Kearny Job Fair successful
Some 750 people turned out June 27 for a Job Fair, co-sponsored by the town and the North Hudson Community Action Corp., and hosted by the Kearny Public Library.
“The line stretched from the front door of the library around to Garfield (Ave.),” Mayor Alberto Santos recalled, “and it took about an hour for everybody to get inside but once they started, the line kept moving.”
Inside, representatives of 34 prospective employers, including corporations, big retailers, banks, hotels, home health care agencies and employment firms, were ready to welcome them at tables set up and down the library hallways, accept their resumes and enlighten them about job prospects.
Some got advice on how to apply for jobs – mostly entry-level – the companies were looking to fill.
Santos said there were Kearny residents and outof- towners, alike, among the job seekers. “We didn’t turn anyone away,” he said.
“It was a good community service we provided and we’re hoping we can do another one next year,” the mayor said. He commended Library Director Josh Humphrey for doing “a tremendous amount of work” to accommodate the throng that attended the event.
But before the town makes a commitment to schedule a follow-up fair, Santos said, “We first have to evaluate how this one went” so officials will know whether to retain the same format or to tweak it to handle things any differently.
As of press time, the mayor said it would be “too soon to know how many, if any, were actually placed in jobs.”
Asked whether Kearny itself was in a position to do any hirings, Santos said that the town found that possibility “still very challenging. In our Recreation Department, for example, we’re down to two individuals but, because an employee is out on sick leave, we need a part-time person.”
Government, in general, “is still in retrenchment” mode, Santos said. And, in harsh economic times like the present, “government lags behind the private sector,” he said.
In fact, as a potential cost-saving move, Santos said that town officials are “looking at contracting out fire dispatch services,” which has been done by three uniformed Fire Department employees, all of whom are retiring. “We thought that with these personnel leaving, it would be an opportunity to explore privatizing this area,” he said.
– Ron Leir
Streetscape taking shape
Neglia Engineering representative Kevin O’ Sullivan reported to the Kearny Town Council that some of the amenities for the Kearny Urban Enterprise Zone (KUEZ) Streetscape have started to arrive on site. Some of these amenities include decorative benches and trash receptacles that will line Kearny Ave.
The amenities are part of Phase V of the Kearny Ave.Streetscape that will extend the streetscape on Kearny Ave. from Midland Ave. to the railroad bridge just south of Columbia Ave.
“I’m happy to see that the amenities are almost here and that this project is finally getting closer to completion,” said KUEZ Director John Peneda. “I hope that the UEZ project fund will be restored by the governor and his administration, so that we could have the funds to complete the Kearny Ave. Streetscape for the remaining blocks.
Manufacturers for the project, according to O’ Sullivan, said that many of the other amenities are either currently in production or are in the process of being shipped.
-Anthony J. Machcinski
Radley St. hits ‘home stretch’
A challenging portion of the Radley St. renovation has finally been completed according to Neglia Engineering representative Kevin O’Sullivan. As of June 26, a concrete crew had been authorized to mobilize and begin work the following week. A tentative date for the projects completion has been set for the end of the summer.
Radley St. had been torn up to repair a sewer line. According to O’Sullivan, that sewer line has been finished and the contractor “had pumps running 24 hours a day” to test the new line. O’ Sullivan also said that the sewer “is functioning in its new state.”
– Anthony J. Machcinski
Cali gets new contract
The town council passed a resolution authorizing a two-year extension with Cali Carting for the collection of waste and recyclables for the town. The extension will run through June 30, 2013 at the cost of $1.35 million. The town and Cali Carting agreed upon a contract three years ago, with a town option for two more years at the $1.35 million rate.
“This is a very fair price. I’ve done some research and I doubt we would do much better,” Kearny Mayor Alberto Santos explained at the meeting. The $1.35 million is a $200,000 increase from the previous three years of the contract. Santos explained to the public that the amount of increase was written into the original contract.
– Anthony J. Machcinski
