The Jersey City Independent "

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- Chris Christie was sworn in as New Jersey’s 55th governor yesterday. In his inauguration speech, he said “we will have to curb spending in municipal governments where there has been too little control.” With Christie having railed against special municipal aid at every turn of the corner in recent months, it doesn’t take a psychic to see that Jersey City’s days of getting millions each year from the state may be limited. Meanwhile, a group from the Jersey City chapter of Parents and Communities United for Education is heading to the Statehouse in Trenton today to call on Christie to make drastic changes to improve the quality of education in urban districts. And Christie has tapped a Hudson County native and Democrat, Thomas Considine, to lead the state Department of Banking and Insurance. The governor says he plans on signing nearly a dozen executive orders on his first full day in office (ie, today), including the establishment a council of economic advisers, a red tape review commission, and the freezing of various regulations and unfunded mandates.

- The state law requiring railroad companies to negotiate in good faith with municipalities before abandoning a property was signed by outgoing Gov. Corzine before he left office; it will impact the city’s negotiations with developer Steve Hyman over the fate of the 6th Street Embankment.

- A Jersey City Medical Center nurse who is currently working on relief efforts in Haiti says “the suffering, death and injuries I have seen will follow me forever.” Meanwhile, another strong earthquake has hit the island.

- A 20-year-old Parsippany man fell to his death Monday night from the roof of a building in the Newport area. The investigation is ongoing, but for now the death has been classified as accidental.

- A delegation of businesswomen, primarily from Hudson County, leaves for Mumbai this week to build relationships with their Indian counterparts.

- The Hudson County Community College Foundation has added two new members to its Board of Directors: Antonio Ibarria, Sr. and Lisa Epstein.

- The JCPD’s latest newsletter brings us Part Three of its “History of Jersey City and its Police” series; this one covers the time period between 1869 and 1877.

- The sister music festival to Jersey City’s All Points West, Coachella, announced its 2010 lineup yesterday; Hoboken’s Yo La Tengo is among the many bands slated to play the three-day festival in California this spring.

In statewide news:

- As one of his last acts in office Monday night, Gov. Corzine vetoed legislation that environmentalists had tagged “the Dirty Water Bill” and two other bills they argue would have weakened environmental regulation in the state.

- Republicans around the state are hoping to ride Gov. Christie’s coattails into office.

- The New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency has received more than $49 million in federal stimulus money to finance the expansion and improvement of affordable housing in New Jersey.