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| The entire CarbineforCouncil team is pleased to announce that all three Kids First: Theresa Minutillo, Maureen Sullivan and Ruth McCallister won! This is great news for our children. I know that our school system will now be put on the right track. A hearty thank you to all who voted. Finally there is some hope for Hoboken’s educational situation. No one should be under the illusion that the system can be fixed overnight. I hope that the process will involve concerned parents and be as transparent and open as possible. Although the bloated budget passed we are confident that this change will happen. Once again, way to go Maureen, Theresa and Ruth. |
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News: Kids First BOE slate wins! Maureen Sullivan, Theresa Minutillo and Ruth McCallister sweep all three seats! "Now our children have some hope for their future. Way to go girls"!
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Chris' Answers to the Hoboken Reporter:
Please tell us why you are more qualified than your opponents:
I bring to the citizens of Hoboken, an opportunity to vote for a true independent. The independent voice, unburdened with loyalties to Hoboken's traditional power structure that have put us in the position we are in today: over taxed and under the receivership of a state monitor who is doing the work our elected officials should have been doing, if they were doing their job. An "anything goes" attitude has permeated City Hall for far too long. I will analyze Hoboken’s budget responsibly and rationally determining where changes, improvements & cuts can be made. I will carefully consider development, seeking cooperation with developers willing to work for the betterment of Hoboken and not just for their own personal gains. My extensive experience in the financial industry, combined with my education in government, makes me uniquely qualified to understand the complexities and challenges facing Hoboken today and to offer viable solutions.
What do you think is the most pressing problem facing Hoboken right now and how do you propose to solve it?
Many agree, the most important issue facing Hoboken is our financial situation. Overspending, or not spending responsibly, has resulted in increased taxes. We risk the very real possibility of eroding our tax base; people moving out and others hesitant to move in. To responsibly cut taxes we must cut our budget.
80% of the budget comes from personnel. It is incumbent upon us to look at the possibility of renegotiating salaries, benefit packages, vacation time, and force size without compromising services and safety to our town.
While gradual reductions need to be implemented, I refuse to support any of the state monitor's recent layoffs. No one can possibly know whether attrition or layoffs will provide the best answer without the necessary data. The answer lies in the completed audits performed by the state monitor. I renew my call on the state monitor to release the audits to the public.
What makes Hoboken great?
Hoboken's charming small city character is what continues to draw people in. Many come for just a day to enjoy our parks and patronize our businesses. Others like me have come to live and stay. We must zealously protect this small city tradition in order to thrive and prosper.
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Chris' Vision for Hoboken
The current financial crisis has hit this country hard and has hit Hoboken even harder. Hoboken's tax base relies heavily on jobs from the financial services industry and many of those positions no longer exist. In these times everyone needs to tighten their belt and City Hall needs to do the same. Instead we have a budget that has exploded from $50 million to over $120 million in the last eight years.
As your next City Councilman I promise to reign in this out of control spending and the patronage and cronyism that has caused it. We must insist on a budget that is as lean as possible. The people of Hoboken need tax relief and I am running to see that we get it. The recent $4.2mm fine for failure to adhere to NJ state regulations and the fact that no one was held accountable for this action demonstrates why we need someone from outside the current power structure to fix it. We were lucky to get state approval to pay out last year's $11mm hidden overspending over 7 years, otherwise our taxes would have gone up even more. Yet we will pay for this ineptitude into the future.
Please take a look at my questionnaire and see if you agree with my ideals on Hoboken's future. We are always looking for new people to join our team. It's time to restore honesty, integrity and commitment to Hoboken.
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For too long the people of Hoboken have been living in a town filled with a "good ol boy" network. Too many people have multiple public sector jobs, some probably no show.
This leads to multiple pensions and the unsustainable benefits. We have all seen how one shot real estate gimmicks, sweetheart PILOT payments and corruption have negatively impacted our budget, taxes and just as important, the thing makes Hoboken unique - our once small city character. It's time for a change. Join my team and let's put the people of Hoboken and not the politicians back in charge of our common destiny.
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| Chris at City Hall |
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Here is Chris Carbine’s Response to Judy Tripodi’s Extension of FXFOWLE sent on April 29th:
FROM: CHRIS CARBINE CAMPAIGN for CITY COUNCIL
As a candidate for City Council, I want to go on record as opposing Judy Tripodi’s decision to maintain FXFOWLE as the architect for the New Jersey Transit Redevelopment Zone. Their experience is solely in building large-scale skyscrapers.
This is not in keeping with the scale and small town feel of Hoboken. The large-scale project being considered would create a very dangerous and congested traffic flow on Observer Highway. Hoboken’s Redevelopment Agency is the City Council, not an unelected official. In addition, the citizen’s of Hoboken absolutely need to be involved in any project which would have a questionable impact on Hoboken. The citizen’s concerns and requests must be taken into consideration when considering all future planning & development.
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