HPNA Easter Egg Hunt Sunday April 1st

This Sunday, April 1, 2007, the HPNA will be holding its annual Easter Egg hunt from 1:30 to 2:30, with a visit from the Easter Bunny!

Robbery in Hamilton Park Neighborhood

The following message is from the JC East District Police Department:

Please be advised on Wednesday, March 28, 2007 at 10:15 p.m. a robbery occurred at Monmouth St. and Pavonia Ave.

The actors descriptions are as follows:

Actor #1
Black male in his late teens to early twenties, approximately 5'5", thin build, wearing a white sweatshirt, black ski mask and blue jeans. Actor #1 also brandished a handgun (no further description) .

Actor #2
Black male in his late teens to early twenties, approximately 5'9", stocky build, wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans, and possibly a thin mustache.

Please pass this information along to all family, friends and community members. Also, should anyone have information regarding this incident or see anyone who fits the above description( s) please contact us immediately at 201-547-5477.

Regards.
P.O. Dina Reilly

From Exeter (Hamilton Square Developer)

Dear Neighbors,

Please note, March 28th we will be closing McWilliams Place from 8th to 9th Street in order to restore the east side of the park. The Park will be extended to its original size, and parking will eventually be made parallel on both sides of McWilliams Place.

This process of the park extension will take approximately 3-4 weeks (pending weather cooperation!). When McWilliams re-opens, it will be one-way only flowing south. This will be a permanent change per site plan approval.

We are truly sorry for the inconvenience. We will try our best to make the process as fast and painless as possible.

If you are concerned about parking, there are still garage spaces available on Erie & 9th street. Please call our office if you are interested in renting one. 201-435-8000.

Please spread the word, and call me with any questions or concerns.

Thank you for your continued patience and cooperation!

Elizabeth

Park Renovation Meeting Article in the Jersey Journal

Hamilton Park's makeover: More active or passive?
Monday, March 26, 2007
By COTTON DELO
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Downtown Jersey City activists filled a room at 1 McWilliams Place on Thursday night to evaluate options for Hamilton Park's long-awaited renovation.

The engineering firm Schoor DePalma presented three park designs, relying heavily on community feedback from balloting conducted in 2005 when 1,113 ballots were cast, according to Jen Greely, president of the Hamilton Park Neighborhood Association.

An expanded children's playground, a dog run, benches, picnic tables and a Victorian-era water fountain were included in all three designs.

(The rest of the article is available in the March 26 issue of the JJ at your news stand, or nj.com)

Hamilton Park Renovation Meeting 3.22.07

Additional photos from the meeting

Thanks to Schoor DePalma, Councilman Steven Fulop, and the 60+ attendees that made the meeting a success. The attendees may not agree on all of the details, but share the common goal to renovate Hamilton Park.

Hamilton Park - Final Plans, 3.22.07 at 7PM

On Wednesday, March 22nd at 7PM in the Hamilton Square Building (old nursing school, 1 McWilliams Place) the engineering firm Schoor-DePalma and Councilman Steven Fulop will present the three renovation plan options for Hamilton Park.

This will be the final opportunity to review the plan and suggest last minute changes.
Renovation Plans: Three Renovation Plan Options

There will be a final ballot in late April 2007.

Action Alert: Call City Council NOW

Tonight at their Caucus meeting, the Jersey City Municipal Council considered a resolution in support of an application for a New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust (NJEIT) loan that would provide funds for the City to acquire the open space portion of the Harsimus Stem Embankment. There were many comments indicating it may not pass at Wednesday's Council meeting, unless there is a public outcry.

The NJEIT loan would provide almost $5 million to the City, 75 percent at NO INTEREST and 25 percent at lowest market-rate interest (about 1 percent), for twenty years. The loan would provide instant money that can be repaid by reimbursable grants already raised ($3.2 million), a pledge ($500K), and additional highly likely grant monies.

What you can do
Please call the following Council people between NOW and Wednesday, March 14, 5 p.m., and ask them to support the loan application. If you are pressed for time, skip Council President Vega and Ward E Councilman Fulop, who are expected to support the application.

Council President Mariano Vega, Jr., 547-5268
Councilwoman at Large Willie Flood, 547-5134
Councilman at Large Peter Brennan, 547-5319
Ward A Councilman Michael Sottolano, 547-5098
Ward B Councilwoman Mary Spinello, 547-5092
Ward C Councilman Steve Lipski, 547-5159
Ward D Councilman William Gaughan, 547-5485
Ward E Councilman Steven Fulop, 547-5315
Ward F Councilwoman Viola Richardson, 547-5338


Suggested remarks to make to the Council people:

Please support Resolution 10.j. supporting an NJEIT loan application for the Embankment.

The City must be ready to acquire the Embankment when the Surface Transportation Board rules. This loan provides instantly available funds that can be reimbursed by awards and pledges already made and highly probable.

The Council does not have to accept the money. This application keeps options open.

Any increase in the City's debt ceiling is insignificant, considering the short period the City would use the loan before repaying it with grants.

When the STB rules (any day now), the City must act with the money it has (open space), not the money it wants but does not have now and may never have (light rail).

The Council directed the Administration to pursue acquisition. It should support loan and grant applications for acquisition, not weaken the City's ability to acquire the Embankment.

Questions? Contact:
Jennifer Meyer
Embankment Preservation Coalition
email: jmeyer@embankment.org
web: http://www.embankment.org

Federal Preservation Tax Incentive Program

At the HPNA monthly membership meeting on 3.7.07 Daniel Reardon, the area manager from the National Architectural Trust, explained the Federal Preservation Tax Incentive Program. The National Architectural Trust is a non profit organization dedicated to historic preservation through out the country. Mr. Reardon can be reached at dreardon@natarchtrust.org. Information is available at www.natarchtrust.org.

HPNA Board Member Jon Gelman provided an update on proposed traffic route changes for the downtown area, including a proposed plan for a Jersey Avenue extension into Liberty State Park. Information is available at www.downtownjcras.com

March Community Meeting: March 7, 2007 at 7:45 pm

Location:
The Cordero School
Erie Street, between 9th St and Pavonia Avenue


MEETING AGENDA

7:45-8:00 Crime Report
Police Officer Dina Reilly from the East District Police Department will come to discuss our neighborhood crime concerns. The Jersey City Police Department has a new website, www.njjcpd.org that provides extensive Department Information as well as Preventive Tips. Also please note that the non-emergency police number is (201) 547-5477.

8:00-8:15 Update on Proposed Traffic Changes
The HPNA will update you all on the updates on proposed traffic route changes for the downtown area, including a proposed plan for a Jersey Avenue extension into Liberty State Park.

8:15-8:30 Daniel Reardon from the National Architectural Trust
Daniel Reardon, the area manager from the National Architectural Trust will explain the Federal Preservation Tax Incentive Program. The National Architectural Trust is a non for profit organization dedicated to historic preservation through out the country. Mr. Reardon will provide literature to be reviewed by your family, CPA or Attorney, which would explain this program in more detail. To gather information in advance, please visit their website at www.natarchtrust.org.

8:35-8:45 St. Francis Update
Elizabeth Young from Exeter properties will give a brief update on the status of construction of the development at the St. Francis Hospital site, and provide some more details on their availability of a shuttle service from Hamilton Park to the PATH train.

8:45-9:00 General HPNA Community Updates

9:00-9:30 Neighborhood social time, chat with presenters.


ANNOUNCEMENTS AND UPCOMING EVENTS

HPNA Archiving Project at Pavonia Branch Library March 31
The second work session on the archiving of neighborhood newsletters, information, and history collected by the HPNA over the past 30 years will take place at the Pavonia Branch Library at 326 8th Street on Saturday, March 31st from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. Please come out and volunteer a couple hours to help us archive! Lunch and refreshments will be provided.

Art Deco Bus Tour on March 31
The Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy is proud to present its second annual Art Deco Bus Tour. Join in exploring this often overlooked facet of architecture and design in Jersey City! The tour takes place on Saturday, March 31, 2007 from 9:30 a.m. to approximately 4:00 pm and departs from the Grove Street Path Station (by the kiosk entrance on Grove St.) The Cost is $50.00. Space on this tour is limited, and they filled all seats early last year. REGISTRATION WITH PRE-PAYMENT IS REQUIRED! To register, please send an e-mail to jclctours@gmail. com and include the number of places you would like to reserve along with the names of the attendees.

Easter Egg Hunt, Sunday April 1 in Hamilton Park
The HPNA will hold its annual Easter Egg Hunt, on Sunday, April 1 from 1:30 to 3:30. Of course the Easter Rabbit will make his annual visit. Volunteers to help clean up the park before and hide the eggs are encouraged to come out by 12:45 or contact Sam Stoia at sjsesq@comcast.net.

Volunteers Needed For Newsletter Distribution
Newsletter distributional is important in keeping our neighbors aware of our efforts and encouraging greater community involvement. It’s also a fun way to meet more of your neighbors. While we have collected several new volunteers, we always hope to gather more. We will be collecting names of volunteers at our next meeting. If you can’t make our next meeting, but are still interested in volunteering contact Sam Stoia at sjsesq@comcast.net.

Please visit the HPNA Website at:
www.hamiltonpark.org

To receive our newsletters electronically, please register at our yahoo groups site at:
HPNA-JC-Public- subscribe@ yahoogroups. com