadline approaching to appeal the property assessments given during the recent Jersey City revaluation, some downtown residents hope to take the issue to court in a class action lawsuit.
Although slow to start, the protest has picked up momentum over the last few weeks as downtown residents hardest hit with massive increases scramble to challenge the resulting spikes in their tax bills.
Ward E Councilman James Solomon said the issuing of property cards to residents, which signals the official end of the revaluation process, was due to start on May 1. This sets into motion the formal appeal process. Residents will have 45 days from when the cards are mailed to file an appeal with the Hudson County Tax Board. Click here for more.
A group of North Bergen students holding a mock town commissioners’ meeting on May 1 learned what it feels like to make an unpopular political decision, after they “voted” to give generous property tax breaks to large corporations who move to North Bergen.
The annual May 1 (Law Day) event introduces North Bergen High School seniors to various town positions, including town attorney, municipal judge, and police chief. The kids then assume these roles for the day, an interactive way to learn about how government works. They later conclude with a mock Board of Commissioners’ meeting. Students also learn how the municipal court system operates.
Law Day honors the role of law in the U.S. Click here for more.
