Wednesday Morning News Roundup
By Jon Whiten • Feb 4th, 2009 • Category: Blog- The fight over chromium cleanup at the former PPG Industries site at 900 Garfield Ave. may be heading to federal court. Yesterday the national environmental group Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), along with the Hoboken-based Interfaith Community Organization, filed a lawsuit against PPG in federal court that calls for the immediate cleanup of 900 Garfield and surrounding areas. Jersey City and the state Department of Environmental Protection filed suit against PPG in 2005, and the city’s lawyer Bill Matsikoudis says the two sides have come to a “settlement in principle.” The city is planning on getting public comment on the settlement and then putting it to a City Council vote. That could possibly negate the NRDC suit. The site in question is part of a the newly-approved Canal Crossing Redevelopment Area, which will feature 4,000 new housing units and a new light rail station. “For a quarter of a century, PPG has knowingly endangered the health of countless residents, commuters and school children, who pass by this contaminated site every day,” NRDC senior attorney Nancy Marks says. “The Garfield Avenue community has been poisoned by indifference. This willful negligence must end.” Read more from the JJ and the Star-Ledger.
- There was a ribbon cutting ceremony yesterday at the Gloria Robinson Court Homes I, the first of three phases of the redevelopment of the A. Harry Moore public housing complex on Duncan Avenue. Former tenant and namesake of the development Gloria Robinson was on hand, and while she said she was happy to have the homes named after her, she loved the community at the old towers, which are in the process of being demolished. “I hope as many of the people who were relocated come back to these beautiful homes as possible,” she said. Even if all the former Moore residents do come back, there will still be hundreds left out of the redevelopment game. Much like the redevelopment of Lafayette Gardens and the planned redevelopment of Montgomery Gardens, the project is drastically cutting the number of housing units. In this case, the Housing Authority is replacing 664 units of housing with 326.
- The owner of two dogs that have been accused of attacking several people in downtown neighborhoods wants a trial to defend the dogs and prevent them from being put down. The owner may also be charged with aggravated assault. The judge in the case will set a date for trial on Friday.
- Police are looking for the second of three suspects in the Jan. 22 killing of Elisha Benjamin in an Ocean Avenue bodega.
In statewide news:
- The Jersey Journal isn’t the only NJ newspaper going through tough times right now. The Star-Ledger announced on Monday that it was eliminating two sections in the Monday edition — the “New Jersey” news and “Today” features sections.
- Embattled Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich said on the Today show that Sen. Robert Menendez was one of the people he spoke to about naming a Senate replacement for President Obama, adding that he’d want Menendez to testify at his anticipated corruption trial.
- A bill that would reform regulations for the solicitation of credit cards on college campuses was approved by the Senate Commerce Committee this week. The bill would, among other things, require creditors to provide an educational program on the responsible use of credit and prohibit credit card companies from using promotional gimmicks as an incentive for students to sign up. It now heads to the full Senate.
- Legal Services of NJ may not be able to continue operating at its current level due to the decline by 75 percent of a fund that makes up part of Legal Services’ operating budget. Legal Services provides free representation for indigent clients across the state.
- Chris Christie will kick off his gubernatorial campaign today with a four-stop swing through the state, while a Quinnipiac University poll released today has Christie ahead of Gov. Corzine, 44 to 38 percent. Three other Republicans are far back.
- A federal appeals court has ruled that an immigrant woman from NJ whose American husband died in the 2003 Staten Island Ferry crash cannot stay in the U.S. because they were married less than two years.
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Jon Whiten is the founding editor of the Jersey City Independent; he now works for a public-policy nonprofit in Trenton.
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