Union City's Historic Preservation Advisory Committee held its first meeting of the year on January 10th after a hiatus of six months. Thanks go to Mr. Ulysses Isa, the Committee's newly appointed Liaison with Mayor Stack's Office, for this new beginning. The Committee will meet again on February 12th at the Union City Library, 18th St. and Summit Ave. As an appointed member, I plan to attend.
One crucial issue that must be resolved is what to do about those appointed members who do not show up for meetings, do not respond to communications or consistently beg off at the last minute. In 2006 this became such a problem that we were not able to elect our Officers because there was rarely a quorum. This trend cannot continue through 2007. This year the Committee will meet regularly on the second Wednesday of each month (beginning in March) at 7 p.m. in the Public Relations room at City Hall, 3717 Palisade Ave. Members of the public are invited to attend.
There are many residents of our City who have a keen interest in seeing the city's oldest buildings and districts retain their historic character. Many people have photographs, documents and personal accounts to share that will help to tell the story of Union City's history. We have requested a simple storage space in City Hall where these loaned items can be catalogued and shelved. Recording the City's history through oral accounts is another important project we plan to undertake.
Finally, let me appeal to our public servants in the Union City Library System, Board of Education, Building Department and Office of Tax Assessment as well as to interested residents to help us gather information on the history of City Hall. This information, for example, might be in the form of a postcard, a newspaper article, blue prints, biography of the architect, or some other form. We are working on getting City Hall listed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places.
It should be noted that Mayor Brian Stack lends his support to our efforts. I hope that he and the Board of Commissioners will find a way, through the media or through an official letter, to invite the public to assist in the data gathering. Let me thank Mayor Brian Stack, Mr. Isa and all the participating active members of the Committee for a good start in 2007. I bid all peace and good will.
A fellow resident,
Tony Squire
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