Good point MDM, although I thought we were already in this new paradigm. I just find the coincidence with the JMUA rainy day raid a little suspicious. I don't know what a "good" rate should be vs what we will pay.

Thanks for the info... It seems like a back door installment tax to pay for the raid on the JMUA slush fund last year to balance the books. I was wondering how we would end up paying.. so here we are. My take on this is that the municipal portion was not actually balanced last year. I can appreciate that the city had to frontload a lot of covid-related expenses but it would have been better to be more transparent with the taxpayer.

Per a friend of mine who works in RE the rental market is crashing - this is expected, the summer is almost over. As for sales, it is very dynamic with a majority of folks leaving and a downward pressure on prices due to inventory build up - also expected, most parents have made their choices for their kids by now. I am more concerned about the state of the streets, I definitely noticed more trash piling up and not from folks leaving their garbages behind as they pack, just regular garbage. Hopefully I won't have to start a round the block cleaning every other day, we can't let this affect us.

All good here in HP. Did not see water coming out of pipes sneaking out of some properties by my place like I did during Fay so I assume the system did not reach capacity at least here - I have to say though, that I did not criss cross the neighborhood to check that trend. A friend of mine lost power for a short while close to the revolutionary cemetery. Let's hope we do not get a do over triple cream tonight.

I am with comcast and last Friday I noticed a slowdown as well on my company laptop - was not doing too much multitasking on my personal laptop at the time. Maybe everybody is looking at disinfectant youtube videos?

Yup, and when people factor the 47% increase in their school taxes they may go see the light elsewhere - I believe that between this and the impact of covid on property value, we will hit the 2+% tax rate that people have been using as a "fairness" benchmark. I expect to appeal next year...

Would love too.., though I am afraid it will take a little longer at least until we get a vaccine. I am optimist though, looking at the virus make-up and evolution, as well as the current approaches that whatever is found will provide at least partial immunity for the time being, once rolled out.

I am not optimist for Brewster winning the debate on the origin of this virus though. It is a cognitive reality that many people will prefer the predictibility of the herd to uncertainty, in addition to getting synaptic reinforcement for their beliefs each time the conspiracy is recalled. After a friend of mine repeatedly asked me to watch the series Homeland to confirm her beliefs, I decided not to debate science or even basic math with her and non scientists. You are right though Brewster, one can go back for ex to April of last year to find publications warning of what was yet to come based on coronavirus make up in species.

Going back to the title and the impact of this crisis on our local market I tend to agree with Sutherland. It goes back to predictability again, and once people start seing the impact of the fiscal crisis on their taxes, the disappearance of local businesses, and the lingering health risks, they may decide that they can practice safer distancing in the suburbs. We shall see whether we are wrong on that.

This is a reason to run solo as much as possible..., and preferably in the street. I run early in the morning and actually have a route where I don't run into anybody - yes there are options.

Would anyone know if the pedestrian bridge remains open to philips drive? Is the path by the nature reserve closed? - looking at early morning running alternatives...

A true story of an immigrant bringing his life and dedication to We The People, I felt an immense sadness upon learning of his passing.

As per Solomon FB:
"In loving memory, place a candle in your window this Friday at 7:30 PM"

As per Michael Yun FB page, please be aware of scammers:
" During this difficult time The Yun Family has expressed their concerns that scammers are claiming to be relatives of Councilman Michael Yun. Creating fraudulent ?Go Fund Me? pages and creating clone/ghost accounts under his daughter?s name Jaclyn Yun.

It is disrespectful, disgusting and against the law. Ghosting a form of identity theft attempting to collect funds through ?GoFundMe? PLEASE do not get solicited by these people.

Do not accept their friend?s requests! If you have been friend requested report these activities.

https://www.jerseycitynj.gov/CityHa?/PublicSafety/prosecutor
Jake Hudnut: jhudnut@jcnj.org Jersey City Chief Prosecutor

Thank you,
The Michael Yun Family
Councilman Michael Yun Staff Members

I received my 4th mailer today, 3 total to vote no, 1 to vote yes. Therefore at this point I am voting... yes. #NotFullyBrainWashedYet

Except if someone has seen a more recent ordinance, here is the ordinance that clearly states that 1 and 2 family houses are exempted as per $3-88.4 https://jerseycity.hosted.civiclive.co ... d%20%20No%20%2014-117.pdf

Go to the city tax link below and enter your name or address. You should see the past, current and future payments. You can see whether your mortgage lender has paid the bill for august. They should have set an automated ACH payment out of your escrow account at closing to do that. And they should be receiving the tax bill. If not, contact your mortgage lender to correct this. Hope it helps.

http://taxes.cityofjerseycity.com/
I just tried and it works. Is your browser set on https?

Not sure what's their process but may be worth testing... Years ago I got the chance to try in Toronto an ice cream made by pouring fresh cream into a metal bowl filled with liquid nitrogen, it was super yummy. I have been thinking of fruit variations ever since - the process is actually very simple.

Fully concur. There is nothing wrong with calling the city to check whether someone's action was legal. It is not snitching, just awareness on both sides. A friend of mine has been very effective using this approach. #TruthAnd(hopefully) (re)conciliation.

Same issue here, I initially thought my router was frying but found out it was just jclist.

It is possible Brewster. If people are unaware of the rules then they can do uneducated things like that. I would like to know if these workers/washing company are new and if McCali communicated the information on the falcons to them too. There seems to have been a breach of communication somewhere... I hope they find the other falcon youngster, hopefully he could glide as well and took refuge somewhere where his/her parent can reach him/her. Sad story!

Shall we give a proper funeral to that thread now? Or shall we all go congregate on Fakebook?

The proposed regulation differentiate between smaller owner-occupied buildings and larger non-owner unoccupied ones. I wonder what criteria they used to restrict to 3-family or below. Certainly it seems to be unfair to owner occupied 4 family buildings that already face state inspection schedules and regulations. One the topic of the licensing fee, are the proposed $500 and $300 renewal fees going to replace the ~6% tax that prevailed before? Imho it would be much simpler to have a fixed day city fee added to the rent. I have seen this working in Italy and I thought it was an appropriate way to remind folks that there are folks taking care of the city - and they should behave appropriately.

Was it in full bloom there? The cherry trees are just starting by HP...

Planning to head to NYC this WE and thinking Citibike+ferry. Is the ferry at Paulus Hook still working or has it been replaced by the new ferry just north of the exchange place Path station? I can't stand the idea of crowds for the latter, it looks insane.

Uber and Lyft already provide the license plate # so it is the responsibility of the person who order a ride to check she/he got into the right car.

I get it for the incremental levy for schools with the caveat that if property values drop, e.g. in a recession, we may end up in the 2-3% NJ range sooner than later with a lot of people appealing their assessment/taxes and the city/school/county counteracting accordingly every year.
As for this year, the city is proposing a 2% property tax hike to balance its budget while the BOE is proposing a 10% tax for the school portion. If the county proceeds in between, am I misguided in projecting that the average homeowner should expect a 3-4% hike?

The last time I went inside was probably 3 years ago and Walt was not there. He has had mobility issues for a while. I hope he is doing OK wherever he is... An era is closing. It has been closing for quite some time. Not sure Walt will enjoy the windfall - for long.

Payroll tax upheld. The judge also upheld the non-resident clause though he could only link it to general use of city resources, not to the schools - and that tax is specifically going to the schools, not to the city general budget. I read part of the ruling and this is the only debatable argument I could find, the rest seems on firm legal footing based on what the state has carved.

https://www.nj.com/hudson/2019/03/judg ... ax-is-constitutional.html

Ordinance 14.117 below.

- Section (5) (a) explicitly excludes the JCFD from enforcing Uniform Fire Code on one and 2-units owner occupied buildings.
- Section 3-88-2 and 3-88-4 details the Uniform Fire Code registration and fees. It is not clear whether these fees applies to all buildings. The beginning of 3-88-2 seems to have a disclaimer for buildings pursuant to the Uniform Fire Code - which could exclude one and 2-units owner occupied buildings.

At this point, it is my understanding that section (5)(a) supersedes section 3-88-2 and -4 and therefore that the letter received by legal_alien does not applies to his/her building.
Or mine for that matter.

http://jerseycity.hosted.civiclive.co ... d%20%20No%20%2014-117.pdf

Does ordinance 14.117 call for city inspection of buildings with 3 units? With 2 units? of single family homes? Is there a mandate to inspect every x number of years? And, most importantly, is the inspection mandatory or only when there is probable cause? This is honestly the first time I hear about this and I have been in HP more than 10 years.

The latest on the likelihood for the tax to be upheld and the likelihood for all residents to be subject to it.

https://www.nj.com/hudson/2019/03/judg ... sey-city-payroll-tax.html

Loll, thanks for the "pitch" Brewster! I have several in my basement and the recurring letter is only about one of them. I will keep your advice...