Hoboken City Council: Flooding is Bad, But We’re Not Going to Fix It

Back in December, the Hoboken City Council voted unanimously to move forward on the funding for an H-5 wet weather pump. Everyone congratulated each other on their visionary, unified stance to boldly come out against flooding…

…but that resolve has since wavered.

In a meeting last night, the Hoboken City Council failed to secure the 6 votes needed to pass the funding for the pump—a pump with a capacity of 40 million gallons per day featuring a built-in emergency generator, that would alleviate flooding in western Hoboken, including the area around ShopRite. The pump was to be financed by an $11.9 million low-interest loan from the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust, which includes 19% principal forgiveness.

The vote came up 5-2, with five for the pump and two against the pump, with two councilpersons seemingly unable to attend the meeting.

Mayor Dawn Zimmer has called for a special meeting of the Hoboken City Council to allow all members of the Council to vote. The meeting will take place in City Hall Council Chambers on Monday, February 23, 2015 at 7:00pm.

If you’re a Hobokenite who is against the whole idea of flooding—or, out of fairness, even if you’re passionately pro-flooding—now might be a good time to reach out to your councilperson and let him or her know how you feel.