The ‘Power List’
The Reporter’s annual movers and shakers for 2016
by Hudson Reporter staff
Jan 24, 2016
2. Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop (No. 3 last year) Gearing up for a run for governor in 2017, Fulop has put together a powerful coalition of urban leaders inside and outside of Hudson County. He has also taken a strong stance on key issues such as expanding public transportation and the development of casinos in Jersey City and other communities in northern New Jersey. With Jersey City development at a historic pace, Fulop will likely enter the governor’s race as mayor of the most populous city in the state. Development is widespread not just along the waterfront but also in areas like Journal Square. This guarantees Fulop strong support from trade unions.
13. Sam Pesin (new) As president of the Friends of Liberty State Park, Pesin managed to put together a coalition of artists, politicians, and environmentalists in 2015 to oppose a proposed plan to commercialize portions of the park. This put Pesin in opposition to some of the most powerful political figures in Hudson County and the state – including Christie.
18. Hudson County arts community (Same as last year) The arts community – including Elizabeth Cain, Christine Goodman, Silverman, Mana, White Eagle Hall, North Hudson arts programs, and some county arts and other programs that originate in Bayonne – has expanded as city centers grow in population. These are helping to shape the culture of a new urbanism in an attempt to rival New York City as a center for emerging arts.
Some of the leaders include Eric and Paul Silverman and the organizers of the Golden Door in Jersey City and studio tours in Jersey City and Hoboken. The NoHo in Union City and theater groups like Hoboken’s Mile Square Theatre and Weehawken’s Hudson Theatre Group also keep the arts alive, as do a group of local galleries in those towns. Union City and Secaucus have hosted art shows and plays in their relatively new arts centers. The list includes longstanding groups like the Union City Chamber Players, the Park Players, the Hudson River Performing Arts Center while new groups like Guttenberg Arts put their small town on the arts map this year establishing the First Annual Braddock Park Arts Festival, which goes beyond Guttenberg itself. In Hoboken, artists and art aficionados made their voices heard last year during the deliberations for the future of the Neumann Leathers Building in the south edge of town, which will maintain its existing tenants according to a new redevelopment plan.
