Jersey City, N.J. council OKs acting CFO, ice rink chiller and crisis-response contract step; County Plaza lots named redevelopment area

JERSEY CITY, N.J. — The Jersey City Council late Wednesday, Oct. 21, approved city controller Walkidia Staten as acting chief financial officer, the $193,511 chiller rental to open the Pershing Field ice rink and the first step toward a mental health crisis response program, all 9-0 near the end of a meeting that ran past 10:30 p.m.

The council also voted 9-0 to declare the Hudson County Plaza area, which Ward C Councilman Thomas Zuppa Jr. described as county-owned land that is mostly surface parking lots, an area in need of redevelopment without the power of eminent domain.

Acting CFO approved, with a warning on pay

Resolution 26-716, a late item, approves Mayor James Solomon’s appointment of Staten as acting CFO. A companion late item, Resolution 26-717, names the city’s official signatories. Both passed in the final block of resolutions, 10.25 through 10.36.

Zuppa voted yes but said his disappointment was not with Staten. He said that when the council raised salaries in the salary ordinance, it meant to attract top talent, and said that “to pay anyone who does not have those years of experience or those relationships with the state or with DCA in a time of crisis is foolish to do.” He added, “We’re not prepared for the budget crisis that we’re going to see next year” (about 4:16:15 in the recording).

At-large Councilman Rolando Lavarro Jr. said the combined acting salaries are less than the outgoing official’s total but said “we need to be more judicious” and should look again at the salary ordinance “as we have another trying budget cycle” (about 4:25:30).

As Hudson TV reported Wednesday, Staten and acting Finance Director Kyle Greaves are both receiving acting pay after Finance Director Bill Viqueira’s resignation.

Ice rink chiller

Resolution 26-715 hires Herc Rentals under a state contract to rent and run a chiller for the Pershing Field rink. “Hopefully, this is the end of a long saga to keep the ice rink open,” Zuppa said. Ward D Councilman Jake Ephros said he hopes it is the end of renting and “that we can get a permanent one as soon as possible.”

Mental health crisis response

Resolution 26-718, added as a late item at the start of the meeting, authorizes competitive contracting to procure a community mental health crisis response for 911 and other calls where behavioral health is the reported issue. Ward E Councilwoman Eleana Little, who presented it, said it is “not for approval of the RFP itself,” only the step needed to release it.

Little said the request for proposals must go out quickly to allow a “mandatory 20-day public advertising window” and get response teams “out in the field, ideally before the winter holidays, which is a known peak season for mental health crises.” She said the proposal reflects meetings with faith leaders, mental health advocates, city health officials and family members, “particularly of Drew Washington” (about 4:18:57).

Hudson County Plaza lots

Resolution 26-707 designates the Hudson County Plaza Study Area, a group of lots on four blocks, as a non-condemnation area in need of redevelopment and directs the Planning Board to prepare a redevelopment plan. The resolution says the Planning Board held a hearing Sept. 8 and no members of the public appeared. The study was prepared for the Hudson County Improvement Authority, according to the Planning Board’s resolution.

Zuppa said the land is county-owned: “The city does not own any inch of this land.” He said the council’s role would be to review and vote on a redevelopment plan, the next step, and that the next community meeting will be Oct. 28 at 6 p.m. at County Plaza (about 4:14:34).

Little said she has been “advocating building social housing on this county owned parking lot since early 2023” and called it “a much better use of the land.”

Other votes

• Resolution 26-692, renewing local support for Downtown Flwr LLC’s Class 5 retail cannabis business, passed 7-2. Ephros and Little voted no, citing concerns workers raised with their offices. Several members who voted yes said the Cannabis Control Board had approved the renewal and that workplace complaints belong in other forums.
• The accelerated tax sale resolution, 26-704, passed 8-0-1, with Council President Pro Tempore Frank Gilmore abstaining. The electronic tax sale resolution, 26-705, passed 9-0.
• All five second-reading ordinances were adopted 9-0, including $200,000 for snow removal equipment (Ord. 26-085). Three first-reading ordinances, including an amendment to the Powerhouse Arts District Redevelopment Plan (Ord. 26-087) and a standing council finance committee (Ord. 26-088), were introduced 9-0.
• The rent control exemption repeal, Ord. 26-089, was not added to the agenda. Its sponsors said it will come back Nov. 12.

Hudson TV asks: Should Jersey City send mental health teams instead of police to some 911 calls? Reply A: Yes. Reply B: No, keep police on those calls.
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