Teacher By Day, Councilman By Night

After being sworn in on July 1, councilman David Mello thought he was going to have a quiet summer, learning about city council and getting to know the people in town.

But then, roughly three weeks later, then-Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano got arrested during the massive corruption sting in late July. Suddenly, Mello's summer was not so quiet anymore.  

"It was somewhat shocking," Mello said. "Probably not as shocking as it should be."

While Cammarano's arrest was bad for the city, Mello said he is happy about  what came out of it.

"It brought the right person into office," he said about current Mayor Dawn Zimmer. 

I meet Mello in one of Hoboken's three Starbucks. He is reading The Jungle in preparation of one of his classes at a middle school in the South Bronx, where he has been teaching social studies for the past nine years. 

Mello—who refuses to give his exact age, but said he is "old enough to not feel like sharing"—has been living in Hoboken for 12 years and has been a home owner for five of those years. He lives in the fourth ward with his wife Stacy and his daughter Sienna, 3. Hoboken is the only city he can call home as  an adult, he said.

Mello's path to teaching is not surprising, considering his father was the assistant superintendent in Stony Point, N.Y. 

"In a way I went into the family business," Mello said. 

Seeing his father at work prepared Mello for his career in politics and being a teacher in a public school in the South Bronx  has provided him with a thicker skin, a much-needed asset for any political career. 

The Budget

In Mello's opinion, the budget is the overarching issue in Hoboken at the moment. 

One of the problems with the budget, Mello said, is that it's heavily made up of personnel costs, something he'd like to see changed. Mello said also that he'd like to see more modern benefit packages for city employees.

"In general," he said, "we just have to look for ways to get more out of what we have."

The first upcoming instance when that can be done is at the Budget Workshop at City Hall on Saturday, Jan. 30. Mello will attend and said he hopes many members of the public do too. The public does not get to vote on the budget, but is invited to attend the workshop and share opinions and suggestions. 

Part of the budget will have to be made up out of grants. The problem is, Mello said, that it's not a great climate for grants. The amount of state funds is also still unclear.  

Open Space

Although the budget is the most important issue for the city, Mello seems to be most passionate about the issue of open space and parks, especially on the Western side of town.

Hoboken needs to be more open to middle class families, Mello said. One of his great concerns is how transient people are in Hoboken. Many people move out before they have children, because they can't afford a large enough place.

Mello said he'd like to see at least a 6-acre park on the Southwestern side of town. 

"We'd be actively investing in real estate, in open space," he said. 

Which brings us right back to the overarching budget issue. 

Hoboken University Medical Center

Upon mentioning the hospital, Mello stared ahead with a serious look in his eyes. 

"I'm very concerned about the hospital," he said. 

The City of Hoboken—under the administration of former Hoboken Mayor Dave Roberts—guaranteed a $52 million bond for the hospital. HUMC also received $7 million earlier this year in state funds from the Corzine administration. Yet, the state committee of health announced in a transition memo to Gov. Chris Christie that the hospital is closing in a few months. Hospital officials deny this. 

"In hindsight it probably wasn't wise what the city did," Mello said. But, there's a lot of debt attached to the decision to guarantee that bond, he added.

"I like the idea of a local hospital," Mello said, "but we have to draw a line." 

St. Paddy's Day

Mello is also concerned about one of the city's marquee events, the annual set this year for Saturday, March 6. 

Mello would liked to have seen the parade on another day—either a Sunday, or St. Patrick's Day itself, he said. 

The parade, in previous years troubled by rowdy, intoxicated people, has been a cause for concern to many in town. Police officials have already said they will impose a zero tolerance policy on public drunkenness and pay close attention to house parties that get out of control.

Furthermore, Mello said, the parade is a financial drain to the city, mostly because of all the overtime that gets paid to police officers. "It has to make financial sense," he said. 

"This is the last chance for a Saturday parade in Hoboken," Mello said. 

This is the first in a series of interviews with Hoboken City officials. If you have any questions you want to ask your officials, let me know at clairem@patch.com, and I will ask them for you.