Dear Neighbors,
Here is the latest on the Mile Square City.
Hoboken Fall 🍁🍂has arrived on 11th Street!
As a Hoboken Business Alliance trustee, I support bringing seasonal installations like the one below installed just this week — inviting customers to our business district and creating special locations for fun photos to share.
A beautiful fall installation at 11th and Washington
New Stop Signs at 12th and Grand!
For three years as your Councilman, I have worked to address unsafe intersections throughout Hoboken, and in the 5th Ward in particular. One intersection on which I have focused is 12th and Grand. After hearing neighbors’ safety concerns when I was elected, in 2020 I reached out to Hoboken’s Transportation and Parking Director Ryan Sharp to ask about adding new stop signs.
I learned that first a traffic study must be commissioned (at taxpayer expense). Then, the study results must justify the stop sign. However, in 2020 the nearby Northwest Resiliency Park was a major construction site, disrupting normal traffic flows. So, the traffic study had to wait until the Park was sufficiently complete to get meaningful traffic data.
So, over the last three years, I worked on other measures to address pedestrian safety at 12th and Grand — adding flexible bollards to “daylight” the corners (improving sight lines for pedestrians, drivers, and bicyclists); and placing in-street pedestrian warning signs near the crosswalk, alerting drivers to pedestrians’ presence.
Well, the necessary traffic study was finally done this April, and the results — as expected — justified the new stop signs. The City Council unanimously approved the signs in September, and they were installed last week!
The new stop signs look great!
I’ve gotten great feedback from neighbors who report the signs are making a difference. Thanks to Mayor Bhalla and Director Sharp for your consistent work and attention to this important effort, which is an important component of the City’s comprehensive Vision Zero efforts to create safer streets and sidewalks.
Did You Incur Damages From Last February’s Water Main Break? You May be Eligible for $5,000!
As a trustee of the Hoboken Business Alliance (HBA), I am proud to share the HBA has established a Water Main Break Recovery Grant Program to compensate eligible businesses and property owners who suffered harm resulting from the extended water main break and boil water advisory between February 27 and March 2, 2023. This program is fully funded by PSE&G, at no taxpayer expense.
In order to qualify for a grant, Hoboken businesses and property owners must substantiate their claims of direct financial losses, physical property damage, equipment or merchandise damage, and/or lost wages as a direct consequence of the water main break. Hoboken businesses and property owners can now apply for grants of up to $5,000. You can access the application portal here, with the application deadline of November 22nd.
For further details on the required documentation supporting an eligible claim and a description of the types of damages covered through this program, please click here.
Prayers for Victims of Heinous Terrorist Attacks in Israel
In the wake of devastating terrorist attacks this week in Israel, which have horrified the world and our community, I participated in an emotional Memorial Vigil at the United Synagogue of Hoboken Tuesday evening. From there, many members of the USH Community, Mayor Bhalla, and community leaders, joined Governor Phil Murphy and more than a thousand neighbors for a second memorial vigil on Pier A. We pray for peace and security for people of the Middle East, we denounce and condemn senseless acts of violence and antisemitism, and mourn all those who have tragically perished.
Thank you to the many Hoboken neighbors who attended and brought comfort and healing to our shaken community. Thanks to Governor Phil Murphy, Mayor Ravi Bhalla, Acting Israel Consul General of New York, Tsach Saar, Rabbi Rob Scheinberg, Rabbi Moshe Schapiro, and the four amazing Hoboken moms who organized and led the Pier A memorial: Karen Schmidt, Orly Rashkes, Tatyana Zlotsky, and Toby Baer.
Hoboken Shelter’s HoBOOken 5K Run is Coming!
My family is a proud, long-time sponsor of the annual HoBOOken 5K Halloween Run to End Homelessness. It’s such a great event.
Not only is it fun to dress up and run, but it’s also a great way to join your neighbors (more than 1,400 participated last year!) and support our extraordinary Hoboken Shelter! So get ready for a great day on Pier A Saturday, October 28th. Proceeds from this race allow the shelter to serve 500+ meals per day, provide 1,000 showers per week, and shelter 50 people a night/365 days a year. A fun run for a great cause!
You can also sign up for a virtual race! Details and registration information are here.
A running octopus!
October Office Hours . . . Coffee with Cohen
On Tuesday, I hosted my 88th Coffee with Cohen community event with a special guest, Hoboken’s Business Administrator, Jason Freeman.
Thanks to bwè kafe North End, a great locally-owned and operated 5th Ward business, for hosting my October office hours, and thanks to the many neighbors who stopped by for coffee, croissants, and lively and thoughtful conversations on various issues including rent control, maintenance at Fox Hill Gardens, new trash laws combating rodents, pedestrian safety, and supporting housing insecure or homeless neighbors.
Staying Up To Date and Seeking My Assistance
I issue this newsletter every other Friday. You can stay up to date by following me on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. 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
(862) 234-9053
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.
