Councilwoman Fisher Calls On Mayor Bhalla To Conduct Formal Search For Most Qualified Business Administrator For Hoboken, And Delay Tonight’s Vote On Bhalla Aide

In a letter to the Hoboken City Council today, Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher requests that her colleagues join her in calling for Mayor Bhalla to re-initiate a formal search for a Business Administrator, a seat vacated in February by Stephen Marks, now Business Administrator for Kearney.  Mayor Bhalla announced Friday his intent to appoint Jason Freeman to the vacated role.  Mr. Freeman has been serving in the role of Director of Operations for the Mayor’s office since December 2019 and previously was Mayor’ Bhalla’s former Deputy Chief of Staff since he was appointed by the Mayor in May 2018, shortly after Bhalla was elected Mayor.

“Hoboken is a complex city with unprecedented fiscal and operational challenges from both pre- and post COVID times. Our residents and taxpayers deserve a proper search to identify the most qualified candidate for what is the second most important job in Hoboken.” says Fisher.

“The position of Business Administrator is a capstone role, not an entry level one.” Fisher continues. “A previous search that started in February and was cut short due to COVID had identified four qualified candidates.  I know reviving this effort and conducting a more extensive search will uncover many qualified candidates best positioned to help navigate our city through these uncertain times.”

The Councilwoman further states that if after a fulsome search is completed, and Mr. Freeman is determined to have the best skills, experience and knowledge to move Hoboken forward, she will vote for him.

Please see below the letter sent to her City Council colleagues on October 7th.  The City Council will be voting on Mayor Bhalla’s recommended appointment at the City Council meeting this evening.  To pass, the resolution will require five supportive votes.

Contact Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher at 201/208-1674 for any further questions.

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Subject: Please Support Conducting a Full Search for Hoboken’s Business Administrator

Dear City Council colleagues,

Tonight there is a resolution on the agenda to approve Mayor Bhalla’s recommendation to appoint Jason Freeman, his former Deputy Chief of Staff and more recently his Director of Operations, as Hoboken’s new Business Administrator.  I am asking you to please support tabling this vote tonight and requesting that Mayor Bhalla conduct an extensive search to find the most qualified candidate for this critical role to navigate our city through these unprecedented times.  If after a fulsome search is completed, and Jason is determined to have the best skills, experience and knowledge to move Hoboken forward, I will vote for him. 

I don’t have to tell you that the Business Administrator is the most important role in the city next to the Mayor.  If the Mayor is the Chairman/CEO of our city, then the Business Administrator is the Chief Operating and Chief Administrative Officer.  All fiscal, operational and personnel management of all departments of the entire city fall under this person.  That is a lot of people to manage, a lot of dollars to manage, and a lot of different departments to manage.  

Typically, Business Administrators bring a long history of experience, training and knowledge in public sector governing, finance/budgeting and managing to the role.  The position of Business Administrator is a capstone role for municipal employees, not an entry level role. 

As example, Hoboken’s own former Business Administrator from 2012 to 2016 under Mayor Zimmer, Quentin Wiest. Before joining Hoboken as Business Administrator, Quentin had 23 years of experience managing municipal and public agencies including 4 years as a Mayor, 16 years as an Executive Director of two public works type County agencies, and 3 years as a Business Administrator.  Another example is Stephen Marks, who left in February after being Hoboken’s Business Administrator for 3.5 years.  Prior to becoming BA for Hoboken, he had 23 years of public service roles including 19 years in County planning and 4.5 years as Assistant Business Administrator in Hoboken.  In both cases, Quentin and Stephen also had two years of directly relevant professional roles as engineer and transportation planner, respectively.

Jason brings to this critical role a total of just under 3 years total of Municipal experience with only 7 months in the role of Director of Operations for Mayor Bhalla where he had his limited, albeit demanding, exposure to finance and personnel matters.  Prior to becoming Mayor Bhalla’s Deputy Chief of Staff in 2017, Jason’s professional background was with non-profits in the areas of business development and education.  On his LinkedIn profile he cites being Assistant Business Administrator for Hoboken for half of 2019 concurrent with his role as Deputy Chief of Staff to Mayor Bhalla however, I don’t believe this was an actual position, but rather in his capacity as Deputy Chief of Staff he provided support to BA Marks when Patrick Wherry vacated the role of Assistant Business Administrator in early 2019. 

For those unaware, at the Council’s direction, the administration began a search for a Business Administrator just before COVID hit.  It was not a far-reaching search, but one that did include typical sources that post municipal roles.  Four candidates with varying levels of relevant qualifications were identified to be interviewed by the administration and City Council.  And then COVID hit which resulted in the search being placed on hold.  With the passage of time at least one of the candidates removed their name from consideration.  And ultimately, the search was never reinstated.  As it happens, in Mayor’ Bhalla’s introduced budget back in early July, he had already not contemplated commencing a new search but rather recommending Jason for the role – in his budget, Mayor Bhalla had removed the role of Deputy Chief of Staff from his Mayor’s Office budget.  When asked when a new Business Administrator was identified what that would mean for his ability to return to the Mayor’s office, Jason deferred the answer to Mayor Bhalla.

An official search for a role of this significance to the City of Hoboken is critical in order to evaluate and find the most qualified candidate. These are unprecedented times and our city is facing the effects of an ongoing pandemic and concurrent fiscal and operational challenges when tax revenue and other revenue sources are uncertain.  In this year alone, while Jason was in his role as Director of Operations for seven months, we saw a 9.8% municipal tax levy increase proposed, a third year go by with all City employees without a union contract, a gutting of our rent control office, the arbitrary forced retirement and layoffs of 26 city employees, no movement to the state health plan that would save taxpayers millions, the loss of two water authority directors and our city engineer (next month), and a tort claim filed against the administration about unfair hiring practices.  I am not suggesting that Jason caused all of these, but rather that they were not better resolved under his watch.

I ask you to consider your answers to the following questions as you prepare your vote tonight for this important decision for Hoboken and its residents and taxpayers: 

• On a scale of 1-10 in terms of amount of directly relevant experience, skills and knowledge brought to the role of Business Administrator, with Quentin being a 10 and Stephen Marks being a 9, where would you score Jason? 
• What qualifications do you think Hoboken residents and taxpayers deserve with the next Business Administrator to be able to meet and best address the city’s fiscal and operational challenges? 
• Have we as the Governing Body done everything we can to find the most qualified person for the Business Administrator position to lead our city through these uncertain times?

This position is not a Mayor appointed position.  If it were, the City Council would have no vote. This is a position that the Mayor and Council jointly approve as a form of checks and balances to make sure important decisions like this one are being made in the best interests of Hoboken residents and taxpayers, who we have fiduciary responsibility to and are elected by and to serve.

So please join me in calling on Mayor Bhalla to perform a thorough search to find the most qualified individual to serve as Business Administrator who will bring the knowledge, skills and experience that Hoboken needs to navigate through these unprecedented times.  It will not be an easy search given the term of the position runs with the term of the mayor but nonetheless, it is one worth conducting with the opportunity to ensure we find the most qualified person that our small town with big city issues needs.  And until the search is complete, to join me in supporting making Jason Freeman acting Business Administrator.

Thank you for considering,

Tiffanie Fisher

Hoboken City Council