Dear Neighbors,
As summer begins and schools let out here are your monthly updates.
Honoring Hoboken’s Bravest
The ceremony honored members of the department for their heroic actions during two complex rescue operations earlier this year, including the rescue of workers trapped at a construction site on Observer Highway and the successful recovery of an individual who fell down a cliff between Hoboken and Jersey City. We are grateful for their service and our entire community thanks and celebrates Hoboken’s Bravest.
The Family of Fire Fighter Nico Ratto. Photo credit: Jerry Lore
New Smart Waste & Recycling Bins
Keeping Hoboken clean, sustainable, and welcoming remains a priority, which is why I’m excited that the City completed a major upgrade to our public waste infrastructure with the installation of more than 120 new Bigbelly smart waste and recycling bins along Washington Street and the southern waterfront.
This investment replaces more than 50 older receptacle stations and significantly expands waste and recycling capacity throughout the city. Most of the new solar-powered bins feature compacting technology and real-time monitoring, allowing for more efficient collection, reduced overflow, and cleaner public spaces.
You can learn more about these improvements here, and learn about the City’s first dedicated “Pizza Boxes Only” recycling bins at high-traffic locations. These improvements will reduce litter, limit pest activity, and create a cleaner environment for everyone who lives, works, and visits Hoboken.
The 2026 Municipal Budget
This week, the City Council adopted a municipal budget amendment by a vote of 6-3. I voted against the amendment, along with Councilmembers Russo and Presinzano.
I greatly appreciate the work that went into this budget by Mayor Jabbour and my Council colleagues. Council President Ramos noted this is an expensive year because Hoboken’s bill is due on many major investments we have made over the last decade, including adding resiliency parks, expanding recreation opportunities, developing our public waterfront, adding more police officers, and implementing flood mitigation systems to make our community safer and more resilient. I know these investments will benefit Hoboken for generations to come.
My concerns with the amendment are based on its overly optimistic revenue assumptions. I have repeatedly expressed deep concern about the City’s failure to adequately fund its municipal surplus — especially this year when Hoboken’s ratings agency, Standard & Poors, has placed the city on a negative ratings watch. If the budget’s projected revenues do not materialize, Hoboken will be forced to spend even more surplus funds on operating expenses, risking a bond rating downgrade with long-term, negative impacts on the City’s finances.
I do not believe that the long-term answer to Hoboken’s fiscal problems are large scale employee layoffs. The City Council was presented with hard numbers showing that City Hall staffing is less today than it was 10 years ago. This, while our community is rapidly growing — at a rate of more than 20 percent from 2010 to 2020 while City Hall staffing has reduced — doing more with less — at a time when residents expect — and deserve — excellent municipal services.
We should focus on operating better — striving to more efficiently deliver municipal services with City Hall’s lean staffing (now subject to a hiring freeze). The services that our residents expect and demand need to be managed by outstanding directors empowered to work here and manage their leanly staffed, hard-working employees, so they can deliver crucial services to our community every day.
I believe we can and should achieve meaningful cost savings working with our public unions to renegotiate their agreements to make their contracts more sustainable for our community, and help us break out of a cycle of double-digit municipal tax increases that loom in the future. I appreciate that my Council colleagues unanimously voted for our public unions to return to the negotiating table. I also am keenly interested in identifying new sources of municipal revenues to offset future tax increases, and there are a number of such proposals actively being considered by the Council.
But at the end of the day, I believe a responsible budget requires the City’s recurring revenues to cover the City’s recurring expenses, and because I concluded that the budget amendment presented to the Council fails that test, I could not support it.
Hoboken Kicks Off World Cup Celebrations with Big Match Block Parties
From June 13 through July 19, Hoboken will celebrate FIFA World Cup 2026 with a citywide series of Big Match Block Parties hosted by the City and the Hoboken Business Alliance. The family-friendly events will rotate through six neighborhood fan zones, featuring live match screenings, interactive soccer activities, outdoor dining, local retailers, entertainment, and community programming.
The festivities will take place across Hoboken's neighborhoods on select match days throughout the tournament, culminating in an expanded World Cup Final celebration on July 19 along First Street and 14th Street. Additional programming will include youth soccer activities on Sinatra Field in partnership with professional soccer organizations. For more information click here.
Summer Fun Returns to Hoboken
Summer is officially underway, and Hoboken’s Cultural Affairs Department has an exciting lineup of free community events for residents of all ages.
The popular Movies Under the Stars series returns with outdoor screenings throughout June and July, including The Birdcage on Pride Night (June 24), Bring It On (July 8), Superman (July 15), Delivered Vacant (July 22), and Hamilton(July 29). Trivia begins at 8 pm, followed by the movie at 9 pm.
DanceFest 2026 will bring professional dancers and local performers to ResilienCity Park on June 30, July 7, and July 14. Presented in partnership with Dance New Jersey, the free performances showcase a variety of dance styles in an outdoor setting.
Music lovers can also enjoy the Sinatra Summer Concert Series at Sinatra Park Amphitheater. Performances continue throughout June and July, featuring salsa, R&B, jazz, soul, and local artists, with concerts held Thursday evenings from 7 to 9 pm. For a complete schedule of summer events and activities, click here.
Coffee with Cohen . . . the Home Edition
On Monday, June 15th at 12 pm, I host my monthly Coffee with Cohen … the home edition community event with special guest the Democratic Party Nominee for Hudson County Commissioner for the 5th District, Ron Bautista.
You can RSVP to join this virtual meeting here. If you have questions for me or Ron Bautista, send them to HobokenPhil@gmail.com and we will try to address them.
County Commissioner Candidate Ron Bautista Joins Coffee with Cohen Monday
Staying Up To Date
If you have any questions, or I can be of assistance to you or your family, please do not hesitate to contact me at HobokenPhil@gmail.com.
Phil Cohen
Hoboken City Councilman
Hoboken, New Jersey
HobokenPhil@gmail.com
(201) 639-4082
P.S. You can learn more about me and my ideas for Hoboken (as well as read this newsletter and prior newsletters) on my website philcohen.org.
