On The Agenda: Appointments; The Charter; Residency Requirements, And More

For its first September meeting, the Hoboken City Council is looking to appoint city directors, approve lawyer contracts and more. Below is a quick list of some of the things the council will be discussing.

Up for second reading, and final passing, are the following ordinances:

• On the list of ordinances is the codification of the charter of the The charter, as written in 1952, was apparently never officially adopted. In most basic terms, this means the city has been governing itself without ever having approved an established set of rules.
• Another ordinance ready for second reading and public discussion, is a re-organization of the table of organization of the police department. 
• The city council majority is also trying to pass an ordinance that takes away the so-called "residency requirement" of employees of the city. Once passed, municipal employees don't technically have to live in Hoboken. This rule wasn't strictly followed before. 

The city is also looking to amend the contract it entered into with law firm Okin, Hollander & DeLuka, to complete proceedings with Hudson Healthcare Inc., the management company of the city's hospital. The new number is a "not to exceed" amount of $135,000.

HHI owes the city $2 million, . In return, the city indemnified itself from the management company's more than 5,000 creditors.

According to a recent article in the Hoboken Reporter, the HHI bankruptcy was forced by the hospital's municipal board to file for Chapter 11. According to the same article, "sources say that the Hoboken Municipal Hospital Authority, a municipal board, withheld some money from HHI, which may have helped force them into bankruptcy."

Also on the agenda is a resolution for a $155,000 contract with the firm Scarinci and Hollenbeck, for other pending litigation.

The Mayor is asking the council to approve her appointment of Colin Tobias to the Alcohol Beverage Control Board. She is also asking the council to approve

Councilman Tim Occhipinti is trying to unseat Zoning Board of Adjustment Member Nancy Pincus, after he took issue with a post on her personal blog, imitating a letter to the FBI. If the resolution passes—five votes are needed for it to pass—Pincus has ten days to request a hearing.

Up for first reading (and therefore not subject to public comment), is a bond ordinance for $350,000 for capital improvements, such as re-wiring of City Hall's communication system and a new street sweeper, among other things.

Lastly, the city clerk will announce that he has certified the petitions to put the