RichBoggiano wrote:
His vision is to improve quality of life and get the basics right - paved streets, filled potholes, synced traffic lights, traffic enforcement, cleaned up litter, having mailboxes actually available throughout the city, etc.

RichBoggiano wrote:
This is one of Rich Boggiano's sons responding on behalf of my father from his account. I'll be up front and lay out what you get, and don't get, with him as a politician.

What you get:
1. Integrity. He'll tell you what he actually believes, and he has never used any of his influence to benefit himself. He'll never get arrested in an FBI sting operation because he's happy to drive a beat up old car, live in the same house he's lived in for decades, and isn't selling his soul to get elected to the next higher office.
2. Accessibility. People call him all the time with actual problems, and he gets them fixed. He's been doing this my entire life, long before he was elected, and I don't expect he'll ever stop. His cell phone number is 988-1164. Give him a call next time you have a problem and he'll help you. He helps people from every ward after their council members don't respond to them. Decades of helping individual people is reason he was elected after being outspent by Mayor Fulop 10 to 1.
3. Focus on quality of life. He cares about trash, potholes, traffic enforcement, etc.
4. No higher ambition. I have no idea what office, if any, he'll run for in 2017. He only cares about Jersey City and has zero aspirations for any higher office. Steve Fulop is really sharp, but he's been running for governor for the past 3 years, which has some obvious downsides.
5. Hard work. Technically, being on the city council is a part time job. He is the only councilperson in the city who shows up to City Hall everyday. When he's not there, he's working anyway.
6. Service. He's lived a life of service. He enlisted in the Marines at 17 to serve his country. He loved serving as a police officer for ~37 years and only retired because he hit the mandatory retirement age. He's been a community activist my entire life via the Hilltop Neighborhood Association. He's now serving on the city council. He's not going to stop helping people regardless of his political future.

What you don't get:
1. A technologist. He's not tech savvy. Anyone with a 70 year old parent can relate.
2. Political correctness. Sorry, but he's going to tell you what he's thinking. That may offend you, but he's authentic. Ironically, I fully expect an elitist response to this post from one or more people who consider politically correctness credentials impeccable.
3. A lap dog. This may blow your mind, but after knowing my father for years, Steve Fulop wanted him to run on his ticket he ran for mayor. He chose to run as an independent candidate instead despite a far more challenging path to victory because he didn't want to be beholden to a political boss. He's served as the city council's conscience for the past three years because of that decision.

On the signs, I have no idea who put them up. It wasn't him. He's got a fan somewhere that's been putting signs like that up for years.

brewster wrote:
Quote:

dr_nick_riviera wrote:
This man hardly has the mental capability to run a city of 300k people. Nor does he have any kind of policy vision necessary to keep this city competitive in the 21st century.

Has anybody looked at his Facebook page? His posts are mostly rambling nonsense and he has the writing/communication skills of a 5 year old. When his constituents question what he means or ask him to clearly clarify his policy positions, his responses are some curt variation of "read a newspaper" or "figure it out for yourself".

This man belongs in an assisted living facility and from what I've seen he doesn't have the competency for any real executive position. Of course, he's pro-parking and anti-urban in every conceivable way, so he'll find a natural constituency in Yvonne and neighborhood association NIMBYs.

I was very disappointed when I found out during his council run that his posts here were being ghostwritten. Having "social media people" is ok for high officeholders I guess, but a candidate for city council should not have been that fabricated. If someone couldn't write a coherent post on JCList, we had a right to know that. We're not talking about FDR's leg braces, but a candidate's mental and verbal agility.

bodhipooh wrote:
Quote:

dr_nick_riviera wrote:
Quote:

JCGuys wrote:
Quote:

WhoElseCouldIBe wrote:
Quote:

bodhipooh wrote:
Pretty soon, all the Newport commuters will have to ride the train back to Grove or JSQ in order to be able to board a train heading to NYC. While Grove does get crowded at times, I have never not been able to board a train there, but at Newport it is a different story. When all these new developments in JSQ finally get erected, the PATH trains leaving from there will be almost at capacity already.

Or people can adjust their work schedules slightly. Between 9-930 am, Newport is fine.

Or Port Authority can increase capacity during peak times by running more trains per hour and switching to 10 car trains on the WTC line.

My personal preference would be to have rush hour pricing like in DC and LIRR, thereby creating a financial incentive for commuters to leave slightly earlier or slightly later to avoid the crunch.

WTC is already 10 cars. It's 33rd that's limited to 9, because the platforms in Manhattan aren't long enough.

It's SEVEN cars, not nine.

The WTC trains do not run with 10 cars, either. They can't do so yet because Grove is not yet long enough.

JCGuys wrote:
Quote:

WhoElseCouldIBe wrote:
Quote:

bodhipooh wrote:
Pretty soon, all the Newport commuters will have to ride the train back to Grove or JSQ in order to be able to board a train heading to NYC. While Grove does get crowded at times, I have never not been able to board a train there, but at Newport it is a different story. When all these new developments in JSQ finally get erected, the PATH trains leaving from there will be almost at capacity already.

Or people can adjust their work schedules slightly. Between 9-930 am, Newport is fine.

Or Port Authority can increase capacity during peak times by running more trains per hour and switching to 10 car trains on the WTC line.

My personal preference would be to have rush hour pricing like in DC and LIRR, thereby creating a financial incentive for commuters to leave slightly earlier or slightly later to avoid the crunch.

Yvonne wrote:
$2.8 billion in assessment is missing from this map, that is the tax abated properties that are getting a free ride from taxpayers. $2.8 billion is nearly 1/3 of JC.

GrovePath wrote:
Quote:

neverleft wrote:
German supermarket making debut in U.S., pursuing N.J. locations
By Don E. Woods | For NJ.com

on May 26, 2016 at 8:15 AM, updated May 26, 2016 at 4:56 PM

Cumberland County could be saying willkommen to a new supermarket chain that originated in Germany and is breaking into the United States.

Lidl established an American corporate headquarters in Virginia last June in an effort to expand onto the Eastern Seaboard. The company was taking submissions for potential properties from as north as New Jersey all the way down to Georgia. According to Cumberland County officials, the supermarket chain is looking to open locations in Upper Deerfield, Millville and Vineland.

Lidl officials have already been before the Vineland Planning Board, according to Vineland Economic Development Director Sandy Forosisky. The location will be on Landis Avenue near Walmart and ShopRite.

http://www.nj.com/cumberland/index.ss ... tml#incart_river_home_pop

Interested parties might want to write and suggest Old Colony site (formerly Pathmark) on Grand Street Downtown -- maybe that other deal fell through.

http://www.lidl.com/real-estate-opportunities.html

Voyeur wrote:
Quote:

JcDevil wrote:
Quote:

dr_nick_riviera wrote:

I believe they are planning direct connections to the 1/E/R. Those parts are very behind schedule, mostly because there was a big dispute between PA and MTA as to who would actually pay and do the work, which lasted years. Turns out MTA is responsible for the buildout and construction, so it's on them as to when those things will open up.

They are, and remember that the WTC E station is connected underground to the Park Place A/C/2/3. When that opens, it will assuredly be faster and easier than going above ground.

Yes, you're both right. My bad. You can see how the entrances to both lines will be incorporated into the south Oculus corridor that is already open if you click the video on this page:

Voyeur wrote:
Quote:

jc_dweller wrote:
I have yet to find a map of this, so I guess I'll have to explore in person, but I can't see how walking east underground to Fulton Station is closer/faster than just going aboveground to the 1,2,A,C and particularly the E (unless you are going to Brooklyn). I'm not criticizing the tunnel, just wondering if it's at all a shortcut rather than just a way to avoid going outside?

I think you're right. In the case of the E, I believe that there will be a direct underground connection from the corridor running north away from the Oculus that should deliver you to the E train platforms without having to go up to street level and back down into the subway again.

But in the case of the 2,3 and the A,C it will still be faster to go up to street level and enter the 2,3 at Park Place and the A,C at Chambers Street than schlepping all the way through the warren of tunnels to get to access those lines at Fulton Street.

The 2,3 Fulton Street platforms in particular are a looong walk from the WTC PATH platforms, since they are located under William Street which is five avenue blocks distant. Park Place is much closer. A,C are only one block closer, located under Nassau Street.

Here's another thing that grates: the 1 train at Cortlandt Street runs right through the ceiling of the Hub, but there will be no way to access the station from underground. You'll have to go up to the Memorial plaza and then go back down into the 1 train station. I also believe the same is true of the R at Cortlandt Street.

For $4bn you would have hoped they could have engineered a below ground transfer to those two lines that are literally on top of the new hub. But, you know, PANYNJ.

CatDog wrote:
Quote:

Yvonne wrote:
Quote:

JSleeze wrote:
UPDATE: My daughter and I were in Target last night. She used the bathroom and wasn't raped. Just thought I'd provide a measure, albeit small, of actual real life experience into the conversation.

Lucky for you, but she has the rest of her life to go to public restrooms and daddy will not be around. I suggest you give her a whistle to place on her key chain in case she encounters trouble.

I wonder, how taxing is it on you to be in a perpetual state of outrage, anger, and nightmarish fantasy? How many medications are you on to help you cope with a hellish world in which rape is around every corner, and the specter of transgendered bandits are leering at you over every bathroom stall door? How many psychologists must you visit daily to calm you down after Fulop eats a hamburger like he owns the place?

Is there any possible planet on which you would be happy? Or is your version of heaven just a big bowl of throat lozenges to help with your incessant city hall speeches, and a pile of keyboards for your daily letters to the editor? Is your version of Shangri-La an oasis not of peace and quiet, but of scandal and persistent outrage?

jc_dweller wrote:
I have yet to find a map of this, so I guess I'll have to explore in person, but I can't see how walking east underground to Fulton Station is closer/faster than just going aboveground to the 1,2,A,C and particularly the E (unless you are going to Brooklyn). I'm not criticizing the tunnel, just wondering if it's at all a shortcut rather than just a way to avoid going outside?

ceo3west wrote:
Quote:

tbo wrote:
Quote:

dr_nick_riviera wrote:
Quote:

T-Bird wrote:
Quote:

tbo wrote:

It was the developer that sued the City and took the project to court. He is the one who decided to waste taxpayer money instead of going to the zoning or planning board as every developer in the City has to do. Any "concessions" that he made with the City were never realistic or came with other unreasonable demands.

The developer went to court to enforce his legally granted rights. Clearly the community had issue with the process, but that is not the developer's problem. The fact that he was willing to make concessions at all was commendable; it certainly wasn't required. The argument that this development was out of character for the neighborhood really was a stretch when you consider directly across Varick is a building with a slightly larger number of apartments.

Also the fact the city decided to appeal a case that's sure to lose at the behest of the VVPA. And there were many arguments the VVPA made up to oppose this, but parking was the one that got the most publicity. VVPA also floated a classist and borderline discriminatory argument that the type of development would bring in young 20-somethings and they the neighborhood didn't need "those people". So thanks to the collective wisdom of the VVPA, tax money is being wasted on pointless lawsuits and the area is still a blighted damn parking lot - one that could have been paying taxes and at least.

Like I said before (although you edited my quote)

Wrong on all counts....you are misinformed...

So stop lying. No point in arguing with a Troll.

That guy has done nothing but troll since he signed up. Developers probably handing out $100 bills on the street to people to troll this board and come to meetings speaking out for the slumlords.

T-Bird wrote:
Quote:

tbo wrote:

It was the developer that sued the City and took the project to court. He is the one who decided to waste taxpayer money instead of going to the zoning or planning board as every developer in the City has to do. Any "concessions" that he made with the City were never realistic or came with other unreasonable demands.

The developer went to court to enforce his legally granted rights. Clearly the community had issue with the process, but that is not the developer's problem. The fact that he was willing to make concessions at all was commendable; it certainly wasn't required. The argument that this development was out of character for the neighborhood really was a stretch when you consider directly across Varick is a building with a slightly larger number of apartments.

thor800 wrote:
Quote:

dtmot wrote:
Quote:

thor800 wrote:
Behind closed doors as in an open meeting that is advertised and open to the public ?

You onviously are making these claims up. Anyone that is the least bit involved in NA doesnt seem to have these issues.

And this response speaks volumes so now you speak for all involved in the VNA when did this become a communist neighborhood. How ever much or little someone is involved in an organization in their neighborhood doesn't automatically give that association the right to speak for them or the masses. People do different things in different ways to support their neighborhood. So yes full public knowledge on a decision of this gravity from our ELECTED OFFICIALS is warranted here not a small group who hadn't consulted all that their statements effects prior to making their bold statement

The VNA doesn't purport to speak for everyone - no NA can possibly or would possibly claim that, but it speaks as a representative majority based on voting members at public meetings. If residents don't show up / send someone in their 'stead / contact officials with concerns / i.e. make other arrangements, how can you possibly expect anyone to know your thoughts on an issue ?

Zoning officials know how neighborhood associations work and don't assume that majority votes equate to some sort of total absolute agreement.

This isn't congress voting on issues that require 2/3 majority in a formal sense and the fact that you are inclined to scrutinize the whole system to such a degree leads me to believe you have something to lose (developer shrill).

thor800 wrote:
Quote:

dtmot wrote:
Quote:

Suntime wrote:
Dr nick - the vna is a volunteer community group - not a governmental agency with a requirement to provide minutes. These are people from the community getting together, making time out of their own busy lives, to discuss issues in the village community and to be neighborly. Meetings are held at 730pm so that people can get there after work. While it may not be convenient to your particular work schedule, it is the best possible time for most. meetings are announced and all are welcome. If you cant make it to meetings due to your work schedule, find a friend in the community that can and get the scoop from them. Or, go about making your voice heard in other ways by your own advocacy. Either you get involved in your community or you don't. As you know, nobody owes you anything if you arent willing to participate in a meaningful way. It takes time and effort, often unappreciated, to get involved. Its not easy when we all have busy lives with jobs and families. Its not easy for anyone - you are not alone in these time constraints.

? Then what gives them the right to "speak for everyone" you r correct we are all busy in this life and with that who has the time to or energy to be dismissed or argue with a group that seemingly feels they are the end all and be all of your neighborhood. There are so many who help behind the scenes who volunteer without need for recognition who simply do what they can when they can to help. Our voices are no less significant nor should anyone claim to speak for them. My opinion if your going to claim to speak for the public and you are a formed organization then you need to be transparent and run yourself accordingly. Bravo to all that help out and volunteer in all Jersey City and at the VNA, but just because you do it in a group doesn't make you the boss of the neighborhood and give you the right to boldly speak for the majority when you haven't consulted the majority. Maybe the people of the VNA are overwhelmed maybe they should fall back from some demands and fix what's wrong within the group and address the issues being brought up here. A badly run company makes no money and a poorly run NA alienates the people in its neighborhood. There are a tremendous amount of good people that make up the Village include them don't alienate them.

How else would you gauge sentiment in the neighborhood for certain proposals or developments ?

dcatalana2001 wrote:
I have never posted on JClist.com but like to keep up with stuff, as a long time resident of the village where I have lived for over 15 years before it was considered a neighborhood association and really just a block association run by Mr. Lambiase. I have attended many village neighborhood association meetings held by Rob Crow (who by the way is a nice guy). The biggest issue is that two of those meetings were election meetings, however, there were no elections held. You basically say what you want to do and a position is created for you. At the first meeting three years ago, no one was interested to run for a position, but at the last one positions were just created so there would be no election. So I now have a problem with the VNA representing to speak on behalf of the neighbors or us folks who have been here for 15 years and those who have been here for generations like my family. I too have signed this petition which was brought to me by someone who has lived in the village much longer than I have. I absolutely object to the segregation of village south vs. village north and find the request made by the VNA to be offensive. We should all be subject to the same zoning that the historic neighborhood permits. Let's make the village great again! HAHA I hate Trump.

Suntime wrote:
Dr nick - the vna is a volunteer community group - not a governmental agency with a requirement to provide minutes. These are people from the community getting together, making time out of their own busy lives, to discuss issues in the village community and to be neighborly. Meetings are held at 730pm so that people can get there after work. While it may not be convenient to your particular work schedule, it is the best possible time for most. meetings are announced and all are welcome. If you cant make it to meetings due to your work schedule, find a friend in the community that can and get the scoop from them. Or, go about making your voice heard in other ways by your own advocacy. Either you get involved in your community or you don't. As you know, nobody owes you anything if you arent willing to participate in a meaningful way. It takes time and effort, often unappreciated, to get involved. Its not easy when we all have busy lives with jobs and families. Its not easy for anyone - you are not alone in these time constraints.

CandiceOsborne wrote:
All - I am the person who takes accountability for slowing down the process here. I have had so many people reach out to me purporting to represent the views of the residents. My office will be doing a mailing to those impacted by the proposed changes explaining the various options and asking for feedback. We also will host a community meeting at city hall. These changes will not be considered by planning board (and ultimately city council) until early fall as I want to ensure proper public notice of proposed changes and input into those changes.

JCMan8 wrote:
Quote:

dr_nick_riviera wrote:
Quote:

JCMan8 wrote:
Quote:

thor800 wrote:
Its very coincidental all these new people with very few posts adamantly opposed to the VNA and keeping existing R1 zoning.

The VNA like the Harsimus Cove NA or Ham Park have mostly lived in the area and been involved in the community for a long time with nothing to gain monetarily.

Only someone with a strong agenda they want to pass makes such absurd comments about them being cultish all inclusive undemocratic group.

Exactly. These "people" may just be a handful of trolls (or just one) who have multiple accounts seeking to create the false perception that many are on their side.

This is why there is no substitute for showing up in person.

For the record, I have no problem revealing my identity and sending a LinkedIn if you wish to direct message me, since a lot of the criticism here is coming from me. I was a recently a victim of identity theft, so I'm reluctant to put my personal information on a public forum. I'm also taking a very politically unpopular position, so being that anybody could look up my address there's also added risk. I should note that there is also a lot of criticism coming from long time posters on this forum as well, so you can't attribute it to one disgruntled "troll".

I don't care about your identity. I care about distinguishing between legitimate and illegitimate criticism.

The flood of new posters all of one single mind indicates illegitimate criticism.

And, as I've said, even if there is legitimate criticism here (such as the comments from the long time posters), the appropriate forum to air these grievances is either at one of the VNA meetings or a city council meeting.

JCMan8 wrote:
Quote:

thor800 wrote:
Its very coincidental all these new people with very few posts adamantly opposed to the VNA and keeping existing R1 zoning.

The VNA like the Harsimus Cove NA or Ham Park have mostly lived in the area and been involved in the community for a long time with nothing to gain monetarily.

Only someone with a strong agenda they want to pass makes such absurd comments about them being cultish all inclusive undemocratic group.

Exactly. These "people" may just be a handful of trolls (or just one) who have multiple accounts seeking to create the false perception that many are on their side.

This is why there is no substitute for showing up in person.

ILRie wrote:
As I understand, the flood requirement is not included in the 44ft limit. That's why people were up in arms over it at the March meeting, and wanting the lower 3-story limit; they were saying that builders would build 4 floors up to the max 44ft they were allowed to build to, on top of the 6/9ft flood requirement, making the total height between 50-53ft, thus choking the narrow streets and blocking the sunlight and whatnot. And if they were mistaken in that impression, well, nobody was correcting them.

To be honest, I'm a bit sympathetic to that argument as I live south of Newark, and our streets are narrow. But even then I don't think keeping the R-1 zoning is a good idea. I think having more ground level retail in the area would make it much more attractive and lively and, well, nice. And we would need increased density to support that.

Not to say that VNA attendees are representative of the neighborhood as a whole, but when they did an informal poll at the Thurs mtg an awful lot of people raised their hands in support of keeping the Village at R-1 (barely any for the 4-story option, and a smattering for the 3-story). Even Candice seemed taken aback for a few seconds, before she cheerfully reminded all assembled that our show of hands would not impact her decision, which would be determined by the comments received once formal notice was out to the community.

I have no idea if the people living in the R-1 zoned area outside the Village on brewster's map will be included in the mailing though, although you guys really should be.

brewster wrote:
Can something else be clarified? I thought this rezoning was going to apply to all downtown R-1, not just to "the Village", which is not actually an administrative entity. Someone pointed out a while ago when this was 1st brought up that the majority of Downtown R-1 was in the village, but by no means is all of it.

Suntime wrote:
Dr. Nick Rivera, why dont you attend a vna meeting? These are people volunteering their time in an effort to help the community. Why don't you stop maligning them and actually do something to help the community instead, since you seem to care so much? Why is all of your vitriol saved for members of the community, while seemingly unconditional support for developers? Do you have some association with the developers that you are not disclosing on this forum?

JCMan8 wrote:
Quote:

dr_nick_riviera wrote:
So who on the VNA made the decision to break apart the re-zoning? It sounds like the majority of people in this thread are opposed to this - which individual gets contacted with everybody's thoughts?

Do you think anyone will give a shit if you call them and tell them a bunch of posters on an anonymous message board don't like what the VNA is doing?

If you feel so strongly about this, man up and go to the relevant meetings in person and state your concerns.

dtjcview wrote:
When local NA's stop being a whiney group of do-nothings, they'll earn respect. Over 2 decades in JC, they simply haven't earned mine.

Why don't I engage? Why engage with kids with ADD?

dtjcview wrote:
I've no doubt a less confrontational stance with developers, would have yielded a much bigger community benefit. They could be sponsoring park upkeep, snow clearing, street maintenance and improvements, street festivals, citibike provisioning...

Have the NAs gotten any of that?