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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

JC Property Tax Map @jct.rbw.sh · 25/08/2026

JC Tax Map featured in this article / 🧵👇

Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

JC raised taxes 15% and cut park maintenance. Thursday the council votes to spend $1.2M on a vacant lot — to lease it for $1/yr as a garden open ~610 hrs a year. A developer already has approval for 3- and 4-BR family apartments there. Vote it down. betterblocksnj.org/2026/09/07/a...

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

Are PILOT agreements the cause of Jersey City's budget crisis? We dug ran the numbers. The answer is not really. City Hall will have to find more revenue as PILOT agreements expire but taxpayers might get some relief as school taxes should stabilize. betterblocksnj.org/2026/07/20/h...

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

As for Menendez, the elephant in the room is his father, but he's shown himself to be his own man. In my dealings with him, Rep. Menendez has proven himself to have a solid grasp on transit policy and a record of delivering for his congressional district. He earned my vote.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

At the end of the day, I think primary challenges are good. I applaud Mussab for jumping into the race so voters can have a real election but I cannot vote for Ali. He doesn't have a consistent record or enough experience to meet the critical moment we're in.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

And another area where Menendez is a clear winner is on resiliency. I was especially impressed with his answer around Rebuild by Design.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

Unlike Streets PAC NJ, which endorsed Ali, I think Menendez is a clear winner on street safety. His advocacy in Congress has brought real dollars and change to some dangerous and unpleasant streets, including a redesign of the Holland Tunnel approach and improvements along 440.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

Transit is an area where Menendez has been a mixed bag. His past support of the Turnpike widening was disappointing, but his advocacy for improved PATH service was helpful in making weekend service better. We will continue to push him to support further reforms.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

On housing, Menendez has a record of supporting legislation to help create more supply and address the affordability crisis. His answers were nuanced and thoughtful. Ali, despite claiming to be a YIMBY, all too often resorts to counter-productive attacks on "luxury" development.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

Better Blocks did not have time to do an official endorsement this cycle (we've been focused on writing more policy pieces) but I did want to comment on Ali's primary challenge against Menendez. I voted Menendez, despite voting for his primary challenger last cycle, and here's why:

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

Rob Menendez and Mussab Ali answer the Better Blocks questionnaire on how they would use their time in Congress to shape policy at the federal level to build more housing, expand public transit, make our streets safer, and support parks in this urban district. betterblocksnj.org/2026/05/04/a...

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

Citibike is crazy good value for the city.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

How many truly affordable units in that Taco Bell?

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

Every time Jersey City or Hoboken proposes a pedestrian plaza or bike lane, local businesses fear it'll destroy them. The data says the opposite. 🧵 1/5

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

I have focused a lot on the high end of the IZO mandate because that's what Jersey City's new mayor has fixated on but we really should spend time explaining the pitfalls of mandatory unfunded IZOs at any percentage. In short, "there is NO magic number." betterblocksnj.org/2026/03/03/d...

betterblocksnj.org

The High Cost of Unfunded Inclusionary Zoning on Housing Affordability

Explore the challenges of unfunded inclusionary zoning efforts, where zero affordable units have been built in four years despite a promising start.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Upzone New Jersey 🏗️ @upzonenj.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

There are parts of Jersey City right now where rents are at 2022 levels.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

Christian Gomez wrote this great piece on why Jersey City can't reform parking and struggles to approve new housing: a political culture that mistakes endless community meetings for leadership.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Nolan Hicks @ndhapple.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

Fun find this afternoon: In 1957, the Port Authority did the engineering work to link the downtown PATH to the Lexington Avenue subway local tracks.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Stephen Jacob Smith @stephenjacobsmith.com · 09/04/2026

This project is batshit insane and nobody’s paying attention. $11bn is enough to make good progress on regional rail, moving riders from slow, uncomfortable, high-operating-cost buses to trains. Instead it’s happening in isolation from Gateway/Penn planning, resulting in no major new transit service

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

jimmybot @jimmybot.com · 08/04/2026

If we could fund better transit in NJ through a new revenue stream, how would you do it? Didn't Pompidou reveal we could be using special improvement districts for regional/localized public goods? @upzonenj.bsky.social @3underscores.bsky.social @mdasilva.bsky.social @eaconner.bsky.social

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

My vote is for HOT ("Lexus Lanes") on I-78 and I-80 and demand-based variable tolling on Turnpike and Parkway.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Hudson County Complete Streets @hudcostreets.org · 07/04/2026

The World Cup is coming. So is congestion and pollution. A call from our president, Johan Andrade, on the need for getting Hudson County World-Cup-ready with quick build bus lanes, bike lanes, and pedestrian corridors before it's too late.

hudsoncountyview.com

Op-Ed: Let’s Get Hudson County World Cup Ready Before It's Too Late - Hudson County View

Op-Ed: Hudson County Complete Streets President Johan Andrade suggests how to get Hudson County ready for the Fifa World Cup this summer.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

Silverman as a housing developer is good! Silverman as a rent-seeking landlord who tries to prevent new market entrants is not good!

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

A neighbor filed a zoning complaint against a Jersey City café for baking cinnamon rolls in-house. The “evidence”? They paid a grease trap fee. (Every coffee shop does.) “The Cinny” is baked off-site. Jersey City planning confirmed it twice. The complaint is still moving forward.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Upzone New Jersey 🏗️ @upzonenj.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

It's pretty bad if Ambrossi got bodied out of primarying an extremely vulnerable county commissioner. I have nothing against Lipski, but isn't she the poster child for not campaigning? There's really value in her getting to be lazy? It's not like that race would have been full on civil war.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

Jersey City's existing 15% mandatory IZO downtown has been in place since 2021. Affordable units built under it without a PILOT? Zero. The new mayor ran on the promise to expand this IZO mandate to 20% and make it citywide. Learn more about what IZOs are. betterblocksnj.org/2026/02/08/t...

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

New "luxury" apartments in Jersey City actually make rents cheaper for everyone nearby. Studies show new construction cuts surrounding rents by ~6%. Here's the evidence politicians ignore when they fight new housing. betterblocksnj.org/2025/12/15/w...

betterblocksnj.org

Boosting Jersey City: The Case for More Housing Supply

Explore Jersey City's housing policy and its impact on affordability, urban vitality, and economic opportunities in our insightful article.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

Tax abatements, exemptions, and PILOT agreements are some of the most misunderstood tools in municipal finance. In our latest article, we explain the history and use of these agreements debunk three of the most common myths circulated on social media around tax abatements. 1/

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

Additionally, to your point, there is some worry about how a universal 15% or 20% IZO might either kill development completely or accelerate PILOT usage to an unsustainable degree. I’ll investigate that in the next article on funded IZOs.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

I think this is one reasons why the last administration diverted 10% of PILOT revenues to the schools directly. I maintain it’s a wash either way but you could use that Rutgers report to calibrate the exact amount to “cover” the expected number of new school aged children.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

The first two ordinances Better Blocks was tracking went to a vote after second reading so we finally have data for our council vote tracker and score card. Lavarro falls to last place voting against Better Blocks' supported positions. Everyone else is batting .500 raw votewise.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

We are working on building a subreddit where we will share not only our posts but hope to create a repository for all the research articles that @3underscores.bsky.social and @eaconner.bsky.social end up reading and using. If folks have good econ papers on housing they want to share, post there!

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

One of our volunteers researched and wrote this analysis of the SciTech Scity project, which was one of then-Councilman Solomon's favorite punching bags on the campaign trail. He decried the development as a giveaway to luxury developers for $10 but the reality is much more nuanced. Worth a read!

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

The deal between Jersey City and Liberty Science Center that sold land for "just $10" is frequently misrepresented. We looked into the project to see how this deal was actually structured to benefit Jersey City and the beloved local non-profit science center. betterblocksnj.org/2026/03/10/b...

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

As a political advocacy group, we support candidates and make endorsements, but we need to keep our local electeds accountable too. We are publishing issue trackers and scorecards to see how well local officials stack up on housing, transit, safe streets, and public amenities.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Does Unfunded Inclusionary Zoning Produce Affordable Housing at Scale? Part IV in our Housing Policy Series The post discusses the challenges of… betterblocksnj.org/2026/03/03/does-…

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

This is one of our best articles yet. We look at how badly Boston et al messed up housing production with an unfunded IZO. Jersey City beware! The next posts will look at how you can build affordable housing through funded and voluntary IZOs using more real-world examples.

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Reposted by Eric Allen Conner

Better Blocks NJ @betterblocksnj.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

We got the city council to recognize the bird-glass ordinance has costs. They amended to 1) lower height to 85 ft; 2) exempt projects that don’t require a site plan; and 3) exempt 100% affordable housing. More affordable housing builders should reach out to educate council on ordinance costs.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

Oh. Duh! This is Halo. Everyone thinks of developers as an unlimited ATM but these projects are tricky, timelines are long, and margins are tight, tight, tight.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

If you support transit-oriented development and want to help solve the housing crisis in Jersey City, local advocacy is one of the best things you can do. E-mail the council. Tell them you support dense, transit-oriented development downtown. Here are their emails: docs.google.com/document/d/1...

docs.google.com

Jersey City Council Contact Information

Jersey City Council Contact Information Can copy and paste this into an email to email the entire council and all aides: DRidley@jcnj.org, jbrooks@jcnj.org, TZuppa@jcnj.org, JEphros@jcnj.org, ELittle...

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

Notably that idea is *wrong* because Planning assumes curtains and blinds are an acceptable mitigation technique under the ordinance; unfortunately, as the ordinance is written, they aren't! And the materials costs are considerably higher than 0.38%.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

We may get the council to exempt buildings that don't require a site plan. Planning apparently wanted to exempt 5-over-1 construction too. Then again, our Planning Division also though curtains and blinds satisfied the ordinance (they don't, apparently). Whole thing's a mess but Solomon wants it.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

I think your analogy is an apt one. Urban roads are often safer because they tend to have lower speeds and more safety measures like protected bike lanes, bump out crosswalks, etc. And dense urban living is better for birds, too. These are all good arguments in favor of more urban development.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

I actually looked at Toronto's ordinance, by the way. And your legislation is much more narrowly tailored than what was proposed by the Jersey City Council. As a compromise, I suggested we start with what they were doing Canada (if we weren't going to do due diligence here).

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

This debate has been raging in Jersey City for a few months now since the last city council passed the ordinance and (then-Mayor) Fulop vetoed it over cost concerns. I spent a lot of time reading the research literature and talking to experts. betterblocksnj.org/2025/12/10/t...

betterblocksnj.org

Eric Conner's Op-Ed on Veto of Bird-Safe Glass Ordinance

Read Eric Conner's op-ed on the veto of the bird-safe glass ordinance in Jersey City, highlighting its importance for local wildlife.

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Eric Allen Conner @eaconner.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

We at @betterblocksnj.bsky.social really tried our best to warn everyone. Bill O'Dea wasn't perfect by any means but he was miles ahead on housing policy and also understood the tradeoffs necessary to actually build income-restricted affordable housing. betterblocksnj.org/2025/10/16/t...

betterblocksnj.org

Better Blocks endorses Bill O'Dea for Jersey City Mayor

Better Blocks endorses Bill O'Dea for Jersey City Mayor and reviews the other mayoral candidates' platforms

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