Mayor Raymond Giacobbe, Jr. delivered his first State of the City since winning a full, four-year term in November, announcing a new city administrator, a possible bike share with neighboring towns, and welcoming almost 400 new downtown residential units by the end of the year.

The 2019 State of the City took place on March 20 at the Union County Performing Arts Center (UCPAC). The full 4,231-word speech can be found here along with a 5-minute video of various city highlights produced by UCPAC the city and narrated by UCPAC Executive Director Brian Remo.

Giacobbe announced a new city administrator. Abubakar “A.J.” Jalloh is the city clerk in Plainfield and part-time chief of staff to Assemblywoman Linda Carter. He previously served as chief of staff to the late Assemblyman and county Democratic Chairman Jerry Green. He’s also the brother of former Freeholder Mohamed Jalloh.

Jalloh will succeed Cherron Rountree, whose tenure as city administrator ended in December. City Council appointed an interim city administrator for 2019 in January, awarding a $70,000 consulting contract to Bob Landolfi of Landolfi & Associates Government Solutions Corporation. Landolfi will remain in a senior advisory role under his current contract and is now the permanent director of the Redevelopment director.

Jalloh began March 12 as acting city administrator for a 90-day period, after which City Council is expected to consider a resolution confirming his permanent appointment, according to Joe Brown, communications director for the City of Rahway. A residency waiver will be requested as part of the appointment resolution as Jalloh is a resident of Bound Brook.

Jalloh currently is on a leave of absence from his post as municipal clerk in Plainfield. He also currently serves as part-time clerk of Riverdale in Morris County. Jalloh is in the process of transitioning out of both positions and intends to resign them following his expected permanent appointment in Rahway. He’s expected to continue on a part-time basis as chief of staff to Assemblywoman Linda Carter. The Mayor and his search team considered several potential candidates, Brown added.

To complement the Rahway 2030 Initiative of installing new bikeways, which he mentioned in the 2018 State of the City, Giacobbe said traffic officers will develop a Safe Bicycling Training and the mayor also is hopeful to participate in a “Bike-Share” program with other municipalities.

The mayor counted 34 local businesses that opened in the past year, ranging from restaurants (Il Forno a Legna), personal service providers, administrative offices, an art gallery (Atelier Rosal) and the city’s first yoga studio (One Nest Yoga). Four businesses expanded and two expanded within the first year of their opening, he said. At least seven new businesses are preparing to open in the next few months: The Blowout Lounge, Cakeaholic Obsession, Cooks Kitch’n, PFSP, Pup2 Club, Urban Air Trampoline & Adventure Park, and Wheelie Good Pierogi. No mention of how many businesses closed during the same period.

As far as redevelopment, some 376 units are expected to be completed this year, all of which will be rental apartments. The Gramercy on East Cherry Street, a five-story, 45-unit complex, has opened. The 219-unit Reva Rahway on Main Street, at the site of the former Center Circle, is pegging an October opening. Phase one of Main & Monroe is expected to complete 112 of its 196 units in the fall. A second, 84-unit building will begin construction once the first is completed. There’s also the first phase of the 487-unit Brownstones, under construction at Elizabeth and West Grand avenues, with doors expected to open in 2020.

One of the most frequently asked questions of the mayor is, “How are you going to stabilize taxes?” according to Giacobbe. “Using our redevelopment strategies optimizing PILOT [Payment In Lieu Of Taxes] programs will strike a long-term balance between public and private economic needs ultimately helping in the stabilization of taxes,” Giacobbe said.

Last year, PILOTs generated more than $1.5 million in revenue in the city’s $55-million budget. Each downtown project has had a PILOT, ranging from five years to 30 years. Park Square was the first and shortest, at five years (expiring in 2015). Other recent developments with PILOTS include:

• Meridia Water’s Edge — 10 years (expected to expire about 2024)
• Metro Rahway — 15 years (2024)
• Meridia Lafayette Village — 15 years (~2032)
• Main & Monroe — 30 years (~2050)
• Reva Rahway — 30 years (~2050)
• The Brownstones — 30 years (~2050)
• The Gramercy — 20 years (~2039)

The second question the mayor gets is about parking. “With the growth we are fortunate to experience comes an increased need for parking,” Giacobbe said.  The city is in the midst of a comprehensive parking study, which will yield short-, medium-, and long-term recommendations to optimize parking resources.

Editor’s note: I was unable to attend the State of the City in person due to illness. This post is a summary of the State of the City remarks, which the mayor provided and now available here.