The Jersey City Independent "

- High School Sports Axed at County Tech: As part of the Hudson County Schools of Technology’s $45.7 budget passed late last week, the entire athletics departments at County Prep in Jersey City and High Tech High School in North Bergen have been eliminated.

- JC Trying to Get Out of Water Deal: In the 1920s, Jersey City struck a deal to get water from the Rockaway River in Morris County in exchange for paying to treat sewage from several suburban towns to keep the river clean. Now Jersey City is suing to get out of the agreement because it can no longer afford to pay what it says is an inordinate share of the expense of treating sewage of “affluent suburban” towns.

- Hit-and-Run Death on Route 139: A 72-year-old woman was killed Saturday morning as she crossed Route 139 at Oakland Avenue. The JCPD is currently searching for the driver.

- State Refuses to Hear CREATE’s Appeal: State Education Commissioner Bret Schundler, after declining to renew CREATE Charter School’s charter, has also denied the school’s motion for reconsideration.

- Widow of PATH Maintenance Worker Seeks New Trial: A Palisades Park woman who says her husband’s fatal lung cancer was the result of working with asbestos and diesel fumes at the PATH is seeking a new trial after one juror admitted to siding with the Port Authority to expedite deliberations. The jury voted 7-1 last month against the woman’s claims; a 6-2 vote would have been insufficient for a verdict under state law.

- Blood Tests and Residential Inspections Underway as Part of Chromium Cleanup: Officials are urging residents to participate in a blood-testing program and/or free residential site inspections if they think they might be affected by the toxic hexavalent chromium left on Garfield Avenue for years. The city, PPG Industries and the state DEP are getting ready to begin remediation this summer, while a federal suit calling for stricter cleanup standards winds its way through the courts.

- Mainor for Mayor? One of the more interesting items in the Insider’s column this week is the rumor that freshman Assemblyman Charles Mainor is interested in running for mayor in 2013. He is reportedly reaching out to young black community leaders in an attempt to form a new political group that could push him to City Hall. Other candidates in the mix so far for 2013 are Council President Peter Brennan and Ward E councilman Steven Fulop, but it’s early still.

- St. Peter’s College Group Cleaning the Streets: The community service group known as the Junkyard Dogs is picking up trash and debris from the city’s streets, and aiming to bring pride and concern for students’ surroundings.

- Suspect in 2005 Stabbing Extradited Back to U.S.: A 45-year-old man wanted in connection with an alleged 2005 knife attack on Martin Luther King Drive has been extradited from Antigua after his arrest by local authorities working with the U.S. Marshals Service.

- Mother and Son Sentenced in Heights Murder: A 48-year-old Jersey City woman has been sentenced to 30 years with no chance of parole and her 18-year-old son has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for the killing of a 43-year-old man on Palisade Avenue in December 2008.

- Liberty Marina Opens Store for Boaters: Liberty Landing Marina has opened its new 2,000-square-foot Marine Center, which provides supplies — like boat shoes, foul-weather gear, safety equipment and consumables — to boaters who tie up at the docks.

- Labor Leader: Spectra Pipeline ‘Will Bring Jobs and Revenue’: In a letter to the Journal, Eastern Regional manager of the Laborers’ International Union of North America Raymond Pocino argues that the proposed natural gas pipeline that Spectra Energy hopes to construct in New Jersey and New York, which has been opposed by most local politicians, is a “vital infrastructure project” that will create jobs.

- Shooting on Bidwell Avenue: Two brothers, ages 21 and 19, were injured in a street shooting early Saturday morning after a party on Bidwell Avenue.

- Stabbing at Hudson Cinemas: A 29-year-old Jersey City man was arrested after allegedly stabbing a man twice in the leg during a fight Friday night at the Hudson Cinemas on Route 440.

Today’s Best Bet:

- The Embankment Preservation Coalition hosts its annual fundraiser this evening, with a four-course Prix Fixe Embankment Special at Skinner’s Loft going for $40, with 30 percent of proceeds going to the nonprofit fighting to create a park on top of the Embankment.

In Statewide News:

- Labor Sues Over Pension Changes: The state’s largest police and firefighter unions haved filed a lawsuit seeking to block pension and health benefit changes championed by Gov. Christie. Meanwhile, those pension changes could drain lots of experience from some school districts while largely sparing charter schools staffed by younger educators, according to a new analysis.

- Capping Nonprofit Heads’ Pay? Gov. Christie is proposing to cap the salaries of top-earning executives at nonprofit social service agencies that do business with New Jersey at $141,000 (for agencies with budgets over $20 million), according to an April 16 Department of Human Services draft memo obtained by the Ledger.

- Pensions for Lobbyists: Some of New Jersey’s most influential lobbyists — including a onetime Democratic operative now making more than $500,000 a year — are set to collect public pensions for serving on part-time government commissions.

- Crossing District Lines Part of New Bill: A measure that would allow parents to move their children to schools across district lines, replacing a pilot program that expired in 2005, continues to advance in the state legislature.

- Inside the Gov’s Press Office: Gannett’s Michael Symons writes that Gov. Christie’s communications shop “is in some ways a reflection of the governor’s personality — aggressive, tightly disciplined, yet accessible and quick with a stinging quip for a microphone.”

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