Where’s Jerry?
Posted Under: Culture, Jersey City, Personal, Politics
Don't strain your eyes looking, Healy wasn't here
The public hearing on the municipal budget began around 7 p.m., with the first of what would be 30-some-odd speakers. Slightly after 7 p.m. I was on my way out the door. I know this rankles a few of you. How can he report on a meeting he didn’t even stay to watch. I could write “so-and-so said blah blah blah, and the people said “Yeah!” or “Recall!” or “Steven!” (and I literally wouldn’t be too far off) but I’ll leave that to the kids at JCI, HR and the JJ, who get paid to do that sort of thing.
I always find the most interesting stuff on the periphery of these meetings, anyway. Former lawmakers, wannabe mayors, councilmen and women, plus plain ol’ folks who are now getting wind of another tax increase. There’s always an old friend(s), too, who seems to show up for all these event meetings.
“It’s larger than I thought,” I say to one activist about the crowd. “It’s progress,” he says. “There’s another budget coming up soon.”
No one really expected to stop the council tonight. Some just came here to vent, frankly. But others see a real movement forming here. They believe that this budget outrage is the thing that broke that animal’s back.
“We have to demand more from residents,” said one person close to the organizers of the “Tax Revolt.” He admits that reaching beyond the mostly Downtown crowd is the only way to sustain this revolt. “We’re working on that, believe me.”
The audience was as large as I’ve seen in some time. The cops actually had some crowd to control. There was just enough of a crowd that a few people grumbled about how they “shoulda moved” the meeting to a larger space. But moving the venue might’ve been too much of an admission for the council to make. The mayor’s majority, well-hydrated and ready for the long, difficult slog, knew that they would take it on the chin tonight. (Even Councilman Mariano Vega showed up to get his.)
One guy who steered clear of the proceedings was Mayor Jerramiah Healy. His name came up more than a few times, though. His ordinances. His budget. His layoffs. His campaign contributors. “Where’s your guy,” I ask one of the mayor’s people in the hallway. “The mayor’s at a community meeting,” he says, seriously.
I was only kidding, though. Mayor Healy rarely comes to city council meetings. They are the legislative branch, and he’s in the executive branch. Plus, the business administrator and corporation counsel were both there to take their lumps on his behalf. Maybe it’s naive to think that this was a great opportunity for the mayor to throw us a curve and come out in support of his budget. Tell the people about how you’re laying workers off and cutting back services and economizing on gasoline and car privileges. (Did you really leave it your corporation counsel to admit that the $8 million city loan was going to a developer who was a campaign contributor?)
Over the past 60 days, the political temperature has been turned up on this administration. Right now, people are meeting in small groups, in living rooms, across the city. They’re figuring out ways to make things even hotter. Depending on who you talk to, they’re coming for one or two key city council members first, via recall, with an eye towards flipping the council. Others say there’s some bombshell from the U.S Attorney on the way that’s gonna really shake the ground.”We could see a few more elections in the next year or two,” said one hopeful revolter.
Who knows? The louder this crowd gets, though, the more you notice how silent the mayor’s office really has become. In the first eight months of his second term, Mayor Healy is starting to look like less of a lame duck and more like just, lame.
John Seborowski starts it off
Here’s some video from our friends at JCList.com.
Reader Comments
The following is what I suggested, yesterday:
TEN Years City Monetary Planning Road Map
I am requesting the Council to bring the expert residents in Jersey City to draw a 10 years road map to get city monetary & revenue planning in order to reduce the burden for city residents. I don’t want our kids to address the same problem STANDING HERE, FOREVER; it should be solved NOW; I DEMAND a PLAN NOW; this is the right time to start this team work with residents!!
Thin Governance
I strongly recommend the CITY to publish all the departments, the number of employees, the role and total salary details including benefits etc., with their productivity and the productivity metrics in the city website. You must seriously consider the option of reducing the burden to govern the residents for example, Home Inspection need not be City’s burden this could be done the same way as how NJ Auto Inspection is given to private parties etc. etc.,
Teach Ethics as a Subject in JCBOE
I request you to pass a resolution to JCBOE to have ETHICS as a subject from at least for one hour per week; this would produce if not today, but in forthcoming years, ethical residents which will result in a better society, that means responsible social behavior and less crime!!!
Fundraising & Election Spending Tax
The politicians in the city are having their own fund raising; how come we don’t do a fund raising for the city that is bleeding; Fortune 500 firms are having charities with millions of dollars; why don’t we ask them to sponsor some part of Libraries, School Departments, Fire Department, Health Services etc.,
I also request the council to pass a resolution to tax 40% of any political fund raising event that happens in Jersey City and for anyone who conducts a fundraising to run for public office in Jersey City anywhere outside Jersey City. I presume you will do this before increasing our taxes further.
It doesn’t make any business sense to spend around $200k+ to run for a part time council person job that pays around $30k and few million+ dollars for a mayor position that pays around $120k! I request you to pass an ELECTION SPENDING LIMIT of $50k resolution immediately so that Branding will be forced by SERVICE rather by using money in the last moment on MARKETING their BRAND. Any money spent beyond $50K should be taxed at the rate of 40%.
Transparency
Please feel free to tell us thru city website what you do NOT want us to know; I request the CITY to improve the website and make it an interactive one with the residents. Organize web-meetings in the City website; Open a web based ticketing system to track problems in the city that we, the residents can track. Do NOT wait till we can NOT FIX it!!
Publish the Visitor’s log and appointment book in the web site for the city public servants including this council, Mayor, Deputy Mayors, appointed Board Members etc., etc.,
I request you to hold, “Involve the Residents” events using video/web conferencing. I request you to use the internet technology to meet the residents so that you can get new ideas and explore new opportunities along with the residents!
In fact, get rid of JC1TV, use web and streaming technologies so that any interested resident can see the programs selectively rather forced to see what you want us to see!!!
Split the City into TWO
There are Two Jersey Cities already here, rich Jersey City and poor Jersey City; I have seen very negligible development west of Jersey Ave; WEST of Jersey Ave remains as a poor Jersey City; I request you to split the city into two; the population is increasing but the infrastructure remains same; This Band-Aid approach should END; we need Surgery NOW!
New Ideas
I don’t see any business ideas coming from City to the residents like, you can put a solar panel on top of each roof, the generated energy can be sold by the city and pass the benefits to the residents; PLEASE consider projects that residents and our kids can benefit in future as well as generate revenue for the city!! Announce rewards to residents for coming with new ideas!!!
City must build a Multi-storey paid parking place in Newark Ave, India Square area; this area gets crowded on weekends and even Emergency Vehicles like Fire Engines or Ambulances can’t pass thru easily. This will generate revenue to the city and make it easy for shoppers!!!
Collaborate with other cities to REGIONALIZE certain services like Library, Fire Service, Health Service etc., This will be a win-win situation for the other cities;
Your tax increase is adding more stress burden on lower and middle class families just not monetary burden; We pay taxes to almost everything except the AIR that we breathe. I request you not to push residents to compromise the quality of their family life by burdening them more in these hard and difficult times.
Thank You very much!!!
OK. If there are responses to this, please try to keep ‘em shorter than the original comment. – DC
David,
You’ve been skeptical of the “reform/revolution” movement previously so I’m curious to get your view. Do you think it is different this time? I do. I see pay to play and Christie’s clamp on union contributions (if it stands) as severely crippling to the machine, which certainly can’t win based on popularity. Maybe the citizen outrage isn’t new, but I think this time it has a better chance of succeeding. What do you think?
Well John, the short answer is that it remains to be seen. There appears to be some coalescing of outrage, but I’m not sure how wide and deep it is just yet. I’ve seen reformers become incumbents become informants become defendants more than a few times over the years, so I tend to not get as energized by a roomful of shouting as some others. Still, there was energy in the room, and that ain’t nothing.
He’s worse than lame, Healy is irrelevant.
2010 Budget Hearing from Speak NJ on Vimeo.