Dear Neighbors,
As we begin the month of April, I would like to share the latest news around the Mile Square.
COVID-19 Updates
The daily number of positive tests in Hoboken has remained extremely high these past two weeks. New Jersey’s positive case rates continue to stay at levels comparable to what we witnessed last spring. Given these ongoing concerns, Governor Murphy has extended New Jersey’s State of Emergency for another 30 days.
Hoboken’s recent positive test results include 37 on March 22nd, 25 on March 23rd, 15 on March 24th, 37 on March 25th, and 37 on March 26th for a total of 4,398 cases confirmed to date. Two weeks ago there were 4,026 positive cases. The jump in positive cases remains troubling. Although the weather is getting warmer and more members of our community are being vaccinated, COVID-19 remains a real threat. Please remain vigilant. Wear your mask, social distance when necessary, and be safe.
In July we celebrated the landmark of having no COVID patients at Hoboken University Medical Center (HUMC). However, we now have 15 COVID patients at HUMC, including 2 Hoboken residents.
If you have any reason to believe you have been exposed to COVID, please quarantine and then schedule an appointment for a COVID test at least 5-7 days after potential exposure. Please remember that wearing a face mask (or a double-mask as the CDC recommends), practicing social distancing, and avoiding indoor gatherings beyond household members is the key to keeping our community healthy and safe.
Sadly, the City was notified that there were three additional COVID-19 related deaths in our community, including a female in her early 70s, a male in his late 70s, and a female in her early 50s from February. I want to offer my heartfelt condolences to each Hoboken family that has endured this unimaginable pain. Please know that you have the full support of your neighbors and our entire Hoboken community. We send you our prayers and extend to you our wishes for your comfort, healing, and peace.
COVID Testing
To get the City’s latest information on Hoboken’s test appointments and hours click here.
Free Testing for Hoboken Residents Only: Riverside
Riverside Medical (351 16th Street)
Dates: Mondays - Fridays
Time: 8 am – 3 pm
Location: 351 16th Street (Bijou Properties location)
Type of testing: Rapid 15 minute test (Abbott ID Now), and PCR
Who: Hoboken residents only
(appointments typically released online for the following week on Wednesdays)
Riverside Medical Group patients should call their Riverside primary care office to schedule a COVID test and should not use the online sign-up form. Patients without a vehicle should enter the test facility on Clinton between 15th and 16th Streets. Those driving should enter on 16th street between Clinton and Grand.
Free Testing for Hoboken Residents and Hoboken business employees:
PromptMD (Jackson St. Gym, 605 Jackson St.)
Dates: Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays
Time: 8 am - 3 pm
Location: 605 Jackson Street
Type of testing: PCR
Who: Hoboken residents and Hoboken business employees
Results are typically provided through Prompt MD within 48-72 hours.
Free testing for Hoboken Residents and Hoboken Business Employees:
Medicine Man (605 Jackson Street)
Date: Wednesdays and Saturdays (Closed April 3rd)
Time: 2 - 7 pm (Wednesdays), 9 am - 1 pm (Saturdays)
Location: 605 Jackson Street (updated location)
Type of testing: PCR
Who: Hoboken residents, Hoboken business employees
New Jersey Department of Health (221 Jackson Street)
Date: Friday (April 9th), Friday (April 23rd)
Time: 1 pm – 7 pm
Location: 221 Jackson Street (Hoboken Housing Authority, Community Room)
Who: Hudson County residents, Hoboken business employees
Type of testing: PCR
No appointment needed, testing provided on a first-come, first-served basis.
Local Private COVID Test Facilities.
In addition to Hoboken’s four free, public COVID-19 facilities, you can visit City MD at 231 Washington Street or PromptMD at 309 1st Street, and walk-in without an appointment to get your COVID-19 test at their private facilities. To be safe, you should call ahead to confirm test availability.
Vaccination News
Thankfully, Hoboken’s vaccine supply has greatly increased in the past week and is continuing to do so - like last week, this week, the City received an additional 1,170 first-dose Pfizer vaccines.
Hoboken received 500 first-dose vaccines per week from the State at the beginning of the vaccination process. After setting aside the 500 second-dose vaccines for our seniors who have gotten the first dose, we have been receiving about 300 Moderna first-dose vaccines per week. So, these additional 1,170 first-dose supplies are making a big impact!
As of last week, the Hoboken Health Department administered 5,539 vaccine doses to residents, including 3,767 first doses and 1,772-second doses.
Additional vaccine appointments periodically become available at Hudson County's Kearny site for seniors and those with chronic medical conditions in phases 1A and 1B. Check for appointment availability and registration here.
CVS pharmacies Midtown and Uptown Hoboken locations are now supplying the COVID-19 vaccine by appointment. To track CVS’s Hoboken vaccine supply click here. For folks who are eligible for vaccination but have yet to be scheduled, we ask you to please remain patient but know the pace is really picking up. To get the City’s latest information on vaccinations, including how to pre-register for your vaccination, click here.
Volunteers helping with securing vaccine appointments
A group of local volunteers is helping secure vaccine appointments for Hoboken residents outside of Hoboken. If you are eligible to receive the vaccine, are a Hoboken resident, and able to travel, but are having trouble securing a vaccine appointment, please feel free to email hobokenc19vaxxvolunteers@gmail.com along with your name and phone number.
New Vaccine Eligibility and Pre-Registration Lists
Starting Monday, April 5th, Governor Murphy lowered the age limit for people eligible for vaccination and added new medical conditions and occupations of New Jersey residents that qualify for vaccine eligibility.
- Individuals aged 55-64
- Individuals 16 and over with intellectual and developmental disabilities
Workers in the following jobs:
- Communications, IT, media, including communications infrastructure support (engineers, technicians) and members of the press
- Laundry services, including workers in laundromats, laundry services, and dry cleaners
- Real estate, building, and home services, including construction workers, code officials, plumbers, electricians, HVAC technicians, property management, and maintenance workers
- Retail financial institutions, including bank tellers, lending services, public accounting, and check cashing workers.
- Sanitation, including workers providing disinfection and janitorial services for all essential facilities and modes of transportation; city sanitation workers; residential, commercial, and industrial solid and hazardous waste removal.
- Utilities, including electrical generation and supply system, natural gas delivery, nuclear power plant, water supply, telephone, cable/fiber optical/broadband/cellular service workers
- Higher Education, including educators and support staff
- Librarians, including librarians and support staff at the municipal, county, and state libraries (i.e. those not included in K-12 announcement)
You can pre-register to be vaccinated by the City of Hoboken if you fall into any of the above categories here and you can view the State’s latest vaccine eligibility guidance here.
Door-to-door Vaccine Distribution For Homebound Residents
Mayor Bhalla and the Hoboken Health Department are preparing to provide the Johnson & Johnson vaccine to homebound residents who are unable to leave their homes because of physical disability.
To pre-register a homebound resident, please visit hobokennj.gov/vaccinesignup and select the new designation “homebound” or call the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) hotline at 201-420-5621 and provide the homebound resident’s first name, last name, address, age, contact phone number, and email, if available. The message should also indicate that the pre-registration is for a homebound resident.
If a homebound resident or resident’s representative previously pre-registered with the City of Hoboken, please register again, but with the new “homebound” designation to help the City create a targeted list for door-to-door vaccinations.
Exciting News About a Proposed New Home for our Department of Public Works Garage
In response to the concerns of many residents in Northwest Hoboken, I committed to working on identifying a new location for the Department of Public Works (DPW) Garage more appropriate than the City’s North Lot at 13th and Jefferson. As you may recall, the DPW Garage must be relocated from its Observer Hwy. and Newark St. location by September 2022 so the City can finalize the settlement of the Monarch litigation -- forever ending the threat of two 11-story condominiums being built across from the Hudson Tea Building on the 15th Street piers.
I am pleased to share that Bijou Properties, the owner of the 1500 Clinton Street square block, has presented a proposal to relocate the DPW Garage, permanently, starting in September 2022, as part of a mixed-use, art and retail destination that would include a City Hall Annex and our DPW garage. The project is anchored by 12,500 square feet of ground-floor retail, includes 48 affordable housing units, and an approximately 75,000 sq. ft. facility for a City Hall Annex and DPW garage. I attended a presentation for this plan earlier this week and think the streetscape for the retail and arts district at 15th and Clinton looks great. (See the daytime and nighttime images of 15th and Clinton below.)
The plan for the DPW Garage and City Hall Annex will also house an Office of Emergency Management (OEM) Command Center and Hoboken Parking Utility office adjacent to the City’s industrial uses on 16th Street (including the PSE&G substation) on the bottom two floors. Amendments to the North End Redevelopment Plan to allow the fast-track completion of the DPW Garage, OEM Command Center, and City Hall Annex by September 2022 -- preserving our public 15th Street piers and a new park at 800 Monroe -- will be before the City Council next Wednesday evening. I look forward to supporting this plan to activate an exciting new art and retail district that will vitalize a new northern gateway destination for Hoboken and the 5th Ward.
Community Meeting on Redevelopment Plan for 931 Madison (the old Water Music building)
Thanks to the many residents who came out last Wednesday night for the community meeting I hosted to address the 931 Madison Project. Although the City had noticed and held a Special Meeting of the City Council on February 24 for the public’s benefit to learn about this development, it was clear from the public’s comments at the March 17 City Council meeting that many condo associations and residents impacted by the project still had concerns or did not participate at the February 24 Special Meeting.
To address public concern, at our March 17 meeting I pulled the 931 Madison project from the agenda and announced we would have a second community meeting on the following Wednesday, March 24. With the City, I secured the attendance of the project’s developer Richard Stabile, the project’s architect John Nastasi, and the City’s Supervising Planner, Jessica Giorgianni, to make presentations and to hear the community’s questions and concerns.
After a two-and-a-half-hour community meeting attended by 70 people, I got positive feedback from the attendees. The architect is currently working on a redesign to incorporate suggestions from the community and my Council colleagues. I will keep you updated on the project and the next steps. If you (or people you know) would like to stay abreast of these developments, please send me a current email to HobokenPhil@gmail.com and join my distribution.
Restaurant Revitalization Fund
Two weeks ago, Senator Bob Menendez came to Hoboken and joined Mayor Ravi Bhalla to highlight the $28.6 billion fund within the $1.9 Trillion American Rescue Plan (ARP) to assist struggling restaurants and bars. The Restaurant Revitalization Fund is based on the RESTAURANTS Act Senator Menendez previously co-sponsored.
The program will provide up to $10 million in grants to eligible restaurants, bars, and eateries. The funds can be used to cover COVID-19 related costs, the purchase of personal protective equipment (PPE), and other upgrades to protect customers and staff from COVID, in addition to payroll, mortgage or rent, supplies, utilities, paid sick leave, and other operational expenses. Restaurants will generally receive grants that equal the difference between their 2019 and 2020 gross receipts.
In an effort to target funding to small businesses and minority-owned businesses, $5 billion of the fund is set aside for restaurants with 2019 gross receipts of $500,000 or less. For the first 21 days, the program is open, the Small Business Administration (SBA) must prioritize applications from businesses owned by women and veterans. The program is not yet open to applications however it should launch soon -- stay tuned.
New Pedestrian Safety at 11th St. and Willow Ave. is Underway!
Mayor Bhalla and Commissioner Romano announced last week the commencement of construction on Vision Zero pedestrian safety improvements and traffic signal upgrades at the intersection of 11th Street and Willow Avenue.
The project includes the following:
- Four new concrete curb extensions, that will reduce pedestrian crossing distances by up to 38% across Willow Avenue
- ADA-compliant curb ramps with detectable warning surfaces at all corners
- High-visibility crosswalks at all approaches
- New, modern traffic signals with 12" LED signal faces
The intersection at 11th and Willow is the intersection closest to the Wallace School, where hundreds of kids and their parents cross the street each school day. It is also the location where we are planning to build an affordable housing development for our seniors.
Construction is expected to last approximately 12-14 weeks on the traffic signal upgrades and pedestrian safety improvements at 11th Street and Willow Avenue. The construction includes drainage work to construct the curb extensions, electrical underground work for the new traffic signal, installing the wiring and installing new poles, and powering the new traffic signal with PSE&G. Thanks to Mayor Bhalla and Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise for this partnership investing in a safer intersection in the 5th Ward!
Coffee with Cohen . . . the home edition
To practice social distancing, rather than eliminate my monthly Coffee with Cohen constituent events, I turned to the internet. On Monday, I hosted my most recent Coffee with Cohen Livestream event. Already, over 400 people have viewed this event. This week, in recognition of women leaders in our City for Women's History Month I welcomed special guest, Director Jennifer Gonzalez, head of Hoboken’s Environmental Services Department and the City’s Chief Sustainability Officer, who addressed her Department’s mission of resiliency and sustainability, the latest on the Northwest Resiliency Park, an update on the Rebuild by Design project, the planned expansion of our municipal composting program, litter, and dog poop challenges, priorities for the year ahead, and much more.
My favorite part of Coffee with Cohen is answering your questions. This week you asked about tractor-trailers turning from Monroe onto 9th onto Madison and 13th and addressing people who run stop signs in the neighborhood. Also, I shared the results of my poll for your reactions about Hoboken’s Vaccination program. You can check it out here.
Do you have questions you would like me to address at my next event? Send them to me at HobokenPhil@gmail.com as I try to answer each one. The event will be hosted on my Facebook page @Philcohenforcouncil and you can watch it here. My next Coffee with Cohen event will be on Monday, April 12th at noon and I hope to see you there.
You can follow me on Twitter at @philiphcohen here on Facebook here or Instagram here. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, or if I can be of assistance to you or your family, please do not hesitate to contact me at HobokenPhil@gmail.com.
Stay safe everyone!
Phil Cohen
5th Ward Councilman
City of Hoboken, New Jersey
HobokenPhil@gmail.com
(862) 234-9053
P.S. You can learn more about me and my ideas for Hoboken (as well as read this newsletter and my prior newsletters) on my website philcohen.org.
