Category: Politics

‘Who cares?’ Wainstein camp implies Mocco involvement

On By Mackensie AlvarezIn Politics

Early Saturday morning HudPost received another photo of Joseph Mocco, former township clerk who was sent to prison for official misconduct and illegal dumping, in front of the Larry Wainstein’s official headquarters.

In an earlier response, Larry’s spokesperson skirted Mocco’s involvement, “At the time of his [Mocco] arrest…Larry Wainstein was 14 years old.”

In a brief telling response Wainstein’s spokesperson replied with a simple “Who cares?” when we attempted to ask for clarification on whether Mocco is officially working with Wainstein’s camp.

It seems that Larry is done answering questions about the former township clerks involvement, and wants to stick to what he calls the “real issues in this campaign.”

So when it comes to Mocco/Wainstein- who cares?

Wainstein-Mocco-Sacco: Who’s the man in the middle?

On By Mackensie AlvarezIn PoliticsLeave a comment

For the average HudPost reader, Nicholas J. Sacco has been the only North Bergen mayor you know. George H. W. Bush was president of the United States the last time North Bergen was in the hands of different leadership. Even then, Sacco served on the board of commissioners.

So why are we telling you this?

Because, believe it or not, there was once a different mayor – one of the more “recent” being Peter Mocco. Someone you may know for developments in Jersey City such as Zeppelin Hall, rather than political history in North Bergen.

Peter Mocco was the mayor of North Bergen from 1971 to 1979, but it’s his brother, Joseph Mocco, who was touted as being the political mastermind behind it all.

Or so the legend goes…

Peter Mocco was beat by Anthony DeVincent in the 1979 North Bergen election. But, by 1983, the township was in dire shape. For example, a state report said that the township had overspent its budget by $2.3 million, and labeled the township as having “gross failure of management.”

This is when then the Sacco-Mocco connection takes place. Joseph Mocco, the driving political force, formed a successful recall movement against DeVincent in 1985. Leading Mocco’s handpicked, winning ticket was Leo Gattoni, who became the mayor, and a school principal by the name of Nicholas J. Sacco.

On August 7, 1986, the walls came tumbling down on Joe Mocco. He and nine others were arrested on charges of illegally dumping tons of construction debris from New York on sites in North Bergen, North Arlington and Newark.

Mocco was found guilty of second degree conspiracy to commit racketeering, second degree bribery, and official misconduct. He was sentenced to twenty years in prison and fined $200,000, ordered to make restitution in the sum of $56,300, and assessed a total Violent Crimes Compensation Board penalty of $90.

While Mocco was in prison, Sacco became mayor after the 1991 election. But now Larry Wainstein seeks to replace him… or is it Joe Mocco?

In the early 2000s a young fellow by the name of Larry Wainstein purchases Tonnelle Liquors, in the K-Mart on Tonnelle Avenue, in North Bergen. He bought the store and the liquor license from John Stalknecht, who was an aide for North Bergen Commissioner Frank Gargiulo.

But there was one thing Wainstein didn’t know.

During the time of the purchase, North Bergen reached a deal with a developer of the retail space where Tonnelle Liquors was located. The deal was for them to first build a new shopping center and replace the existing location with what is now Home Depot.

“I had no knowledge of a plan being in place. You would think that someone would let us know,” Wainstein is quoted in the 2004 Hudson Reporter article covering his lawsuit against the township.

And so begins the infamous Wainstein-Sacco feud.

Fast-forward to 2019, and “Mocco is a presence at Wainstein headquarters” is all over your social media newsfeed…(or just us?)

Wainstein refutes the notion that the infamous political leader Joseph Mocco has any official connection to his campaign. (But, he does; we can confirm.)

“I meet literally thousands of people. He has been in my office, just like thousands of people,” Wainstein is quoted in the report. “I don’t run background checks on the people I shake hands with.”

However, these claims go back as far as 2015. Remember the Shady Bunch video?

Or the time that Wainstein-backed, BOE candidate Jose Canonico said that Joe Mocco has “consulting value” and has “helped us a lot.”

In May 2019, voters will decide if Wainstein can casually cohort with a character such as Mocco or not.

As for what Sacco thinks of all this?

“…Unlike Larry, pictures don’t lie. Every North Bergen resident should be outraged that Larry Wainstein not only has been caught lying to all of us, but that he would associate himself with a criminal like Joe Mocco… Mocco is one of the most notoriously corrupt politicians in New Jersey history and anyone who willingly works with him should be absolutely disqualified from public office.”

Sure there’s a lot more to this story, but we’d have to a write a book….seriously, would anyone want to buy it?

Here we are, two men with personal vendettas against the current administration are leading the opposition, and here we have to pretend it’s about public pool prices and school books.

At HudPost, it disheartens us when we are labeled as a Sacco-leaning or Wainstein-leaning because we do our best to be fair and bring you the facts as they are. We reached out to Wainstein’s office but fell on deaf ears. So here’s a public invite to Larry to have a discussion.

UPDATE: Sat, Feb 9, 7:36 PM

Wainstein camp reached out to us with this response: “At the time of his arrest, Nick Sacco was Joe Mocco’s direct supervisor. Larry Wainstein was 14 years old. The real issues in this campaign: Sacco relatives paid 200 grand a year, Sacco’s schools among the worst in New Jersey, 15 law firms and PR firm earning as much as 1.3 million a year from North Bergen tax payer dollars.”

#Politics

North Bergen School Reorganization Delayed Due to Wainstein Appeal

On By Mackensie AlvarezIn Politics

The North Bergen school reorganization plan of acquiring the former High Tech High School site to build a new joint High School campus, making major renovations and reducing class sizes district-wide has been delayed.

Larry Wainstein, North Bergen mayoral candidate, is appealing a lost court decision against the North Bergen Board of Education.

“The current proposal is not only bad for North Bergen, it is dangerous to the children who have to walk and commute too a school on Tonnelle Avenue,” writes Wainstein. “Under the cloak of darkness, Sacco held an election in the middle of December to approve $60 million in school bonds.”

The lawsuit claims the election was not properly noticed, but that was denied in the judge’s ruling.

Township voters overwhelmingly supported a public referendum on the plan in December, with 74% voting in favor of it.

“We know Larry Wainstein clearly doesn’t care about our schools because his children live with him in Franklin Lakes and don’t attend them,” said Freeholder Anthony Vainieri, the Chairman of the Sacco Team 2019 Campaign. “This lawsuit has no basis in reality and the only thing Wainstein will accomplish with it is making our kids wait months longer for these important school improvements to be made.”

“We are preventing North Bergen from illegally absconding with $60 million dollars in funds,” says Wainstein’s attorney Mario Blanc. “The referendum was unclear, illegally done, and in violation of all the bonding laws in the State of New Jersey.”

HudPost’s 3rd Annual Power List

On By Mackensie AlvarezIn PoliticsLeave a comment

HudPost’s 2019 North Bergen Power List focuses on the pending transition of power within the North Bergen political machine. “Power” is defined by influence, popularity, and leverage.

This is HudPost’s third annual North Bergen Power List.

1. Nicholas Sacco, Senator & Mayor

What can be written about Sacco that already hasn’t? He’ll more than likely keep his mayoral seat after the votes are counted in May. After that, it’s his choice as to when he will retire- if ever.

2. Anthony Vainieri, Hudson County Freeholder

Right Hand man to Sacco – Vainieri continues to build on the brand as the logical next-of-kin to the throne.

As a Freeholder, Vainieri continues to bring value to North Bergen with park renovations, annual festivities, national landmarks, and coordinating the purchase of a new high school.

3. Julio Marenco, Commissioner

Admittedly, our very own Eva Deras’s favorite public figure, Julio Marenco continues to advocate for his downtown neighborhood and brings a youthful, diverse outlook to the local government.

While Julio has not been willing to share future ambitions- we suspect that his future is bright.

4. North Bergen Federation of Teachers

The teachers union proved they could have a public debate without being hijacked with political rhetoric.

With over 600 teachers represented by the Teachers’ Union – their influence is fundamental in any changes made in North Bergen.

5. Robert Dowd, North Bergen Police Chief

High-profile crime in the area rarely goes unsolved; whether it’s a hit-and-run, street shootings, or a stolen vehicle.

Chief Dowd represents a highly diverse force of over 120 officers and his leadership of the department has lead to many in & out-of-town accomplishments.

6. Phil Swibinski, Township Spokesmen/VP of Vision Media

Phil Swibinski has earned his own spot on our list. New to fatherhood, Swibinski steps into a bigger role in business and personal life. Paul Swibinski (father to Phil), who started Vision Media over 30 years ago, retired and regularly spends time in his Florida home.

Phil is the barrier between the public and Sacco over any outrage. He has held his own against the various hit-pieces from the iTeam, and will have plenty of work during the upcoming election.

7. Local, independent Media; HudPost (of course), Hudson County View, Talk on the Hudson

First it was print, then TV, but now it’s the age of the internet. These companies bring value to each other and in return to its viewers.

Whether its ‘Talk on the Hudson’ getting both state Senators Stack and Sacco on the record on their stance on marijuana or ‘Hudson County View’ getting a heated exchange between Wainstein/Vainieri over a development in the area- the “larger local” medias such as Jersey Journal or News 12 can’t compete with the relevant content, or simply ignore “NoHu” issues.

HudPost exclusively focuses on North Bergen (with a pinch of Guttenberg) so you can expect relevant and reliable content in 2019.

8. Aimee Focaraccio, Community Organizer

Aimee has a heart of gold and it shows in her work. Focaraccio continues to build the NB CARES program while becoming a leader within the Young Democrats of Hudson County party.

During our interview with her earlier this year, she has not ruled out a career in politics, but her current commitment is to helping families in need.

9. John Bender, Committee-person

Although a committee seat only represents a small portion of the town, Bender has used his political muscle to be the front of the anti-Larry effort.

He once ran a protest in front of Wainstein’s North Bergen home back in 2015.

Now he is addressing the “litter-ture issue” caused by elections with a clever widespread ’NO LARRY LITERATURE ACCEPTED’ window sign campaign. You’ll be sure to see (and hear) John at any anti-Larry event this year.

10. Larry Wainstein, Business Owner & 2019 Mayoral Candidate

So 2019 is finally here and everything Wainstein has been working for is coming to a conclusion; does his years of “community organizing,” and Sacco bashing win him a seat? Or will history repeat itself with another 3 to 1 or 2 to 1 loss.

Throughout the years Wainstein has fought against building a new Kindergarten school and acquiring High Tech High School. He has also fought against several residential buildings such as the projects on 56th and Kennedy, 48th and Tonnelle, and 78th and Bergenline Ave.

While it’s clear what he is against – he hasn’t done a great job of telling us what he is for.

He’ll be receiving help from West New York Mayor Roque and possibly some South Jersey politicians most of our readers probably wouldn’t recognize. He just makes our list but another loss in May definitely kicks him off.

Honorable Mentions;

  • NB BOE Superintendent Dr. George Solter
  • Retired Lt. Henry Marrero
  • Commissioner Hugo Cabrera
  • North Bergen…Now, Then, & Memories Administer Denis Jaslow
  • Esq. Mario Blanch

#Politics

Campaign violation? Mysterious ‘North Bergen Today’ sponsored post raises eyebrows

On By Mackensie AlvarezIn Politics

If you “be from NB”… then you’ve probably seen NBC 4 NY’s I-Team reports covering Mayor Nicholas Sacco on the Facebook page North Bergen Today.

Until seeing a recent sponsored post against the Schools Realignment Plan, it seemed the page had been a source of reposting news and videos that are mostly anti-Sacco. The post is sponsored in both English and Spanish, you can watch the advertisement below:

The sponsored post takes a stance on a ballot measure, but lacks any disclosure regarding who paid for the political advertisement. A NJ Election Law Enforcement Commission representative indicated to HudPost by phone that the advertisement itself might constitute a campaign ethics violation due to lack of disclosure.

Facebook, which updated its political sponsored content policies following Russia’s 2016 election interference, reveals that the sponsored post is paid for by North Bergen Today.

The issue is that North Bergen Today doesn’t have a website identifying who exactly the publisher is. We sent a message to the page asking the administrator to identify themselves and who paid for the sponsored posts. The message was “left on seen,” but the administrator declined to respond in a relatively timely fashion.

This leaves us wondering – who is behind North Bergen Today?

VOTE YES: North Bergen School Realignment is a win for our kids!

On By Mackensie AlvarezIn Politics

Sometimes good policy is good politics, and that’s definitely the case with North Bergen’s School Realignment Plan – which voters have an opportunity to approve by voting YES on December 11th, 2018 in a special School Referendum.

As our neighboring municipalities – like Union City and West New York – have seen new state-of-the-art school facilities rise from the ground to serve their children, North Bergen has struggled to follow suit. The main reason for that is because North Bergen is not an “Abbott” District under New Jersey’s education laws. Thus we’re forced to pay for our school construction, unlike those other municipalities that have that taken care of by the Schools Development Authority.

Forget about the fact North Bergen has been inadequately funded by the state for nearly a decade.

It is no secret that our high school suffers from severe overcrowding. The structure of the high school was only meant to hold 1,800 student when it was built back in the 1960s. What’s at stake for our kids with the school realignment plan is smaller class sizes, renovations to our existing high school, and purchasing the former High Tech High School.

How much will it cost? $34 million in long-term bonding for North Bergen property tax payers, but the bond payments will be paid by anticipated PILOT funds from developments under construction – which means NO TAX INCREASES are necessary for the school realignment plan. As well, North Bergen will receive additional state education aid through the School Funding Reform Act.

I support voting YES on December 11th because not only do the numbers add up, but our children deserve the best we can provide as a community.

Opinion: Putting a Power Plant in North Bergen’s Backyard Does More Harm than Good

On By Mackensie AlvarezIn Politics

On April 25th, Mayor Sacco made the grand announcement on Facebook that a natural-gas power plant was in the planning stages. He called it “a once in a generation opportunity to ensure stabilized property taxes, thousands of new union jobs and millions of dollars in new annual revenue with no impact on neighborhoods, schools or services. “ In addition to providing power to our neighbors in the east, New York City, it would produce hundreds of jobs for skilled labor over the next three years. Beyond that, it would create permanent jobs for skilled labor to maintain the plant. As of right now, the site is an asphalt dumping ground near the Meadowlands and therefore it would seem to make the most sense to place this structure there. While that seems reasonable, and economic growth potential appears to be rosy, there is still a few crucial points that need to be addressed. Namely, where was the community input? And more importantly, where is the documentation pertaining to an environmental study?

Missing these two critical pieces, raise a number of red flags to me. As a former native of New York City, and former resident of Jersey City, I have seen firsthand what happens when grandiose structures are ran through the approval process and built with no regard for the citizens whose backyards sit adjacent to them. I have also seen what happens when community leaders, residents, and stakeholders sit down and negotiate and air their feelings about a project. Not everyone gets their way entirely. Sometimes projects are scrapped. Sometimes projects can go forward (with or without modifications). In both outcomes, neither side is left with the feeling of being blindsided. The announcement of the construction of a power plant in North Bergen leaves me, and many of my neighbors, feeling just that.

Let me be clear, a gas-powered generator plant is not “clean” energy. It’s considered a “bridge” technology (not as dirty as coal and oil, but not as clean as renewables like solar and wind). Just getting natural gas requires fracking, and/or processing petroleum by-products. Both processes damage the environment. Gas-powered plants generate carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, as well as trace amounts of other pollutants. The very site of the propose plant is adjacent to the Meadowlands, which houses a thriving ecosystem of wild life. That ecosystem will be irreversibly damaged by the construction and use of this plant. Lastly, while many gas plants have a “just-in-time” delivery system for fuel to power their turbines, power plants have fuel reserves sitting in huge tanks onsite. In the off-chance that a tank blows, it can be catastrophic for not only North Bergen, but our neighbors in Fairview, Ridgefield, and beyond.

I have seen no community input regarding this project. Something this grand, needs to be discussed at length, first with residents by the 94th street area, and then with the town at large. To add insult to injury, this project is being spearheaded by a company based in California, to supply power to New York City. As a community, we will not be benefiting from the power this plant will be generating, nor is it in line with the grand vision that many of us share about going to purely renewable sources of energy. Governor Murphy laid out a sweeping plan for this, but projects like these that slip through unannounced, can derail that plan. Mayor Sacco, and other officials, constantly claim that taxes generated by this project will be funneled to our schools, but honestly, that sounds to be more of a proverbial carrot on a stick. My child’s education is not a bargaining chip.

In terms of economic growth, there is a very in-depth report about how this project can potentially benefit North Bergen. I am all for projects that use skilled labor and benefit the community. However, I don’t think this is the way to go about it. Further, only 33 permanent jobs are slated for this plant once construction is complete. How can this project benefit the town in the long term with those few jobs?

Alternatively, there are plenty of infrastructure projects that North Bergen needs, that will require years of skilled labor and benefit the town in the long term. Here are a few examples:

  1. Fixing our detoriating streets and installing more speed bumps by 51st st, and other streets where speeding is a constant danger.

  2. Extending the Hudson Bergen Light Rail north through North Bergen and beyond, as referenced in this article.

  3. Opening a train station in North Bergen for the Gateway Tunnel, whenever that is funded. More information about the Gateway Tunnel can be found in this article.

  4. Building more affordable housing, turning unused land by West Side highway into flourishing parks, building/renovating old factories into co-working spaces and community centers.

On a brighter side, this project is still not set in stone. It needs the blessing of NJ regulators, and those who oppose its construction need to be vocal and engaged. That includes signing petitions, attending planning meetings, reaching out to Mayor Sacco and our other elected officials, and making it clear that our town is not for sale, promises of increased revenue from taxes won’t appease us, and that our environment, health, and safety of ourselves and neighbors are not to be compromised.

Meet the new Mayor of Guttenberg, Wayne Zitt

On By Mackensie AlvarezIn Politics

Wayne Zitt will become Guttenberg’s next mayor replacing Gerald Drasheff, who has been in office since 2010 but decided not to run for re-election

Zitt’s entrance into public office was being appointed to the city council before winning a special election. He is a North Bergen native who has lived in Guttenberg for six years.

Zitt has served on the Guttenberg Democratic Committee. He was the former Chief of Staff to 32nd Legislative District Assemblywoman Angelica Jimenez and special advisor to Assemblyman Vincent Prieto.

With 83% of the votes counted, Zitt received 1,004 votes in an uncontested election.

Reporter Al Sullivan Speculates Sacco’s ‘Presidential’ Dreams on ‘Talk on the Hudson’

On By Mackensie AlvarezIn Politics

On the ‘Talk on the Hudson’ podcast, hosted by Dr. Fernando Uribe, the topic of a new “political war” in Hudson County was discussed with Hudson County Reporter’s Al Sullivan.

“Apparently, Senator Sacco wants to become the [New Jersey] Senate President. And wants to move Mr. Sweeney [current Senate President] out of the way. Which means there has to be a loyalty test, here, in Hudson County,” explains Sullivan. “Ultimately, Brian Stack is in the middle of this and he has a political choice to make.”

Each New Jersey State Senator is capable of voting for the Senate President. Sullivan speculates that Senator Sandra B. Cunningham of Jersey City will be pushed out by Hudson County Democrats in order to give the North Bergen Mayor an advantage. Cunningham is a strong supporter of Sweeney with family ties. It is being rumored that Cunningham is building her own team to run in the event that the Democrat establishment of Hudson County turn their backs.

“Does he risk going to war with Sacco over this? Or does he go along? That’s going to be one of the great questions of the 2017,” exclaimed Sullivan. “Ultimately, I think Stack will side with Cunningham. I don’t think Sacco has the votes and I think Stack knows that.”

“Sacco has a lot of power in this county…if you betray Sacco -there could be repercussions and that’s something people have to think about.”