Liz Urtecho, the founder of the Hoboken for Responsible Cannabis Inc., has announced she plans on challenging 5th Ward Councilman Phil Cohen this fall.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“I am excited to announce that I am running to be elected as Hoboken’s 5th Ward Councilwoman in November,” Urtecho said.
“Many of my 5th Ward neighbors have approached me desperate for new leadership who will listen and better address their concerns about issues such as increased development, pedestrian safety, the need to invest in our schools and rising taxes. It’s been with their overwhelming support that I have decided to run for city council.”
She and her husband, Erik, have lived in Hoboken for 30 years where they have raised their four children.
Liz worked in the finance industry for over a decade where she specialized in financial reporting, budgeting, and project management prior to staying home full-time with her family.
In October, Hoboken for Responsible Cannabis, Inc. filed a legal challenge against the planning board’s approval of the Blue Violets dispensary and the case is still pending.
“Liz is a person of enormous integrity, who will add a breath of fresh air to our council; an independent, community-minded public servant who is entirely motivated by doing what is right for her neighbors,” noted 5th Ward residents Deb Jacobus and Bob Conrad.
“It is time to begin changing the fabric and character of our council – and we believe Liz Urtecho will be an essential first step in that direction.”
She is also coming out the gate with an endorsement from Cohen’s predecessor, Peter Cunningham, who retired at the end of 2019 after three terms in office.
“Liz is a dedicated community leader, who is a trusted neighbor. She will bring a much needed common sense approach to all legislative matters for the diverse needs of the 5th Ward,” he stated.
“As already proven, Liz will ask the right questions in order to get to the best solutions. She will work hard and be a strong voice for the 5th Ward in City Hall.”
Urtecho will host a campaign kick-off fundraiser on March 9th at 7 p.m. at the Kolo Klub, the same venue where Cohen launched his re-election bid in December after a recall effort fizzled out.
Cohen was the sole member of Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla’s slate to get elected in 2019 and has already received his backing again.
The non-partisan Hoboken ward council races are on November 7th.
Thus far, the only other candidate that has announced a challenge to an incumbent is Paul Presinzano, who declared last month that he would take on 1st Ward Councilman Mike DeFusco.
Go Liz, go! Hoboken needs more grassroots independent voices and character. Truly.
Urtecho’s Hoboken for Responsible Cannabis Inc. is incorporated with NJ Dept of Treasury or a Political Action Committee filed with NJ Election Law Enforcement Commission? What is it?
Whatever, she’s another finger wagging elitist NIMBY. Hoboken needs more weed shops, less bars.
Excited for some new voices in our city government. You’ve got my support, Liz.
No thanks. Phil works his butt off, holds open meetings for constituents once a week. I’ll take experience over a NIMBY elitist who cries because a weed shop is too close to Whitetopia.
More weed shops, less bars!
So is AOC, no matter how hard Vijay and Ravi tried to torpoedo her campaign.
Hoboken is mostly white residents. Are you daft?
BOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!
She has lost all of her complaints via countless letters and lawsuits…..
Mr Cohen is more interested in pushing the far left Democrat liberal political agenda than the needs and best interest of the residents of the 5th Ward.
such as??
He did try to build a 300mil
HS and assess a special tax ordinance on the northwest of Hoboken.
One BOE member is already attacking Liz for opposing the failed Football Stadium on JFK Field.
These people don’t even know how many genders there are but spend like drunken sailors. Endorsing that BOE Ice Rink Monument was ghastly. Time to start anew.
Hoboken did not embrace the book-banning, anti-vax crazies on Pavel’s slate. They lost bigly. Voters did not care about the old defeated HHS referendum. No one does anymore, if they did the Moms For Liberty slate would have won. Your “pendulum” has not swung back. It never will.
Instead of picking on pronouns used by others, isn’t time you galloped out of the closet?
you can take your pathological fixation on pronouns and stickem where sun dont shine
I’m sorry, your comment does not compute. Please list all your pronouns and genders, all 10 of them.
Friends of the Hoboken Moms still in shambles I see that they didn’t get to grift their way into a 300mil HS. Still gotta resort to BS and smears to get your way Nancy?
you make a baseless accusation for the zillionth time about the “terror flyer” and then bitch about smears?
don’t worry – the question about how dumb you are is rhetorical. we all know you don’t know how dumb you are.
They ain’t the dumb one Syb, you are. Just ask your favorite Ravi union. You think you are arguing with one person but it’s not a classified secret. What a a moron.
Phil will have to increase his parties and gifts to residents the senior buildings to get them to vote for him again.
Someone’s about to find out that many of her neighbors are among the overwhelming majority of voters who support access to safe & legal cannabis.
Actually, so does Ms. Urtecho – note the words “for Responsible Cannabis…..” in her newsletters and bio. She has opposed placing a dispensary across the street from a school and has also opposed having one located in a densely populated neighborhood as a form of political cronyism.
what else is she running on besides complaining about weed?
She is NOT the current Councilman and that could well be enough for many voters
From what I understand, she is running on a platform that includes representing her constituents – more than can be said of the current 5th Ward (“Yes, Mayor…”) Councilman.
you have not given one concrete answer, so you dont understand. Blind faith hmmmmm
She supports Village, Terrapin, and the Jersey Joint, bonehead. The hell do people get this info??
what else besides weed knuckle head?? What is the diversity of her platform she runs on??
the spin that she is anti-cannabis simply isn’t true. It’s unfortunate that so many people are unaware of all of the corruption around the process in this town (Fulop!). That is what the lawsuits are about. There will be plenty of access to weed and her group is not in the way of any of the other shops. There are several others that are in process without opposition. However, Phil’s supporters are going to keep pushing the anti-weed narrative because it is the only way for him to keep votes.
sore looser.
This woman has lived in Hoboken for 30 years and the only issue that got her out of her white, rich, private school clique was legal weed. Looks like one issue Karen to me.
Hoboken probably isn’t the right town to bash someone for being white, rich, and sending their kids to private school, have you ever walked around uptown? Try Jersey City instead
Im white and agree with the persons accurate comment about Liz “Karen” and definitely not jealous.
Heaven forbid a weed shop should pop up too close to Whitetopia… “Those people” will be lining up outside! Hide the children!
If Liz is so perfect for the job, she could easily find a solution for all the water main breaks to diversify her portfolio which only contains weed complaints.
Everyone starts somewhere. This woman is willing to fight for what she believes in. I see her at the City Council meetings every week now. She speaks well, is her own person, and is not part of the established political set. That is all good. You have to start somewhere and she started with the drive for responsible cannibis to be sold in appropriate places in town.
You can pick all you want, but she has my support and many, many more in the 5th Ward. Being in town 30 years helps tremendously because she has seen the problems mount and now she wants to help with the 5th Ward’s problems and the problems that are becoming numerous all over our over-crowded city.
I am pleased she stepped up and I thank her. As I said before, she has my support and my vote.
she can start with keeping so many businesses from being boarded up
Of course she’s attending meetings NOW, everyone does that when they are running for office, especially now with the free video exposure it offers. Where was she for the past 29 years? No issues important enough to get her off her uptown comfy chair and chardonnay? Mary, you’ve been in Hoboken for at least that long: did you just meet her? You say she is “willing to fight for what she believes in.” Looks to me like a campaign driven by NIMBYism.
Everyone starts somewhere. This woman is willing to fight for what she believes in. I see her at the City Council meetings every meeting now. She is her own person when she has spoken to the council as I have witnessed. She thinks for herself and is not part of the established political set. That is all good. You have to start somewhere and she started with the drive for responsible cannibis and has advocated for it to be sold in appropriate-located places in town.
Being in town 30 years helps tremendously because she has seen how the town has evolved and how problems have mounted and now she wants to help with the 5th Ward’s problems and the problems that are becoming numerous all over our over-crowded town.
I am pleased she has stepped up and I thank her for that. She has my support and my vote.
Seems a very small minority are the select few complaining. Using the school as a issue were no real complaints are stemming from. There is liquor store next the the school. Where is her crusade in kicking them out???? She is cherry picking one none issue.