Re: Amid the Glitter, JC's Growing Pains
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P.S. Indeed voting sometimes requires holding one's nose as one pulls the lever. No question about that.
The antidote: working harder to identify potential candidates who want to challenge the machine. (I cannot believe nobody in JSQ doesn't want to throw up on a ballot that offers a choice between Lipski and Jimmy King.) All that said...I'm no saint. I did not vote in the November '05 election because I couldn't stomch voting for Corzine (who still seems to me to be a clueless disappointment who will kiss the machine's ass to further his own self-aggrandizement).
Posted on: 2006/3/8 14:16
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Re: Amid the Glitter, JC's Growing Pains
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Truthfully, I think they laugh at our complants because they know we're too lazy to vote. Downtowners need to get off their "I'm too busy" butts and get registered, and make the effort to vote.>>
Absolutely right. Voting is key. The entrenched incumbents think we believe we live on "14th Avenue, the western-most stretch of Manhattan" and that we might follow the NYC mayor race, but pay no heed to the JC/Hudson County races. Look at this: "Fulop beat E. Junior Maldonado - the only incumbent to lose in Tuesday's municipal elections - by a 55 to 45 percent margin. With 87 percent of the votes counted, Fulop was ahead 2,165 to 1,802." That's from the JJ, 5/12/2005. A lousy 363 votes turned out Junior Maldonado. At a guess...if 5000 thoughtful new voters showed up at the next local elections, the machine would be turned out of every seat it now holds. Small margins matter in Jersey City races. Every new voter counts.
Posted on: 2006/3/8 14:00
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Re: Taxes and Cops
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I took away from the article and some of the posts, that while crime generally is the same as 5/10 years ago, most expect it to improve as revialization continues and real estate prices have sky rocketed, but it has not.>> I agree with DanL's interpretation. When people are paying $500/sq ft (and up) downtown and on the waterfront, they believe they deserve security -- and when they pay $5k, $10k or higher in property taxes they definitely are convinced they deserve a responsive govt. To me...the recent events don't say too much about crime but they say much more about perceptions of crime and the inability of this administration to manage the situation. But I take hope in this: last year residents of downtown elected Steve Fulop who fought the machine and the machine lost. I am convinced that if an alternative, energetic candidate had emerged in JSQ he/she could have beaten Lipski (and Jimmy King is not that candidate; besides, he lost). Little by little the machine is losing power, as new residents move in and actually demand a responsive govt (and who don't want patronage jobs).
Posted on: 2006/3/6 16:10
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Re: Amid the Glitter, JC's Growing Pains
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Most of JC is, in my opinion, pretty safe, most of the time. My own block, in the Heights, is as safe as any place I've ever lived. But...other blocks in the Heights are pretty dicey. JC (like, say, Brooklyn) is a block by block proposition. I have been in parts of Crown Heights that are as bad as our worst...and of course Brooklyn Heights is as good as our best.
Stories like the NY Times piece (which I generally thought was pretty good) can be read as scenes in a political war where the incumbents (essentially direct descendents of JV Kenny and Frank Hague) are facing new enemies (affluent, educated residents who don't want jobs with the city or county on account of they make a lot more in the private sector) and the new enemies are drawing blood by making the incumbents seem stupid and overmatched. Call this the David Dinkins era of JC history where the leadership seems to be losing to the darker forces. But after Dinkins came...the Great Clean Up. So it will be here. That said, the incumbents aren't as dumb as they currently appear...so this ain't over until it's over. In direct response to your question...safety/security are personal issues. It's hard to tell a person, you'll feel safe here or there. Come over, walk around neighborhoods that interest you, and make up your own mind.
Posted on: 2006/3/6 13:55
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Re: Amid the Glitter, JC's Growing Pains
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Very sad article...sad because, in lots of ways, it is on target....
Posted on: 2006/3/6 0:40
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Re: IMPORTANT FEEDBACK PLEASE ON PARKING - STEVEN FULOP
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Affluence brings with it a desire to own a car. Not in every case of course, but often. Having a car is a great, great convenience.
When I think of the folks I know who live in Manhattan, all but one owns a car. Admittedly, this is a 50+, reasonably well-heeled crowd for whom a $400/month parking fee isn't insurmountable. My hunch is that as Jersey City becomes more affluent, there will be more cars. That's already proving true in the Heights where many of my neighbors have three or more cars! A generation ago eaxh family might have had one car and some had none. Drivers seem to circle endlessly in search of spaces at night. All this said...after living in JC for 6 months I got rid of one car and now have only one (and my house has off-street parking so I am in spades).
Posted on: 2006/2/22 17:41
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Re: IMPORTANT FEEDBACK PLEASE ON PARKING - STEVEN FULOP
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First off...the important point is that you are initiating a discussion of parking which, I believe, is fast becoming a hot button issue. Old parking lots downtown are vanishing. They were there to inventory land and now that the land has value as building lots, the parking goes.
Downtown is not alone in facing a parking crisis. The Heights is far down this path, too. (Thus the many, many illegal curb cuts that attempt to create private parking slots.)
There just aren't enough spaces anymore. This is a problem that needs addressing, so I support your efforts.
As for your specifics --
<
Posted on: 2006/2/22 15:58
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Re: Detective demoted?
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http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060217/pl_nm/security_rumsfeld_dc
Rumsfeld, in this Reuters story, is lamenting that the US lags behind its enemies in technological savvy. He says:
<<"Our enemies have skillfully adapted to fighting wars in today's media age, but ... our country has not adapted," Rumsfeld said.
"For the most part, the U.S. government still functions as a 'five and dime' store in an eBay world," Rumsfeld said, referring to old-fashioned U.S. retail stores and the online auction house respectively.>>
We could say much the same about JCPD, alas.
Posted on: 2006/2/17 19:24
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Re: Detective demoted?
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would go so far as to suggest that the Community Liaison Officer should have the skills necessary to engage in this kind of forum and should assigned to do so, for all the reasons Valkin gave.>>
In 2006 we shouldn't be talking about this; it should just be. I'll admit that some boards seem primarily populated by lunatics (getnj.com and nj.com)...but this one is well-moderated and reasonably civil. I try to check in at least every few days because thee's always stuff I learn. JCPD might do likewise and it might find that this is a useful channel for disseminating information. Pity that such ideas seem too 21st century for the JCPD brass.
Posted on: 2006/2/17 18:32
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Re: Jersey City Loews needs our help! An open letter to our Mayor!
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Uhh..has anyone ever gotten a response to any email or letter sent to the mayor?
Posted on: 2006/2/10 18:39
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Re: The Guardian Angels are Coming
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I understand...but I think we're at a junction in the city's history where many, many toes need to be stepped on.
Posted on: 2006/2/10 16:46
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Re: The Guardian Angels are Coming
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Mariano Vega said. "(But) police could see them as an organized gang and those things can cause problems if there is not organized discussion.">>
It is difficult to believe Vega said that. If he did...I really have no idea what more could be said.
Posted on: 2006/2/10 16:29
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Re: Fulop Calls for Resignation of Police Chief Robert Troy
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It's time for Chief Troy to go.
Between his silences and his puerile outbursts against Fulop, he has shown himself to be a leader lacking in intelligence, charisma, and ability. He obviously doesn't know how to effectively deploy the resources at his disposal. We need to be rid of Bobby Troy. We should have a wide open competition for chief that invites appplicants from, e.g., NYPD, Philadelphia, and Boston. I would strongly prefer an external appointment for the next chief. Jersey City deserves the best and the brightest in its key governmental posts. Let's hire 'em!
Posted on: 2006/2/10 15:20
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Re: The Guardian Angels are Coming
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I never thought I'd say it...but the Guardian Angels are very welcome in my parts of JC. Obviously...we cannot depend on Bobby Troy for police protection.
Posted on: 2006/2/10 13:29
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Re: Should Downtown Jersey City Secede?
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I don't think Hoboken would take downtown JC, which is a good 10 years behind Hoboken's gentrification.
If Hoboken wanted to get bigger, the logical merger is with Weehawken. That said...I don't think any of these towns want to merge. The pols and govt workers are very happy with the status quo. In Hudson County a verity is that govt exists to serve elected officials and govt workers (and don't think the citizenry has a function beyond paying the bills). No govt official wants to give up his/her fiefdom. There will be no mergers, not anytime soon. Yes, it would be smart to merge Hoboken, the Heights, downtown JC, Weehawken, and Guttenberg. That town would be much bigger than Newark -- it would be by far the biggest city in NJ -- it would have diversity, some wealth, some ratables. We could get rid of three police chiefs, three fire chiefs, three Parking Authority bosses, etc., etc., + allied infrasture and management layers. We could fire hundreds of no shows and do nothings in the restructuring. This would be massive cost savings. But it ain't gonna happen.
Posted on: 2006/2/9 17:24
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Re: Should Downtown Jersey City Secede?
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I think that smaller, community based governments might work better.>>
Alas, it doesn't work that way in NJ. One of NJ's great inefficiencies is the proliferation of speck-sized municipalities that, of course, need governments to match. How many $150k/year police chiefs do we have in Hudson County? Little governments seem to make governments more unprofessional and accountability harder, at least that's how it works in NJ. Downtown JC secession is a silly idea.
Posted on: 2006/2/9 15:39
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Councilman's Wife Mugged
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From nj.com
This happened at 8:45 pm at 2nd and Manila! There IS a problem with street crime in this city. Is Bobby Troy listening? --------------------------- Wednesday, February 08, 2006 Councilman's wife mugged The wife of Jersey City Council President Mariano Vega fought off a mugger who got away with her purse last night, according to the president of a women's group she'd just attended a meeting of. Sonia Vega was pushed into her own car around 8:45 p.m. Tuesday at Second Street and Manila Avenue by a man who had been parked in a beige car across the street, according to Nidia Lopez of Women Acknowledged and Recognized for Achievement. Mrs. Vega suffered a cut lip, Lopez told The Jersey Journal this morning. In reaction to the attack, WARFA will host a self-defense seminar, Lopez said.
Posted on: 2006/2/8 17:36
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Re: Fulop Calls for Resignation of Police Chief Robert Troy
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2: why do you allow one fifth of the force to be on vacation during the summer, our highest crime period?>>
I didn't know that. It makes no sense.
Posted on: 2006/2/2 13:27
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Re: Fulop Calls for Resignation of Police Chief Robert Troy
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When the Parking authority, with practically a licence to print money if it actually does it's job, loses it instead, you can assume the rest are deeply f***ed up.>> Touche! Good point. Scary this government of ours -- but as the town changes, as the demographics change, a genuine revolution gets closer. I am sap enough to hope to see a day when those in govt in JC ask not what the citizenry can do for them but what they can do for the citizenry!
Posted on: 2006/1/27 19:41
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Re: Fulop Calls for Resignation of Police Chief Robert Troy
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Ummm...this week Corzine fired Petillo as head of UMDNJ without simultaneously naming a replacement. That won't happen for several months.
But by all means, email Corzine with your suggestion that it is better to keep an incompetent bungler in a $600k/year job than it is to allow the post to be empty as the state embarks on a (we hope) exhaustive search for a qualified administrator. As I've said before, I don't give a hoot about Troy's coming or going, but I am firm in saying that Fulop is doing good by highlighting the fact that JCPD is failing us and it is failing us not because of the men and women in blue on the streets (mainly decent, hard working folks) but because of endemic incompetence, cronyism, and a culture of piggery at the top. Personally I suspect the problem goes way beyond Troy. I would expect at least a dozen high-ranking officers should be encouraged to turn in their badges, their city cars, and their city gasoline cards. That said, JCPD is a microcosm that illustrates the state of affairs in other city departments and autonomous agencies. JCPD happens to have concrete statistics that measure its performance. Imagine if we could measure JCPA, JCMUA, or JCIA? In some respects JCPD may be better run than many other city departments and that is a frightening thought.
Posted on: 2006/1/27 18:13
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Re: Fulop Calls for Resignation of Police Chief Robert Troy
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Maybe Jersey City could make the position of police chief an electable office. We could do it in a very simular way to how county sheriffs and magistrates are elected in other parts of the country?>>
Heavens no. Taking politics out of policing is a necessary first step in healing JCPD. As for NYC PD fudging stats...maybe, maybe not...but the glaring fact remains that Jersey City ranks as one of the nation's most dangerous cities and crime rates are rising when they should be falling. Look at the Morgan Quitno ratings -- http://www.morganquitno.com/safecity.htm These numbers alone indict the performance of JCPD brass.
Posted on: 2006/1/27 15:55
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Re: Fulop Calls for Resignation of Police Chief Robert Troy
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Sometimes the process of healing starts by recognizing that there is a problem.
That is what Fulop did. I don't call that "grandstanding." I call it clear thinking. As for blaming him because he doesn't have a solution in hand -- give me a break. He's a part-time city councilman! (Last I heard he actually had a real fulltime job, not a County no-show.) Solving what ails JCPD and, more broadly, JC government will take clear thinking on the part of many (Fulop included). In point of fact it would have been the height of hubris for Fulop to present a "quick cure" for JCPD. It doesn't exist. All of Jersey City government needs a thorough makeover and this won't be quick, it won't be easy, and, truthfully, it may never happen. But count me in as one who wants to go there and I certainly welcome Steven Fulop to join this party.
Posted on: 2006/1/27 15:20
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Re: Fulop Calls for Resignation of Police Chief Robert Troy
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Troy - quoting a newspaper article - attributed a spike in violent crimes to a "confluence of disturbing trends in New Jersey and other states," namely the rise of gangs and gun violence.>>
That's so irritating. "It's not our fault!" The Morgan Quitno "Safest Cities" ratings show Jersey City at 299 (out of a possible 369). Elizabeth is 244. Paterson is 231. Dover is 15. Brick is 5. New York City is 148 and of course that includes the Bronx. (The higher the score, the less safe the city.) Why is Jersey City in effect twice as dangerous as NYC? As Fulop suggests -- somebody is to blame. JCPD at best deserves a "D" grade. Who's at fault? As for blaming Fulop for JCPD's morale, that is absurd. Wretched equipment (cars that are held together by duct tape and computers that don't work), dilapidated facilities (leaking roofs, basements that flood, walls that are falling down), and a police promotional hierarchy based on who you know, not what you know, have already decimated JCPD morale. Note: I don't blame this on Troy; this started before he was born. But it is preposterous to blame Fulop for JCPD's lackluster performance.
Posted on: 2006/1/27 14:59
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Re: Fulop Calls for Resignation of Police Chief Robert Troy
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Putting aside the personnel question vis a vis Chief Troy...I support what Steven Fulop is doing here because it says two big things:
o Crime is impacting QOL for JC residents. (In places like NYC crime is down.) I'm hearing more and more complaints, from people downtown, around Lincoln Park, and of course in Greenville. o The government's actions and inactions do indeed impact the crime rate. The helpless, passive remarks by some JC pols ("we're not as bad as Trenton") are the problem. Smart, good policing and govt should impact crime rates. A third problem, also touched on by Fulop's call, is the pervasive politicization of the police hierarchy. This goes back at least to Hague -- see Thomas Fleming's book, Mysteries of My Father , http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0471 ... s=books&v=glance&n=283155 All that said, I do not know enough about Troy to want his head or not want it. In a way, that is a secondary issue because Fulop is highlighting the primary issues: o Soaring crime rates o We can and should act o Politics don't belong in policing. What's not to like about that? Oh...anybody interested in the past who hasn't read Fleming's book should. It's a marvelous informal history of JC under Hague.
Posted on: 2006/1/26 13:42
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Re: History of www.187warren.com
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The Ledger offers historic pricing info here --
http://www.nj.com/news/housingboom/ It's a useful compilation of public sales info.
Posted on: 2006/1/12 12:04
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Re: Those New construction 2 Families
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Rules aren't exclusive to "historic districts." When I lived in Oro Valley, AZ (outside Tucson), my house was in a new subdivision (built circa 1990-95)...but I could only paint the exterior in one of 6 shades (all tan), wood trim could be in one of three shades (of brown), the concrete driveway had to be "natural" (it could not be stained in any way), etc., etc. This was all spelled out, in minute detail, in the CCRs (Codes, Covenants, Restrictions) which, by law, every home buyer had to receive before closing. Most never read the document. I know because I sat on the HOA board and was amazed that people hadn't even taken the time to learn the basics. Anyway...rules per se aren't bad. They can be enforced badly. But the idea of regulating a community's look isn't bad.
Posted on: 2005/12/27 19:44
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Re: Those New construction 2 Families
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Obviously, yes, some folks take these things to an extreme...but their's is a good counterweight against the folks who seem bent on covering JC with a sea of those damnable white-brick two stories!
I'm wondering...if enough people shout about the "bonus" apartments, does that destroy the economics of these monstrosities?
Posted on: 2005/12/27 18:15
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Re: Those New construction 2 Families
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Thank you for the input. I will bring this up with active members of the Sherman Place Block Association. We've done a pretty good job with trees on the block and possibly could extend into other areas.
Posted on: 2005/12/26 17:19
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Re: Those New construction 2 Families
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You know I think I may go on an illegal "bonus" hunt soon.>>
Please do it! What fries me are the ads on Craig's List for NEW construction with a "bonus" apt. I suppose I'm equally annoyed by the realtors who chirp about the "cashflow" benefits of a "bonus" apartment. An illegal apartment is an illegal apartment. Realtors who tout these units should lose their licenses.
Posted on: 2005/12/26 15:19
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