Hoboken Council-at-Large candidate Cheryl Fallick, a member of the Independently Together team, is laying out her plan to addressing housing insecurities in the Mile Square City.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“Housing insecurities have gone unaddressed for too long in Hoboken and we are at risk of losing all of our economic diversity. Rent control and affordable housing laws are both controversial topics. I know that. One less dollar paid in rent is one less dollar received in rent,” Fallick said in a statement.
“But most don’t realize that without our laws, Hoboken would not be affordable for most residents, not just those on the lower end of the income scale.”
A member of the rent leveling and stabilization board, Fallick called on the Mayor Ravi Bhalla administration to reverse the defunding of the rent leveling office, which she says is still short staffed after the council allocated funds with a summer budget amendment.
She also is calling for a push to get an accurate inventory on all rent-protected properties, move rent leveling records and operations online, continue to fund and collaborate with the city’s tenant advocate, and double the current affordable housing requirement (from 10 percent to 20 percent).
Furthermore, she wants to ensure wait listing and tenant selection are fair and open processes, developing a funding source to rehabilitate, preserve, and/or build affordable housing, and implement a Community Land Trust – among other initiatives.
She also made a commitment to providing better support for residents of the Hoboken Housing Authority.
“There is no voice in our local government that prioritizes or has the experience to address this critical issue impacting so many of our residents,” Fallick added.
“All Hoboken residents need and deserve a City Council representative that has spent years researching ways to address housing affordability and who has been offering solutions to meet the need and stem our decades-long ongoing displacement.”
In response, Team Bhalla spokesman Rob Horowitz said the mayor has a strong commitment to affordable housing and the rent leveling office.
“Hoboken increased funding for the tenant advocate in 2020 by more than 300% from the year before ($28,766 to $90,357). This is the first line of defense when people have housing issues and the advice and representation is paid for by the city,” he said.
“A restructuring and bolstering of how the city handles affordable housing is well underway with the establishment of the new Division of Housing and later this week a new employee will be added to the rent control office to help with support, organization and modernization of the office. That being said, implying that the rent control office has somehow ceased to function is misleading at best.”
The non-partisan Hoboken municipal elections are on November 2nd, where Bhalla has no opponent and 10 council-at-large candidates are vying over three seats.
Says the real estate agent…
Yet, as Ms Fallick claims to have fought for affordable housing she never complains about the conditions in the projects, the wealthy getting into marine view or why there are no minorities in rent controlled apartments east of willow
I understand Councilwoman Fisher was once again caught flat footed when looking for someone to run last minute on her anti-Bhalla ticket and desperate she turned to her long time camp follower to fill the spot.
After all Ms Fallick owes her a huge political payback for changing the rules to find an appointed Board spot to pad resume and try to rationalize her years of ranting and raving in front of the City Council about how horrible a place is Hoboken.
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“All right, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my close-up.”
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I think she’s great.
Lets not forget how she ranted and railed against the city helping homeless veterans.
Since Ms Fallick has $4000 cash on hand to lend her campaign, she certainly isn’t in need on an apartment that’s way under market.
Nice she chooses to take a place that probably is only $800, but maybe Hoboken wouldn’t have a “Housing Insecurity” if people like Fallick weren’t taking up housing the poor should have and not upper income cash solvent folks like her and Brennan who are a out of touch with current Hoboken and never ever speak on behalf of the TRULY poor that cant even get a SRO room here.
Seems like Finally after 4 decades here she wants to help the people in public housing ?
Was more interested in those with brownstone apartments paying 400 a month while minorities were ignored by that tenant association
Looking the other way on a certain building still?
Such is the housing crisis that Ms Fallick didn’t have a meeting as chairwoman because someone reported she supposedly “didn’t have a computer that worked with zoom…”
Looks like crew Bhalla is really scared of Cheryl. I see lots of insider baseball in these attempts to smear her in these comments. That shows me how much the developers in Hoboken are behind crew Bhalla. I don’t think its going to work. I think she’s got a good chance and Hoboken really needs her.
Do the two licensed real estate agents (Fallick and Brennan sell condos together) never sell things built by developers?
So developers must love them.
Your homes were built by developers they didn’t grow grown brown sandstone
Smear? Seems to me people are just talking about what she’s done or not done. telling the truth. Is she a real estate agent, yes or no? Did she go a year without holding a meeting, yes or no?
So she had $4000 to run for office
But not for a computer to do the rent control job she begged so hard for to get.
The city council had to find her a free laptop that had a working camera…
It’s all public record
+Licensed Real Estate Agent ( on state of NJ Website)
CHECK
+ Got free laptop ( 2020 Council meeting discussion)
CHECK
+ 1/2 a year with no rent control meeting
( see City Clerk records)
CHECK
+ Gave $4000 CASH to her campaign
( NJELEC reports )
CHECK
Seems the facts aren’t painting as altruistic a picture of this holier than thou candidate
Don’t we have enough conflicts that we need a team on the council who also do private business with each other too?
Do you think a real estate agent can’t be a housing justice activist? Seriously?
Not this one since she didn’t hold any Rent control board meetings via zoom during COVID
Wasn’t there a housing crisis in the last 18 months too?
Or was she relying on her cancel the rent pals ?
Not that one
Her two godmothers on the council never called for any of this accounting
One has to wonder does she have the two councilwomen under her thumb or is it the other way around?
Why would she have such unwavering loyalty to them if the city council who can do all that’s she’s asking for NOW…hasn’t done it in 8 plus years?
Do we need 2 more council that don’t have full time jobs?
Hope all candidates disclose their incomes and whether they got bailout checks and loans
I would love to know how many homes all candidates own, their income sources and if they ever do business with each other ?
There’s more foreclosures since pandemic than evictions.
Years ago I heard Ms. Fallick say that years before that she had saved enough for a down payment to buy a condo but decided not to buy because her rent controlled deal was so sweet. Then prices went up and she got priced out.
I wonder how big that wad of savings is now given how much less she’s paid in rent over the years than she could afford. Rent control has certainly been good for Ms. Fallick.
Fallick is a symbol of standing tall for our community. We need a councilperson who will be firm with developers and not let our community get stiffed.
Nice pun… it’s still bigotry. Rent Control is not a protected class but the disability pun you are attacking is.
Endorsed by Republican Council members and Right Wing Blogger The Hoboken Horse… No thanks!
We dont need that
When radical left win
https://www.npr.org/2021/10/22/1046154251/they-refused-to-pay-rent-and-stole-the-fridge-landlords-deal-with-pandemic-squat?utm_campaign=later-linkinbio-npr&utm_content=later-21655464&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkin.bio