In a letter to the editor, Debbie Jacobus and Bob Conrad urge 5th Ward voters to elect Liz Urtecho ‘to move Hoboken in a better direction.”
Dear Editor,
As committed, long term residents, we are supporting Liz Urtecho as our 5th Ward Council Representative because we have growing concerns with the way our City is being run, and believe that leadership changes are in order to move Hoboken in a better direction.
The “rat issue” is simply the most recent example of the Bhalla Administration, and its hand-chosen council majority, downplaying an issue until it becomes TOO big to ignore – then patting themselves on the back for belatedly coming up with a solution.
Good leaders look around corners, anticipate problems and develop ways to prevent them before they reach crisis stage.
Transparency is such a buzzword in modern organizations, and yet our City Government continues to operate behind closed doors; outsourcing our Rec Soccer Program with little notice (and at a vastly increased expense to taxpayers) and engaging an architect for a project without owning the property – or notifying some members of the Council ahead of time.
The “surveys” we get fed are incomplete, containing no information regarding cost, timeline, disruption to the residents or alternatives. It’s not enough to say, “the majority of residents want X” when you’ve given them no context.
At a recent debate, the current 5th Ward councilman tried to explain away the numerous lawsuits the City is facing by noting that we live in a “litigious” society which, in typical fashion, deflects accountability from the Administration he votes with 99% of the time.
Too much (NY Waterway project, the development on the cliffs, cannabis approvals, etc.) has been pushed forward with a seeming lack of foresight, an abundance of arrogance and plenty of political self-interest, opening the administration to repeated and costly litigation.
The budget continues to be a concern, with multiple newly created positions, project cost overruns and increased legal fees.
The administration is quick to highlight the merits of the NW Resiliency Park, which we agree is a wonderful addition to our City, but never in their communication do you hear that the price tag for this park was over $90 million, against an initial budget of roughly $50 million, which comes at taxpayer expense. And this is just one example.
Liz Urtecho is someone we have known for over 20 years and is exactly the kind of leader, and individual, we need to represent the 5th Ward.
Liz is a person of unwavering integrity, who will “think with her head and act with her heart,” always advocating for transparency and accountability in our City Government.
She is smart, passionate, and hard working. Whether it’s an effort to combat the rat problem or control the budget, we know Liz will approach these issues with intelligence, common sense, and compassion.
For Liz, this Council seat is all about serving the public, not positioning herself for a career in politics.
Getting “back to basics,” she will advocate for quality-of-life issues such as pedestrian safety, responsible development and education, points that today are being made as sound bites – not for the greater, long term public good.
We have no doubt that when elected, Liz will represent her constituents well and always do what is right and best for the City of Hoboken.
We will be proudly voting for Liz in November and strongly encourage our 5th Ward friends and neighbors to do the same.
Sincerely,
Debbie Jacobus and Bob Conrad
Hoboken
5th Ward Residents