Every now and then something flies right over GA's head- whoosh! like a rocket.
This time it was the developer's fee for the Vision 20/20 redevelopment of the HHA. Somehow, I missed the fact that the $1,000,000 fee was for just one building- until someone brought it to my attention yesterday.
A $1,000,000 fee for ONE BUILDING!
And there are 19 more according to the Vision 20/20 Concept Plan.
At that rate, that's a projected $20,000,000 developer's fee.
You may think of this $20,000,000 as public money- it is. Or as $20,000,000 squeezed from the project itself- money that could be used for the buildings or landscaping or playground equipment. It is.
GA thinks of the $20,000,00 as a big, roast turkey to be carved up among many. The ones screaming the loudest- like we heard on Wednesday night- are worried their plates will stay empty.
But that's just for starters. Because every building involves the awarding of multiple contracts: plumbing, electrical, mechanical, steel, windows, doors, drywall, mill work, painting, flooring elevators, and on and on.
And a private developer is not required to reveal who gets contracts and their amounts. So the public will never know.
You get it? This Vision 20/20 is a cash cow in the magnitude of perhaps a 100 million dollars for the players.
Executive Director Carmelo Garcia is pulling out all stops to 'deliver' the project (GA wonders what, if any, his direction of Vision 20/20 played into his selection for the HCDO Assembly ticket), the urgency to throw Stuiver off and replace him with a friend (she works with Garcia's wife at HOPES), the inflammatory race-baiting rhetoric (Garcia called Forde P. a "racist" on Wednesday night- off camera)...
And Mike Russo and Tim Occhipinti are flailing like drowning men. Calling a colleague a "Klu Klux Klan" member, a "joke", flinging insults at Reform colleagues like monkeys chucking turds at the zoo. Why do you think they're so desperate?
In the closing minutes of Wednesday's meeting, Timmy says:
That's all you need to know about where Timmy's concern lies.
Not with the people of the HHA who are about to get fleeced by piggies lined up for substantial public monies squeezed from their buildings.
And Russo, Timmy call the people- reformers- who want to protect them and the integrity of the project "racists".
They are desperate. Using race as a wedge is just the latest example of how they exploit African Americans who live in the HHA buildings to construct this latest stop on their gravy train.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, Church Towers, Marine View, the Clock Tower have no African Americans and Applied only has Latinos and one African American - Patricia Waiters. In all of her many, many rental units, does Castellano have ANY African American tenants?
Bhalla, the only minority on the council ironically pointed out their ridiculous charge, which flew over their bald and processed heads.
But there is another person of color on the council: Mason. She's a certain shade of grey, with yellow teeth and bleached hair. Very colorful, and with her claim to several ethnic heritage groups and faiths, she could justifiably claim to be a minority - there is no one else like her - thank god!
The race card is an empty shirt since Hoboken is an equal opportunity employer. Just note the diverse make-up of the
ReplyDeleteParking Utility enforcers and part-time school crossing guards. Such employees will not bite the hand that feeds them. By the way, they vote.
The following is just one bloggers personal opinion:
ReplyDeleteOf course vision 20/20 is why CG got the assembly seat. Stack needs a new way to raise money since the State forced Union City to pass a real pay to play law as a condition to continuing to receive the almost $20 million in supplemental State aid that keeps Union City afloat and funds Stack's patronage mill.
Stack was ready to sell the seat to Mason for cash but got cold feat when parallels were pointed out to the attempted sale of Obama's Senate seat that got the Governor of Illinois thrown in jail.
So Plan B became circumventing UC's Pay to Play by handing out vision 20/20 contracts to those willing to help Senator Stack pay off his almost $1 million campaign debt left over from 2007. The guy is such a deadbeat he owes Dunkin Donuts $50,000. Now that's a lot of Donuts.
Now Stack get's Carmelo, no cash, and a Jersey City Mayor who has good reason to want some payback for the shoddy way he was treated by Mr. Stack.
Overall - not a good week for the (literally) poor Senator.
Very interesting commentary on Stack. Fulop has good reason to and will go after Mark Smith, Bayonne even harder.
DeleteVery interesting, Anon. So under your scenario, contracts were divvied up with the presumption that Vision 20/20 would go according to plan. What then if it doesn't? Then I suppose Stack winds up with 'bupkis'.
DeleteOr without bubkus whichever is less.
DeleteBubkis = 'zilch'.
DeleteI heard that they sent 3 bus loads of tenants to HUD with petition on Friday. Dawn is playing with fire and their votes can hurt her in the election. The old school crew is playing their card right.
ReplyDeleteIs this the same HUD that is investigating HHA's misappropriation of federal funds under Garcia? Is this the same HUD that will want to know how and why this unnecessary project is being railroaded through? Is this the same HUD that will be interested in learning about no-bid contracts awarded to certain "professionals"? That HUD? Let them get to know their residents better. It will only help derail this gravy train.
DeleteAgree, Oracle. The residents can't raise enough red flags over at HUD. Next time let the 'old school crew' send 4 busloads.
DeleteHopefully HUD will send a rep to an HHA meetings where they'll get an eyeful. HUD will see that the Executive Director runs the HHA Board, and not the other way around. HUD will see that basic information about who lives in the buildings, who works for the ED, who has contracts and for how much, etc. is kept hidden from his supervisory board.
Who paid for the buses?