Little: “Tired” of voting on what City Hall says “behind closed doors” as Glenwood buy stalls

JERSEY CITY — Ward E Councilwoman Eleana Little unloaded on the administration Wednesday night over a proposed Community Development Block Grant buy of 128 Glenwood Ave. for a pocket park and community garden, saying she was “tired” of voting on what City Hall tells her “behind closed doors.”

By night’s end the Municipal Council tabled the acquisition ordinance 9–0 and withdrew the related CDBG resolution 8–1, with Ward B Councilman Joel Brooks the lone no on the withdrawal. The Sept. 23, 2026 regular meeting ran past five hours on Jersey City TV.

What was on the table

The package would have had the city acquire 128 Glenwood Ave., near McGinley Square, and turn the lot into a pocket park / community garden using federal CDBG dollars. Neighbors and the McGinley Square Community Board pressed for green space as more housing comes online on Glenwood. Critics in public comment called the price a developer giveaway — arguing the city would pay well over what the private owner paid years ago and forgo housing on the lot.

Little said she had been leaning against the deal because she believed the developer was “overcharging” and that the lot had been played like it was abandoned. She said she supports a McGinley Square community garden but thought other lots could be cheaper.

“Wishy-washy” Monday answers

Little told colleagues that Monday’s caucus answers from the administration were “very wishy-washy.” She framed the night’s fight less as a quarrel with staff at the table and more as frustration with how decisions are packaged for the council.

She walked through HUD’s CDBG timeliness rules as she understood them: money has a roughly three-year spend window; she said the last administration spent tax dollars but did not spend CDBG well. Relaying what she said she was told on the phone by a housing official she identified as Diaz, Little described a January 31 timeliness assessment that rolls together unspent prior years and new awards — pressure, in her account, to burn the city’s balance down toward roughly $6 million from something like $17 million-plus.

“If this is true, the federal government is setting us up to fail,” she said.

Closed doors, budget blowup

The sharpest line of the night came as Little tied Glenwood to earlier budget fights:

“I am tired of making decisions based on what the administration tells me behind closed doors. I did that with the budget and it blew up.”

She asked the administration to confirm the HUD timeliness picture on the record and said she wants that transparency in Monday caucus — not a closed-door briefing that the council is then expected to rubber-stamp. Business Administrator Ruby Choi acknowledged the pressure and apologized for process gaps; council members including at-Large Mamta Singh, Ward C’s Tom Zuppa, and at-Large Michael Griffin also pressed for more information before any vote.

Blame shared — Fulop, Trump, and “some” Solomon

Little said that if the spend-down clock is real, blame lies primarily with the Fulop administration and the Trump administration, but that “some blame” also sits with the Solomon administration. She apologized to the room for drawing the debate out late, then moved to carry the ordinance. Attorney Adam Lazarus, representing the property owner, said his client could wait but was unhappy about delay.

Brooks said he had asked how much CDBG was left to spend and still lacked an answer, comparing peeling back the last administration’s work to a “rotten onion.” After the ordinance was tabled unanimously, Little’s motion path led to withdrawal of the companion resolution — 8–1, Brooks dissenting because he said he felt ready to vote.

Outcome and what comes next

Nothing on 128 Glenwood closed Wednesday. The acquisition ordinance is tabled; the CDBG resolution is withdrawn. Supporters still want a shovel-ready garden before federal clocks run out. Skeptics still want a cheaper site or a clearer price justification. Little’s floor speech put the transparency fight — not only the parcel — at the center of the record.

Video: Jersey City TV / YouTube, Municipal Council regular meeting, Sept. 23, 2026 (Little remarks approx. 4:54:22–4:58:40). Vote tallies corroborated with contemporaneous public reporting. Featured image: official City of Jersey City Council portrait of Ward E Councilwoman Eleana Little.