Focal Point JC

By Ricardo Kaulessar - Focal Point JC

Guy Catrillo this coming July 23 will try not to think back to what happened to him 10 years ago to the day.

"At six o'clock in the morning, I hear pounding on the door and I looked out the window upstairs, and there were six officers in my case, and one of them in plainclothes opened up his jacket and said, 'FBI? I don't recall calling the FBI," remembered Catrillo of the moment that would forever impact him.

The Jersey City native was one of the people arrested that morning as part of the federal government's Bid Rig III sting, the investigation into political corruption and money laundering that led to the arrests of 46 public officials as well as several rabbis and developers. It has been cited by political experts as a major factor in Chris Christie, the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey from 2002 to 2008 whose office led the investigation, winning his first term as governor in 2009.

Many of the arrests came about as the result of meetings with government informant Solomon Dwek, in a number of cases posing as a developer looking to do projects in the various towns where they were based.

Some of the prominent figures that were caught in this government operation and would serve time in prison included then-Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano, then-Jersey City Councilman Mariano Vega, and then-Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell. Rabbi Saul Kassin, the leading Syrian Sephardic Jewish cleric in the United States at the time, received two years of unsupervised probation. 

Some officials were able to beat the federal government such as current Ridgefield Mayor Anthony Suarez, former Jersey City interim Mayor and City Council President Harvey Smith, and former state Assemblyman Louis Manzo.

Catrillo wasn't so lucky as the first person of the people arrested in Bid Rig III to go to jail. 

He would serve more than 15 months from 2010 to 2011 at Federal Correctional Institution, Fort Dix after pleading guilty to accepting $15,000 cash in three payments from Dwek in exchange for helping Dwek to get approvals on his purported development project on Garfield Avenue in Jersey City. He also served 2 years of supervisory release until July 4, 2014 when you finished his sentence, what he refers as his “independence day.” 

Catrillo was running for the Ward E City Council seat against the incumbent Steven Fulop, now the city's Mayor, at the time of the meetings with Dwek, and eventually lost. 

Catrillo looks back at Dwek as a pushy operator and willing pawn of federal agents who kept trying to force Catrillo to take money that he was not interested in taking, until one day Dwek eventually convinced Catrillo to hold the money for fear of being robbed that led to Catrillo's legal troubles.

"He opened up the trunk, he picked up a FedEx envelope, and he said, 'You know that $5,000 you were talking about,' and that was the same $5,000 I told him I didn't want. I didn't earn it, I didn't do anything for him," Catrillo recalled. "He picked it up and put in front of my face and said, 'You know that $5,000 we talked about. Take it'."

Dwek, who became an informant after he was busted for bank fraud in 2006, ended up serving about two years of a six-year sentence until he was released from federal prison in 2015.

Catrillo said while he tries to not look back in bitterness at his arrest and imprisonment, he still takes issue with authorities pressuring his mother to get him to cooperate with the FBI to ensnare some other public officials, which he said could have gotten him out of jail sooner. Sally Catrillo passed away in December 2011.

"That's the thing that burns me up the most. That's what bothers me," Catrillo said.

Catrillo also said he has been struggling financially since his government pension was taken away as a result of his arrest. He said he is earning some income from odd jobs that he does for longtime friends and associates, who have been the bright spots in his life with their support and help. 

And he has managed to find some peace after what he has gone through.

"I don't wake up now at 6 o'clock in the morning thinking somebody is going to break down my door," Catrillo said.

By Ricardo Kaulessar - Focal Point JC

Note: It’s been awhile since I did a post on this blog. In fact, the last one was in September. I have to make sure that there isn’t such a long gap during 2018. Happy New Year.

With this first day of 2018 upon us, a few things of note in Jersey City.

First, Mayor Steven Fulop will hold a press conference on Tuesday in City Hall, 280 Grove St., at 1 p.m. to announce a lawsuit against the Christie administration to stop a proposed marina project for Liberty State Park. 

The marina for the south side of the park comes out of a proposed lease agreement between Suntex Marinas and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Fulop announced in December that the city has retained the services of the law firm of Riker Danzig, Scherer, Hyland, & Perretti, LLP, to fight the marina project.

According to a release, scheduled to be present at the press conference are Fulop, Sam Pesin of the Friends of Liberty State Park group, who first sounded the alarm about the project in November, representatives of environmental groups from across the state, and state legislators as well as members of the City Council.

Next, Fulop was sworn in today at City Hall for his second four-year term, according to reports. The former two-term City Councilman won reelection in a landslide win in November over his opponent Bill Matsikoudis, the city’s corporation counsel under former Mayor Jerramiah Healy. 

Since Focal Point JC was not able to attend due to the brutal cold, the only observations to be made is that this is the first inauguration in a long time that has been held on New Year’s Day. That’s due to a ballot question approved by voters in 2016 to change the municipal election from May to November.

What also comes to mind is a famous photo of legendary Mayor Frank Hague at his 1947 New Year’s Day reception - http://hudsoncountyfacts.com/hudsoncounty/2015/12/31/mayor-frank-hagues-years-day/. Coincidentally, Hague died on Jan. 1, 1956.

Fulop would be sworn in with winners of the City Council seats in the November general election and the December runoff election. They are Rolando Lavarro, Daniel Rivera, and Joyce Watterman - At Large; Denise Ridley - Ward A; Mira Prinz-Arey; Rich Boggiano - Ward C; Michael Yun - Ward D; James Solomon - Ward E, and Jermaine Robinson - Ward F.

Finally, Jersey City Together, a coalition of religious congregations from across the city, has put out a survey to get the public’s feedback on how two sites in the city that was once chromium dumping grounds, and have been cleaned up, should be developed.

The survey, “Help us cast a vision for the future of Jersey City's now clean chromium zones!” refers to the areas known as Bayfront on Route 440 and Canal Crossing on Garfield Avenue. Go to the link, http://bit.ly/200acres, for more information.

The Democratic candidate for governor in New Jersey, Phil Murphy, came to Casino-in-the-Park in Jersey City on Sept. 12. Photo by Ricardo Kaulessar.

It was fitting that the space given to Democratic gubernatorial candidate Phil Murphy to speak at a town hall in Casino-in-the-Park in Jersey City on Sept. 12 was a square.

Murphy for a nearly an hour was like a boxer in a ring.

The tall, lanky 60-year-old moved corner to corner to address the 500-odd attendees as he landed jabs at his immediate opponent, Republican Kim Guadagno, the lieutenant governor. And he did not pull punches when taking shots at the person he could be replacing, Gov. Chris Christie.

Murphy attacked both for the various ills in the state from New Jersey being downgraded by credit agencies 11 times in the past eight years and public schools being underfunded by $9 billion.

"The question before us is do we want another term of the failed Guadagno-Christie team, or do we want turn a page and get fresh leadership," Murphy said.

And even he landed shots at a heavyweight like President Donald Trump for his comments last month defending white supremacists who marched in Charlottesville, Virginia.

"I would like our president to come into this room and look around, and I would say, 'Mr. President, this is the United States of America,'" said Murphy to wild applause.

Before the main event, local and state allies in Murphy's corner hyped up the Democratic frontrunner. They included Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, State Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto, Hudson County Executive Tom Degise, and State Senator Sandra Cunningham.

Cunningham recalled when she and her late husband, then-Jersey City Mayor Glenn Cunningham first met Murphy and his wife, Tammy, in 2003 at a NAACP event in New Jersey. She then observed how Murphy was the same person now as he was 14 years ago.

"This is someone who understands, who cares about what happens in our urban areas, in our suburban areas, in our rural areas, everywhere around the state," Cunningham said.

After Cunningham introduced Murphy, he was in a constant state of movement while smiling most of the time, lending credence to his nickname of "The Happy Warrior."

Murphy pounded home how he plans to govern the Garden State if elected in November from enacting policies to grow the economy to making moves to improve the state’s public transit system.

He also took questions from audience members on topics ranging from helping students pursue higher education to helping undocumented immigrants stay in the United States.

After the town hall, Jersey City resident Esmeralda Trinidad, who is running for a seat on the City Council, was impressed by Murphy.

"Phenomenal, phenomenal. Outstanding, and he definitely has the plan for New Jersey," Trinidad said.

By Ricardo Kaulessar – Focal Point JC

Candace Johnson recalled her recent tenancy at 159 Bergen Ave. The memories were anything but pleasant.

“I lived in the basement apartment, and more than once, when there was a heavy rain, my apartment was completely flooded,” said Johnson, while holding up an enlarged photo of her former residence. “The first time, after no response to my calls and faxes, I stayed.”

Johnson would go on to say that when the apartment flooded a second time, mud and dirt covered the entire apartment, and she had to leave the apartment for three days. And she said there was again no response from the landlord, which led to her doing the cleanup of her apartment herself.

Johnson was one of the several tenants who shared their horror stories about living in a Jersey City building controlled by River Edge/Trendy Management, a Clifton-based company, at a community meeting at St. Paul Episcopal Church on Sunday, March 26.

The meeting was organized by Jersey City Together, a coalition of religious congregations from across the city. Per a fact sheet put together by the group, their members, some of whom are tenants in River Edge/Trendy Management buildings, have over the past nine months spoken to residents about the issues they have had while residing in the buildings.

The group found that in the 60-plus rent-controlled buildings overseen by River Edge/Trendy, problems included unprofessional repairs, lack of heat and long-term tenants pushed out to bring in higher-paying renters.

Jersey City Together along with tenants want from the management company such concessions as addressing the documented problems in the buildings and provide in writing the rents raised in their buildings over the past four years.

The coalition has hoped to get a public commitment from Esther Kaplan, one of the principals in River Edge/Trendy Management, as she was scheduled to speak at the meeting, said Rev. Tom Murphy, the pastor of St. Paul. Murphy told the packed crowd that Kaplan declined to attend due to “health concerns,” and that she had expressed concerns to Murphy before the meeting about her safety and the stress of speaking at the meeting.

“I understand that too, the stress of being in a room with 175 people, being in a room with that many people,” Murphy said. “People who have been personally affected by your actions, and neighbors who are concerned about their brothers and sisters, that’s stressful.”

Also in attendance were elected officials including Mayor Steven Fulop, who said he knew another way to help Jersey City Together get a commitment from River Edge/Trendy Management to remedy the problems.

“While Esther Kaplan may not realize today her commitment, we will help her this week with city inspectors find that,” Fulop said.

After the meeting, attendees walked out of the church holding signs as they made their way a few blocks down to 205 Monticello Ave., an apartment building run by River Edge/Trendy. They then gathered outside the building before several of them walked in to visit an apartment.

An organizer with Jersey City Together told this writer that what she saw inside the apartment were holes in the walls and rat droppings.

The coalition plans to hold another meeting about River Edge/Trendy at the church, 38 Duncan Ave., this coming Saturday, April 1 at 10:30 a.m. People can also submit their stories about housing or landlord issues across the city at njtogether.org/landlords.

By Ricardo Kaulessar – Focal Point JC

Mayor Steven Fulop decided to do something different when he gave the State of the City Address this year. Instead of one speech covering the entire city, Fulop went with a unique format of giving an address in each of the city’s six wards. Coincidence or not, he is running again for mayor in the November election. Fulop, who has been the city’s chief executive since July 2013, kicked off the first address in the city’s Ward F this past Tuesday, Feb. 7. The venue was the Mary McLeod Bethune Center on Martin Luther King Drive. The only ward Fulop lost in the 2013 election was Ward F against his opponent Jerramiah Healy. Before he spoke, a video produced by the city screened that promoted some of the highlights of his administration, and what has occurred in Ward F while he has been in office. After it ended, and with the audience warmed up, Fulop hit the stage and for the next 45 minutes continued what the video outlined.

The state of the city

Fulop in the first few minutes spoke about what his administration has accomplished across the city since he took office. “We have had some incredible successes, as well as some challenging moments, but overall the state of the city is strong, and only getting stronger,” Fulop said. Among the successes cited were the bringing of 7,000 jobs to the city and the increasing of the police force to over 900 officers. When he focused directly on Ward F, he pointed to the opening last year of the 17-acre Berry Lane Park on Garfield Avenue and the groundbreaking for the City Hall Annex to be built at the HUB Shopping Plaza on Martin Luther King Drive. Fulop touched upon the challenging moments when he spoke about the crime plaguing this section of the city as well as the rest of the city. He did not get into specifics as he observed, “It comes as no surprise to anyone in this room tonight that crime is still something we struggle with in this particular neighborhood. We are aware of this, and we understand the toll this takes on you and your family.” Within the two days of the address, it was reported in the local press that there were five shootings that occurred in a 15-hour period, most of which were in Ward F. During the speech, Fulop acknowledged people in the community who have made a difference in the ward. One was Michele Massey, the ‎executive director of the Jackson Hill Main Street Management Corporation, which has worked with the city to develop the Jackson Hill Redevelopment Plan that would create a 2.4-mile long commercial corridor through the city including much of Ward F. Massey served as the City Council representative for Ward F for 10 months from 2011 to 2012. After the address, Massey spoke to Focal Point JC about her thoughts on Fulop’s speech. “Well, I think he hit on some good points. It would have been nice if he could have expounded on some others,” Massey said. “I think the violence is a major issue.” The issue of how Fulop will address violence in the city was also on the mind of Ward B Councilperson Chris Gadsden, who is the vice principal at Lincoln High School, located within the ward. “There is a lot of stuff in the works to address the violence inside this ward, which is real serious. They have work to do,” Gadsden said. “Go a little more in depth on how the violence will be addressed. You can’t police yourself out of this situation.”

Upcoming addresses

The State of the City address for Ward A was scheduled to take place on Thursday, Feb. 9 but was postponed to a future date due to the snowstorm that occurred that day. The upcoming addresses are scheduled on the following dates, all at 6:30 p.m.: • Ward C, Monday, February 27, Franklin L. Williams School, P.S. 7, 222 Laidlaw Ave. • Ward D, Thursday, March 2, Christa McAuliffe School, P.S. 28, 167 Hancock Ave. • Ward E, Tuesday, March 7, Grace Church Van Vorst, 39 Erie St. • Ward B, Tuesday, March 14, Hank Gallo Community Center, Lincoln Park.

By Ricardo Kaulessar - Focal Point JC

Ever heard of a Saturday night council meeting? This writer had never heard of one taking place when covering Jersey City’s City Council for nearly seven years at a weekly news outlet. But that was the case as Focal Point JC was present this past Saturday when the council convened a special meeting to appoint a person to serve as the Ward F councilperson until December 31. The seat has been vacant since the beginning of this month when former Ward F council representative Diane Coleman started in her new job as Hudson County Register. The position had to be filled within 30 days of Coleman vacating the seat. The eight-member council had to choose between two candidates who live in the ward: Michael Griffin, housekeeping manager at the Park Central Hotel in New York and program manager for the Jackson Hill Main Street Management Corporation in Jersey City, and Jermaine Robinson, owner of the Light Rail Café in Jersey City and a real estate agent. In the end, Robinson was approved by the council by a 5-3 vote. Voting for Robinson were the five council allies of Mayor Steven Fulop: Frank Gajewski, Rolando Lavarro, Candace Osborne, Daniel Rivera and Joyce Watterman. Fulop, who was present at the meeting, reportedly endorsed the selection of Robinson. Voting against Robinson were Rich Boggiano, Chris Gadsden and Michael Yun, Fulop’s critics on the council. After the meeting ended, Griffin and Robinson congratulated each other. But not before there were comments from not only the two men, but also others who packed the council chambers for this unique event.

New person for Ward F

The council members who voted in the affirmative for Robinson gave their reasons for doing so. One of them was Osborne, who represents the city’s downtown section, cited both and Griffin and Robinson for their work in the community before explaining why she gave the nod to Robinson. “Jermaine, your passion for children of Ward F and getting out there and making stuff fun,” Osborne said. Those council members who opposed Robinson explained themselves as well. Among them was Gadsden, who represents the city’s west side. He said Griffin’s experience working in the Jackson Hill Main Street Management Corporation gave him an edge over Robinson, even though he praised both of them for their involvement in the ward. “It’s not voting ‘no’ against Mr. Robinson, but it’s voting ‘yea’ for Michael Griffin,” Gadsden said. Earlier in the meeting, Robinson and Griffin addressed the council. Griffin said what he would bring to the council if he was chosen. “It’s all about working with each other … it’s an opportunity to move forward,” Griffin said. Robinson said being on the council will mean continuing his work in his community, and to live up to what his father taught him. “My father told me at a very, very young age ... to give back,” Robinson said. Before the special meeting commenced, several attendees were looking to make themselves heard. They were members of Jersey City Together, a coalition of 30 religious congregations from across the city, who held signs up that read “ACTION NOW” and “WARD F SHOULD NOT STAND FOR FORGOTTEN.” When the meeting began, Shyrone Richardson, the head pastor of World Outreach Christian Church, said whoever assumes the Ward F seat must tackle some of the key issues affecting the ward including several shootings that have occurred since the beginning of the year, and the feelings of despair felt by residents. “One thing I have heard over and over again is that there is a deep sense of hopelessness and anger in Ward F,” Richardson said.

A member of the Jersey City-based folk music ensemble Segunda Quimbamba performs at the African-American Cultural Arts Festival on Aug. 27.

By Ricardo Kaulessar - Focal Point JC

Jersey City is a place that is a melting pot made up of people and cultures from many different places around the world.

One of those cultures were celebrated at the recently opened Berry Lane Park on Garfield Avenue in the city’s Bergen- Lafayette section when the African Cultural Arts Festival took place this past Saturday, Aug. 27.

The festival featured performances that paid tribute to the African diaspora in various ways.

It was the African-influenced Bomba music and dancing of Puerto Rico played by Jersey City-based folk music ensemble Segunda Quimbamba, led by its co-founder Juan Cartagena.

“If this is the first time you seen Bomba, there’s a dynamic, an energy that we try to create between the dancer and the lead drummer,” announced Cartegna from the festival’s main stage.

One of the organizers, Daoud David Williams, was taking in the performance. The other performers that entertained attendees during the afternoon included spoken word poet Ameerah Ahmad, African dance/drum group Spektrums and Williams’s own jazz group, Spirit of Life Ensemble.

“This festival is fantastic, there’s performances and activities for adults and children, there’s a diversity,” Williams said. “And it’s a great atmosphere and it’s a great location.”

There were also local community groups with tables where they provided information, and vendors selling clothing and jewelry with African designs as well as other items.

Phyllis Gordon, a Jersey City schoolteacher who is the secretary for the Jersey City branch of the NAACP. She was manning a table with her daughter where they were selling women’s clothes and jewelry.

“I think it’s a fun-filled day where parents can spend quality time with these children. School is getting ready to open up for the students on September 8,” Gordon said. “It just gives me a good feeling that these parents are bonding with the kids.”

But it was not all fun and frivolity as Pamela Johnson of the Jersey City Anti-Violence Coalition spoke about how this event brings the community together and keeps them from harm’s way. She also implored people to reach out to young people.

“Take one young king or queen underneath your arm … learn how to speak to our youth,” Johnson said. “We don’t know why they are out there killing each other. We don’t know until we ask them.”

Costumed marchers leaving Lincoln Park in Jersey City on July 23 as part of the Jersey City West Indian and Caribbean-American Carnival.

Ivy Gullap speaks to Focal Point JC before the Jersey City West Indian and Caribbean-American Carnival this past Saturday, July 23.

By Ricardo Kaulessar – Focal Point JC

[Editor's Note: The writer's sister, Anitra Kaulessar, participated in the Jersey City West Indian and Caribbean-American Carnival.]

Colorful costumes, music blasting from travelling speakers and scorching temperatures all meant one thing – the Jersey City West Indian and Caribbean-American Carnival.

The 21st edition of this summer event took place this past Saturday, July 23, overseen by its founder Cheryl D.B. Murphy, and a team of organizers.

Hundreds of participants gathered at Lincoln Park on the city’s west side around noon, from where they would start off on a march two hours later taking them to City Hall in the city’s downtown area. After the parade, a festival was held at Exchange Place near the city’s waterfront that continued the celebration into the evening.

Focal Point JC caught up with some of the participants at Lincoln Park, who either were adorned in elaborate costumes or masquerade, also known as ‘mas,” or were graced with a face painting.

Jersey City resident Juana Penson, with face painted, has been coming to the event for the past five years to celebrate her Caribbean roots as her family hails from the Dominican Republic.

“I come to give something back, to feel more of a Caribbean feeling, to give something back to our festival, to our heritage,” Penson said.

The West Indian and Caribbean-American Carnival also brought revelers from as far as Philadelphia as was the case with Ivy Gullap, who came with a friend. Gullap was attired in a green feathered costume that included the flag of her late father’s home country of Belize.

"It’s a phenomenal experience. I mean the culture, the diversity, that’s what carnival is for me,” Gullap said. “To play mas is quite an experience.”

Hundreds of residents attend the grand opening of the Berry Lane Park on Garfield Avenue in Jersey City on June 25.

By Ricardo Kaulessar – Focal Point JC

There were many things for Jersey City residents to do this past Saturday, June 25.

A number of them did something appropriate for the bright and sunny summer day – spending time at the park.

Specifically, hundreds came out for the grand opening of the Berry Lane Park on Garfield Avenue, located in the city’s Bergen Lafayette section.

The 17.5-acre park with a $38 million price tag had been about four years in the making with construction starting in August 2012.

That work included remediating contaminated soil as the site was previously occupied by junkyards and warehouses. Now the public can enjoy passive recreation areas that include 600 new trees and a rain garden, a playground, a soccer field, a baseball field, two tennis courts and two basketball courts.  

Still under construction are other sections of the park such as a pavilion that will have restrooms, park administration offices, and a food concession.

Present for Berry Lane Park’s official first day were members of the community, a number of whom had a role in the design and planning of the park, and public officials including Mayor Steven Fulop.

Fulop thanked many of the people involved in making the park a reality. He later took part in the ribbon cutting for the park.

Jersey City resident Rebecca Ofrane, who serves as ‎children's environmental health coordinator at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, spoke about how $2.6 million in EPA funds went toward the construction of the park, and how the park will serve the populace.

“Look around you, this is one of the best outcomes we could have hoped for,” Ofrane said. “Instead of acres of asphalt parking lots, we now have outdoor space for all ages and interests.”

Before, during and after the official opening ceremony, parents and their young ones got to take part in all kinds of activities from a lacrosse clinic to face painting.

17-year-old Taylor Sanchez, a resident of the city’s Heights section, came to the park with her younger sister, Sophia, and her mom, Aida Colon-Sanchez. She told Focal Point JC that she got a chance to check out the basketball courts and other parts of the park.

“The park is beautiful. They really put a lot of work into it, and I think it really gives back to the community,”  Sanchez said.

Evelyn Von Gizycki, also a Heights resident, set up a table for her endeavor Slow Fashion, which donates footgear to be distributed to different countries. Von Gizycki liked being at the grand opening.

"This park is a man-made wonder, but I think it can be a little more eco-friendly. Maybe some composting can happen here," Von Gizycki said.

Kenneth Miller, who grew up near the park, was impressed with the transformation of a once-industrialized area.

“I remembered when it was a car parts store, junkyards, I watched it turn into abandoned property … what you see it transformed into and what it was done for the community – it’s a beautiful thing,” Miller said.

People taking part in the Unity Walk this past Saturday, June 11, in Jersey City.

By Ricardo Kaulessar – Focal Point JC

People, young and old, did the Unity Walk from the southern part of Jersey City to Lincoln Park on the city’s west side this past Saturday.

The walk was organized by members of the Jersey City Anti-Violence Coalition Movement, in collaboration with various community organizations, to bring attention to the shootings and violence that have escalated in the city in recent years. According to published reports, during a six-day period this year from May 25 to May 30, there were 10 shootings.

Participants started out from the intersection of Martin Luther King Drive and McAdoo Avenue, then walked down MLK Drive until they reached Communipaw Avenue. Then it was going west on Communipaw to Kennedy Boulevard before turning north and making their way toward Lincoln Park.

Much of the area covered by the walk have been where a number of gun-related murders have taken place.

Once in the park, the estimated 400 people, according to Jersey City Anti-Violence Coalition founder Pamela Johnson, gathered after the walk ended to witness performances by youth as well as speeches from adults.

Focal Point JC interviewed several of the people who did the Unity Walk.

Marilyn Walker, an eighth grader at Public School 24, was part of a group of students from the same school who did their rendition of the classic 1989 social message rap song, “Self-Destruction.” Walker told Focal Point JC what prompted her to take part in the walk.

“I live on a dangerous block named Lexington Avenue when they are shooting around,” Walker said. “I’m scared to even walk up my block when I go somewhere. I feel if I go by myself, something is going to happen to me.”

Zaihere Staton, a junior at University Academy Charter High School, said the issue of gun violence the walk addressed have impacted upon him as a resident.

“Now it implies that I can’t walk on certain streets at certain hours, I can’t do this, I can’t do that, it’s like it limits me as a person,” Staton said. “This walk shows it’s okay to be afraid, but even though I am afraid, I can’t cower down, I can’t sit there and take it.”

Michael Griffin, a lifelong resident, said the walk was “amazing.”

“It was amazing, it was good,” Griffin said. “It was great to see people jumping into the march, and walking alongside people who care about the community, whether they are from the community or not from the community.”

Daniel Levin, who lives a few blocks from Lincoln Park, walked with his two children. He pointed out that shootings have happened all across the city including near where he lives, and there needed to be a spotlight on stopping the violence.

“The only way the leadership of this city are going to know how important it is if people who are the residents come out and say how important it is,” Levin said.

Among the speakers who addressed the audience was state Senator Sandra Bolden Cunningham (D-Hudson), who expressed how proud she was to be involved with the walk.

“I am proud that we are here as a community. We’re not standing back looking. We’re here,” Cunningham said. “It took forty-five hundred steps to get here today, let’s take forty-five thousand steps to take this city back.”

Other officials who spoke were state Assemblywoman Angela McKnight and Hudson County Freeholder Bill O’Dea.

Johnson spoke as the gathering was about to end. She addressed the "Unity” part of the walk.

“It doesn’t matter what race you are; we are one community. It doesn’t matter what ward you live in, we are one community,” Johnson said.

  By Ricardo Kaulessar – Focal Point JC

Is it possible for Jersey City residents to tackle climate change on a local level?  

D. James Baker, senior strategic advisor for the Clinton Climate Initiative, part of the Clinton Foundation thinks that this is possible.

Baker outlined several ways that they can do so during a presentation about climate change on May 14 at the New Jersey City University School of Business in downtown Jersey City.

A former administrator of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, he gained renown as an advisor for the 2006 documentary, “An Inconvenient Truth,” that chronicled former Vice President Al Gore’s campaign about the perils of global warming and climate change.

Climate change is the change in average weather conditions that is caused by natural factors such as shifts in the earth tectonic plates and volcanic eruptions, and by manmade factors that is known as global warming.

Baker during his talk said that people in Jersey City are trying in their own way to deal with the challenges of climate change. He cited the efforts of the Embankment Preservation Coalition, which since 1998 has worked to preserve the Sixth Street Embankment in downtown Jersey City as passive open space, and the Jersey City Parks Coalition’s goal of planting 5,000 trees over the next five years.

Baker is the brother-in-law of Peter Delman, one of the founders of the Embankment Coalition, which organized the talk along with the Parks Coaliton and other community groups.

Baker also went into the issues of climate change and global warming worldwide.

In a series of slides, he addressed such items as the United Nations Paris Climate Summit in December 2015, how are greenhouse gases created, and how climate change played a role in Super Typhoon Haiyan hitting the Philippines in 2013 and the wildfire that destroyed more than 200,000 acres near Fort McMurray, Canada in early May.

After he finished speaking, Baker took questions from the audience on topics ranging from the Paris Summit to the rate of emissions.

Also, during the meeting, Stephen Gucciardo of the Embankment Coalition and Laura Skolar of the Parks Coalition spoke.

Gucciardo during his remarks may have summed up the continuing resistance of those in power about climate change when he spoke about why the fight to preserve the Embankment has taken so long.

He observed, “It is not always easy to get people to do the right thing even if it’s in their best interest.”

By Ricardo Kaulessar – Focal Point JC

The 2nd Annual Heights Civic Engagement Forum took place on April 10.

Sometimes getting involved in your community can be as simple as just knowing who are the officials to contact when there is an issue in your neighborhood.

That aspect and others were addressed at the 2nd Annual Heights Civic Engagement Forum that took place on April 10 at St. John’s Lutheran Church on North Street in the northern part of Jersey City known as the Heights. It was organized by several neighborhood associations in the Heights area.

The three-hour event, which started with a one-hour gathering for attendees before the actual meeting, covered a wide range of issues from who are the representatives for Jersey City from municipal to federal levels to what it takes to be an engaged citizen.

The elected officials present included City Council President Rolando Lavarro and Ward C City Councilman Rich Boggiano. Also, there were city employees present.

At the beginning of the forum, there was an acknowledgment of D.J. Wise, an employee of the Parking Authority and a community activist who passed away a few days before. Jersey City Police Det. Sean Connors spoke about his longtime friend, whom he said was influenced by his mom to be active in the community.

Mo Kinberg, president of Farms in the Heights and one of the organizers of the forum, said early in the forum about civic engagement is that, “It should be a bit of what you know and who you know.”

She also mentioned the many officials who represent the Heights and the rest of the city. Among them is state Assemblyman Raj Mukherji (D-Jersey City), who she said plans to hold a state hearing on May 9 that will address the state’s plans for Liberty State Park.

City employees then addressed the audience about various initiatives.

Brian Platt, the director of the city’s Innovation Team, said the first challenge of the team is revitalizing Jersey City’s business districts such as Central Avenue and Ocean Avenue.

“What we do reflects what the community wants to see,” Platt said.

Some city officials also vented about things not always working well. One of them was Boggiano who was vexed about the shortage of manpower in City Hall.

“I find it very frustrating working in City Hall. We need full-time aides,” Boggiano said.

Kinberg would then list six ways to be an engaged citizen:

-              Report neighborhood issues

-              Research issues that concern you

-              Bring your issues to more people

-              Bring your issues to elected representative

-              Speak at City Council or other public meeting

-              Take the issue to the press

Also making a presentation during the forum were members of a recently formed group called Heights Votes, formed by several residents to impress upon the public the importance of voting and dealing with the lack of participation in elections.

The community then had its turn to be proactive during the forum.

People in the room answered questions written on poster board on how they would deal with various scenarios affecting where they live.

During a panel with several city employees, moderated by Brigid D’Souza of the Civic Parent blog, there were pointed comments directed at Brooke Hansson by residents Adela Rohena and Renee Cerreta about the ineffectiveness of the city’s Stop the Drop anti-litter program.

Hansson, who works in the city’s Department of Public Works and heads the program, said Stop the Drop will be an all-year program starting in the near future rather than the youth summer program that currently exists.

Other residents posed questions to the panel.

Frank Lazar asked about three former factories that have been converted into luxury housing and skyscrapers in recent years and wondered, “Will we able to live in this town in the next couple of years?”

Platt answered the question by addressing the pros and cons of such redevelopment including bringing more people into town and added stress upon the city’s infrastructure.

By Ricardo Kaulessar - Focal Point JC

Frank McMillan of Jersey City Together speaks at a workshop about the pending reval in Jersey City on April 17 at the City Line Church.

Jersey City Together, an offshoot of the multi-faith coalition New Jersey Together, has recently been bringing Jersey City residents together.

The group, led by clergy of various denominations in town, has organized workshops at churches across town since last Sunday, April 17, that give an overview of a subject that worries homeowners – reval.

Reval is doing a revaluation of all real estate properties in the city. It is an assessment to determine the current market value of a property.

Since the city has not conducted one since 1988, some people will find that their homes are worth more, so they will have to pay higher taxes. Others may pay less.

Usually, the goal of revaluation is to help the tax burden be more fairly shared by the properties.

Jersey City is in the process of doing a reval that has to be completed by November 2017.  The city will put out a bid for an appraisal company to carry out the revaluation.

Actually, the city has been attempting to do one since the fall of 2011, but that was delayed for a year at the request of then-Mayor Jerramiah Healy. When it resumed again, the reval was halted by current Mayor Steven Fulop for several reasons including that it was tainted by the appraisal company doing the revaluation having on its payroll the city former’s business administrator.

The Fulop administration would lose in court this month when a judge ruled that the city had to pay the Realty Appraisal Company for not going forward with the reval. That decision, coupled with the state calling for Jersey City to complete a reval and Jersey City Together imploring Fulop to do it at a meeting on April 11, has moved City Hall to start the process.

The April 17 meeting at the City Line Church on Kennedy Boulevard in the city’s Greenville section brought out about 20 people on a Sunday afternoon to listen to a presentation by Frank McMillan, the lead organizer for Jersey City Together. Coincidentally, in the audience was Bill Matsikoudis, the former city corporation counsel under Healy.

McMillan addressed several topics including not only about property taxes and how revaluation affect taxes, but also Jersey City Together’s research and analysis, prepared by outside researchers, and recommendations made to Mayor Fulop.

The recommendations in the presentation are:

- Start reval immediately but phase in new assessments over times (3 to 5 years)

- Use best practices from across state and nation to protect low-and moderate income homeowners who will see their taxes rise

- Require regular revaluations e.g. once every five years to prevent this from occurring again

 Some residents shared how this reval could potentially help or hurt them.

Jersey City Together will be holding their next reval workshops this coming Tuesday, April 26, at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 440 Hoboken Ave., and on Thursday, April 28, at New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, 472 Bergen Ave.

By Ricardo Kaulessar – Focal Point JC

Pamela Johnson of the Jersey City Anti-Violence Coalition Movement addresses the attendees at the Southside Communities Town Hall Meeting on March 24.

Community meetings are held for many reasons, whether it’s for a specific issue or to introduce officials or individuals looking to make a difference in a neighborhood.

When the Jersey City Anti-Violence Coalition Movement held its Southside Communities Town Hall Meeting at the Mary McLeod Bethune Center, located in the southern part of Jersey City, on March 24, the meeting resembled a cross between an open forum for attendees to express their views and a clearinghouse for various community events.

Pamela Johnson, founder of the Anti-Violence Coalition Movement back in 2014, told attendees that the meeting came about in part due to dissatisfaction with the meetings recently carried out by Mayor Steven Fulop in the city’s six political wards.

During the meeting, Johnson also mentioned upcoming events by her organization including “Occupy The Corners” that occurred the day after the town hall meeting, March 25, and a Unity Walk on June 11 that will go from McAdoo Avenue to Lincoln Park.

She also gave the floor to other community organizers. One of them was Frank, who is part of Jersey City Together, a coalition of 30 church congregations from across the city, who spoke of the group’s April meeting that expects to bring at least 600 people including Mayor Fulop to Old Bergen Church on Bergen Avenue, one of the city’s oldest churches.

Johnson said after his presentation that when she attended the coalition’s previous meeting, she saw a sizable group of people that impressed her.

“When you can bring that many people together, that is not only power and powerful, those are voters,” Johnson said.

Among the topics addressed during the meeting was youth empowerment and educating the young.

Local activist and blogger Bruce Alston spoke about how young people have to learn to work with one another and be involved in business.

“It will take one youth to lift another youth up,” Alston said.

Former Jersey City Police Officer Benjamin Wilson spoke about his encounter with a young man with a child who knew how to give a perfect gang handshake, and Wilson having to admonish the young father for not being more aware of what his child is learning.

Pete Barnes, a local contractor, said the youth has to be molded by being around good influences.

“Our babies didn’t come out of these bellies with these guns,” Barnes said. He also said young people would love to come to community meetings if people would help build them up, not talk down to them.

Johnson concurred with Barnes about getting more young people involved in the community, and that they will identify with a mentor who has gone through their same struggle as they have in their lives.

The meeting also provided an opportunity for elected leaders and other in leadership to speak to attendees.

Recently elected state Assemblywoman Angela McKnight (D-31) announced that she plans to hold an upcoming meeting for the 31st District, which she represents, on Apr. 8, 7 p.m., at the Bethune Center.

McKnight, the founder of the non-profit senior service organization AngelaCARES, Inc., also offered advice to budding entrepreneurs and leaders, saying, “Don’t let people tell you what you can’t do.”

Hudson County Freeholder Gerald Balmir spoke about a petition he is sponsoring to get an ordinance passed by the County Board of Freeholders to ban sale of toy guns that looks real.

Longtime business owner Michele Massey talked about P.L.O.T. (Progressive Leadership Opportunities for Tomorrow), a political action group she helped form to identify potential African-American leadership in Jersey City.

“We have lost our voting leverage. We don’t vote,” Massey said.

Before the meeting ended, Asheenia Johnson of the Anti-Violence Coalition Movement said her observation of the local landscape has brought to mind a credo that people should live by who want to make their communities better.

“People have some petty differences and they won’t work together because of those petty differences,” Johnson said. “We need to put titles and organizations aside … we need to work together.”

By Ricardo Kaulessar – Focal Point JC

The third annual Prisoner Reentry Conference took place on the campus of Saint Peter’s University on March 24.

Three employees of Eastern Millwork, an architectural woodwork company based in the Bergen-Lafayette section of Jersey City, stepped up to the stage at Saint Peter’s University this past Thursday during the third annual Prisoner Reentry Conference.

The trio known as Nyreek, Pedro and Ricky, spoke about what having a second chance to return to their community and being a productive citizen after serving time in jail meant to them. Nyreek, in particular, thanked John Koufos, the deputy reentry director for the Jersey City Employment and Training Program for helping him transition into a world outside of prison where he is now a “taxpayer.”

“I didn’t see myself becoming that, but seeing that now … the hard work that I am putting in. It’s wonderful in actually seeing that, so thank you all for your help. And time to move forward from here now,” Nyreek said.

The conference, hosted by the New Jersey Reentry Corporation and Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, saw various speakers discuss how to assist those individuals coming back to their neighborhoods after being incarcerated. Those speakers included Fulop, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman, Rev. Al Sharpton of the National Action Network, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, and Governor Chris Christie.

During a morning panel, Hudson County Superior Court Judge Peter Bariso said that state judges will be able to set conditions for the release of a person who commits a crime, without having to make bail, under a new criminal reform law that will be go into effect in next year. Those conditions include maintaining employment and get counseling for drug and alcohol abuse.

“It’s simplistic to say that we want to reduce the jail population, but if we truly want to keep it reduced, then the judiciary has to work at setting conditions that help that and reduce recidivism,” Bariso said.

Fishman spoke about a reentry program run through the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office for former federal prisoners and other reentry issues. However, Fishman focused on Dequan Rosario, who served 10 years in federal prison for drug distribution, before he was released in early 2013.

Fishman said Rosario was tempted to deal drugs again, but instead was helped by a federal probation officer into the federal reentry program, which would eventually lead to him became a full-time EMT worker in Essex County. Fishman said Rosario’s story is important when considering the necessity of integrating people into society after coming out of prison.

“After all, we all know this, 95 percent of people who go to prison will come out, and they’re coming home, or to a place they used to call home, or a place they want to call home,” Fishman said. “And they’re going to be neighbors to somebody, and it is our obligation to make sure they’re all our neighbors.”

Fulop started off with the story that he has told in public many times about the 2014 death of Jersey City Police Officer Melvin Santiago, Santiago’s killer Lawrence Campbell, and how Campbell’s subsequent death was commemorated in a shrine that bothered Fulop for a year. Fulop said that situation has since led him to think about those in the community who feel left behind, particularly the individuals in Jersey City who had served time who can be helped by reentry programs such as the one the city currently operates.

“We really want to make sure that nobody gets left behind,” Fulop said.  

By Ricardo Kaulessar – Focal Point JC

Jersey City citizens sat around a table offering their suggestions on how the city can be more safe.

Sheila Kirven, who lives in the city’s Downtown area, spoke about seeing police officers patrolling in cars, which she saw as a problem in terms of dealing with combatting crime within neighborhoods.

“I know when I was growing up in New York, we always saw cops walking the beat, and you don’t see that,” Kirven said.

She was one of more than 150 people who attended the Safe Streets, Safe Neighborhoods Forum that took place at New Jersey City University on Jan. 30. The forum was organized by New Jersey Communities Forward, a project within the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, and by local community leaders.

The forum not only featured community brainstorming about making where they live much safer, but also listening to guest speakers including Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman and state Sen. Sandra Cunningham (D-31) speak about different aspects of criminal justice.

The event came about two months after a rash of shootings including five gun-related homicides during a 12-day period in November. Those crimes and others in 2015 prompted criticism of Fulop for not being proactive enough in dealing with them.

After the forum ended, Kirven shared with Focal Point JC what she thought of the event, particularly about what she heard from residents like herself.

“I heard a lot of the suggestions, which I think we’re very good, and these are the suggestions that come up all the time,” Kirven said. “I think the problem is getting people to act on these suggestions.”

Community in Conversation

After sitting through the opening portion of the forum listening to guest speakers, residents then split off into small groups that tackled various topics pertaining to public safety. One group of residents, led by a group leader, discussed community policing.

A resident who lives in the city’s Greenville area said that much of why crime happens in her area as well as across the city comes to one thing: respect.

“The cops don’t have respect for the people, but the people don’t have the respect for the cops nor for themselves,” the resident said.

The Rev. Nathaniel Legay of the Metropolitan AME Zion Church, located in the city’s Bergen-Lafayette section, said the community should be at the forefront to ensure safety.

“We need to go back to what we used to do, that is block associations, connecting with each other, being able to know who our neighbors are because nowadays we have transients, people who are not homeowners,” Legay said.

Public Safety Director James Shea then joined the group, where he agreed with some of the residents that police officers living where they work would be beneficial to the community. In New Jersey, police officers must live in the town where they are employed for a year before they can move out.

At the end of the group session, leaders of the different groups laid out some of the ideas from each unit that should be employed in their town to improve public safety. After the forum ended, Retha Onieri of New Jersey Communities Forward told Focal Point NJ that the suggestions coming out of this forum will eventually be put into an action plan that will be posted on the website for the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice.

Views from Officials

Fulop during the guest speaker portion of the forum spoke about Police Officer Melvin Santiago, who was killed in July 2014 after answering a call about an armed robbery at a Walgreen’s store. He then addressed the aftermath of Santiago’s death including when residents put up a memorial to Santiago’s killer, Lawrence Campbell, who was killed by police the day that Santiago was shot.

Fulop said that the memorial for Campbell as well as various obstacles for police officers speaks to a fundamental problem in the city.

“Some of the challenges that we have as a city is partnership and trust in the community,” said Fulop, as he described how the police are stymied when trying to get a witness to a crime to step forward.

He then said that the police department has been pursuing an “aggressive recruiting effort” of African-Americans to make the force more diverse, but another challenge is to keep them on the force.

Fishman said he respected the police officers for the work they do in enforcing the law and the danger that they face in doing that work. But he said that should not preclude them from being respectful to the people they serve.

“My appreciation and love for the law enforcement officers who I know and work with every day does not change the fact that we have the right to expect from them that they will behave in a way that is constitutional and respectful,” Fishman said.

Cunningham, the widow of the late Mayor Glenn Cunningham, who was also a longtime Jersey City police officer, said there is proposed state legislation to mandate minorities on police forces and for police to interact more with the community.

She also observed that it costs $47,000 a year in New Jersey to keep a person in jail. She then said that the state has been pursuing alternatives to incarceration including drug court, and there is pending legislation for general financial assistance to prevent those people coming out of jail from committing crimes to survive.

“How do they take care of themselves, how do they take care of their families?” Cunningham said. “They do the same thing that they did in the beginning.”