Issue 170: Council vote/JCAST events
Plus, the ward map is back, and look out for that Feral Cat of the Week!!!!
Good morning! The absolutely dreary day today has me wanting to stay in and nap and watch Netflix, which is maybe not a bad way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Hope you’re somewhere equally cozy and relaxing, and here is your newsletter for the week. Enjoy! — Amy
City Council meeting re: Pompidou space recap
Well, as predicted, the PILOT got voted through 6-3. Fulop slate members voted in a block as always, and the tax abatement for KRE passed.
Here’s an article on the meeting, which lasted for hours. A few things to note:
This vote was to give KRE a PILOT (“payment in lieu of taxes”). It was not for the Pompidou itself — it’s assumed that the Pompidou is moving into that space (and it seems like the Pompidou project would have likely been dead had this not passed), but there’s still the matter of the operational budget that needs to be worked out. It’s probably notable that in the meeting, the Business Administrator for the city and others referred to the white box in the KRE building as a “cultural/recreational space” not as a museum space. Make of that what you will.
I was promised puppets. Activists opposing the PILOT planned to bring puppets from the legendary Bread and Puppet Theater, but for whatever reason, didn’t. This was an incredible bummer. (You can still catch the B&P Theater at the JC Theater Company in October and purchase tickets here.)
The vote went through despite the revelation this week that NJEDA tax credits may not actually be available for the Pompidou to be built.
I was fascinated to watch the council members make their statements as they voted. Denise Ridley had a succinct statement that, while I don’t agree with what she said, was pretty politically smart and made cohesive sense. Again, not that I liked what she was saying, but I got the definite vibe that this is a person with a very strong political future ahead of her — she stated things clearly and threw in some support for affordable housing, and generally seemed like she could read the room and understood how to strike a middle balance. Yousef Saleh, meanwhile, gave a strange, rambling speech (at one point, Danny Riviera appeared to roll his eyes, close them, and he leaned his head back upon the back of his chair like he had a tremendous headache and stayed like that for quite a while) that just blew any kind of hopes I had for the guy. I mean, I get it, you’re voting for this — spare me the talk about how you grew up poor (and that’s leading you to vote for a tax break for a billionaire real estate developer?) and so forth, all of which appeared to be trying to get people to not be mad at him for voting the way he did but instead just made me way more pissed off. Look, if you’re gonna vote for this thing, own it; tell me why you think it’s a good idea — don’t give me an apology and try to guilt trip me along the way, like that makes it any better. Meanwhile, James Solomon summed up the “anti” POV really well, highlighting something I have noticed has sort of fallen by the sidelines but remains a major issue (I’m referring to the idea that state funding for the project was supposedly cancelled because of bad blood between Fulop and Murphy and yet this project rests on state funding which… if that theory is true and that’s why it got cancelled, won’t that other money also get cancelled?).
After the meeting, Fulop slate people along with the mayor went out to celebrate at a nearby BBQ (? I think) place downtown, which a bunch of people were talking about on social media. Given how high tensions were running with this whole vote, that probably wasn’t the smartest thing to do, and people seemed pretty furious at seeing them out toasting one another over the whole situation. I don’t personally really care — and I can understand how they maybe all really wanted a drink — but in a project that has been saddled with one really dumb PR move after another, this probably gets added to that list. If ever there was a time to just sort of go home and chill, this probably would have been it.
I wish this whole project was behind us and we could move on, but it’s not. As mentioned, there will now be a million meetings to discuss what kind of funding (if any) the operational budget will have, which will then determine whether or not the Pompidou actually officially signs on to do this. If we don’t have the money to account for that, KRE PILOT or no, they’re not coming. And of course, add to the mix that at least four of the current five mayoral candidates have come out to say they’re not supportive of funding this project if/when they’re elected, and the future of the JC Pompidou remains very murky.
Return of the Ward Map
Because nothing is ever truly over and done with in Jersey City, the story of the Ward Map is now back in the news. As a quick recap, back in 2021 — shortly after the 2021 local elections for city council and mayor — the map that determines what ward residents live in was redrawn. This is a standard thing that happens every so often as populations shift and development happens — usually a ward has its boundaries redrawn by a few streets here or there at its border to adjust for population changes, and it’s not really the end of the world.
This particular time though, the redrawing of the map happened just weeks after the local election in which a Fulop slate member lost his seat to independent candidate Frank Gilmore in Ward F. In looking at the new map, the only ward that was substantially redrawn — and I mean substantially, to the point where it’s almost unrecognizable from what it was — was Ward F, causing an awful lot of people in Jersey City to cry foul and assume that gerrymandering was afoot. And while the task of redrawing the map falls to the committee, it also wasn’t lost on a lot of people that the chair of that committee was John Minella, Fulop’s Chief of Staff, which only added to the suspicions. A lawsuit contesting the new map was filed.
So, was this politically motivated or just a coincidence? We don’t really know, but this week it came out that the NJ Supreme Court will be looking into the matter, which lower courts rejected. And while this is really good news to get another set of eyes on this map, I really feel badly for the people of Ward F (and Ward A, which consumed a bunch of the people who thought they were in F) for being in limbo like this for so long. There’s thousands of people who don’t really know who their representing official is, and I’d imagine this entire saga is incredibly confusing to them. Overnight, they watched the person they voted in seem to get switched out for another person, and now three years later maybe they’re getting switched back? For anyone trying to organize residents in any meaningful way, for whatever issue, that’s a disaster.
Anyway, it’s good the Supreme Court is taking a look at this. I don’t have super high hopes anything will come of it, but let’s wait and see. Another set of eyes is always welcome, that’s for sure.
JCAST (Jersey City Artists’ Studio Tour)
Oh boy, after weeks of being put through the wringer over various Pompidou stuff, I have to admit I’m not feeling too enthused about JCAST this year. But for those of you who might be more in the mood, next weekend is a bunch of the open studio stuff for artists with studios around the city. Then, after that, October 20th is when Mana is having their Open House. I’m most likely going to skip having my studio at Mana open for the first time since 2018 for a number of reasons (most of which have nothing to do with current events at all) but at the very least, I hope to have some free zines available for folks to take. But more on that another time… here’s the roundup for next weekend.
From the JCAST folks:
Before the 35th Jersey City Art & Studio Tour opens the doors to more than 150 artist studios and art exhibitions, join us for the Kick Off Event at Newport Centre on Tuesday October 1st from 6pm-9pm.
Huge thanks to Newport Centre for hosting the 35th JCAST HQ, including the exhibitions: Tangled Up In Blue, Summer Snapshot and Teacher As Artist, expanding the audience for JCAST artists.
And further thanks to the City of Jersey City's Office of Cultural Affairs and Skopos Catering for providing the food and drink for the Kick-Off!
Everyone is welcome to come to Newport Centre (accessible by car, PATH and Light Rail) on October 1st from 6-9pm to get together and enjoy the art - but the Kick Off HQ in the former Kings of Kobe restaurant (across from the Cheesecake Factory) requires a free ticket.
35th JCAST schedule
Tuesday October 1: Kickoff event - Newport Centre - 6pm-9pm
Friday October 4: Galleries & exhibitions - 5pm-9pm
Saturday October 5: Artist open studios 1pm-5pm; Galleries & exhibitions - 5pm-9pm
Sunday October 6: Artist open studios 1pm-5pm; Galleries & exhibitions - 5pm-7pm
Closing party at Canopy Jersey City Arts District - 7pm-9pm
Free shuttle buses run between the studios at 150 Bay St and 15 Wilkinson Ave on Saturday & Sunday from 1pm to 5pm
There’s a map and other info available thejcast.com.
There’s also a show happening at the Apple Tree House aka the Museum of JC History (298 Academy Street), second floor, which is co-curated by friend-of-the-newsletter Lucy Rovetto (along with Martin Pierce). This show celebrates a donation of the work of Pauline Ward Mount’s work to the museum, and highlights nine artists from JC. It’s open during JCAST on Friday, Oct 4 from 5-9pm; Saturday from 5-9pm, and Sunday from 5-7pm. (Lucy will also have her personal studio at 150 Bay Street open on Sunday, in unit 709.)
Feral cat of the week
Hey… wait a minute…
Ok so, our Feral Cat of the Week is actually a SKUNK! and this is a reminder that it is Skunk Season over in Ward B. I saw no less than three skunks on the way home from work the other night — now granted, I get home from work rather late, but still that’s a lot of skunks. Between 10pm and who knows, and for several months out of the year, skunks rule the streets around here. They are coaxed out of wherever they’re hiding by cans of food people leave out for the feral cats, and they are awfully curious about humans they run into. But! Do I even have to tell you to be careful?? Yes, they do spray. And it’s a pain in the butt if you have to wash that spray out of your dog’s coat.
In general, I don’t think there’s anything to fear about these bi-colored friends in our neighborhood. But… like… don’t pet them, or try to make friends with them, or anything like that. Also, maybe take in food that you leave out for the neighborhood cats after they’ve had some time to eat, rather than just leaving it out in perpetuity. Definitely don’t start thinking the skunks are pretty cute (WHICH THEY ARE!) and leaving food out for them specifically.
ICYMI
Lewis Spears joined Joyce Watterman’s slate only three months ago for a Council-at-Large position. This week, in a letter to Hudson County View, he abruptly dropped out.
“Stories of Belonging: Central American TPS Workers and their Defiant Struggle to Stay Home in the US: The "Stories of Belonging" photo exhibit will be on display at the New Jersey City University courtyard from October 7-11. A walking tour and talk of the exhibit will talk place on Tuesday, October 8 (registration is required). Meet and listen to the project organizers and TPS community members speak about their experiences within the movement for migrant worker rights, immigrant worker justice, workplace justice, union organizing, and American rights of citizenship.” Organized by labor organizer and former US Senate candidate Patricia Campos-Medina, this show sounds worth checking out. Register for a free ticket to the walking tour by going here.
Do you/your building/your workplace/your school want to do a charitable drive this holiday season? JCMAS (Jersey City Mutual Aid Society) is here to help, and to make this process as easy as possible while also making sure that 100% of your donations go to help folks in our local community. Email info@jcmutualaid.org for more info, where we can talk you through the process and even send volunteers to pick up donations. It’s easy and it helps people right here in Jersey City!