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- Community groups have delivered a 3,600-name petition to Jersey City’s Omni Health, which operates four area nursing homes, in support of workers at those homes who have been without a contract for almost three years.

- If you’re a careful reader of our calendar listings, you might have noticed that the Loew’s Jersey Theatre has been lining up some big shows on a series of Friday nights (including Jersey City’s own John Hammond, who we talked to prior to his show last month.) The shows are part of a $250,000 investment into nighttime entertainment at the Loew’s being made by the Journal Square Restoration Corp., the Provident Bank Foundation and Jersey City Magazine.

- The “Project Storybook” program, which lets incarcerated parents in New Jersey read to their children through tapes, is helping a number of families, including some in Jersey City.

- C-Side Restaurant at Harborside has a new name — Henry’s on the Hudson — and a new chef — Ed Radich, formerly of Marco & Pepe and Ox.

- About 30 folks gathered at the historic Apple Tree House yesterday to celebrate George Washington’s birthday, and shine a light on Jersey City’s role in the first president’s life.

Today’s Best Bets:

- There are plenty of options for you today in Jersey City. First up, the Iron Monkey is celebrating Fat Tuesday all day with a special menu and party put together by two Monkey staffers who are Cajuns. At 1 pm, longtime illustrator Zina Saunders will be on campus at NJCU for a talk, later in the evening, the Warehouse will host the opening reception (at 6 pm) for what promises to be a cool exhibit, Ian Hinonangan’s “The Weight Of My Inheritance.” At 9 pm, two excellent acts — The Press and The Plastiq Passion Band — come to Lucky 7′s for a free show, while down the street at the same time, Melissa Surach’s BabyHole is set to feature stand up comedy from Shawn Pearlman and Aalep Patel, and live music from Plowing Mud Forever.

In statewide news:

- While Gov. Christie criticized former Gov. Corzine last week for using “the same worn-out tricks” to cobble together a state budget, he has readily adopted hundreds of millions in spending cuts Corzine had proposed to close a gap in the current spending plan.

- The Fair Share Housing Center has filed a legal brief asking the state Appellate Court to stay and invalidate Gov. Christie’s executive order last week that halted the work of the state Council on Affordable Housing while a task force he appointed studies the state’s role in providing affordable housing.

- U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg fell at his home last night and was taken by ambulance to a hospital, where he stayed overnight for routine observation. Lautenberg appears to be just fine.

- Theaters and other arts groups across the state are offering additional events and experiences in an effort to attract patrons in an increasingly competitive entertainment market.

- Five people were killed in a small-plane crash yesterday near the Monmouth Executive Airport in Wall Township.