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Re: Fulop and the ‘Fight for Fifteen’
#91
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Quote:

bodhipooh wrote:
Politicians should look at San Francisco's experiment with the $15 minimum wage. One of its many unintended consequences was forcing a lot of "mom and pop" shops into closing down, and for low skilled workers to see their hours cut back.

There have been many studies done, and here is a Forbes write up on the matter:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/adammills ... -wages-impact-employment/



Well reasoned article

Quote:
These results don?t necessarily mean minimum wage increases are bad policy. They do, however, support the notion that higher minimum wages have a cost, namely fewer employment opportunities for lower-skill workers. It?s important that we recognize this cost in any discussion about minimum wage policy.


I agree.

Posted on: 2019/2/8 3:55
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Re: Fulop and the ‘Fight for Fifteen’
#92
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Quote:

TheBigGuy wrote:
Quote:

JCGuys wrote:
Quote:

135jc wrote:
This is really a slick move to increase tax collected by the state. Hopefully it wont put too many places out of business or cause too many to decrease staff.


Businesses suffering the most will be McDonalds franchieses and other shitty employers.

It's not going to chase anyone out, but it may lead to price increases for consumers that consume shitty, cheap products.

Tax collection on people making minimum wage isnt going to make a dent in the budget.


Curious what you mean by "McDonalds franchises and other shitty employers". Is there something wrong with those types of jobs... or the businesses themselves?


The type of employer. They pay their people minimum wage, keep them under 30 hours a way to avoid paying benefits, treat them like shit while simultaneously delivering a shit product to their consumers.

I worked for a McDonald's franchisee in my youth. Worst job I ever had. The best was a warehouse job for a small independent grocer.

Posted on: 2019/2/8 3:52
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Re: Fulop and the ‘Fight for Fifteen’
#93
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Quote:

jerseymom wrote:
Quote:

135jc wrote:
This is really a slick move to increase tax collected by the state. Hopefully it wont put too many places out of business or cause too many to decrease staff.


You also have to consider the unintended consequences to the individual. If a minimum wage worker who supplements their income with state assistance has their income "bumped up" how does that impact their benefits? Will there be a group of workers who somehow find that their net gain doesn't adequately cover the assistance they used to receive - or will the increase deem them partially or completely ineligible? Is that one of the goals of the Fight for Fifteen?


Exactly right! It's not a justification to not raise the minimum wage but it is a legitimate unintended consequence.

Posted on: 2019/2/7 15:02
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Re: Fulop and the ‘Fight for Fifteen’
#94
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Quote:

135jc wrote:
This is really a slick move to increase tax collected by the state. Hopefully it wont put too many places out of business or cause too many to decrease staff.


Businesses suffering the most will be McDonalds franchieses and other shitty employers.

It's not going to chase anyone out, but it may lead to price increases for consumers that consume shitty, cheap products.

Tax collection on people making minimum wage isnt going to make a dent in the budget.

Posted on: 2019/2/7 14:59
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Re: What's going there?
#95
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Quote:

JCBORN wrote:
I didn't realize the VNA has that kind of power. Does that mean the developers have to put this project on hold? I was hoping to see this work get started. That building is currently an eye sore.


It's a frivolous lawsuit. A waste of money x2. VNA is gonna hire attorneys along with the city using tax dollars collected from VNA members.

Fulop is giving out abatements any more. We should be thankful for the ratables. But no. This is why we can't have nice things.

Posted on: 2019/2/6 23:02
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Re: What’s going there? (Journal Square edition)
#96
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Quote:

iGreg wrote:
Shockingly sweetheart deal again from the redevelopment agency. This would have drawn double on the open market.


Quote:
The five-parcel lot, which sits on Newark Avenue and Cottage Avenue in
Journal Square and had been previously transferred to the JCRA, will be purchased by Canbis LLC, for
$8.7 million.


Bidding was open to everyone and their mother. I agree the property is probably worth more, but other developers have got to do their due diligence and submit bids. I saw this RFP on JCRA's website for over a couple months. Not like it was a secret.

Posted on: 2019/2/6 22:48
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Re: What's going there?
#97
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Quote:

hero69 wrote:
what's the deal with 359 5th street? i passed that monstrosity the other day. it takes up 100% of the lot and towers over neighboring houses. how was that every approved?


That section of 5th street isn't exactly Jersey City's proudest block (from a design/aesthetics point of view). That new mega house doesn't help though.

Posted on: 2019/2/6 4:53
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Re: Sweeney proposes slapping payroll tax on Jersey City businesses to fund schools
#98
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Quote:

hero69 wrote:
Quote:

brewster wrote:
Quote:

Sandra Cunningham wrote:
According to the new school funding formula, Jersey City is dramatically overfunded, but when you look around at our public schools that doesn?t seem to be the case. Our students are being provided with a high quality education


Untrue. Our unionized employees are being better paid than 98% of their NJ peers, but our students are being shortchanged. The district is now being run by and for it's employees. I dare anyone to try and read the "user friendly budget" and figure out where the money goes. I found terms used there that Google couldn't even define!
it is so easy/convenient to blame teachers for poor jc public school system, and i don't doubt that there are many lousy teachers out there, but i don't think people focus enough attention on lousy parents who raise lousy students/children.


It's a cycle of poverty. Lousy children become lousy parents and raise lousy children. The only thing to break the cycle is good education and economic opportunities. I'm all for gentrification if it helps break the cycle. Unfortunately this leads to the displacement of a lot of people, but just having a concentrating poverty in a particular neighborhood or building will never bring about positive change.

Bring in more charters in areas of failing schools and starve out the old ineffective and racist ways.

Posted on: 2019/2/4 15:54
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Re: Sweeney proposes slapping payroll tax on Jersey City businesses to fund schools
#99
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Quote:

JSleeze wrote:
Quote:

JCGuys wrote:

The ones suffering in all this is the students and the shitty education they receive.


Case in point.


Keep in mind that this illegal tax does nothing to improve student education. It merely sustains that status quo.

Sometimes the only way to fix the system is to break it. I'm not even close to Republican but these tax and spend policies are a shame. Last in the state in extra circular activities and music, bottom of the barrel for performance. Top 10 in per capita spending. Something is wrong with this situation.

Give the $25,000 per capita to a charter.

Posted on: 2019/2/3 23:57
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Re: Sweeney proposes slapping payroll tax on Jersey City businesses to fund schools
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This tax is illegal, and JC schools are so poorly run that I wish we could import the school trustees from Lakeland so they would defund the school board.

The ones suffering in all this is the students and the shitty education they receive.


Posted on: 2019/2/3 16:32
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Re: PATH (pathetic attempt at transporting humans)
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Quote:

Bike_Lane wrote:
Quote:

JCBORN wrote:
what is the status of opening another path stop in the marion section? Is this still being considered?


The Port Authority does not want to build a station in Marion. City forced the Port Authority to study it as part of the legal settlement over back taxes. Study is supposed to be done sometime this year. I'd be shocked if it said anything other than "Marion station is not feasible in the near term due to (x, y, z reasons), so no further action will be taken."


You're probably right but all that's needed is a politically connected property owner and POOF there it appears.

Posted on: 2019/1/25 6:25
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Re: Jersey City fighting $2.7M court award over Journal Square property
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Quote:

bodhipooh wrote:
Quote:

JCGuys wrote:
Another week and another legal defeat for Jersey City. Next Mayoral election, I'm voting for the candidate that won't continue pissing away valuable tax dollars on legal fees fighting lost causes.


This is sad news. I do believe the mayor's heart and intentions are in the right place, but there has to be a better way to go about these things. It seems like JC has been on the losing end of too many recent court cases.

Take politics out of the process and do what is best for residents. It seems from the details of the case that the entire argument of the city was "well, even though it was a deposit towards future charges once you opened, we already spent the money, we don't want to give it back, nor are we able to do so."


It's the politics. For example, the Mayor should have never fought the prior reval company. They should have just paid for work preformed and call it a day. Instead, thousands had to be spent on legal fees using a tactic that would make Trump blush. I wish the courts would have award tens of millions in punitive damages against the city so we would learn not to weaponize the legal system and be fair. There is also the robinhood property where the developer is alleging the city is dragging their feet after being order by a prior court case to grant approval. The city never learns.

Posted on: 2019/1/24 18:58
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Re: Jersey City fighting $2.7M court award over Journal Square property
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Quote:

Chris_NJ wrote:
Is this property cursed? Will anything ever happen there? I remember when the previous structures were finally demolished in like 2005 thinking that something would finally be built.


Yup. It's cursed. I can even predict the future by looking at the past: There will be another owner proposing a new twin tower development in 5 years, even taller than the last iteration It will gain planning board approval and a tax abatement. Site will be cleared, maybe even excavated. Then something will happen (economic crash) and it will remain vacant for another generation. Mark my words it will occur, unfortunately.


Posted on: 2019/1/24 18:54
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Re: Jersey City fighting $2.7M court award over Journal Square property
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Another week and another legal defeat for Jersey City. Next Mayoral election, I'm voting for the candidate that won't continue pissing away valuable tax dollars on legal fees fighting lost causes.

Posted on: 2019/1/24 11:25
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Re: New Jersey-New York area lost 5,700 millionaires in 2018
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Quote:

brewster wrote:
Quote:

Dolomiti wrote:
The same research entity ("Wealth-X" -- who?) also indicated that NYC alone had nearly 1 million millionaires.


Yes, being a millionaire is not nearly as impressive as it once was. All it takes is having bought a nice house or apartment 20 or 30 years ago. Remember laughing at Dr Evil demanding a million dollars ransom? And that was quite some time ago.

Posted on: 2019/1/24 3:40
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Re: New Jersey-New York area lost 5,700 millionaires in 2018
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Quote:

Monroe wrote:
The top 1% of NJ taxpayers pay 43% of NJ income taxes.


I guess that number will be going down as the top 1 percenters come to their senses and move to a tax friendly state. Haha!!

What was the number before that billionaire hedge fund guy moved to Florida.

Posted on: 2019/1/22 23:51
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Re: New Jersey-New York area lost 5,700 millionaires in 2018
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Quote:

bodhipooh wrote:
Not at all surprising. They better have good record-keeping, though! NYC (and NYS) are notoriously aggressive in pursuing millionaires who meet (or, exceed) the 183-days threshold that triggers residency. If memory serves me right, some CT billionaire ended up getting dinged (but later prevailed in appeal) when his private jet landed in LGA late at night on a Sunday, instead of past midnight on a Sunday, pushing him over the limit.

That one day difference could have resulted in him having to pay several millions more in taxes to NYC/NYS. It is no wonder so many ultra wealthy people are fleeing the area, especially now.


Funny!


Posted on: 2019/1/22 18:07
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Re: NJ TRANSIT does not own bus stops, nor does NJ TRANSIT shovel snow at bus stops.
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Cities have no problem issuing a citation to a homeowner if the snow isnt cleared in the allotted time. Maybe NJ should use its hammer and impose a fine in each instance a bus stop isn't cleared when the city is responsible.

Posted on: 2019/1/21 3:42
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Re: NJ TRANSIT does not own bus stops, nor does NJ TRANSIT shovel snow at bus stops.
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Quote:

bodhipooh wrote:
Quote:

JCGuys wrote:
They're right though. This is a city issue and they are skirting on their responsibility.


Just because something might be right, it doesn?t make it correct.

The sole purpose of NJ Transit is to provide transportation solutions to NJ residents. They can?t do this if the infrastructure to do so is buried in snow. Instead of throwing their hands up in the air and exclaiming ?... nor does NJ TRANSIT shovel snow at bus stops. Keep the phone number of the local municipality handy in order to request a bus stop to be shoveled.? they could be proactive about the situation and, as part of the job of route supervisors that do spot checks along bus routes, those same clipboard toting supervisors could call the appropriate city or county agency that can help clear or shovel a particular stop. Heck, drivers themselves could make a notation of inaccesible stops and turn that in after completing their runs for someone to call theight agency.


This sounds reasonable to me. But let's take it a step further. Bring in the heavy hand of the state to order municiaplities to maintain NJ Transit stops. Right now if NJ transit called a municipality about the bus stops, I'm not sure if they will respond in a reasonable amount of time.

Also, why should NJ transit be calling hundreds of municipalities about the bus stops. Local citizens should do their part instead of relying on a transit agency to make the calls.

I dont disagree with anything you said though.

Posted on: 2019/1/20 21:31
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Re: NJ TRANSIT does not own bus stops, nor does NJ TRANSIT shovel snow at bus stops.
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They're right though. This is a city issue and they are skirting on their responsibility.

Posted on: 2019/1/20 0:35
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Re: Would MTA be a better operator for PATH? And other ideas...
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Quote:

brewster wrote:
Quote:

T-Bird wrote:
to think "fitness freaks" are the only audience for a pedestrian/bike bridge misses the mark and to me is another symptom of the chronic obesity that plagues our country. Walking a mile and a half several times a week is the bare minimum of activity an adult should be getting.


I'll just note that there are plenty of people for which a greater than 10 minute walk to the subway or PATH takes a neighborhood out of consideration for them.


T-Bird, I agree with you but this is unrealistic when considering the harsh and cold winters.

PATH needs another tunnel. Period. I heard a crazy idea of converting two lanes in the Lincoln Tunnel for a new PATH line to midtown. The car nuts would never let it happen of course, but it would be one way to increase transit capacity without spending the $10 billion for a tunnel.

Posted on: 2019/1/17 0:00
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Re: A new N.J. bar’s dress code was called racist. The owner says it was ‘an oversight.’
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Quote:

On_The_3rd wrote:
If the dress code for The Ashford is anything like Surf City, it's more sexist than racist. 90% of the clothing items they describe are typically worn by men. There's no mention of skirts too short, heels too high, or clothing too revealing. They are trying to keep certain kinds of men out, but have no objection to letting any kind of woman in. If you're comfortable supporting businesses with these kinds of bro-douche policies that aim to keep male attendance low and female attendance high, then have at it.


Reminds me of a bar in college... Cover was $20 for men. But for women it was AYCD (All You Can Drink) for free. It's where you went if you wanted to get laid that night.

Posted on: 2019/1/16 23:55
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Re: A new N.J. bar’s dress code was called racist. The owner says it was ‘an oversight.’
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It's not so much the rules but selective enforcement to keep blacks out. A simple business casual required (collar shirt, dress shoes required) would have done the trick if they were serious about the dress code.

Why anyone would patronage that spot now is beyond me.
The dress code they posted is some pretentious shit, racist or not.

Per Yelp, the food probably isn't even that good.

Posted on: 2019/1/16 23:52
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Re: Old plans for PATH station
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Quote:

yesandno wrote:
I came upon this article about the Hoboken station from 2005...sounds like at the time they were going full speed ahead with plans at the time to fancy up the station with stores and whatnot. There really is a lot of huge space there that's not being used as far as I know. I wonder what happened?

https://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/21/rea ... -of-hoboken-terminal.html


It's still very much an active plan.

(I would not want to build in Hoboken because they're all sorts of hoops they make developers jump through then they change their hearts last minute to deny or slow approval. Although NJ Transit is immune from local zoning, they've been playing nice with Hoboken, trying to come to an amendable agreement for political reasons. Personally, I wish the legislature would pass a law ordering NJ Transit to tell Hoboken to flick off and develop the lands to the highest and best use so the revenue can go towards improving NJ Transit. The land is too valuable to the economic health of New Jersey to be pussyfooting with a fiefdom.)

Sept. 2018 updates:
https://www.politico.com/states/new-je ... oboken-development-622562
https://betterwaterfront.org/?p=5023

Websites:
http://www.hobokenterminalandrailyard.com/
http://www.hobokennj.org/docs/communi ... ent-Plan-October-2014.pdf


Posted on: 2019/1/14 4:43
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Re: Would MTA be a better operator for PATH? And other ideas...
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Quote:

brewster wrote:
Quote:

hero69 wrote:
maybe a cable car across the hudson could be made to make sense

http://www.bbc.com/future/gallery/201 ... se-of-the-urban-cable-car


That was very interesting. I guess it's viability depends on the numbers, but it still faces the "eyesore" hurdle and land use issues. I'm impressed that "One line in the Bolivian capital La Paz carries up to 65,000 people every 24 hours". That would be about half the capacity of the WTC PATH line, nothing to sneeze at, and a Hudson crossing would probably be a tourist draw on the order of the London Eye. What would be fascinating would be to have it multi-station, like Lincoln Park to McGinley Sq to Exchange Place to BPC.

Something is perplexing me about the numbers here https://www.panynj.gov/path/pdf/2017-P ... thly-Ridership-Report.pdf. It appears only 80% of the people who arrive in Manhattan by PATH leave by PATH. The ridership is quite asymmetric. What can account for this? Fare evasion in on the NJ side? It seems unlikely that 20% of riders who arrive by PATH would exit by NJT bus or train.


The answer is not everyone heads to Manhattan. There are a lot of folks that get on in Journal Square going to Newark.

Posted on: 2019/1/14 4:31
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Re: JC Council to Vote on Canceling Two Abatement Deals for Non Compliance
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Quote:

terrencemcd wrote:
Quote:

JCGuys wrote:
One last thought - did the city give advance warning to the developer that they were failing to meet the conditions of the tax abatement? Was the developer given an opportunity for due process or an opportunity to correct deficiencies with the tax abatement while the building was under construction.


The tax abatement agreement says if the city warns of default, the developer has 30 days to fix the problem. There is the opportunity for a default.

The city issued the default on Oct. 23. 30 days later was Nov. 22.

The developer's lawyer last night claimed they didn't know until Dec. 17 about the potential revocation of the abatement, so he claims the 30-day period is still happening.


Thanks Terrence!

Posted on: 2019/1/11 1:53
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Re: JC Council to Vote on Canceling Two Abatement Deals for Non Compliance
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One last thought - did the city give advance warning to the developer that they were failing to meet the conditions of the tax abatement? Was the developer given an opportunity for due process or an opportunity to correct deficiencies with the tax abatement while the building was under construction.

Bad process can kill a legal case. Just saying...

Posted on: 2019/1/11 0:42
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Re: Would MTA be a better operator for PATH? And other ideas...
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Quote:

Toonces wrote:
If walking is really an option people are seriously suggesting, how about using the upper portion of the Holland Tunnel? Now, I don't know what sort of infrastucture is in there, but the tunnel itself is round - yet when you're driving, the visible "ceiling" of the tunnel is apparently 8-10 feet below the top of the circle (demonstrated, in part, by this picture taken during construction). Seems to me there's plenty of room above the roadway for a pedestrian/bike path.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/67827566@N00/11639849305


I feel claustrophobic just looking at that photo.

Posted on: 2019/1/11 0:13
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Re: JC Council to Vote on Canceling Two Abatement Deals for Non Compliance
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Quote:

bodhipooh wrote:
One can only hope the city administration (and the council) have done their due diligence and ensured this move to rescind the abatement is within the stipulated terms of the contract, including timeframes for claims, etc.

The last few lawsuits brought against the city have resulted in monetary losses in the form of punitive fees, including having to pay the legal fees of plaintiffs.

I am in favor of the city holding developers to their commitments, but I am definitely not cool with the city grandstanding for PR purposes, only to leave the citizens holding the bag in the end.


Every news article I've read in the past two years about legal action against the city were about the city losing the lawsuit, especially when it comes to property and development issues.

We have the reval x 2 (the contractor hired to do the old one and against the state), the robinhood property, One Journal Square's record request, 16 Perrine "arbitrary and capricious" denial, etc...

I don't fault legal consul as they are obligated to inform when there is a weak or strong case. I fault the pols for playing politics with taxpayer's money.

I'm far from an attorney, but trying to define what constitutes "a good faith attempt" to hire locally and to legally prove that the developer failed to do so seems like an uphill battle for the city. Let's be honest - a good faith attempt is wishy washy language. Put in a hard requirement: "a minimum of 40% of the construction workers must be residents of Jersey City." That would be much easier to define and to verify compliance or noncompliance.

Bookmark this thread. bodhipooh is right. This will be another lawsuit where the city is overruled on appeal and the developer is entitled for repayment of taxes plus interest and punitive damages.

Also, is the city monitoring all developer agreements that contain the good faith attempt language to hire locally... because if it's selective enforcement or they are holding this developer to a higher standard than other developers...

The one owns who really make money in this state are the lawyers.

Posted on: 2019/1/11 0:11

Edited by JCGuys on 2019/1/11 0:38:59
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Re: JC Council to Vote on Canceling Two Abatement Deals for Non Compliance
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Quote:

jc_dweller wrote:
Quote:

JCGuys wrote:
Quote:
At this point, the City has granted ZERO market rate tax abatements (anywhere in the city) for nearly two years! So our plan is working and we should all be proud.


Is this a true statement? If one unit is 'affordable' in a 500 unit building, does the building cease to be "market rate" and thus eligible for an abatement?


I believe that units are granted abatement, not buildings. So if there was a 500 unit building with 1 affordable unit, he's saying that 499 units were not abated. The other one may have been.


This makes sense for condo units, but I wasn't aware that rental properties could have some units abated and others not.

A 500-unit rental building would show up as a single-parcel on the tax roll. A 500-unit condo would show up as 501 parcels (the units plus the condo association common area).

Posted on: 2019/1/10 23:46
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