The Jersey City Independent "

- At last night’s City Council meeting, the council spent nearly two hours on the Journal Square Redevelopment Plan, hearing from 21 members of the public but ultimately voting to table the plan for further study. The plan is a massive “visioning” plan encompassing 244 acres that calls for gargantuan high rises, a revamping of the Journal Square transit center, introduction of green space, a light rail spur and a trolley. (For all the nitty gritty details of the plan, check out the JCRA’s website.) For a full rundown of all the council’s doings, check JCI tomorrow for our report.

- For the second week in a row, the Planning Board heard some testimony about an application for site plan deviations requested by Toll Brothers for its high-rise development in the Powerhouse Arts District (PAD). The plan deviations are being opposed by the PAD’s neighborhood group, since Toll Brothers’ entire project is currently tied up in litigation and the City Council action that allowed the development to go forward may eventually be ruled to be illegal. The board did not rule on Tuesday, but instead continued the application and hearing to its March 10 meeting.

- The Webb Apartments, an affordable housing development at 450 Martin Luther King Drive, held its ribbon-cutting ceremony yesterday. Housing activist and Ward F council candidate Lavern Webb-Washington lauded the project. “There was nothing affordable being built for people who’ve been here and lived here,” she said. “They are getting displaced and can’t afford to live here anymore.” The building has a total of 40 units, and prices range from “under $550/month” for a one-bedroom to “under $750/month” for a three-bedroom. To qualify, a family of three would have to earn less than $33,000 a year, according to the developer.

- Cops say they found a still-unidentified victim on Tuesday near the Montgomery Gardens public housing projects who, witnesses claim, had been beaten by a brick and possibly shot by a group of teenagers. The victim is in critical but stable condidition at the JC Medical Center.

- Parents, students and community members held a candlelight vigil on Wednesday night to help Our Lady of Victories Catholic School on Ege Avenue from closing. The school is slated to be closed June 30 due to dwindling enrollment. A spokesman for the Newark Archdiocese says they will consider the group’s suggestions for staying afloat.

- Interstate Waste Services says the Hudson County Improvement Authority (HCIA) awarded the county’s nearly $150 million garbage disposal contract to the second lowest bidder, even though Interstate came in more than $2 million lower on the five-year contract bid. The HCIA says that the contract was awarded to the “lowest responsible bidder,” but declined to say what was irresponsible about Interstate’s bid. And freeholder Bill O’Dea says he was denied the opportunity to speak at the HCIA meeting when the contract was awarded, and only received documents relating to the contract bids when he threatened legal action.

- The All Points West music festival is slated to return to Liberty State Park this summer despite a sour economy that is forcing the cancellation big-time festivals like Miami’s Langerado Music Festival and Scotland’s Hydro Connect Festival.

- An Oakland man has pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiring with a Jersey City man and others in a mortgage fraud and money laundering scheme involving two-and three-family homes in Paterson.

- A New Mexico man was indicted this week for allegedly mailing threatening letters containing suspicious powder to dozens of banks and federal offices across the country last fall, including a government office in Jersey City.

In statewide news:

- The chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee vowed yesterday to “fight to the death” to keep property tax rebates for the upcoming year, setting up a possible clash as Gov. Corzine considers suspending or curtailing the popular program to balance the budget.

- Gov. Corzine says he will “absolutely” sign a medical marijuana bill for chronically and terminally ill patients if it gets to his desk.

- A divided state Supreme Court yesterday defined parameters for when police can search a car without a warrant, but the dissenting justices said the ruling created a legal “quagmire” that would hinder officers. The ruling stemmed from two cases in which police arrested suspects following traffic stops. In both cases, subsequent searches turned up drugs and weapons in the vehicles.

- It’s a jam-packed day in Trenton with testimony and legislation up for consideration in both Senate and Assembly committees. Blue Jersey has the rundown.

- Rutgers University officials say they will spend $500 million during the next three years to expand and upgrade the school’s campuses.

- Sources say CBS College Sports vice president Tim Pernetti, a close ally of football coach Greg Schiano, will be introduced as Rutgers’ third athletic director today.

- Construction workers across the state are eager to start work on projects funded in part by the federal stimulus package.

- A NJ Transit police officer was awarded $1.5 million yesterday after a jury in Newark found the agency’s police chief, Joseph Bober, retaliated against her after she complained of sexual discrimination.

- The Journal Register, the bankrupt owner of 20 daily newspapers including the Trentonian, will try to end its union pensions. The Pennsylvania-based newspaper publisher filed for bankruptcy Feb. 21 with plans to cancel its stock and become a closely held company.

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