okay everyone we're about to get started if we can find our seats silence our cell phones as I'm doing hint hint and if we can close the back door side doors I'd greatly appreciate that as well okay good evening everyone we are
on the record today is Wednesday the 26th day of March in the year 2025 this is a regular meeting of the Jersey City Municipal Council we had a scheduled 6 p.m start the clock on my cell phone is showing 6:02 p.m may we kindly excuse me
may we have a roll call for the commencement of this meeting council person Ridley here council person Prince Ari here council person Bajiano council person here council person Solomon is not here yet council person
Gilmore council person Dejie council person Ria will not be in attendance tonight and Council President Waterman we have seven council members in attendance at 602 p.m can we kindly rise for a moment
of silence please on behalf of council person Rivera he would like to dedicate this moment of silence to the following individuals freddy Rodriguez Julio Suarez Jr and Lewis Sodto willie Hagen
thank you very much on behalf of Council President Warerman and the members of the Municipal Council in accordance with New Jersey Public Laws of 1975 chapter 231 the Open Public Meetings Act also known as the Sunshine Law adequate notice of this meeting has been provided
by the posting on the bulletin board of the first floor of city hall which is the annual notice the schedule of meetings and caucuses of the municipal council for the calendar year 2025 and filed in the office of the city clerk on Friday November 15th 2024 in addition at
its time of its preparation the agenda of this meeting was similarly disseminated on Friday March 21st 2025 at 12:08 p.m to the mayor municipal council business administrator corporation council and the newspapers and posted on the city's website so I
can certify as to our total compliance with the sunshine law before we move on with the regular order of business council members as discussed at the caucus I'm going to need a motion to add item
3.16 city ordinance 25-044 to the agenda motion i have a motion made by council person may I have a second second i'm going to give that loud second to
council person Ridley on the motion to add item 3.16 city ordinance 25-044 to the agenda council person Ridley i council person Prince Ari i council person Bajiano we just need your mic on too
council person Cle i council person Solomon is not here council person Gilmore council person the chief and council president motion carries 70 to add item 3.6 city ordinance
25-044 to the agenda with council members Solomon and Rivera absent if you would allow me to read the first readings into the record before I do
that as discussed at the caucus and I'll confirm with the assistant business administrators that we are withdrawing item 3.1 3.3 and 3.8 from the agenda is that
correct just need you to that's correct 3.1 3.3 and 3.8 8 that is correct Sean thank you Assistant Business Administrator Kevin Lions thank you Clerk Gallagher i was saying that more for our court reporter so I will not have to read 3.1
into the record since it's been withdrawn so I'm going to go right on to item 3.2 2 city Ordinance 25- 030 franchise ordinance granting permission to the Liberty Harbor North Partners LLC's successors and assigns to allow decorative
platisters excuse me 4 foot bay windows and a 10-ft awning to encroach onto the public ride ofway at block 15907 lot 3 qualifier C 00002 item 3.3 is withdrawn item 3.4
city ordinance 25-032 is an ordinance amending chapter 296 streets sidewalks and public rights of way article two closure of the public right of way of the Jersey City Code requiring council approval for
applications for street closures requiring the closing of 10 city blocks for 5 hours or more item 3.5 city ordinance 25-033 is an ordinance amending chapter 321 of the municipal code of the city of
Jersey City item 3.6 city ordinance 25-034 is an ordinance supplementing chapter 332 vehicles and traffic article 9 parking for the disabled of the Jersey City Code designating and reserve parking space at various locations throughout the city item 3.7 city
ordinance 25-035 is an ordinance supplementing chapter 332 vehicles and traffic article 3 parking standing and stopping amending section 332-22 parking prohibited at all times on Enos Place item 3.8 has been
withdrawn item 3.9 before I do that I'm going to mark Council Person Solomon present at 6:08 p.m so we now have eight council members present at
60:08 item 3.9 city ordinance 25-037 is an ordinance authorizing the city of Jersey City to renew the lease with Brunswick Community Gardens also known as Jersey City Community Gardening Inc for the use of block 9905 lots 8 and
9 more commonly known as 174 176 Brunswick Street for a community garden item 3.10 2010 city ordinance 25-038 is an ordinance authorizing the city of Jersey City to enter into a lease with Dwight Street Block
Association for the use of block 2564 lot 8 more commonly known as 185 Dwight Street for a community garden item 3.11 city ordinance 25-039 is an ordinance authorizing the
city of Jersey City to renew the lease with Greater Neighborhood Alliance for the use of block 30003 lot 45 more commonly known as 81
Garfield Avenue for a community garden item 3.12 city ordinance 25-040 is an ordinance authorizing the city of Jersey City to renew the lease with Mandela Gardens sponsored by Greater Neighborhood Alliance for the
use of block 19503 lot 36 more commonly known as 447 Martin Luther King Drive for a community garden item 3.13 city ordinance 25-041 is an ordinance authorizing the city of Jersey City to enter into a
lease with 167 Madoo Avenue Condominium Association for the use of block 26301 lot 28 more commonly known as 142 Madoo Avenue item 3.14 city ordinance
25-042 is an ordinance authorizing the city of Jersey City to renew the lease with Ogden's end community garden sponsored by the Riverview Neighborhood Association for the use of block 5202 lot 28 more commonly known as 100 Ogden
Avenue item 3.15 city ordinance 25-043 is an ordinance of the municipal council adopting amendments to the Chapel Avenue industrial park redevelopment plan and last but not least item 3.16 city ordinance
25-044 is an ordinance approving a 30-year tax exemption to J HRC Senior Housing LLC concerning 259 Van Nostrin Avenue block 25402 lot 19 pursuant to the New Jersey
Housing and Mortgage Finance Act of 1983 as amended and supplemented by NJSA 55: 14K-1 exec and the rules promulgated under NJAC 580-1 exeact council members are going
to be taking a vote on items oh excuse me Sean uh did we get an update on 313 yes we do if you could let Sean over here 310 and 313 are both they're not renewals they would be new leases oh
they want to start one okay that makes we did update the ordinance uh the division of recycling confirmed with us so they are updated we updated both ordinances for the Makadoo and for for Dwight Street so the the condominium association will
be managing the garden for uh on Yes okay so council members going to be taking a vote on items 3.1 through 316 with the exception of 3.1 3.3 and 3.8 8 which have been withdrawn council
person Ridley I for introduction council person Prince area i for introduction council person Bajiano uh on 3.16 i'd like a little more information on that it's a 30-year tax abatement i'd like to have more information on it uh but I'll
vote yes for now i on council person vote I for introduction council person Solomon i for introduction council Person Gilmore I vote I for introduction i think we're going to have to have a little more discussion um with
respect to 316 um but I vote I for introduction saying that as first reading council person Deise I for introduction and council president Waterman I for introduction items 3.1 through 316 with
the exception of 3.1 3.3 and 3.8 8 which have been withdrawn are introduced 80 with council person Rivera absent council members before we move on to the second reading ordinances I
believe we have a special guest with us today and I believe that council person would like to make a motion to defer to item 10.6 6 resolution
25-193 is a resolution recognizing Jolie Ariel Morales for successfully passing the Eagle Board of Review is that correct Council Person Prince Ary that is correct i'd like to make that motion okay may I have a second on that motion
second second sorry somebody was saying second second okay so the second was made by council person on the motion to defer to item 10.6 resolution 25-193 council person Ridley I council
person Princeary i council person Bajiano i council person i council person Solomon i council person Gilmore i council person Deise i and council president Waterman i motion carries 80 with council person Rivera absent to
defer to item 10.6 resolution 25-193 council person Prince Ary would you like to read the resolution into the record absolutely so this is a resolution recognizing Jolie Ariel Morales Johnson for successfully passing
the Eagle Board of Review whereas Jolie Ariel Morales Johnson was born and nurtured in Jersey City and whereas Jolie went to Learning Community Charter School and County Prep High School and is now attending Fairley Dickinson University in Madison New Jersey and
whereas Jolie's Eagle Troop 327 is from Trinity Parish in Bergen Point at 141 Broadway Bayon and whereas in Jolie's time with the Eagle Scouts she has earned 31 merit badges and whereas the Eagle Scout Award is the highest and most prestigious rank attainable in the
Scouts formerly the Boy Scouts of America representing significant achievement and a commitment to leadership service and personal growth and whereas her Eagle Scout project entailed building a free little library filled with books which was placed
outside the gates of 17 school Joseph H brezinger Elementary School the little library will leave a lasting impact on the community and whereas Jolie chose this project as she had a love for reading and wanted all to enjoy her passion as well and whereas Jolie passed
her Eagle Board of Review on August 20th 2024 eagle is the highest most prestigious rank in the scouts program with approximately 5% of scouts passing review so this is a remarkable achievement to reach this rank now therefore be it resolved by the city of
Jersey City and the city council that we commend Julie Ariel Morales Johnson for her complimentary civic engagement and leadership skills and wish her all the best in her future endeavors before we let our guest of honor speak I think it's in our best
interest to vote to make sure we're all in favor of that resolution so if you would mind me calling for a vote on resolution 25-193 Council Person Ridley I'd like to say congratulations and you've achieved
so much already we know that you are going to go on uh to do great things in your next chapters of your life congratulations i Council person Princeary so first of all I'd like to thank your scout leader for bringing this to our attention um we are
very happy and excited to honor you and your achievements here um we wish you all the best and congratulations on all the great work that you have done and will continue to do and also also an alum of Fairley Dickinson so good choice in college i vote I
council person Vajiano i want to wish you congratulations and you did a great job thank you and your vote oh I council person congratulations this is an incredible
achievement as someone who has scout troops in their ward uh to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout is like the the tippy top when it comes to society as you being a leader like now when you see
a problem you're going to be the one to fix it right when you see someone that needs help you help them and we're really going to look to you you're the future you're going to like Captain America is an Eagle Scout there are astronauts that are Eagle Scouts there are leaders in all sorts of industries
that are Eagle Scouts and it's because of their character and it's a testament to Jersey City you know and your family and your troop that you have achieved this rank so it's not without blood sweat and tears and you made it so
looking forward to everything else that you're going to achieve in your life cuz it's going to be incredible thank you and congratulations i vote I proudly council person Solomon julie congratulations an extraordinary accomplishment and uh a fitting honor
and keep up the great work i proudly vote I council person Gilmore uh congratulations young lady um seeing leads to huge accomplishment i actually never heard of um this but as I see it's
5% I haven't accomplished anything that 5% of the participants were able to uh um do so congratulations you have a bright future i proudly vote i Council Person Dejie congratulations to you and the rest of the troop thank you
for doing what you guys do feel free to come back to county prep at any time and uh you know recruit some new uh some new scouts i proudly vote I and Council President Mortime congratulations for a job well done and
thank you for caring so others know the importance of reading i'm quite sure that was a task to get that done so congratulations and I proudly vote I city resolution 25-193 is approved 80 with council
person Rivera absent congratulations Juliet okay now we're going to put you on the spot if you're ready let me just put the camera on if you would like to say a few words to the council and everybody watching and everybody here floor is yours
i'm really like put on the spot but sorry about that um it was a lot of work to get to Eagle in general like a bunch of paperwork but also I feel like it was really worth it because I gave back to the community
that I that I really enjoy reading and I wanted to give that to others the opportunity one of my favorite books was actually Knight which was talking about the Holocaust so I figured that since that story also really encouraged me to
help with others in need I figured I should give back and allow others to experience that as well excellent for someone who didn't know what to say he did fantastic oh so I think the council would like to take a little
photo with you before you exit and hand off a nice little resolution for you congratulations again you know what i appreciate that got to do a prompt post photo one picture
exactly supposed you just congratulations again i'm not going to even touch that one all right on to our regular order of business we're moving on to our second reading ordinances item 4.1 city
ordinance 25-0 05 as discussed at the caucus meeting I need a motion to carry this ordinance to the April 23rd council meeting may I have a motion motion second so I believe that motion was made
by council person Deise seconded by council person Solomon on the motion to carry city ordinance 25-005 to the April 23rd municipal council meeting council person Ridley i Council Person Princeary council person
Vajiano Council Person CE I Council Person Solomon I Council Person Gilmore I Council Person Deise I and Council President Warn motion carries 8 Z with council person Rivera absent to carry city ordinance
25-055 to the April 23rd municipal council meeting council members for the next second reading ordinance item 4.2 to ordinance 25-018 as discussed at the caucus we are going to make a motion to table this
ordinance excuse me make a motion to table ordinance 25-018 prior to conducting a public hearing because we are going to have a brand new ordinance coming at the next meeting with the additional changes that would have created it for first reading anyway so on that may I have a motion to
table city ordinance 25-018 prior to conducting a public hearing motion motion made by council person Sole may I have a second second second by council person Ridley yep yes yes okay making sure on the motion to table ordinance
25-018 prior to conducting a public hearing council person Ridley i council person Princeary i council person Bajiano Council Person Sole i Council Person Solomon I Council Person Gilmore I Council Person Deise and Council
President Waterman motion carries 8 Z with council person Rivera absent to table city ordinance 25-018 prior to conducting a public hearing on to our next second reading ordinance item 4.3 city ordinance
25-025 is an ordinance amending ordinance 22-089 that authorized the city of Jersey City to accept from 134 Bay Street LLC three condominium units within the property located at 155 Bay
Street Jersey City and authorizing the city to accept from 134 Bay Street LLC one residential condominium unit atif 155 Bay Street this is a public hearing on this ordinance any member of the public wishing to be heard please come up to the podium and state your name for
the record second motion to close a public hearing on city ordinance 25-025 was made by council president Waterman seconded by council person Sole on the motion to close a public hearing on city ordinance
25-025 council person Ridley I council person Princeary I council person Bajiano Council Person Sole I Council Person Solomon I Council Person Gilmore I Council Person Deise I and Council President Waterman hi motion carries 8 Z
with council person Rivera absent to close the public hearing on city ordinance 25-025 for final consideration and adoption of city ordinance 25-025 council person Ridley I council person Prince Ari i Council Person
Bajiano council person Cle hi council person Solomon hi council person Gilmore hi council person Deise hi and council president Waterman hi city ordinance 25-025 is finally adopted 80 with
council person Rivera absent on to our next second reading ordinance item 4.4 city Ordinance 25-026 is an ordinance amending chapter 131 entitled uniform construction codes requiring applicants for construction
permits to demonstrate prior approvals from certain city officials and agencies this is a public hearing on this ordinance any member of the public wishing to be heard and I see Leverne Webb Washington entering just give me one second Lever to I get the camera on
your face and there you go sorry can I before miss Sure excuse me one second lever go ahead councilman so my understanding was that the construction court official wanted us to carry this meeting i thought uh because he was waiting to hear back from DCA and he hadn't heard back yet mhm you're right
uh we was going to just carry it because it was carrying yeah i thought that's what Oh I did not know that john or didn't realize that was brought up at the caucus meeting said that at the caucus meeting yeah
oh unless we said it when we introduced it so just to get the conversation was just carry it we can carry it have a problem with it just carry it just carry it motion to carry all right give me one second and I'll catch everybody we got a lot of ordinances next meeting i
apologize motion see now I'm now they're gonna Oh never mind i'm not second everybody's messing with me right now so I don't usually fumble the football you
know um you just dropped it just don't tell me that what that's what Russell Wilson is going to do okay but don't bump relax Rich he's a Giants fan oh I'm getting tortured all right so we're going to we have a motion to carry
city ordinance 25-026 to the April 9th municipal council meeting if you would be kind enough to remind me who made that motion councilman Solomon
and Councilman Solomon and we give the second to Council Person thank you on the motion to carry city ordinance 25-026 to the I'm sorry April
9th april 9th meeting council person Ridley i council person Princeary hi council person Bajiano hi council person hi council person Solomon i Council Person Gilmore
I Council Person Deise Hi and Council President Waterman motion carries 800 with Council Person Rivera absent to carry city ordinance 25-026 to the April 9th municipal
council meeting all right on to our next second reading ordinance item 4.5 city ordinance 25-027 is an ordinance to amend and supplement chapter 160 fees and charges section 3 public
safety of the code of ordinances of the city of Jersey City to include a fee for the use of the city's deescalation center this is a public hearing on this ordinance and I see Leverne Webb Washington let me get the camera ready
and you are ready to go is this fee for everybody that bend this or just for this particular ordinance the fee uh Miss Washington so this is a fee for any outside agencies that are wishing to
use our police facility for training uh and fire uh staffs and classrooms thank you okay this is still a public hearing on city ordinance 25-027 any member of the public still wish to be heard please come up to the
podium and state your name for the record motion motion to close the public hearing on city ordinance 25-027 was made by council person seconded by council president Waterman on the motion to close the public
hearing on city ordinance 25-027 council person Ridley I council person Princeary hi I council person Bajiano hi council person Cleai i council person Solomon hi council person Gilmore i council person Deise i and council president Waterman
motion carries 800 with council person Rivera absent to close the public hearing on city ordinance 25-027 final consideration and adoption of city ordinance 25-027 council person Ridley hi council person Princeary hi council
person Bajiano hi council person hi council person Solomon hi council person Gilmore hi council person Deise hi and council president Waterman city ordinance 25-027 is finally adopted 80 with
council person Rivera absent on to our last second reading ordinance item 4.6 city ordinance 25-028 is an ordinance amending chapter 160 fees and charges chapter 175 food handling establishments as regards
regulation and permits for mobile food vendors this is a public hearing on this ordinance and I see Leverne Webb Washington coming up to the podium yes where would uh what would the fee be is it a certain amount of fees or how is that going to work cuz I have a few
people that's been this and they asked me about it when I mention it to them uh councilman the question was uh who does the fee apply to i know the Sure the fee applies to trucks food trucks
that reserve a space in zone one zone one being a portion of downtown has very specific reserve spaces so there's a number on Columbus there's some on Montgomery there's some on Sussex so this only applies for downtown no no part of the city correct it just it just
have food trucks correct that's right don't I appreciate that thank you okay this is still a public hearing on city ordinance 28 excuse me 25-028 any member of the public still wishing to be heard please come up to the podium and state your name for the
record second motion to close the public hearing on city ordinance 25-028 was made by council president Waterman and the second was made by council person deise thank
you on the motion to close a public hearing on city ordinance 25-028 council person Ridley i council person Prince Ari i council person Bajiano hi council person i council person Solomon hi council person Gilmore
I council person Deise i and council president Waterman motion carries 8 Z with council person Rivera absent to close the public hearing on city ordinance 25-028 for final consideration and adoption of city ordinance 25-028
council person Ridley i council person Princeary well I think this ordinance is very well intended and I understand the challenges of the mobile food business um also in speaking with the director there was concern about offsets with um her ability to hire people or pay people
based on the revenues that are accured from these so so for now I'm going to have to vote no council person Biano I council person um I'm going to vote I
council Person Solomon I vote I council person Gilmore I council person Deise I and Council President Waterman vote no and Council Person Princeary
your vote again no okay right city ordinance 25-028 is approved 62 with council members prince and council president Warman voting no and
council person Ria absent um before we move on to our public speaking portion um we had talked about um at the last caucus I believe to unt
um city ordinance 25-033 I think 0003 which is an ordinance to amend and supplement chapter 23 municipal court section 2 the number of judges in terms of the code of ordinance for the city of Jersey city to increase the number part
time judges from 5 to 6 we got the approval I believe from our judiciary to uh move forward with this so I'm going to need a motion to untab city ordinance 25-003 from the tabled agenda motion made by council person prince
second seconded by council president Waterman on the motion to untable city ordinance 25-00003 from the tabled agenda council person Ridley I council person Princeary I council person Bajiano council person
Cle hi council person Solomon hi council person Gilmore i council person Deise and council president Waterman motion carries 80 with council person Rivera absent to untable city ordinance
25-00003 from the tabled agenda the ordinance was tabled after the close of the public hearing on January 29th because we were waiting that approval which we received so we can move forward and we can go right to the final
consideration and adoption of city ordinance 25-033 excuse me 003 council person Ridley hi council person Princeary hi council person Bajiano hi council person Sele i council person Solomon hi council
person Gilmore i council person Deise and council president Waterman city Ordinance 25- Z003 is finally adopted 80 with council person Rivera absent before we move on to our public speakers I
believe our council president has to leave the meeting due to a scheduling conflict so with that being said council president I would like to take your vote on the remaining items on the agenda we also have to invert the order of
business to approve the resolutions prior to the claims so council president I'm going to take your vote on the resolutions i'll take it uh nice and slow hey Sean before um council president do that I just want to um ask
the BA or legal um with regards to 1020 i don't know if it's a typo error but it says that they're going to be performing these psychological evaluations 16 for 24,000 but then it
drops to the bottom and say it's going to be 30 for 51,000 so I'm trying to figure out where's the differential in 3,000 because if you're doing 16 for 24,000 subsequently you should be doing
30 for 48,000 but it's have 51,000 is there anything else included that we're missing because it's a $3,000 differential yeah it says 51,000 for 30 so I'm trying to Is it some other fees associated with it
we're not sure we'll check for you right now since this was submitted by uh All right well can we can we table this until we make sure because I don't want to be paying um I can look at the quote for you hold on one second yeah the cost is the same on the quote
it's 1,500 per evaluation so it might just be the total cost we put out to 51,000 might be incorrect but it's still 1,500 per evaluation okay is there any way we can correct i just want to make sure we can we can correct the warehouse clause if it's
just a a math error there but it's 500 in evaluation all right operation Council if you don't mind you can just email me that correction and I'll make that on the resolution all right with that being said council
president I'm going to be taking your vote on items 10.1 through 10.13 thank you take take your vote on items 10.14 through 10.24 24 with the exception of 10.24 which has
been withdrawn correct ba assistant BA yes we talked about that at the caucus i apologize so you're voting I Okay and the balance of the resolutions 10.25 to 10.31
okay thank you and then just your vote on claims and addendum number one council president thank you so much sean we can have You may be dismissed i like saying that we can have council um
woman Ridley um sit here enjoy seat that way we can uh make sure council president promp will now take over thank you no you guys come on you have to come that's where the gamble's at
she's my backup just in case I need a backup right exactly i'm not touching that one either okay all right so with that being said we are now at our public speaking portion of the meeting i would appreciate if you
please pay close attention to the agenda people watching at home as well so I'm going to be calling the number and the first name of the individual with that being said 5.1 Lever say she left
no no Leverne don't feel bad they've been busting my chops the whole time i know there's no love Leverne no love i know they better leave you alone before I beat them up you ready i'm ready okay i need some
swimming pools this summer for my children in Jersey City we only have three pools all of them up that way ain't none down this way we done gave way all our schools we done rent them out lease them out whatever but it's
going to be a warm summer cuz we had a cold winter and it's a shame from Van Horn Street on up to city line there's no swimming pools we don't That's a big area we
don't have a swimming pool and a And a lot of children we not We shouldn't have to pay to go to a public school swimming pool this is a disgrace on us and we need to really look into that and we need to get
our young people off the street give them activity i have a summer camp I run free i have anywhere from 50 to 75 children this is not fair that I got to take him to a beach or take him out of
Jersey City to get him some water so I really would hope as we approach the end of this school year and coming in the summer that we have better activities and water for the children of Jersey City all children ain't going into the
sprinkle they would like to go swimming and we don't have no pools got Vonia going up there by our councilman and our council here on Van Horn it's not fair when I came up we had pools all over Jersey City
and we went inside the schoolhouse so I need some help with you guys and some housing too and I'm going home bye hey thank you our next speaker 5.2 Tina
Hi my name is Tina yes I work for Education of Gilmore but I'm speaking upon myself tina Noles justice for Drew justice for Drew so I noticed me being outra for doing this for a couple of minutes in the community that other people that get
paid to do this because if they get paid to do this we wouldn't be talking about this and none of these people would be here on a Wednesday night we've been coming here for years and years and years and they've been speaking about the same thing about their they issue and we shouldn't be doing this i'm
learning that when the right people hear the issue we wouldn't have to come back to this type of meeting guys so this is what I'm talking about i opening up a a safe space with education and Gilmore and Jeremy Walker and Steve from housing
my place had been busy every day somebody coming in there letting us know what we need so I said to them we need a safe space for every area in our community so people will be able to go in their doors to let them know what's going in our community so we won't be
sitting here on Wednesday night instead of us home with our families and doing family things instead of us out here complaining we'll be home relaxing and doing happy joy stuff but now I'm here on a Wednesday living my life complaining and complaining and
complaining to the same people so we got to do something else different in our community so we seen that it made it happen when we open up community treasure as a safe spot people was able to come in and let us know what was going on today we had outreach we had
200 people looking for apartments 200 people looking for apartments we had people lined up for the food that Miss Webb get two times a month we need better it shouldn't be the people that's doing the free stuff it
should be the people who do the 211 the um housing up on Martin Luther King City Hall the ones who get paid for these are the ones who be should be saying they changing stuff i see that the safe spot for JC up on Monttoella that's a fashion
show because they got shot at the other day i see that our young guys is crying for help in our community but like as education Gilmore say we don't have nowhere to put them we need to do better and we need to come together and help each other out it's not about y'all it's
not about your family the ones who yire as your family it's about the community so let's go okay our next speaker 5.3 Edward Justice for Drew justice for Drew and you know uh it's been 19 months
officially since Drew was murdered by the Jersey City Police Department and you know what the mayor is disgusting for it you know that press conference in front of the world where he said that you know Drew isn't a bad man and Drew
is not an evil man but Drew was sick if you take a moment out of your day out of your time to rewatch the videos that was released to the public you'll see that the police director Sheay said that Drew was
having an issue with his breathing they thought that there was something wrong with Drew and so they kicked the door in but if you watch with your own eyes you'll see that Drew was standing up on his own two feet breathing and well
although he was armed although Drew was armed shot simultaneously while being tased and it's inhumane this is the hill that I'm willing to die on no one will be able to escape this i'm no blood relative of
Drew i'm just a community member and we are hurting out here since then what has the family The family deserves justice and what does justice look like a mayor that gives a crap about us a mayor and a city council than rather than okay the
Kushner Towers housing for us okay support for mental health services support for nonprofit organizations to deliver a new vision of community policing for our community
you guys voted for that museum you put that on our backs shame on you that is the harm that you do here against us it's the policy what could we have used that money on how much better could we
have been served and now many of you come before us seeking re-election support heck no the audacity the audacity and so what the
civic engagement rates are in the garbage we got to do our job and let everybody know who's willing to participate that those of us who are undeserving are very much so undeserving thank God Tina thank you for your work do you have any idea what goes on out
there how many people are houseless how many people feel neglected how many resources aren't available for domestic violence victims for veterans do you understand the calls that we get you want to know what people
think about the police where are you justice for Drew justice for us all our next speaker 5.4 Gina Good evening gina Davidson Wardaf speaking on behalf of myself
tonight justice for Drew tonight I'm bringing you an update about the state of cat rescue and animal rescue in Jersey City this past Saturday we had our second annual meeting of the Department of Health and Human Services together with the Jersey City Cat Rescue
Collective stacy Flanigan of Health and Human Services held the meeting mark Burns the director of animal control was there emily Palmer who is one of the leaders at the shelter who is absolutely wonderful there were 15 of us rescue folks there and we were representing at
least five or six organizations organizations that annually care for hundreds and hundreds of animals across Jersey City every year to clarify the work being done these are people who with or without the support of the city are out in 20°ree weather at
6:30 on a Saturday or Sunday morning trapping cats who need medical attention and getting them to the shelter or to the vet and paying with their own money or some donations from ma uh neighbors in order to get that vet bill uh paid we're getting stray cats spayneutered
vaccinated against distemper and rabies we're treating injured and sick cats so they don't spread diseases to our pets we're rescuing kittens and mothers from construction sites and finding them homes we are showing up to disasters like house fires and hoarding situations where cats need to be quickly rehomed
and we use our skills and our services and our materials and all that we've amassed over the years that can help our communities um just like Tina Nols is on the Red Cross speed dial to help people in need of disasters the city services rely on our help and our support and our
collaboration we're alerting animal control when we see other issues as well we just got a rabid groundhog taken care of and I have to say Stacy Flanigan spent three hours with us talking about what's working with our collaboration with her and what we can do better moving forward no doubt
Stacy has accomplished all of this progress with the go-ahad and support of Mr fulip and we are so grateful that Stacy has been given the latitude to literally save lives and support health and well-being of our animals here in Jersey City
that said I worry that Mr and Mrs pulip are getting accustomed to using animal rescue for every the easy positive press it gets and not always using their vast power to actually affect change they continue to lose touch with the real
people who live in this city because not one of those people this weekend who have been doing cat rescue on their own dime for nearly 20 years has ever seen hide nor hair of the neuter scooter that Jacqueline Fulip promised us in 2018 and was recognized recently at the women in
action event i ask anyone who knows anything about Jaclyn Phillips mobile clinic to contact me i heard that the van is parked in Newark i heard it's parked in Bon none of us have ever seen it forget about used it so I'd be thrilled to be proven wrong here thank
you our next speaker 5.5 Ryan is Ryan here no uh Ryan is see okay thank you 5.6 Anthony um five years ago Jersey City MUA
ordered the replacement of backflow preventers and water meters uh I did this work at a tremendous cost in December 2020 it was inspected tested and approved by Jersey City MUA Engineering
four years later I received notification from Violia that there was a problem with one of my meters it wasn't reading as it turned out the meter was the sprinkler meter and consequently there wouldn't be a me a reading uh the
Violia customer service lady said "Not a problem just disregard all of these computergenerated uh letters." And I did that i thought the situation was resolved several months later I received fines on this
account i called MUA and was told by an engineer there that the problem was and it wasn't reading the problem was the wrong meter was given to my plumber 5 years prior i gave this job of replacing the
meter to the sprinkler company that handles the the sprinklers in my building he later told me that he was unable to do it because you had to be a licensed plumber to exchange a meter on the same day that this occurred
which was December 6th of 2024 I received a letter in the mail from the tax office stating that my building was being sold at taxlean auction i was frightened to death and I swear to God I thought I was having a
heart attack i tried to correct this harassingly inconceivable reaction to a mistake made by Jersey City MUA but to no avail two days before the auction I paid the tax office the fines involved
which were $492 following day I was finally contacted by an MUA finance person telling me that I shouldn't pay the fines at that point I told him "I paid the fines i had to i couldn't trust that
you people would do anything about it." He was pretty miffed about that based on his reaction I assumed the fines would be rescended and he mentioned some type of credit uh to cover the payment I made after this contact I never heard from
him again and he never returned my calls i've reached out to the mayor's office and to councilman's office and they have been very kind and supportive but no resolution has occurred this entire
experience has caused me a great deal of anxiety and stress to the point of believing I was heart attack on the day I received the text thank you Anthony your time is up anthony uh my aid is right over here
we've reached out to Joe Kuna twice and um we're going to reach out to him a third time okay and let him know you came to the council meeting and it needs to be resolved all right thank you our next speaker
5.7 Kevin now what does Pam have to do with responsible cycling in less than three minutes I'll tell you what so I watched the last city council meeting and I was very glad to
see you guys support the protected bike lane coming on Franklin Street as well as the improvements coming to Manhattan Avenue um but I was moved by one of the stories from um a young uh man who came
up who um is blind who got hit by a bike uh and a broke his cane um and this is what I keep talking about is we have to do something about the irresponsible bikers and one issue is you can't it's really hard to identify a lot of the
bikers to give a description like if it's if it's me on a city bike uh and you just tell the police that you just saw Frank Castanza biking around that wouldn't be enough information for them i mean just look at me like you can see the resemblance um so what if we put a
license plate on bikes well uh local municipalities can't put license plates on bikes it's governed by the state but what if we called it something else we call it PAM a public accountability marker
PAM uh but you uh it would be voluntary and what is a large source of bikers in Jersey City city bikes uh people like me who ride city bikes city Bike can voluntarily put public
accountability markers on both sides of the bike so people know what number each bike is um and you can get them to voluntarily agree to it or next year the city bike contract is up so you can put it in the contract to have
uh public accountability markers or PAMS on both sides of the city bike um I would call it BAM a bicycle accountability marker but I'm not as much of a fan of emerald so I just uh pick BAM you're endorsed by
Pam our next speaker 5.8 Lucy is Lucy K here no okay our next speaker 5.9 Roman take your time first off thank you Kevin for mentioning
me and justice for Drew people well I came behalf of myself and the blind community here um I just wanted to raise an awareness about the street walking and uh street crossing uh
and how they're not audible in almost every streets um in Jersey City it just bothers me as a blind guy to you know bothers and I'm afraid to cross the streets because we do not know if the
light is red or green and the the vehicles are crazy and uh I and many of the blind people like myself you know feel afraid to be on the road if
something would hit us or you know break us break our cane like the bicyclist what he So I just wanted to you know ask the councilman here uh if you know there is
anything we can all do regarding the auditory you know signals and I also like to thank Councilman Biano who is fighting for the people and just the work he's doing and everyone else thank you guys thank you great job
Roman our next speaker 5.10 Robert Allen robert yes my name is Reverend Allen i was hit by one of those Ebots sent to the hospital three times and nobody's responsible just as this gentleman was
talking and this gentleman we want to know who and when is going to send a message to whoever's responsible i came here to talk to city council
president and if we can't have safety in this city we don't need city council president people sitting up there we need some people that's going to work for us who can I see to get a letter so the people of Jersey City can be safe
walking across the streets and not getting hit who can I see and where can I which are you in which uh Reverend this has been brought up numerous times and certain people in this city will not do anything and it's a shame and uh we have
to something has to be done uh a woman was hit by a a bike uh one of the delivery people getting off a bus while on Bergen Avenue and it's no one incident after another especially with the delivery
people and believe me myself and a couple of the other councilmen are working on this and we're trying to get something done and I also have a bicycle place that we should have them have inspections some of these guys can't
even speak English and they don't even have sense enough to look up it's always on that GPS getting hit by a bike this guy went I went up in the air and he went under me that's how high it was i want this
stopped and I I'm going to talk to you Mr biano and we're going to get together and find out which one and how can we do this thank you very much everyone thank you okay our next speaker 5.11 Amory
and Marina Zaro Our Lady of Sorrows Parish and Jersey City Together Public Health Public Safety Committee good evening council members and community members we are here this evening firstly to thank you for the strength indeed the
good audacity that you showed in your no confidence vote at the last council meeting on the 12th signaling that Jersey City needs a leader of public safety who hears and respects the value of each person in
Jersey City including upholding the dignity of our community members challenged by mental illness in December of 2023 we of Jersey City together sat with council members at a conference table
here and also a public safety department representative he was Nicola Flores we were discussing how to reformulate the request for proposal to develop a gold standard program for the response
by police and behavioral health outreach in crises involving persons with mental challenges at that meeting Mr flores spoke of a special element needed in getting police departments and our
police department to embrace a behavioral health response to mental health crisis he said that culture change was needed a change in the department's philosophy and approach is what was
critical to bringing about a good behavioral health response program that is an excellent guiding principle for us to think about as we deliberate on how to finally deploy $1.2 2 million
budgeted for a behavioral health program in Jersey City by Jersey City we are less than two months from the anniversary the fifth anniversary of George Floyd's murder
this August we mark as was said before my talking tonight we mark the second anniversary of losing our own Drew Washington please mark these anniversaries by spending this money
strategically and honorably in Drew's name that's justice for Drew thank you thank you our next speaker 5.12 Phillip good evening members of the city
council and my name is Paul Carrington my issue today is taxation without representation in 2022 I made an application to the cultural division of cultural affairs to do a cultural business i was vetted i
meet all the requirements paid all the fees received my permit license and on the day of the police was called I was informed that they were called to disrupt the business by director Christine Goodman and Deputy
Director Bill O'Donnell i brought the messes to the city council i wrote as many letters as I possibly can and I brought the question down to the lowest common denominator i asked one question what
was the purpose disrupting the business simple as that no one in the city answered the question many times I came here and council president Adam says "Pill we're not going to answer." See that's very
hard for black people to hear that to come and hear that i understand that this is not the platform to answer questions but to tell black people you we are not going using the plural term we are not going to answer you it is hard and insulting what we should have
been saying I believe this is not the platform to answer those questions your statement or statements will be placed is being placed on the record and it will be referred to the right governing body division or agency and an answer will be
given if any you didn't answer here you didn't answer my phone calls you didn't answer my emails i took the matter to court it should not have gone to court at all it should be first being heard by the business administrator according to your laws
municipal Court Munal Law Code 296- 5 2.5B the business administrator or his assigned should have heard that it was never heard the man went to court eight of you I include you as a defendant not
one of you answered your name you didn't ask a single question in discovery the mayor didn't answer either so you didn't answer at all we went to trial we're into motion after motion and again the question has not been answered
the law department came into court and lied well you want to use a bit a different word the action is operating in bad faith or unethical but it's just not the truth to lie on the oath and so if I don't get an answer in 14 days from whomever is supposed to answer I'm going
to file another complaint in the same court against all of you taxation without representation thank you Phil answer our next speaker 5.13 Kevin i would definitely say Kevin's always
[Laughter] here and I always will be it's not a bad thing i'm not saying it's a bad thing whenever you're ready co two weeks ago I sat in a federal
courtroom and witnessed something remarkable four lawyers representing tenants two from the city and four representing our landlord 10 in total probably $5,000 an hour arguing over Jersey City's rent
control ordinance it was tense it was technical but it gave me hope why because every legal team there even equities made it clear that tenants are going to win the legal walls are closing in on
any attempt to pretend rent control doesn't apply and after the city's legal team noted that what we say here isn't always appreciated the judge emphasized our right to speak in this chamber and also to petition our government that really
mattered i want to thank our tenant legal team who continue to represent us with depth and clarity i also want to sincerely commend the city's attorneys Mr john McKini and Mr philip Adelman they didn't just defend the ordinance they defended
our rights even when our private WhatsApp groups were brought up that moment mattered and it really stood out we really thank you for that and yes I even want to thank and acknowledge the landlord's legal team they had the hardest job by far for example they
argued that a building constructed 2 years before a redevelopment plan was approved was basically almost the same as being built after the redevelopment plan was approved the argument went something
like this if Earth is 4 billion years old then 2 years ago is practically tomorrow honestly was comforting it showed us they're running out of arguments that don't result in laughter in federal court outside the courtroom
Equity acts like a bully ignoring the law and misrepresenting rent control status to tenants but in front of a federal judge their posture looked more like awkward dancing what's frustrating is what's happening outside the court the judge
took the ordinance seriously why don't the city departments the landlord identity disclosure law remains unmet required certificates contain outdated or false information to my knowledge the 2025 rent rules still haven't been filed well past the deadline emergency systems
misfire there's no resident superintendent the law demands daily fines rent reductions enforcement but we have seen none of it several of us sat in that courtroom and listened closely not once did the judge suggest this city should tolerate the violation of its own laws later tonight you'll hear something
new in this chamber audio from a real emergency call placed by someone who has been before you over 100 times maybe if you experience some of what we experience you'll finally act thank you our next speaker 5.14 Sylvia
good evening uh my name is Sylvia Louu i am the serve as a VP of the tenant association of the west tower at port side i'm not here to talk about her timelines i'm here about to talk about what's happening today and tomorrow and
has been happening every single day more than 1,000 violations per day are occurring in our buildings we have uh 527 units at port side today every unit is in violation due to the landlord
failure to file the 2025 rent roll a requirement that was due on March 3rd every every unit is inulation of ongoing failure in landlord identity disclosure expired or incorrect
certificated when they are posted every unit is in violation because there is no uniform security and every unit is in violation for in violation for lacking of resident superintendent another legal
requirement there is a thousand of violation today and yesterday and the day before this is a systemic law lenses lness and no one in the city has done a thing about it meanwhile tenants
keep turning over our association membership continuing to change not because the people doesn't care but because they cannot hold on any longer while the city stand still tenants are beginning push
out council Gilmore this is happening in Worth F we need our councilman to show us that this level of non enforcement will no longer be tolerated the Madame President Waterman
and Councilman Solomon you are both asking others to trust you with the power of the mayor's office then show us what you are doing with the power that you have already the question tonight is
about what the court will eventually rule is about the city is allowing clear daily enforcable violations to go completely and un and address it thank you and we are done our part i it's time
for the city to do thank you thank you our next speaker 5.15 Jessica council so I was one of the people in the courtroom two weeks ago when the city of Jersey City stood up stood up in federal court to defend the rent control
ordinance i want to say that the city's lawyers did an outstanding job thank you for that you defended the ordinance with confidence and clarity and you made it unmistakably clear that this law matters and it's worth defending and that courtroom felt like what government is
supposed to be what it feels like to actually be heard and for people to say the same things you are which is affirming in the realm of a lot of gaslighting that we've been we've been getting
um that's what makes what's happening outside the courtroom even more difficult to understand because if your legal team is capable of defending the ordinance that well in federal court and they are then we can only assume that they are also advising the rest of the
administration with the same clarity so why is that law being ignored in practice we're not asking for the city to interfere with court proceedings we're asking it to enforce the law today the parts that aren't in dispute when the city fails to act on missing rent
rolls missing certificates missing superintendants plural and missing security that's not waiting on the courts that's just choosing to not enforce the law one of the first times we stood in this chamber President Waterman told us
"You didn't want to hear about staffing or budgets being a constraint you said you wanted to see something get done." This is your chance because as your own corporation council has said this ordinance is self-funding with $2,000
per day per tenant in fines there is no version of enforcement that Jersey City can't afford in fact it implies you're looking away for another reason so if it's not about time and it's not about money then what is it about council this
city's legal team proved in court that this ordinance matters now prove it in the city you serve call for enforcement or a vote of no confidence in the responsible director thank you our next speaker 5.16 Eve
hi this is my fifth time speaking and I have not seen city council doing the necessary financial law enforcement yet my landlord had court Monday on 10 old building violation summons he failed to appear again the court failed to issue
any punishment to him again prosecutor Gloria O again retaliated at me for reporting ticket fixing instead of doing her job the judge reprimanded prosecutor O but she still didn't get her paperwork done so no fines were issued again this
causes the city excessive court costs with no fine money to pay for it city council has to require all revenue be collected and be collected timely these are no heat and failed chimney summons surrounding the repeated carbon monoxide
and gas leaks in my building since there is not court enforcement of the building and fire code the result would be the death already of everyone in my building including me council person Solomon Gilmore Embiano have made efforts to assist but since they are still outvoted
by other council members who refuse to act my landlord still ignores the inspectors because the court taught them to harass me and ignore the law god bless the Jersey City Fire Department and team Bill O Day bill O Day and his team have personally saved the life of
me and my entire building twice this winter he wrote a news article about how a fire safety investigation of the court effectively found ticket fixing of millions of dollars of fire code violation summons that article came out three months ago and no one has fired the prosecutors and judges responsible
for this so I'm legally disabled and getting retaliated at by the court on top of bad landlord at council meetings I've recently seen multiple neighbors of mine ask council for the basic courtesy of looking at and listening to them when they speak that's not just courtesy it's the council's job to listen to
constituents when the job doesn't get done and law isn't enforced the consequences are deadly and that's why I continue to support my neighbors at Portside Towers we need a safety net for all tenants across Jersey City so now I want to bring you into one moment it's
late emergency fans turn on lights start blinking but there's no alarm no one knows if there's danger or not a tenant calls a bing security emergency number you're about to hear what happened next angela and Barbara will play the first and second half of that emergency call
as you listen ask yourself does this sound like a building that has a resident super superintendent as required by law does this sound like emergency information is actually available as it must be under the landlord identity disclosure law the answer is no so what does it take to get
the law enforced thank you our next speaker 5.17 Angelo Oh I don't know thank you for your call our office is currently closed for the most upto-date
office hours please visit our website at equity apartments.com if you have a routine maintenance request or you would like to leave a message for the business office please press one if this is a maintenance emergency please press two to be connected to our emergency service
dispatch team thank you for calling for side tower support my name is Hazel how can I help you today all right um right here the emergency fans kicked on and in the hallway I can see lights are blinking but there's no fire alarm and I can't
tell whether or not it's an emergency or if it's not an emergency but the clearly the e some of the emergency systems are activated and we don't know what to do no smoke and no fire nose anything
correct i don't see any smoke but the uh the lights for the fire alarm are going off in the hallway and the emergency fans are just kicked on we can hear them uh you know so usually that happens when
there's an emergency or there's a a fire but the alarm isn't firing like it normally does thank you so much for the information and thank you for bringing this to attention as well what I'm going to do is I'll go ahead and notify the maintenance team i hope they'll be able
to track to what is exactly is happening to be able to Can you connect me to the resident super who is the resident super who's the super that lives in the building oh we actually don't have any information as to who is the further in
the property as we only create and submit requests we're not located on site oh you're not on where what which state are you in new Jersey i know we're working offshore oh which which country philippines
I like the Philippines um very nice there okay that's a little bit I'd like to also peacefully address the homeless issue that we have here and there's too many professionals that don't time is up thank you our next speaker 5.18 Barbara
please it's an emergency isn't there a way to actually pop to somebody live now who lives on site i feel like I'm leaving a message for somebody when there could be a fire emergency and I don't know if they're going to call me back
i understand you may see printers waiting on site living on site so um yeah the only option that we have here that we know is just to create and submit request I prepare we don't have any other information
but if I if um if the emergency um responders call this number are you able to provide them um a list of the people who live in the different units in the building oh no we don't have those information oh
okay so what would happen if an emergency responder called this number it's the only number that's listed will somebody will somebody call me back it's not really a maintenance issue isn't there a resident super that can call me back because I don't need
something fixed i just need to know if there's an emergency or not who will be the one that's going to provide the information and who will be the one that's going to Okay I understand all right I'll wait for someone to call me back
i think it would be a really good idea if we had a resident super in the building because that's the law in Jersey City and it doesn't seem like we have one of those so much for the information thank you our next speaker
5.19 walk good evening you've now listened firsthand to the reality faced by a tenant attempting to access emergency assistance in one of Jersey City's largest residential complexes let's be absolutely clear this
was not an isolated incident within an otherwise functional system this is the system resident facing a potential fire emergency was diverted to an overseas call center effectively cut off from any contact within their building no
emergency contact no on-site super only confusion and the sterile drone of hold music i must remind this council of the clear mandates set forth by NJSA 468-23 and Jersey City
260-3J these statutes unequivocally require full compliance with landlord identity disclosure laws as a prerec for any legal rent increase full compliance is not a matter of interpretation the laws demand accessible emergency
contacts local names and individuals readily available to respond to immediate crisis the recording you just heard was not merely unsettling it was a blatant violation of the law and yet this landlord continues to be permitted to raise rents to collect full payment for
services that are demonstrabably not being provided it's not a singular oversight it's a systemic pattern a pattern that's been documented and presented to this council for years if the city council fails to act decisively on the evidence you have now
personally witnessed what message does it send to every landlord who's been observing your inaction what precedent does it establish for the safety and well-being of our city's residents as an aside do other buildings in Jersey City have this kind of issue with landlords
blatantly disobeying the law i've lived and rented in Jersey City for the last 25 years and I've never even heard of anything like the Portside scandal please make sure that port side follows the landlord identity statement and the provisions for uniform security thank
you our next speaker 5.20 20 joel after listening to that recording a few minutes ago I don't know how anyone can complain that Portide Towers is in any way compliant
the person answering the emergency line couldn't name a superintendent didn't know what tower was which had no emergency contact couldn't help in any meaningful way will call back it's 2 weeks later and there is no
call back been received you may not enforce the laws directly but you do control the oversight of those who fail who are failing to do so silence is not oversight here's what the law says clearly and without ambiguity landlords
must post a certificate listing emergency contacts the certificate must be given in writing to each tenant it must include the superintendent and managing agent and provide a number that actually works during an emergency clearly it did
not none of that happened and tonight you don't have to take our word for it you heard it if a lawyer submitted a document to a federal court missing this many required elements there would be they would be sanctioned but Equity submits this to Jersey City every year
and instead of consequences they get yet another pass no fines no rent reductions no accountability that's not enforcement that's surrender
this council should take what you heard tonight and direct Director Richardson to issue violations tomorrow the law allows it the facts demand it councilman Gilmore you represent us
this is happening in your ward what do you intend to do about it madame President Otterman and Councilman Solomon both of you are running to lead this city can you tell us what you'll do now and
what you would do differently as mayor because what we just heard wasn't a customer service failure it was a public safety failure and if no one is held accountable it becomes a failure of government at the very least I hope we
hear from our councilmen before the end of the night if you have any question or if you have any information on issues that should not be happening within the city blow the whistle@gmail.com thank you
our next speaker 5.21 21 daniel back in January of 2016 Donald Trump said quote "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot someone and I wouldn't lose any voters." He was 100% right he's a convicted felon with loads of criminal charges against him
yet he's the most powerful person in the country so he can do literally whatever he wants with no accountability we've all seen that in the news unfortunately the same lack of accountability is occurring right here in Jersey City if Equity Residential were a person they
could stand right outside at the corner of Grove Street in Montgomery and shoot someone and they wouldn't be held accountable you all unanimously adopted an ordinance last June stating that dwellings with 100 or more units such as
ours at Portside Towers must have at least one uniform security guard on the premises 24/7 it's been 9 months since then we don't have uniform security a bullet pierced a child's window in our building and that child's mother cried right
where I'm standing in front of you all begging you all to fix this and an attacker came into our building last November leaving a trail of blood and yet Equity is still refusing to provide us with uniform security I assume because they don't
want to pay for it and the city is letting it happen the same goes for an on-site superintendent as you just heard in the recording the ordinance of Jersey City states that buildings such as ours must have an on-site superintendent who
we can contact immediately in the case of an emergency such as when there's a potential fire or such as when there was a fire and a flood in one of our buildings last year but we don't have an on-site superintendent equity doesn't
want us to have one despite the law saying that we must have one because they know they can get away with not having an on-site superintendent because they know that the Jersey City government doesn't want to hold the large corporate landlords such as Equity Residential
accountable you just heard the recording i I really don't know what else to say here you all can collectively fix this as Joel just said you can um you know tell Shyron Richardson to enforce daily fines you guys can fine equity every day it'll make the city a bunch of money and
it can really it can help fix this problem that we coming we keep coming to you guys for um not all of you may want to do that it might not be in your political interest to do so but you all can fix this and I give a lot of credit to Councilman Gilmore who hasn't been
shy about publicly calling out this administration and I believe that if all of you had as much political courage as he does we wouldn't be standing here right now thank you councilwoman Ridley am I able to just give information real quick before they
continue just so um we're aware Equity did request an exemption from our security requirement we are um doing the inspection required it's been ongoing uh officials from the city did meet with the tenants and the tenants representatives uh to speak to them
about their concerns we are continuing and we're going to be meeting with um equity and doing an official walkth through and then we'll have a report um as to whether or not the exemption is granted but it is ongoing so what are the um I guess grounds that you would
exempt someone from that requirement it's a pretty thorough investigation um so I will wait until the report is done but it's an overall review of the security of the building so what do you
do in the meantime as we I guess determine if they're exempt what if we come back and say they're not exempt are they penalized for all of the days they was out of compliance it it would depend we can talk about when it would actually go into effect or
not we issue uh a violation which I believe there was a violation issued if it's pending in the court it would probably wait until the investigation is complete and then it would be up to the judge whether or not um the ticket would be dismissed or there'd be some other
fine but as of right now since the exemption has been applied for uh we're just completing the investigation so as it relates to the fine I believe it's up to non-compliant what is it 2,00 2,000
so is the proper thing to do um is write if they were like let's say if they if they wasn't trying to get exempt and they were out of compliance is the proper thing to write the ticket
every day or if the initial ticket say um you're out of compliance and you're fined $2,000 per day until the fra the infraction is essentially resolved h how does that work usually
once an initial violation is issued you're given 30 days to cure and then after that there's a possibility of daily fines it would depend on the situation but usually you are given that opportunity to cure no no I know that what I'm saying is a is is another ticket
uh is it warranted issuing another ticket or does it we've discussed that there would have to be an actual person there to inspect and issue the violation as we've discussed before you can't just say that I was there on April 1st and
back on May 1st I went back and nobody was still there and issue the ticket for those 30 days you know what I'm saying so that we would have to have an inspector go there and continue to make sure that okay vi can be issued that day and my final question is how long do we
anticipate this review process uh being because part of the problem is they know that we voted to do this thing 9 months ago and if they were seeking an exemption they should have done it then
but I mean if you guys are just taking it into consideration odds are they just submitted an exemption so how how long do we anticipate this going on i know there's a meeting scheduled for next week next week there's a meeting with um the landlord to do the official
walkthrough with the landlord as well is there any way we can have any part of that or should we be out of like what is I would not want you to be there just let them uh meet with the landlord just as they met with the tenants as well they were at the building for for several hours going through and
listening to Do we know the day next week i can check for you but it was scheduled i'll I'll let you know okay and if you guys can just share uh correspondence as it relates to updates sure um All right thank you can you tell us on what grounds they're seeking the
exemption they haven't had the meeting yet but they are just seeking the exemption and then we have to go follow up and and do our investigation yes are we good okay all right our next speaker 5.22
Brendan good evening council now today I would like to I would like to bring up the phone call we heard earlier this evening kevin was informed he'd receive a call back to a call back it's been two weeks he has not called back the logical
assumption Equity must have made is he burnt alive in his apartment cuz the fire alarm went off and nothing happened we never found out this sort of sums up equity most days now last time I spoke I focused on the math behind affordable housing the difference between claims
and reality i also invited you all on a bike tour after count after your work day tomorrow at Thursday unfortunately nobody wanted to come even when I offered to rent ebikes to make it a little easier tonight I want to focus on a different kind of math the kind the
city refuses to do let us examine the 527 rent controlled units at Portside Towers each of those units is legally entitled to a properly filed rent a resident superintendent and uniform security depending on how those meetings that were just brought up goes and a
legally valid landlord identity certificate each of those sorry each of those things is required by law and none of them are currently in compliance let's say the city enforced just one violation per
unit per day that's 527 violations now multiply that by $2,000 per violation the amount the amount in ordinance 260 over a million dollars a day from one property just imagine how many other properties there are in Jersey City that
are in violation of these rules given the amount of messages I have seen I I refuse to believe it's just one providence in violation and this is not a budget hole this is the budget solution to the city right now this could help fund the
Department of Education this could help fund and build roads and my question is why what is more expensive upsetting a politically collected landlord or continuing let thousands of tenants live in legal limbo while the city pretends it can't afford to act this isn't just
about port side it's whether Jersey City enforces the laws it already has i would argue if you refuse to do the math you might have answered the question let us focus now on what the city could do with the money we could fix the roads we could build proper bike lanes we could infor we could probably hire multiple
public safety officers to deal with ebike riders who don't know how to use an ebike we could proper we could keep people safe we could have pools swimming heck we could buy we could probably build that second ray art museum and we could do this all by just
enforcing the laws please take care of it also I'd like to extend my bike ride offer i'll throw in a beer all right our next speaker 5.23 Drew good evening council members i started coming to these meetings when I
was 26 years old to seek out your help to enforce Ordinance 260 if you remember around this time last year I stood before you on the evening of my 27th birthday spending it here with you all i was thrilled to be here i'm now 28 and still standing before you seeking your
help it's kind of crazy to see how much can change as one gets older your career trajectory your friends your personal lives and so on however one thing remains unchanged progress on enforcement of the city's rent control laws my friends and family constantly ask me "What's going on with rent
control what are the council members doing?" And when I tell them it's been years in the making with no substantial movement they're flabbergasted i guess I am too or maybe I'm just numb to it and expect nothing week over week month over month year over year but here we all are
to advocate for ourselves our neighbors and the broader community to advocate for all of Jersey City residents because we all know we aren't the only ones affected by Ordinance 260 your consistent efforts to ignore us only perpetuates an us versus them mentality one that differentiates the
classes one that holds the power against the people and the other that are the people for the people us you failed us last year and the year before that what will happen this year now beyond ordinance 260 let's talk
about the emergency call attendant hears the fans kick on emergency lights start blinking no fire alarm no staff no one to ask so he does what the post-it notice tells him to do he calls the emergency number does he reach someone downstairs no in New Jersey nope in the
US not even close he reaches someone in the Philippines who to her credit was polite but couldn't name a single staff member in the building didn't know East Tower from West and when asked if there's a resident superintendent who could call back she said "Unfortunately we don't have any direct line for any
maintenance or a super who is working on site or is living on site." When the tenant asked what would happen if emergency responders called that number she said "We don't have any idea how they work we just create and submit requests." That was Jersey City's emergency response plan a form
submission from a country 8,000 m away while emergency systems were going off now I'm just a tenant but I'm pretty sure please hold isn't an acceptable fire safety protocol i'm sure if something had gone seriously wrong that night the only people ready to take action would have been the one standing
right behind me here council what you heard wasn't a mistake it wasn't a fluke it was the system it's designed to delay responsibility until no one can be blamed well we're done waiting we don't have uniform security we don't have a resident superintendent and we don't have an administration willing to
enforce the laws you passed so let me leave you with this when the next emergency happens and it will we won't be calling that number we will be we will bring those tragedies to you and to the press and when someone gets hurt again these speeches will be part of the public record so will your silence or
your Thank you our next speaker 5.24 24 john hi um since nothing seems ever to change drafting these speeches pretty much seems to end up being a case of finding different ways of saying the same things in some attempt to break the monotony the trouble is it's still really
tiresome it's tiresome having to come here and ask you and the administration over and over to do the same things to ask you over and over why the same things still haven't been done it's tiresome to always receive the same response from you which is stony silence apart from tonight it seems um it's been
283 days since this council approved the most recent amendments to chapter 218-1 which is the requirement for buildings such as ours to have 24-hour uniform security on duty um I don't understand why it's taken so long for a response we've been
bringing examples to you for months and only now do we hear that port side has asked for an exemption but I should point out that under your own ordinance 24-055 the city has until April 1st to
complete an inspection so what happens if we don't make that can anyone say what happens if you don't make that deadline no okay fair enough yeah yeah well we receive we frequently receive emails from our building's management which
include the claim "Our tenants safety is our top priority." Uh we know it isn't because one of the previous managers said as much to a couple of residents when asked why certain services weren't being provided her response was "Our investors are our top priority." Oh my
heart is full but ordinances such as that one that we've been talking about and chapter 260 rent control throughout the city um these these ordinances were put in place to protect Jersey City's residents from bad actors such as greedy
corrupt landlords you were elected by the city's constituents to be the gatekeepers of these laws and to ensure their enforcement would anyone like to tell the voters in this room or who are watching the live stream why you choose not to enforce chapter 260 this is election year for the city
council seats and two of you are running for mayor maybe those of you running re-election campaigns have included claims that you've always strive to serve the interests of your constituents and respected the laws and ordinances that were designed to protect them but if coming to these meetings for the last two year three years has taught me anything is that those claims don't hold
water maybe in your campaigns you'll be claiming that if elected you'll ensure the ordinances that serve the interests of your constituents will be enforced perhaps if you act now maybe just maybe you might give the voters some reason to believe you our next speaker 5.25 Mel
hi um I'm going to be repeating myself tonight um it's very much a dja vu i didn't I wasn't able to write a new speech but luckily and that does drip with sarcasm all my notes from the past few months of other speeches I was going to make all still apply i'm definitely
having a deja vu because I think I did deliver a speech in January talking about the speech in December that could have been a total repeat from the 2023 December speech so we're just you know rinse and repeat rinse and repeat doing this again um I miss a lot of meetings
due to my work commitments and the responsibilities I have there lots of things go wrong we got to fix them is it my responsibility to fix everything no do I make it my responsibility to find out who is responsible and ensure they
follow through yes I do when those people do not do what they're supposed to do do I put them on a performance improvement plan yes I do are they given the opportunity to improve and fix the issues yes and we want them to let's
just get it done if they don't do they stay in that role no they don't and yet here we are years later still asking for the same things begging pleading with all of you to find out who is
responsible and follow through we know you have a lot to do we know you do get a lot of things done but with the pure number of things that this one bad Apple equity represent residential is doing there has been
nothing resolved not even one don't you don't have to do them all in one go take them one at a time step by step let's do something it's great to hear that there is an inspection going on does it fill me with confidence that something will actually happen absolutely not i kind I
think I recall that the last inspection proved many violations in many areas and then the report appeared saying there were no violations so you know great let's go through the motions but it's just going to drag on and on and on and
on we've seen it before i haven't seen anything happen to make me think that anything else is going to change so tonight I'm pretty furious that I finally get to leave my office at a decent hour to have to come here again
repeat myself again all my neighbors behind me doing the same thing again and again and again when's it going to end when are we going to see some real action can we please please please take some accountability do the right thing for
your constituents thank you our next speaker 5.26 Michelle good evening i want to address a pattern we've seen from both recity residential and mayor Phillip a repeated claim that tenants at Portside are dragging out the
process that we are to blame for delays in courts that our complaints stem from how long everything is taking let's correct the record now we submitted our petitions in May 2022 by October 2023
the rent leveling board issued a unanimous 6-0 decision in our favor that's a model administrative timeline the legal process has done exactly what it was supposed to do we are not here tonight to complain about the courts or
the rent leveling board we're here because ongoing violations of Jersey City law are not being enforced the false narrative is being used to mask a far more serious truth that city
leadership is doing nothing while daily violations persist not just at Portside but across the city rent roles have not been filed certificates of registration are outdated or missing emergency systems fail there is no resident
superintendent on site and no on-site security as required yet there are no rent reductions no daily fines no accountability so no our frustration is not with how long the process takes it's
with how little the city does while that process plays out at the last meeting this council took a bold move and a commendable step a vote of no confidence you used your authority to signal that a
department head had lost public trust tonight we're asking for the same we ask this council to issue a vote of no confidence in director Richardson or his direct supervisor Ania Celone who leads
the department of housing economic development and commerce since November 2022 none of the welldocumented continuous violations we've brought forward have been resolved
none at some point refusal to act becomes institutional and that's where your oversight role begins on March 14th Mr adelman and Mr mckini stood beside us in federal court
not just as codefendants but as defenders of tenant speech and private communication they brought their agame and I was proud of them council we will be equally proud of you when you bring yours start with a vote that tells the
city the era of ignoring violations is over if anyone watching this video has anything to add to help protect tenants please contact us at blowtheistjcgmail.com thank you our next speaker 5.27 Alexandria
Good evening council uh my name is Alexandria i'm a downtown resident and voter and York Street Project Professional Council member i'm also a class 5 cannabis retailer at 535 New York A in Ward C i'm
speaking tonight to urge you to vote nay on 25-216 a resolution supporting kind buds and operating a standard class 5 retail cannabis business at 545 New York just 124 ft away from my approved location this would mark the fourth legal
dispensary within a threeb block span when I applied to the Cannabis Control Board in 2022 I did so under ordinance number 21-053 which explicitly states three times that the main entry door of any cannabis establishment subject to a
class 5 license shall be separated from one another by a distance of at least 600 ft while this ordinance allows micro businesses to operate closer together under certain conditions like what has happened in many of your awards both Kindbuds and my businesses are standard
license holders i fully support a free market and fair competition but I also invested my entire life into this based on the expectation that the ordinance would be upheld and that I would have at least 600 feet of separation from another retailer standard retailer I'm sorry
a core goal of the ordinance is to promote equity and entrepreneurship approving a dispensary just five doors away especially one with parking would put my business at a severe disadvantage as a minority woman from a community disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs I do not expect entitlement but
I have earned my opportunity my background includes um working at New York's most compliant medical dispensary cannabis certification from Meridan College um participation in the Parabola Center for Policy years of experience in the regulated cannabis space serving on
York Street's CA uh council since 2022 organizing toy drives for PS27 participating in Hudson County Community Colleges cannabis education events sponsoring candemics supporting the Jersey City Creators Market and really immersing myself in community
engagement even before I applied this applicant was tabled twice by the cannabis control board on August 14th of 23 and June 24th of 24 due to concerns about oversaturation proximity to existing dispensaries and lack of community involvement i applied first
for everything the CCB um the planning board and unfortunately there was a moratorum put in place um immediately after that so that's you know um this individual was able to move forward while I was put on hold it just seems
pointless to require cannabis applicants to demonstrate community involvement philanthropic efforts with mereus with no tangible commitments um the situation feels incredibly unfair as I've worked tirelessly to earn my place yet it is being given away so freely there's a
miscon Thank you thank you so much our next speaker 5.28 Matthew you Matthew okay how you doing right uh there's a misconception that cannabis businesses generate through revenue to coexist like restaurants or other
retailers but due to section 280E of the federal tax code cannabis businesses cannot deduct expenses like payroll rent application fees licensing legal costs or construction operating in razor thin margins because of these limitations four dispensaries selling the same
products within the threeb block radius would be unsustainable and contradict the language and intent of ordinance cannabis businesses must rely on volume to offset overhead costs that cannot be expensed i respectly ask for your support in upholding the ordinance and ensuring fair competition vote by voting
nay on resolution 25-216 i thank you for your time and consideration everyone thank you very much thank you our next speaker 5.29 Erica erica D no
no next speaker 530 Josh I say a no okay 5.31 Naen no no 5.32 Ralph
Ralph S no like he left okay 5.33 Natalie Yeah hi hi i'm Natalie with the Hudson County Tree Allies um just want to briefly
state um that our group supports the ordinance um for 25-033 regarding chapter 321 the tree ordinance we worked really hard with the shade tree committee over the last 6 months um and we were very happy to see that some of our suggestions um we had
drafted a proposal ordinance were adopted um in some areas verbatim so that was really exciting and just thank you to Councilwoman Meera and um legal person John McKini for that overall it's a giant step forward there was one small
step back but um we'll be back next year to continue pushing things forward it's really important that this ordinance take effect as soon as possible so that the additional protections that it um it has brought into effect in compliance with uh the New Jersey Department of
Environmental Protection um take place as soon as possible so for the second reading of this ordinance you'll only hear me voice support um and address any potential opposition but tonight I'd like to draw attention to one element of what we had originally proposed that didn't make it into the ordinance and
I'd like to do this more than anything because we have elections coming up and several of you are running for mayor and some to retain your seat here and I'd like for it to be in your mind and like inspire some thought um because this part of the proposal that we made honestly goes beyond what the Shade Tree
Committee can legislate on its own um because it involves building zoning planning and perhaps more departments that I'm not aware of um it's something that a mayor could definitely help champion we are proposing that modest height and setback variances or other
incentives be offered to private developers in exchange for designing around large trees where possible particularly trees with proximity to the public rideway some of you might remember um the issue of the magnolia tree on Route 139 um there was efforts
to see if it might be transplanted it can't be transplanted um our proposal would preserve a tree like that there's also a gargantuan tree on a raised lot in the back left corner of 81 Palisade it's 48 in wide um diameter at breast
heights one of the biggest trees I've seen in town um such a proposal could also preserve a tree like that um by offering modest height um or uh setback or building width variances to make up for lost square footage um for like
basically I I have graphs and figures I can show you there is precedent for this in other cities um the current mayor has really big dreams for Jersey City you know the Pompadoo project the renovation of the Lowe's seeking to make us a travel destination rather than just a
place you stop through why do we not consider uh tax abatements or variances for another public benefit which would be like really large trees of this kind they're just as important thank you our next speaker 5.34 Sabrina i didn't
She's not here okay next speaker 5.35 Devin oh Deon here no next speaker 5.36 Morin Rios
no no and last speaker 5.37 Robert hi I'm Robert also with Hudson County Tree Allies um um I just want to add my voice also in support of uh the amendment to chapter 321 the tree
ordinance um you know basically Natalie has said everything I want to say um and more um um definitely you know I I want to thank the shade tree committee for its work um and for hearing our um um for
incorporating our suggestions you know naturally there are things that we would hope to strengthen in the future but um I just want to voice my support for um the passing of this ordinance thanks
you um Britney um I just have a few follow-up questions um so with respect to the uniform enforcement um how does that process how does that process look um so if someone calls and say a
building is out of complian well we think a building is out of compliance they don't have uniform security subsequently an inspector goes out yes yep and where's this inspector from uh the last one that went out was office of code compliance so office of quality of
life can go out as well believe Joe Barrow went out on this joe Barrow is compliance that's That's Joe oh so quality of life go out either either one yeah
which either one can go out in my opinion yes i know Joe went out on on this one okay and then if they see the infraction they'll write it up correct correct okay um wait why do either one wait because
quality of life is in a different division versus construction code code compliance yeah no Joe but code compliance is under construction code no
well they in the same building they're not what quality of life is for sure construction code has their own inspectors that are for buildings that are under construction that like they're not built out yet but code compliance is
for all the other issues that pop up what I'm saying is quality of life and code construction is in two different offices correct yes quality of life is under city prosecutor correct correct yeah so
that's why I'm saying public but they both have the authority to write tickets I guess so that's why Okay all right now as it relates to this um port side right um I'm requesting
um if if it's determined that they they're not going to get exempt at the very least if we can impose fines from the inception of the ordinance to the date in which they filed for
exemption because if there's a big lapse in that period um or is would that be a part of the negotiation i'll I'll discuss it with you but there was a violation issued that I know that is out in the municipal court right now i'm not sure the status
of it but I will check that but that was for a lack of security and then the exemption was applied for so now as it relates to the exemption filing and going through the process do we foresee
any other appeal steps any other process that will any other steps that will prolong them having to be into compliance so if if the if we say no do they have the right to appeal to another entity sure they can they can take us to
court on it but there's nothing else from a municipal like they can't go to a board that we or nothing like that nope okay okay you good all right just to be clear the exemption sorry the exemption expires
April 1st the ordinance says we'll complete the inspections from January to March so we're trying to get it as soon as we have the additional meeting we'll have the report out and then we can make the finding so thank you okay
that concludes our public speaking portion so we're going to go right to petitions and communications any questions or comments on communications 6.1 through 6.34 hearing none there are no officer communications any questions or comments
on reported directors 8.1 through 8.15 nothing so um like I said earlier when I was taking Council President Waterman's vote we're going to invert the order and go right to resolutions first and then do the payment of claims after that so with that being said council members I'm
going to be taking a vote on resolutions items 10.1 through 10.13 again that's 10.1 through 10.13 council person Ridley I council person Prince Ary i for all
council person Bajana council person Clay i for all council person Solomon i for all council person Gilmore hi council person
Deise items 10.1 through 10.13 are approved 80 with council person Rivera absent on to our next set of resolutions that would be items 10.14 through 10.24 with the exception of 10.24 which
has been withdrawn so we're going to go 10.14 to 10.23 council person Ridley hi council person Princeary hi for all council person Bajiano council person i council person Solomon
hi council person Gilmore i'm going to vote I um I just want the record to reflect that um the correct amount um must be uh fixed for 1020 and we'll have that correction um soon
as I go downstairs yes and if you guys could give me the $3,000 balance I would appreciate Council Person items 10.14 through 10.23 are approved 80 with council
person Rivera absent and 10.24 has been withdrawn for the balance of our resolutions yes can I say something before you go to the end of the resolutions sure on 10.29 resolution
25216 for kind buds opening at 545 Newark Avenue 124 ft from an approved application Neon Heights i represent this area here and I have never heard of this applicant all of the other
dispensaries whether I supported them or not all reached out to me in my office when they were in my neighborhood now I am not against cannabis in some ways uh I am against uh poor planning what
happened to the cannabis board uh I'd like to ask the legal department or the BA what happened to the cannabis board as of right now we only have um two members on the cannabis board we had two resignations um so we do have we've been
working on the additional cannabis changes we've been trying to bring that to the council we hope to have it on the next meeting um and then we'll uh it will the proposed changes will change the makeup of the board and then we'll have to nominate additional members to the board we have not had a meeting
since January okay they tell me that this has been such a mess that almost everyone on the counterboard has quit i understand there's only one person left one and that person does not live in the city of Jersey City the city did not do smart planning the ordinance on cannabis
was poorly thought out from the beginning timeless uh should timelines should be used for their approvals we should have capped the number of applications from the beginning and studied the process where is the amendment for this ordinance we had
passed an amendment and evidently nothing was done are you waiting for more lawsuits and for that I vote no again on another cannabis application i mean I couldn't believe because I spoke to somebody from the cannabis board
tonight and uh I got an earful and it's a shame a a darn shame and this should not be approved your vote is rich we have three other places I believe on Newark Avenue right let's go in order of the vote so so Councilman I I I
appreciate your comments but before I I didn't take the vote yet so Yeah well I want to let the people know uh the council people know what the heck is going on okay oh Sean since we're here um can we circle back to uh something
that Court of Council said that the makeup of the board is going to be different what what would be the difference between the new uh board and the current structure of the board sure currently it is a five member board um in the new ordinance draft it would be a
seven member board we did have issues with quorum issues or people having to recuse themselves and that was an issue so the the um the mayor isn't going to appoint any new members until that point like we're not going to restore the
current members of the board uh councilwoman the idea was that we didn't want to create confusion so we would uh introduce the seven member board and then members according to those seven spots we didn't want to backfill certain spots and then say we're adding additional spots we wanted
to make it transparent okay is it like five people and two alternates or is it like full seven full seven residency requirement as well or can we make sure that's still being discussed but Okay yeah i think we'll have it for you next
week yeah looking into the issue as to whether or not we could require it yeah I think the the um the alternates are extremely important because if we run into the issue we had with a fiveman board with a sevenman board then it
persists but if we can have like I don't know two layovers or whatever um I think that that'll be great with a seven member board they can act with four people here with a five member board they needed three and it caused some
issues okay and we anticipate this being before the council next meeting yes um yes the one council member absent well one of the two has some additional comments and then we'll be presenting it to the entire council i'll send it to
you before it hits the agenda the first reading [Laughter] added i'm just joking all right with that being said council members are going to be taking a vote on the balance of the resolutions items
10.25 through 10.31 council person Ridley 10:29 um I understand uh what the young lady and the young man came up and said and I think we we've said this a few times before you know this council did put a law in place that we didn't want
to have these businesses next to each other uh unfortunately our uh mandates weren't followed and we do have a lot of can cannabis places next to each other currently um I don't I'm not in favor of that uh but I'm going to vote I for all
because I don't know if we can now go back and not approve uh based on that fact when we've already approved so many uh that are now next to each other so with that I vote I for all okay council person Prince Ary abstain on 1029 i for
the rest council person Bajanna no on 1029 i for the rest council person vote no on 1029 uh I for the rest for 1029 the uh applicant didn't even reach out to Councilman Bojano which every
applicant in W C even though they know they're going to get a no vote from him they still reach out they still do the courtesy of reaching out to his office and also the community impact plan doesn't really address the Jersey City
Ward C community as well i'm not against the applicant i think another location and a better community impact plan would definitely um take this a long way and also a little more outreach to the ward council person thank you Council Person
Solomon um I'm going to vote no on 1029 and I and all the rest um similar to my colleague Councilman Clay the the distance issue as Councilwoman Ridley said is sort of you know it has been the way it's been but we've always wanted applicants to do community outreach and
I even just pulled up the news article that when this applicant was before the cannabis control board they were specifically told to do more outreach because they hadn't done enough and it's clear that that hasn't happened so with that uh I vote no on 1029 and I and all the rest thank you Council Person
Gilmore i guess it's an overarching thing i vote I on all but um 29 um I know we've had our issues with regards to proximity but good law at $5 is really pushing it um and I just
think that these applicants should do their due diligence as it relates to who's opening up and more importantly the community impact plan um that's the most important aspect um so I vote no on 29 I on the rest
okay and council person uh I want to first thank the city on 1026 getting the firehouse uh contract going with the department structure thank you very much for listening to us with that and expediting that um I vote eye on all but
1029 i you know really appreciate you coming out you emailing us and informing us and the the distance thing is important but you know what another one's going to pop up right next door to you again um but this uh particular one
went before the CCB board I think three times and it they kept stating at the members at the time your community interaction is not sufficient you need to give us more and theou that we have now it's not sufficient so they were
sent back three times um so it's not sufficient for me i vote no you're voting no 11029 yes an eye on the rest thank you okay if I could just recap items
10.25 through 10.28 are approved 80 with council person Rivera absent item 10.29 is defeated and it's 1
5 2 the one loan approval vote was from council person Ridley the abstensions come from council person prince and council president Waterman so Sean can I ask a question sure
um I guess what happens because we keep going back and forth with this i think this has been an issue since we started these applications with the distance so okay we did not approve this one but we've approved others where does that
put us as a city legally if K when Kind BUDS comes back sorry yeah they can um challenge the decision of the council um we've had multiple litigations about it um particularly with the 600 ft rule and as
the city's um used the time of application rule as long as there is an applicant in for the city council resolution of support um we've allowed those applications to go through um that action has been upheld by the courts and in the different businesses that have
challenged us um so here the business can challenge the uh council's action okay so the the businesses that have challenged have gone through even though our law said that we didn't want them next to each other right there are
businesses that are open within 600 ft okay um Sean I just want to say um on the record um recently I think it was yesterday we had a incident where someone discharged a firearm in the
vicinity of the uh the annex in a city building and uh a lot of our employees were not aware of what they should have done in this situation um so
I just want to urge uh corporation council and the BA if we can have some type of plan implemented in case of emergency so our staff know what to do as I understand it some staff were just ducking under their desks and things
like that um there were some other requests made i don't know from a financial standpoint if we can do it um and I just want the record to reflect um I remember when we when we opened this new building and we did a press
conference and I said that while I'm happy to see new development come to Ward F in particular on MLK I'm not taking a victory lap for public safety building because I wholeheartedly know and understand that when you're trying
to address violence you don't address the symptoms you address the re root causes and this is something that I was scared was going to come to fruition because when you when when you don't
invest in in in the probability or the likelihood of someone possessing a firearm and you just begin to take victory laps for a public safety building we spent x amount of millions of dollars on um it's counterproductive
right is I mean it's good for headlines it look really good but unless and until we start to really address the root causes of violence um intervention on the front end early on um we're going to
constantly have these issues um so I just wanted to put on the record that you know as a whole we just have to do better when it comes to combating gun violence right and a a simple fix all solution by putting a building in a high
crime area is is not just going to deter crime because most criminals don't care about the law in the first place you know so I just wanted um the record to reflect that and I'm thankful that none of our city employees got hurt
none of pe regular pedestrians walking or driving by got hurt um I just wanted to put that on the record motion and sorry I just wanted to add to that if could you just ask a request for the you know BA and Corp council administration to you know send send a note to all the employees as both you know directing
them you know what to do in these situations a couple reached out you know asking for us to look to see if we can have our security guards stay the full length of when employees are there i don't know if that's the case or not but they seem to think that folks leave an hour before most employees leave just you know doing a full review of of
everything at the annex would be great council just for the record uh the mayor and I had also received similar notes and um we tked director Sheay and Kierce to come up with an action plan mostly driven by director Kierce with OEM and then also having the public safety involvement but um once we have that
together we'll furnish it to the council okay we're not closing yet i I still have to we have to take a vote on and we still have to take a vote on the claims and Sean I think uh Rich wants to
vote on 1029 one more time council person the Geese did you want to say something yes in regards to 1029 there was a reference that there are two illegal dispensaries in the area can we you know send sort of enforcement or inspection out there um because that is a growing problem too i see them in my
neighborhood but specifically those came up anybody has information on those addresses they can come to me after the meeting and can we also just to piggyback off of that can we have a uh a list of I know we passed uh laws around the smoke shops and they
need to be registered with the city can we get a list of all the smoke shops that have registered oh no no the ones that are registered the legal legal ones councilwoman that's held in uh commerce with director Maynard Woodson so we'll
get that okay y Thank you okay anything else no you guys Sean i might as well thank the Quality of Life Task Force for the work that they did this last week in shutting down an illegal um establishment selling weed in
my ward so thank you for that and know that more of this is going to be coming yeah kate I also want to thank the journal the journalists here that are documenting all of this all right I was got to thank them all hearts and mind are clear so we can move on with the
meeting i'm not asking the question again go ahead Sean we're good um all right we're going to be taking a vote on claims and addendum number one council members claims and addendum number one council person Ridley I council person
Prince Arie council person Bajiano Council Person I Council Person Solomon I Council Person Gilmore I Council Person Deise I claims and addendum number one are approved 8 Z with council
person Rivera absent may I have a motion to adjourn at 8:30 p.m motion made by Council Person Prince Aries seconded by Council Person Gilmore on the motion to adjourn at 8:30 p.m all council members
present by acclamation please say I i we are out of here at 8:30 p.m thank you so much everyone present everyone watching at home remember teamwork makes the dreamwork have a great night stay safe