The Jersey City Independent "

It’s been almost five months since Hurricane Sandy ravaged the East Coast and some businesses are still rebuilding or just getting back on their feet. Some of the hardest hit areas were the low-lying areas closest to the rivers flanking Jersey City, the Hudson and the Hackensack.
Both of Jersey City’s malls, Newport Centre and Hudson Mall, are located near the Hudson and Hackensack respectively, and several businesses near each sustained significant damage after the storm.

Perhaps the best measure of a teacher is the impression they leave when the lessons are over. Mario Garcia, a graduate of Dickinson High School and now senior at Rutgers University, credits one of his teachers, Jennifer Tiongson, for helping him get to college. Four years ago, she was Garcia’s AP Art History instructor. Today he’s double majoring in Ecology and Marine Sciences, with a minor in Art History.

If you stand still long enough, you can feel the vibration in the sidewalk under your feet–it’s that urban energy, the beat of the city. But you can’t stand still, of course; you’ve got places to go and all the cars are honking at you to cross the street. A new exhibit at the Distillery Gallery and Artspace in the Jersey City Heights will give you a chance to stop and stare at the beauty of the city.

This weekend, the Friends of the Loew’s presented STAGEfest 2013, a weekend-long festival of one-act plays, music and dance performances. The Loew’s is a special building, ornate and grand in its design. As a way to highlight the building, organizers decided to spread the performances around the lobbies, foyers, and lounges as well as the main stage so audiences could enjoy the beauty of the building as well as the performances within.

If it wasn’t one criticism of Mayor Jerramiah Healy’s tenure as mayor at the Heights Mayoral Candidate Forum – say, allegations of political patronage – it was another – public safety. But through it all, Healy, the number one target of the four candidates, fended off the piled-on criticism of his 9 years in office [...]

They both offer burgers, but the similarities between Lucky 7 and Satis Bistro stop there. Lucky 7 Tavern, a trendy dive bar in Downtown Jersey City, and Satis Bistro, a fine dining establishment in Jersey City’s polished Paulus Hook neighborhood, could not be more different. While the former lures a diverse crowd with its cheap drinks, barbecue and soul food and has décor reminiscent of a college dorm, the latter attracts foodies with a salumeria and events like Beaujolais Nouveau tasting parties. Given the staggering differences between the two, who would expect that both are the pride of one entrepreneurial pair?

The Statue of Liberty wasn’t the only woman behind Morris Pesin in 1961 as he rowed a canoe to Ellis Island from Jersey City in seven minutes to prove the island was accessible from the waterfront, where he wanted to build a green park for people of all walks of life. If Morris is the father of Liberty State Park, his wife, Ethel, is its mother. In February, she passed away at 98, leaving behind a legacy of activism, passion and hard work.

When Abdul Malik’s mayoral candidacy was certified – just in time for Monday, March 11th’s 4pm deadline – he had already received more signatures (1,331) than he did votes in his last ran for office in 2009 as an At-Large candidate — then, Malik received just about 1,234 votes.

Few people know what it’s like to be a Jersey City band better than Ralph Cuseglio and Dave Leto. Friends since middle school, they not only grew up in town but chose to remain here as they pursued careers and started families.

As negotiations between the Jersey City Medical Center and unionized hospital workers continue to stall, union reps are turning to city officials to push for contract talks to continue even as allegations fly that management has turned to “union-busting tactics.” Indeed, union leaders – in attendance at the Council meeting to support a letter by [...]