DeFusco-Fisher campaign stunt threatens public school givebacks

In the first campaign stunt of the 2019 election season, First Ward Councilman Mike DeFusco and 2nd Ward Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher appear to be targeting previously negotiated hotel-givebacks for traditional public and charter schools, totaling $1.484 million dollars.     

Announced yesterday,  DeFusco promised a resolution before the City Council to take monies away from the hotel givebacks to pay for a waterfront camera surveillance system.  Councilwoman Fisher told Hudson County View that his idea was "great."

DeFusco failed to state a project scope or budget required for his camera proposal. 

Meanwhile, HPD Chief Ken  Ferrante, whose HPD is smarting from the Fisher-Defusco $105,000 public safety budget cut told Hudson County View, "Cameras used for law enforcement are very expensive... The seven waterfront cameras purchased with a grant in 2013 cost $177,000 and annually we incur some $10-20,000 in data storage costs and maintenance and service agreement costs. That is just for seven cameras."

Note: DeFusco-Fisher's HPD cuts include $10,000 in service agreements the police use to monitor the camera surveillance equipment.  Did they know this?

Also note, the $75,000 DeFusco-Fisher cut from "police vehicles" was earmarked for motorcycles- the fastest mode of transportation HPD can use to respond to emergencies; emergencies like a person jumping in the Hudson River. 

Cameras are a great investigative tool, but they will not respond to an emergency; an officer on a motorcycle will.

So why did the incumbent council zero out "police vehicles"?  It appears to me, this cut was a childish swipe at Ferrante and City Hall for the Mayor's security expenditures.  Even though our mayor still receives death threats,  immature and vindictive officials appear to have used  their budgetary powers for a cheap shot. Which in turn, has deprived the HPD of vehicles to keep the public safe. (Please people, vote them out.)

One more thing!

The DeFusco-Fisher campaign stunt ignores that last March, a Hudson  County Superior Court judge ruled against allowing the  City's givebacks. Which means that when DeFusco-Fisher announced the stunt, there were no givebacks to pay for their promise!

WHICH GIVEBACKS GET REDUCED TO PAY FOR COUNCIL STUNT?  
Let's assume that the $4.85M in hotel givebacks are salvaged from the dumpster....  GA hears that City Hall is working on it.

Which would giveback would DeFusco and Fisher reduce to pay for their waterfront camera system? 

• The $2 M to revitalize the former Hoboken YMCA at 1301 Washington Street?  The revitalization includes a municipal pool, an uptown branch of the Hoboken Public Library, and additional classroom space for the Hoboken Public Schools 
• $1.165 M  towards infrastructure upgrades? 
• $1 M to the Hoboken Public Education Foundation? 
• $484,000 to the (3) Hoboken Charter Schools?
• $200,000 into Hoboken’s Affordable Housing Trust?

DeFusco and Fisher have some 'splainin' to do.   

Because the givebacks pot isn't growing. The money for a new camera system has to come from somewhere.  So how about telling the public which negotiated giveback gets reduced under their proposal.  And make sure that reduction is identified  in any DeFusco-Fisher resolution that appears at the Hoboken City Council. 

OPINION: LIKELY TARGET FOR CUTS ARE HOBOKEN PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Why does GA say this?

Let me remind you of the statement signed by ALL five incumbent ward council candidate's urging reduction of the giveback to the Hoboken Public Education Fund:

"The subcommittee recommends broadening the scope of the $3 million while still including both HPEF and HCC as recipients by supporting the education mandate but expand to include all public schools including charter schools”

It is clear that the council recommended to increase the scope of the [initial] $3 Million in givebacks, which would have divided the $1M HPEF grant among all districts- traditional public and charter.

The backlash was immediate. Only after scathing public rebuke,  the 5-member Hotel Council Subcommittee (Fisher, DeFusco, Giattino, Ramos and Cunningham) lobbied the developer for additional monies for charters.   But this council's first instinct was to reduce a giveback earmarked for Hoboken District Schools. Don't forget it.

Further, the incumbents' animus toward the Mayor-- who is a big supporter of traditional public schools and the HPEF--  make me believe that school givebacks will be cut- traditional and charter this time-- for the optics of fairness.

We'll see.