Winter storm warning issued for all of New Jersey

New Jersey is bracing for a hurricane-like snow storm with gusty winds topping 70 mph and the potential for accumulations throughout the state.

Snow is expected to develop around the start of rush hour Thursday morning, with some periods of snowfall through Friday. Sleet or ice accumulations may impact travel and there is potential for six or more inches of snow.

There's uncertainty about how the storm system will track. The weather service said warm air from the ocean will determine the rain-snow line.

Follow the updates: Harrison Weather Center

Via: NJ.com Read the full story | Image Dailyharrison.com

Harrison is moving ahead on plans to lay off 48 full- and part-time workers as local unions scramble to present cost-savings options in an effort to save jobs.

A three-alarm fire raced through a three-story building on Harrison Avenue last Friday night, Jan. 29, displacing the six families who lived there, officials said.

Cuts in salaries and hours at the Public Library will save the town $200k a year

The Town of Harrison will see cuts in library hours, snow removal and senior services due to the 48 layoffs it confirmed last week.

Mayor Raymond J. McDonough confirmed that 29 full-time and 19 part-time employees will be cut from the town's payroll.

Additionally, as previously stated by Harrison officials, the town will not replace nine employees who are retiring.

The proposed layoffs include employees from different departments and they are expected to save the Town of Harrison $2.75 million a year in salaries and benefits.

Full list of positions part of Harrison's massive layoff (Source: NJ.com)

Cuts include 300K in salary for the deputy police chief and deputy fire chief positions

HARRISON, NJ-- In the face of budget problems caused by declining state aid and rising insurance costs, the Town of Harrison announced yesterday it will lay off 29 full-time and 19 part-time employees, saving the town $2.7 million a year.

The official news release issued by the Town of Harrison does not indicate where else the other cuts will be made.

After losing $5 million in state aid, and facing another tough year ahead of us, with the U.S. jobless rate hovering around 10 percent and tax revenue dwindling, the Town of Harrison has few options left to fix the budget problems.

The layoffs come on top of a hiring freeze and wage freezes for all town employees for the next two years.

The final chapter in a longstanding dispute between a Harrison lawmaker and the town over building permits appears to have been written.On Jan. 6, Bayonne Municipal Court Judge Frank Carpenter accepted a settlement agreement under which Councilman Steve McCormick is obliged to pay Harrison a “civil judgment” of $20,000.

Daily passenger capacity to increase from 240,000 to 290,000 by 2017

A Siemens-led consortium signed a contract with the Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) to modernize and automate the rail system connecting New York and New Jersey.

This project will increase the passenger capacity from 240,000 passengers to 290,000 passengers per day. By implementing a new Communication-based Train Control (CBTC) to the PATH rail system the intervals between the trains will be reduced and more trains can use the same track.

The total contract volume is EUR 224 million (USD $321 million) and the project is due to be completed in 2017.

Harrison plans to purchase a new telephone system officials say promises to slash telephone bills by eliminating up to 80 phone lines servicing municipal offices. Under a contract approved at last week's reorganization meeting, the town will purchase the system from Elmwood Park-based Quality Communications for $77,500.

Council members Steven and Maria McCormick protest Town appointments

Two legal appointments made at Harrison's New Year's Day reorganization meeting spurred hot debate among local elected officials.

Council members Steven and Maria McCormick protested that the appointments of Paul J. Zarbetski as town attorney and Robert E. Murray as legal council for labor negotiations and litigation are redundant and waste taxpayer money.