*Editor's note: As spelled in the actual press release. His last name and the difficulty pronouncing it was a campaign issue he brought up himself recently and apparently it is an issue from his campaign staff as well. No big deal but worth a little chuckle perhaps. A corrected statement was sent out afterward with the name fix. It is a mistake I am definitely capable of making. Here is his statement....
What makes 4th Ward residents angry is that while everyone in New Jersey knew that a major storm was on the way, our mayor and Councilman Lenz spent the day yesterday preparing for a political event with an out-of-town politician. In New York, Mayor Bloomberg sent crews out across the city in advance of the storm to clear catch basins and make sure that they were able to function. Meanwhile, Councilman Michael Lenz was making menu selections!
We need to make sure the city is properly maintaining catch basins in our streets. We shouldn’t see them so full of junk and trash that weeds can grow out of them. It’s time they step up and put together a more aggressive action and public education plan to keep our drains clear.
I support the “Invisible structures” concept. It’s in use under the Pentagon and under major stadium structures. These catch water and distribute it slowly so that the existing systems can handle it. What’s wrong with requiring this of developers?
Pumps alone will not fix the problem. That’s true, but what I don’t support – which Councilman Lenz and the administration did - was to spend $160,000 of taxpayer money to put “sensors” in the ground to monitor flood levels. We don’t need sensors to tell us: high tide + heavy rains = FLOODING. You can get this information for free from weather.com or from any mom in the 4th Ward. Had this technology been worth the paper it’s printed on then the North Hudson Sewage Authority would be funding it and endorsing it but they are not.
This technology, which the mayor and Councilman Lenz still stubbornly support, has been discredited by a number of studies, including one from Steven’s Institute, which found that it would “be of no value.” We are under sea level and this technology simply won’t work to alleviate the problem.
The company called EmNet, which got a no bid contract to “provide proprietary provisions and professional services to initiate and maintain a real time flood monitoring system,” got paid $160,000 (no bid), $50,000 of which was for travel and living expenses since the company is located - in INDIANA!
In the end, if Michael Lenz had any fresh ideas, he would be presenting them. “The pumps are coming!” is simply not enough, but he won’t be an independent voice for the 4th Ward because he’s so inextricably tied into the mayor’s failed action plan.
My comment: Not all of Hoboken is under sea level. In fact the line of flood zone demarcation is generally Garden Street where I live. I know this as I pay flood insurance. Tim might not be as aware of flood insurance requirements as a renter. I don't know but if he doesn't he should get up to speed quickly as the election day looms. A substantial portion of Hoboken including Stevens Campus is above ground and that runoff has to go somewhere, downhill or west in the case of Hoboken. I will let the various engineers slug it out on the exactitude of the science but the idea that water could be temporarily captured and held in those areas above sea level is indeed feasible. Whether the gate technology it is practical/economical or not is up to the experts but I believe the data from the sensors is still needed.
The company he mentions from Indiana, EMNET is a leader in this field and has produced solutions that work. It should be noted that a meeting with Hudson County Sewer Authority occurred and the board did not object to the installation of the monitoring equipment. It is their property and if something was unworkable it would have not been allowed by the board.
Just because solutions come from outside the area doesn't mean those solutions should be discounted. It is that small minded, small time thinking that has got Hoboken in trouble on these infrastructure issues in the first place. Hoboken should be reaching out to other municipalities rather than trying to re-invent the wheel when there are possible solutions that could work. The data will be valuable maybe not as much to developers who could be required to provide even more expensive flood mitigating solutions when building once the data is processed. Follow the money on the ELECs when they come out and you will know what is driving these ill-conceived policy statements by Tim. Just my two cents. Feel free to comment below.... ◦
