The Hoboken City Council unanimously appointed Hovie Forman to a five-year term on the city’s housing authority on Wednesday, but only after two of the three other candidates for the position got into heated discussions with the board.Â
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While perennial local candidate for office Pat Waiters gave her speech in front of the board, she reignited her feud with Councilman-at-Large David Mello – who also sits on the HHA board – once again insinuating that he was racist.
Waiters also took umbrage with the fact that none of the council members returned her phone calls after she submitted her housing authority application.
Mello later addressed the ongoing friction between himself and Waiters.
Another candidate, Melissa Blanco, a late entrant for the unpaid position, said the council is long overdue in putting an independent voice on the HHA – accusing the administration of stacking the local boards.
After her time to speak was up, Blanco and Council President Jen Giattino got into a brief argument over whether or not she could continue.
Joe Branco, a local bar owner who grew up in the housing authority, gave his remarks without any incidents with the council. After mulling it over, the council voted 8-0 (2nd Ward Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher was absent) to add Forman, a former special needs bus driver for the city’s board of education, to the HHA until May 3, 2021.
He replaces longtime commissioner Rob Davis and joins LaTrenda Ross – who was appointed by Mayor Dawn Zimmer – and took her seat at the May 19 meeting.
News correspondent Katherine Guest contributed to this report.