Mayor Nicholas Sacco presented a plaque to local chiropractor Dr. Gerard Busacco on Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2019 for helping to save the life of a North Bergen Housing Authority (NBHA) resident who had collapsed in her apartment.
Dr. Busacco has been visiting weekly with NBHA seniors since 2000 in a program initiated by Mayor Sacco and NBHA Executive Director Gerald Sanzari. When one of his regular attendees, 72-year-old Patrica Witzki, did not show up for a late January session at the Terrace Apartments, Dr. Busacco took notice and decided to look into it.
“We called her apartment several times but received no answer, so Leroy, the supervisor of maintenance, and I went up to her room and went in,” said Dr. Busacco. “She was lying face-down and unresponsive.”
Dr. Busacco quickly put a pillow under her head and had Leroy call 911. Holding her hand until EMTs arrived, Dr. Busacco spoke to Witzki the whole time, then explained her medical history to the paramedics, who transported her to Palisades Medical Center.
“When I spoke with the doctors there, they told me she would not have survived if I hadn’t had made it to her when I did,” Dr. Busacco said. “I have to thank the mayor and the North Bergen Housing Authority for making this program possible.”
“When you manage senior buildings, and we have four of them, there’s sometimes a very different ending than the one we had here, and we’re so glad this was able to have a happy ending,” said Sanzari. “For Gerry Busacco to make that stop to check on her, it’s not something everyone would think of.”
“We’re happy you showed the initiative that you did when you noticed a missing person from the group,” said Mayor Sacco. “All of North Bergen thanks you for what you did.”
Witzki was released from the hospital on Feb. 20. Her daughter is due to give birth to Witzki’s first grandchild in March.
The establishment that once brought droves of leather jackets and Harley Davidsons to midtown North Bergen officially closed their doors on December 21st, 2018.
Jimmy D’s Blues Saloon was purchased in 1991, and built its reputation as a fun, neighborhood dive bar. But after 25 years, the owner put the building up for sale.
Realtor (and occasionally Jimmy D’s bartender) Vienna Bello facilitated the sale of the property, however, after 4 years on the market the Blues Saloonwas still up for grabs.
Bello, a lifelong Hudson County resident, decided to take a chance on the bar and re-open as “Hudson Burger & Beers.”
Why burgers?
“Before Jimmy D’s, the bar was named Ray’s Old Mill Tavern, and they were known for their burgers and cherry bombs,” says Bello. “I thought it would be great to bring that back to the neighborhood.”
Vienna says she is putting a lot of emphasis on building as a community.
“We are going to purchase our meat from Pat LaFrieda, our buns from Hudson Bread, and our beer from NJ Beer Co. All North Bergen based companies.”
“Please join us as we celebrate over 25 years of memories one last time as Jimmy D’s Blues Saloon,” Bello invites the public. “Complimentary buffet style food provided while it lasts. Bring your cameras. Look forward to seeing you there!”
Sunday, February 17, 2019, was a historic day for NJ High School Athletics. This was the first year of the NJSIAA Girls Wrestling Regional Tournament.
Female wrestlers from New Jersey High Schools throughout the state competed in this event. This was a special day for NJ female athletes including those from North Bergen HS.
Emelin Aguilar, Sujeydy Gonzalez and Amanda Pace are the first-ever to compete in the NJSIAA Girls Wrestling Tournament.
Special recognition and congratulations to Amanda Pace, who won the tournament and captured the gold medal. Amanda is North Bergen’s first girl’s regional wrestling champion. She will travel to Atlantic City where she will represent NBHS in her quest to capture a championship.
On Monday, February 18, 2019, at approximately 8:15 p.m., the North Bergen Police Department received a 911 call reporting a body lying in the roadway on 43rd Street in the area of Tonnelle Avenue in North Bergen.
Upon arrival, responding North Bergen police officers observed an unresponsive woman, Darlene Westbrook, age 34, lying in the roadway at that location. The woman was treated at the scene before being transported by Emergency Medical Services to the Jersey City Medical Center where she was pronounced dead at approximately 2:40 a.m. on February 19, 2019.
The initial investigation by the Hudson County Regional Collision Investigation Unit and the North Bergen Police Department has determined that a motor vehicle was involved in this fatal incident. A suspected vehicle being sought by investigators is described as a 2001-2003 Chrysler Voyager Minivan that is light in color, possibly silver.
The Minivan is missing both front hub caps and was last observed traveling north on Kennedy Boulevard from 35th Street on Monday, February 18, 2019, between 8:15 and 8:20 p.m. Investigators are asking the public for assistance in finding this vehicle.
Anyone with information about the vehicle is asked to contact the Hudson County Regional Collision Investigation Unit at 201-915-1345 or leave an anonymous tip on the Hudson County Prosecutor’s official website at: http://www.hudsoncountyprosecutorsofficenj.org/homicide-tip/. All information will be kept confidential.
A long awaited new public park on Paterson Plank Road is now scheduled to be built this spring as part of a total revitalization of the area. Alongside the planned Hudson Mews development – a luxury residential complex that is currently under construction – the park will dramatically improve the neighborhood. Township officials negotiated an agreement with the developer of the adjacent residential complex to assist in building the park, saving taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars in construction costs.
Below are some of the great improvements coming soon to North Bergen parks:
New Downtown Park on Paterson Plank Road
Children’s spray park, playgrounds with rubberized surfaces for 2-12 year-olds, two sets of swings, new decorative lighting, several parking spaces, benches and passive areas and more.
28th Street Park
Repairing walkway adjacent to the park from Grand Avenue to the footbridge over 495
Construction begins: summer 2019
Policeman’s 38th Street Memorial ParkChildren’s spray park, playgrounds with rubberized surfaces, swing sets, basketball court, dog runAnticipated completion: July 4, 2019
43rd Street ParkUpdated basketball courtConstruction begins: spring 2019
64th Street Softball Field
Synthetic turf, new LED field lighting, new bleachers, dugouts with bullpen attached
Anticipated completion: late spring 2019
88th Street Park
Updated basketball court
Construction begins: spring 2019
North Bergen Pool
Updated basketball and volleyball courts, pool replastering
Anticipated completion: Memorial Day 2019
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.
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.”
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.”
Mayor Nicholas Sacco and DPW Commissioner Frank Gargiulo visited the DPW building on Wednesday, Feb. 6 to offer their best wishes and heartfelt thanks to employee Nicholas Garcia, who will be deploying overseas shortly.
A lifelong North Bergen resident, Garcia has been employed at the DPW since 2016 and has been a member of the NJ Army National Guard since 2014. This is his first deployment overseas. His rank is Specialist and his term of deployment is 400 days. He expects to serve as a heavy equipment operator.
DPW Superintendent John Shaw and many DPW employees attended the farewell event and joined in conveying their appreciation to Garcia for his service on behalf of the country.
Governor Murphy and North Bergen Mayor Nicholas Sacco announced today the completion of the 69th Street Bridge Project in North Bergen. The Murphy Administration finished the project in less than one year after construction was delayed by more than six years under the previous administration.
“Investing in our infrastructure and transportation assets is one of our highest priorities,” said Governor Murphy. “I’m proud that our Administration was able to get this project back on track after years of delays and inaction. I’m thrilled to join Mayor Sacco in opening the 69th Street Bridge, which will increase safety and reduce congestion.”
“After meeting with Mayor Sacco and understanding the critical nature of this project, NJ TRANSIT along with our partners at NJDOT worked together to get this project moving and completed quickly,” NJ TRANSIT Chair and NJDOT Commissioner Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti said. “The completion of this project is an example of what can be done when everyone comes together, ultimately improving the lives of North Bergen residents by providing a safer roadway with improved traffic flow.”
“The fact that this important project was allowed to languish for a decade shows a total lack of concern for our urban communities by the previous administration and a fundamental misunderstanding of the value of investing in infrastructure,” said North Bergen Mayor and State Senator Nicholas J. Sacco. “I’m thankful that we have a true partner in Governor Murphy who knows how crucial it is to invest in communities like North Bergen, and I’m glad that with his leadership we were able to finally bring this project to a close.”
After years of delays, NJ TRANSIT last year opted to terminate the contract of the previous construction firm. CJ Hesse of Atlantic Highlands was brought in to complete the project, bringing traffic relief to this portion of Hudson County. With this project completion, the 69th Street Bridge is now open to vehicular traffic.
“As part of our effort to restore NJ TRANSIT to a national role model, we have been taking steps to right the ship in a number of different areas, including a renewed focus on the stalled projects left languishing from the previous administration,” said NJ TRANSIT Executive Director Kevin Corbett. “The completion of this bridge project plays a critical safety role in separating vehicles from the freight trains in North Bergen.”
The 69th Street Bridge and Roadway Improvements Project provides a grade separation at the intersection of 69th Street and an existing freight railroad corridor in the town of North Bergen. This grade-crossing consists of five existing railroad tracks owned by CSX Transportation (CSXT) and one existing track owned by the New York Susquehanna and Western (NYS&W) railroad.
The completion of this project plays a vital role in improving the traffic flow in an already heavily-congested area. Additionally, the grade separation project includes related roadway improvements and area storm water drainage.
North Bergen Police Chief Robert Dowd and Public Safety Commissioner Allen Pascual hosted a special luncheon on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2019 in honor of four township police officers who are being deployed overseas.
P.O. Eric Crafton, P.O. Joshua Nazario, SLEO II Rodolfo Velazquez and C.O. Alexander Sanchez will be serving as part of
Operation Spartan Shield and Operation Horn of Africa.
Among the guests was Velazquez’s wife, Melissa, and their four-month-old son, Marcus – dressed in baby camo fatigues.
Many members of the police department joined the event to convey their best wishes to the officers, who will each be serving overseas for about a year.
Hudpost 