A Jersey City man feared for his life Monday night when he was robbed at gunpoint by two men who got away with his cell phone and $80 cash, cops say...

http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... man_robbed_at_gunp_1.html

Thanks! this is very helpful.

we use to have a huge artist scene down here on Grove, but they all got priced out :( ... allot of the artist are moving to BL and Greenville where they can still rent space on the cheap. I know JC Fridays is about to kick off again.

Only two of Jersey City?s six wards have the proper number of residents, with Ward E exceeding the maximum number by more than 4,000 at least, City Clerk Robert Byrne told the City Council last night.
Byrne is working with the commission tasked with re-drawing the city?s six wards, a process that occurs every 10 years after new Census figures are released. The commission will meet tonight, and plans to finalize the new ward map next week, Byrne said.
The city?s population is roughly 237,000, and each ward must have a population within 10 percent of 41,266, according to Byrne.
Ward A and Ward D are compliant, but Ward B, Ward C and Ward F require more residents. Ward E, which encompasses much of Downtown, has about 4,200 residents too many.
?The least change is the best change but Ward E has to lose about four city blocks,? Byrne said tonight.
Councilman Steve Fulop, a mayoral hopeful, is the ward?s council representative.
The city can?t monkey around with ward boundaries too much, Byrne noted last night, saying they must be compact and contiguous, and they must respect natural boundaries.
There will be no Congressional-like gerrymandering, he said.
U.S. Rep. Albio Sires ?was representing Union City and Perth Amboy. How does that happen?? he joked.
Fulop?s ward could lose even more residents, pending the outcome of the city?s appeal of its 2010 Census figures. The city believes that as many as 20,000 residents went uncounted, and many of those may live in Ward E, city officials believe.
Ward E?s population has seen rapid growth since the last Census, according to Byrne. That doesn?t surprise Fulop, but he expressed some concern that it may be too much growth.
?The development in Jersey City is not evenly spread out throughout the city, unfortunately,? he said. ?That needs to be corrected.?
The Jersey City Ward Commission meets tonight at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 280 Grove St.

go watch another episode of the Jersey Shore. ^

Where are the protesters? This city is being taken over by scum and most people here are just concerned with their flat screen TV and where to park their huge SUV. If we want a better city people need to act now!!

Members of the Jersey City City Council tonight expressed outrage that Bank of America remains a city customer 18 months after the council voted to drop the city?s accounts with the banking giant.

The council voted in July 2010 to drop Bank of America after the bank closed its branch at the HUB shopping plaza on Martin Luther King Drive. The action was never taken, though, and at tonight?s council caucus city CFO Donna Mauer recommended continuing with Bank of America through 2012.
Mauer?s recommendation was met with outrage from Councilwoman-at-Large Viola Richardson, who led the 2010 charge to drop Bank of America as a city customer.
?This council voted to change banks almost two years ago,? Richardson said. ?They left a whole lot of folks at the HUB defenseless. They left a lot of seniors with no place to go.?
Ward B Councilman David Donnelly said the CFO?s recommendation illustrated a ?total disregard? for the council?s wishes.
The city now has about 90 bank accounts, with a little less than half of those at Bank of America. City officials argued that the city should retain the bank as a customer because it has the most branches citywide.
Mauer said she requested proposals from other banks, but none of them offered similar services at a significantly lower price. Changing banks, she said, ?will cost the city money.?
?For the work that it would take to switch to a different bank for really no significant savings, it really wasn?t worth it.,? Mauer said tonight.
But Richardson was resolute: the city should not do business with Bank of America.
?I think the city has to have some integrity,? she said. ?If they don?t have any, we need to have some.?
Bank of America spokesman TJ Crawford declined to comment on the bank possible losing the city's business, but said, "aside from our strong brick-and-mortar presence, Bank of America's support of the Jersey City community is clearly evident through philanthropic giving and volunteer efforts."
http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... y_councilwoman_outra.html

This man was actually from Bergen Lafayette, not Greenville. Whiton Street is located in the Bergen Lafayette area near LSP.

Friday at 7:39 p.m. where they met the manager who was bleeding from a swollen wound to the left side of her mouth, reports said.
The 44-year-old victim told police she had taken the cash register drawer to the office at the back of the store to count the money when a 6-foot tall man with crooked teeth walked in, reports said.
The office door was closed but not locked, she said.
The man hit the manager in the left side of the mouth and snatched $235 from the tray before leaving the store, reports said. The victim was treated at the scene, reports said.
http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... f_jersey_city_beauty.html

After a resident living just east of Lincoln Park awoke to find his car propped up on cinder blocks and missing all four wheels ? a brazen crime made worse by the fact the car was parked in the man?s driveway at the time ? a neighborhood?s concerns over the level of crime in Jersey City led to a letter-writing effort that has since drawn the attention of the mayor and police chief.

One letter-writer described the situation as feeling like ?prisoners in our own homes,? while another, citing the high tax rate, was angered by the lack of results in increased public safety.

Perhaps articulating the frustration best, resident and activist Riaz Wahid ? whose efforts set off the bevy of letters to City Hall ? wrote, ?Your administration has enough money to hire cronies, to give salary increases to them on top of it, and buy traffic light cameras, but not for security cameras to protect the safety of the residents which was an election campaign promise made by Councilman David Donnelly!?

He added, ?When [Occupy Jersey City] had a protest in front of Goldman Sachs, we saw [hundreds] of police officers [with some] even in boats. How come we don?t see anyone assigned to patrol[s]??

Wahid wrote that he wants ?answers? or for Police Chief Thomas Comey to resign, as residents face steep crime ?under your watch while we pay premium taxes!?

It?s a sentiment reflected by numerous other letter-writers, including Esther Wintner, a mainstay at City Council meetings who has on more than one occasion challenged the Healy administration to better tackle the issue of crime.

?Perception is 90 percent of reality, and the perception is crime is high and it is not being addressed,? said Wintner, who also lives near Lincoln Park. ?Less politicking and more focus on important issues such as this one, is what is needed.?

For Wintner, the problem isn?t some abstraction of numbers, target goals or politics ? it?s the experience of being someone who has ?had my fair share of run ins with criminal activity in the last year. My home was robbed, someone sneaked into my yard in the evening while I was home, my daughter has been harassed on the street and I?ve had neighbors cars broken in to and their tires slashed.?

?It is a run of crime that I have not seen in the twenty years of living on this street,? Wintner, who has undertaken neighborhood watch group walks, maintains. ?While these are not horrific crimes compared to some things we see in Jersey City, they destroy the quality of life, depress property values and drive good people out of our city. Residents should not have to feel as if they are living under siege.?

According to the Jersey City Police Department?s website, which publishes the city?s monthly crime statistics, crime has dropped considerably since 2008 but in the past two years the numbers have leveled-off. The incidents reported are broken down as follows: homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny ? theft, motor vehicle theft (including attempts), and arson.

Specifically, incidents of crime reported over the past 6 months have averaged between 600 and 700 per month, a figure in the same range as the same 6 months period of 2010. While the numbers trend slightly downward in 2011, the incidents jump from month to month and do not show much consistency. Still, compared to earlier in the decade, there are signs of improvement (these figures are available at the njjcpd.org website via the Compstat link).

?The statistics speak for themselves ? Jersey City continues to become safer every day,? said Mayor Healy. ?That being said, we are never satisfied with one murder or one robbery and work closely with the Police Department to implement strategies and measures to further reduce crime and make our communities safer.?

Heally added, ?Taking a look at the statistics, Chief Comey and the men and women of the Jersey City Police Department should be credited for their hard work to continue bringing crime down.?

And yet, how reliable these numbers are remains a problem to some Jersey City officials like Ward E Councilman Steve Fulop, who says the numbers aren?t worth much.

?The reality is that as Mark Twain said, ?Lies, damned lies, and statistics,? with regards to the manipulation of numbers,? said Fulop, who echoes residents? concerns over crime rates. ?From community meetings I attend, I don?t think the public feels that crime is declining regardless of the statistics and police visibility has been an existing concern.?

And Donnelly says he has made good on his election promise to add security cameras, although it has taken longer than he would have liked.

?What people don?t realize is that we are getting cameras, we?re just behind schedule on this,? says Donnelly. ?The [Request For Proposal (RFP)] went out several times but didn?t come back in-cost until the end of 2011. We voted to accept the RFP in the meeting in December, and I was told by the administration that it?s moving forward.?

The problem resulted from a miscalculation of the cameras? cost, which was estimated at about $1.7 million. When the RFPs came back at costs ?substantially higher,? the city revised the estimation to $2.1 million.

Donnelly also bristles at the suggestion he failed to live up to a campaign promise considering the realities of a budget gap.

?What they don?t understand is that I never said [getting CCTV cameras] wasn?t going to happen, I fought for it, they just didn?t understand that it can take time,? he says. It exemplifies the challenges of navigating cost-cutting and greater public safety during a time when tax rates are a sticking point for most residents.

Regardless of how the official statistics are interpreted, the answer to address the perception of increasing crime ? which residents fear will become more reality than perception soon ? is to in turn raise perception of police presence by increasing highly visible activities like car patrols, something that is sorely missing for Wahid.
http://www.jerseycityindependent.com/ ... m-city-hall-for-inaction/

A telephone poll mining favorable and unfavorable numbers associated with potential candidates for the 2013 Jersey City mayoral race was conducted on Jan. 12. It caused a buzz among area politicians and voters wondering who was behind the survey.
I have to admit that my first impulse was that the poll was the work of those trying to convince 31st District Sen. Sandra B. Cunningham to run for mayor, a post held by her late husband Glenn Cunningham.
Paul Swibinski's Vision Media Political, a new division within the Secaucus-based Vision Media Marketing, takes credit for the survey.
"We intend to be active in this election," said Swibinski, who added that the poll was intended to give his firm a snapshot of where the players stand. He said the Jersey City campaign is expected to be dynamic and one of the more interesting races in New Jersey.
I feel that these polls are useful in small or head-to-head races and their value diminishes the more candidates or issues are involved. This one served a purpose by surveying 383 (we couldn't get 400?) people, a cross-section of the city's registered voters. The queries involved various combinations of three potential candidates for mayor: Mayor Jerramiah Healy, Downtown Councilman Stephen Fulop, and Cunningham.
http://www.nj.com/hudson/voices/index ... teve_in_june_13_runo.html

The Port Authority Police -- using a six-officer undercover operation -- caught a 15-year-old Jersey City resident who was stealing smartphones on the PATH, according to officials.

The Port Authority Police noticed a trend of smartphones being stolen on the PATH trains, having two identical incidents in the past two months. After reviewing surveillance footage, police noticed it was the same person conducting both robberies, said Al Della Fave, press officer for the Port Authority.

Della Fave said the police decided to set up an operation to stop the suspect from continuing, so six officers in plain clothes set up spots along the PATH train from Exchange Place to World Trade Center....
http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... rity_police_nab_15_y.html

agree with most, what needs to happen Greenville residents need to vote, seems like the only people who voted in the last election for city council are the Country Village residents. Also Greenville residents need to contact this guy and never stop contacting him, he is out of touch with the community.

Ward A (Greenville) Councilman
Michael Sottolano
City Hall, 280 Grove Street
Room 206
Jersey City, NJ 07302
Tel: (201) 547-5098
Fax: (201) 547-4678
email: SottolanoM@jcnj.org

Also other people from other areas need to contact him as well and let him know that he is doing an awful job. All the crimes and traffic accidents (hit and run) that happen in Greenville will only spill over to the surrounding areas if people walk around feeling as long as its not happening here, I don't care.

For the last two decades, Jersey City has been undergoing a renaissance of sorts. Development is booming. Financial firms are relocating into our commercial space. New residents are moving in because of our strong transportation infrastructure and short distance to Manhattan.

These are all good things. They are good for Jersey City and good for our residents. But that doesn?t mean the prosperity of one part of our city should mean neglect for others.

That brings me to Greenville.

Goldman Sachs isn?t building towers in Greenville. Manhattanites aren?t relocating to apartments in this part of Jersey City. When you think about the Greenville section of Jersey City, you often think about the crime rate and the poor quality of life. The empty storefronts and damaged sidewalks.

Now I?m not saying all of these problems are the government?s fault. Our community needs to take responsibility and come together to stop the crime and keep kids off the streets. Community policing is a great place to start ? but it is a long ways off. We can and must do other things. I know if we come together and attack this quality of life problem on several fronts we can solve it. We can take back Greenville.

With this in mind, I recently organized a group of volunteers and took to the streets ? specifically to Van Nostrand Ave.

The reason for this particular block is that there is a park in the middle of it with a pretty recognizable name, Muhammad Ali Park. The only people that remember that the park is named for great boxing legend are the ones who attended the ribbon cutting back in the 1980s. Most people nowadays simply see a rundown park where a concrete slab lies on about two empty lots with a basketball hoop, a chess board and litter throughout. The sign that once read Muhammad Ali Park isn?t even visible anymore.

Now this isn?t to say Muhammad Ali Park hasn?t been the topic of revitalization discussions. Unfortunately, there hasn?t been any action on these plans aside from a new gate being put up. Jersey City?s website ? specifically, the page of Ward A Councilman Michael Sottolano ? lists this park under a ?park renovation? header. He is touting an achievement where nothing has been done. And we can?t blame the economy or cutbacks for the failure to refurbish this park. Grant money has been awarded ? grant money that most neighbors are unaware of. These are good people looking for a safe place their kids can play after school. Why isn?t the over $400,000 in grant money being spent?

A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Until we start investing in Greenville, Jersey City will continue to be weak.
http://www.jerseycityindependent.com/ ... rong-as-its-weakest-link/

The city?s long-feared revaluation of privately-owned, taxable properties is now in full swing, with 22 inspectors canvassing neighborhoods in the Jersey City Heights and Greenville.

By the time the current months-long reval is complete, the vast majority of Jersey City?s approximately 54,243 taxable properties will have been evaluated.

The reval, which began last fall, is the city?s first since 1988 and will continue through the end of this year.

In a ?reval,? a city reassesses all of its taxable properties so that they are paying taxes in line with the current value of the property. Because some properties (particularly older ones) are paying based on an assessment from more than two decades ago, they are paying a smaller share of the tax burden, whereas newer properties with a more recent assessment may be paying more. A reval equalizes the tax burden.


Read more: Hudson Reporter - Reval underway homeowners on edge Will your taxes go up?or down...
http://hudsonreporter.com/view/full_s ... ce=lead_story_left_column

Too bad this is not the norm for JCPD... I guess now that election time is coming up they want to look busy... Keep it up!

A bomb threat has been called into the Hudson County Administration building on Newark Avenue in Jersey City, a police spokesman confirmed this morning.
The Sheriff's Office did not provide any information on the bomb threat, but a source with knowledge of the incident said that the Sheriff's officers are doing sweeps of the building, as well as sweeps of the old Brennan Courthouse next door on Newark Avenue.
The Hudson County Administration building houses the criminal, family and other courts, as well as county offices, including the offices of the Hudson County prosecutor.

well I stopped complaining and moved, it was just a rat infested dump. good luck!

I will forward the links... Thanks ;)

I lived there for 4 years as a renter and the guards are always asleep, drinking, or getting high... u wonder why this happened because you have guards making 8 bucks a hour and they don't give a sh*t... I was locked out of my apt once, and the guard in the little house barley spoke English, it took 6 hours before I could get someone to let me in my apt, shameful.

The person I spoke with said the demographics are not there, due to the income and also the way Jersey city residents shop as a whole.... TJ is known for selling good, wholesome food, at a reasonable cost. When people make little money they are not going to buy organic products which may cost a little more... junk food is much cheaper than healthy food.

six cameras to be installed along West Side Avenue between Communipaw and Clarke avenues.
At a meeting last month, Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy said the city allocated $300,000 for six cameras to go up in the area on West Side Avenue, but when the project was put out to bid, the bids came in around $100,000 over budget.
Donnelly said the new bids came in ?far less? than last time and that he will continue to make sure the long-awaited cameras go in as soon as possible.
Susan Mariquit, a resident of Boyd Avenue, was relieved to hear cameras would soon be up and running. Two years ago, she said her son was a victim of a robbery and assault by a gang while walking in the area.
?I?m hoping now with a set of eyes watching at all times it will deter anyone thinking about committing a crime,? Mariquit said.
http://www.nj.com/jjournal-news/index ... p_of_west_side_resid.html

I don't think TJ accept family first benefit cards and many shoppers in JC use this benefit.

Project Greenville is geared towards

having more events happening in the

Greenville section of Jersey City. It

would be great if, now and then, the

people of this neighborhood could take

a walk to go check something out right

in their own backyard instead of having

to get on the bus, Light Rail or into

their cars. More specifically these

would be events that got the

neighborhood together as well as drew

people in from other areas (like the

idea behind our first event, the Jersey

City photo contest & exhibit). If

there is enough interest and

participation, possibly art shows,

outdoor music or festivals etc. would

not be uncommon to find going on in

the Greenville section of Jersey City.

And when you have a neighborhood that

has fun, creative, community

based things to offer those who call it

home, as well as those who are not

familiar with the area, it can be shared

and nurtured more easily. http://www.projectgreenville.webs.com/

TJ is not expensive I spend about $125 a week, I use the one in Millburn but if you are making 20k a year you are better off shopping at C-town where u can spend half that and have the same amount of groceries and Trader Joes knows this.

Salaries are too low in JC the average salary in JC as a city is about 20K... I spoke with a rep from TJ and he said they will not be coming anytime soon.... downtown is nice, but mostly renters with very little income.