Dear Neighbors, Congratulations to the Knicks 🏀 and their long-suffering fans on advancing to the second round of the NBA playoffs. Here’s the latest from the Mile Square City. Fighting Unconscionable Rent Hikes I have been actively communicating with tenants of properties who have complained of illegal rent hikes, some in excess of 30%, in their lease renewals. This includes residents living in properties managed by Lincoln Property Management, AvalonBay, Inc., and the Bozzuto Realty Group including the Jordan, the Artisan, the Harlow, Park + Garden, as well as the Ballpark. Last week, I authored and introduced a resolution unanimously joined by my Council colleagues, stating our community’s full support for tenants who have reported receiving unconscionable rent hikes. The resolution calls on Lincoln, AvalonBay, and Bozzuto specifically, as well as other Hoboken landlords, to abide by all relevant state and local legal requirements, offer fair lease agreements to their tenants, and modify or retract any leases that include unconscionable rent increases. Mayor Bhalla has also directly contacted executives at Lincoln, AvalonBay, and Bozzuto on the tenants’ behalf, and if unconscionable rent increases are not reduced, or our rent control ordinance is not complied with, the City will strongly support legal remedies on the tenants’ behalf. Hoboken is one of the few communities that has invested in a Tenant Advocate, an attorney who can provide you with a free legal consultation. I want to thank Andrew Sobel, our Tenant Advocate, for helping so many Hoboken residents. If you believe you have received an unconscionable rent hike, please email me at HobokenPhil@gmail.com so we can assist you.  Sneak Peek 👀of our Northwest Resiliency Park 👀Lawn Our NW Resiliency Park opens on June 12th, and I can’t wait for that ✂️ ribbon-cutting! Here’s a sneak peek of the newly installed lawn.    Check out the new lawn! When complete, not only will the park look great, but it will store and discharge up to 2 million gallons of stormwater runoff — making this 5th Ward neighborhood in Northwest Hoboken an even more desirable place to live, work and raise a family.