BY WALTER ELLIOTT
ORANGE – The 2024 nonpartisan municipal elections for mayor and city council members, set for May 14, kicked into top gear by the official opening of Quantavia Hilbert for Mayor’s campaign headquarters here at 170 Scotland Rd. March 16.
“Local Talk” saw Hilbert standing on a temporary stage before dozens of men, women and children in front of 170 Scotland’s Suite 1S on a sunny but slightly windy Saturday afternoon. at about 2:30 p.m. The current West Ward Councilwoman noted that Orange, north of 30,000 by the 2010 U.S. Census, had grown by some 10,000 residents in the last 10 years – which means that some city services have to grow with them.
“Orange has grown by 10,000 residents,” said Hilbert. “That means that we need more police officers and firefighters. We have to look at our Department of Public Works – who are responsible for cleaning our streets and our parks.”
One of the priorities Hilbert would put on the municipal workforce is the opportunity to grow their potential. Some of that proposed “uptraining” comes from her career experience.
“I began a logistical and administrative company that went from startup to more than $15 million,” said Hilbert. “One of the things I did for my employees is to offer them the resources so they can start their own businesses.”
Hilbert, on her first term in City Hall, openly asked if residents are getting the services for the amount of city property and school taxes they are paying for. Homeowners and renters are also facing rising rent from the taxes and from the growth of apartment buildings within and beyond the state-designated Transit Village Zones.
“When I first moved here, my rent for my one bedroom apartment on Park Avenue was $700 a month,” Hilbert paused. “Now it’s $2,100.”
Hilbert compared rising rents to the Payments in Lieu of Taxes given to apartment building developers as a condition to getting those projects. She asserts that those tax abatements come at the price of city services not being fully funded.
“City Hall had been passing long term tax abatements that are now 22 years; it used to be 30,” said the councilwoman, “What are residents getting besides apartments? Where are the community centers, recreational opportunities, ways of keeping residents here at their homes?”
Hilbert sees some of Orange’s redevelopment is being done with insufficient public input. She pointed to the vacant building shells that used to be Orange Memorial Hospital, closed for 31 years, to the east.
“Did you know that the city just sold that to a developer?” asked Hilbert. “Was the community consulted on what they want there?”
Orange Memorial, for the record, is now on its third developer. The property was returned to the city after the brothers of the previous developer had a falling out with each other, stalling their residential project.
“Orange is the gem of Essex County that has a history and needs polishing,” said Hilbert. “I want residents to have everything they need here and not have to go out of Orange to shop.”
Part of Hilbert’s vision includes looking for in-house efficiency – which brought her to the Orange Water Department and Orange Reservoir.
“Do you know that we’re on our third water manager?” asked Hilbert. “The Water Department has a $15 million budget – we can manage the water department ourselves. We also need to talk with Essex County about their lease of the reservoir – after all, we own it.”
The city had negotiated leasing the reservoir to Essex County in exchange for a 20-year annual payment. The county turned the West Orange property into a recreational area adjacent to the county’s other holdings: Codey South Mountain Arena, Turtle Back Zoo and South Mountain Reservation.
Whatever new development or redevelopment is done, Hilbert wants to see them hire 15 percent of their workforce from Orange in contracts – something she said that other communities make as a contractual condition.
Hilbert is principally vying for the incumbent Dwayne Warren’s seat as mayor. Warren, who is seeking his fourth consecutive term, is part of his Moving Orange Forward 2024 team with the three at-large councilmen who are also seeking re-election. (Former councilwoman April Gaunt-Butter had also garnered the sufficient number of registered city voters’ signatures to run a solo mayoral campaign – but details are unknown as of press time.)
“It is time for a generational change, fresh ideas and a new approach,” said Hilbert. “Cultural treatment comes from the top. How many times you came to City Hall with questions — and you got no answers and closed doors?”
Hilbert, who also appealed for Get Out The Vote volunteers, turned the PA microphone to Patrick Reid, one of her campaign managers, and stood to one side for photo opportunities with audience members.
GOTV is a priority at least in the Hilbert campaign. A majority of participating registered West Ward voters, in 2022, gave Hilbert 61 percent of the vote over three other challengers for the open seat.
The 2022 Orange ward council candidates, however, drew sub-1,000 vote totals. 2020’s six mayor candidates garnered 3,260 votes among them; the 11 council candidates collectively received 7,495.
There was no headquarters ribbon cutting. People walked in and out of Suite 1S while East Orange singer Jean-Claude Jean performed a two-song set and, later DJ Empower, of Orange, spun records.
“Local Talk,” after waiting its turn among those having catered snacks and picking up voter registration forms, entered 1S – and had deja-vu. It was the first time being there in 20 years, when it was the “Orange Transcript’s” last editorial office here.
170 Scotland may be best known for the late Family Connections office. Hilbert had converted her JMJB Film Production studio at 1S into campaign headquarters.
“Local Talk” asked her about being part of Emerge New Jersey, who had named her and 16 other women as its Class of 2024 Feb. 24. The Brielle-based Democratic Party outfit trains up-and-coming women in networking, fundraising and preparing for higher political office. There are Emerge programs in 36 other states.
“I learned about Emerge from (State Senator) Britnee Timberlake (D-East Orange) and (Congresswoman) Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair),” said Hilbert. “They both encourage and challenge you.”
