Marijuana Tax
Quote of the day in our very humble opinion comes from David Danzis’ story on the resolution being considered by the Atlantic City City Council tonight calling for tax revenue from marijuana sales in Atlantic City to be returned to the city, or to the state overseers, for the purposes of tax relief.
Council President Marty Small cited the precedent of the luxury/parking taxes, where Atlantic City sends $90 million per year to the state.
“When it comes to Atlantic City,” Small reportedly said, “(revenue) always seems to be like a GPS. It’s rerouted, every time.”
Pedestrian Fatalities
Pedestrian fatalities rose 9% in New Jersey in 2018 (vs. 2017), the Spotlight reports, part of a wider trend across the U.S., where pedestrian fatalities have increased a shocking 41% since 2008, even as overall traffic deaths have fallen by 6%.
“There was a 30-year decline starting in 1979 in the number of pedestrian fatalities,” Richard Retting told CityLab recently.
“Something’s gone terribly wrong in the last ten years.”
So, what has gone wrong?
Bigger cars? Denser populations? Distracted drivers? Americans spent a record 70.1 billion hours driving in 2016-2017, but it’s not the drivers who are getting into deadlier crashes. It’s the people outside the cars.
Anecdotally–and my stand-up desk faces a busy street so I watch the traffic all day–the dudes in their trucks who drive like they’re storming Kandahar in a video game is definitely a real phenomenon.
Wawa
Wawa is looking to hire 4,000 people in the next three months.
Stores in Brigantine, Ocean City, Ventnor, Margate and Somers Point are taking applications.
Ranked-Choice
Matt Friedman at Politico reports on a bill that would move New Jersey to ranked-choice voting for state-level and federal-level elections, and his story includes this amazing explainer video on how such a system might work and reduce the “spoiler effect.”
I don’t know about you but they had me at at “represent[s] a potential challenge to the state’s notorious boss-driven political culture.”
For more feats of journalism…
Lawmaker introduces bill to establish ranked-choice voting in New Jersey–Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker (D-Somerset) has introduced a bill, NJ A5205, that would establish the new voting system for all state-level and federal elections in New Jersey, from state Assembly to president. www.politico.com
Mike Trout should spend his $430 million in his N.J. hometown–If you thought the contract Philadelphia Phillies right fielder Bryce Harper signed for $330 million was a lot, think again. Millville native Mike Trout is rumored to have signed a record 12-year, $430 million contract extension with his current team, the Los Angeles of Anaheim Angels. expo.nj.com
Did Wine Change the Course of History?–In a new book, Atlantic County oenophile John Mahoney posits that fermented grapes led to the birth of Western civilization. njmonthly.com
Mack-Cali rejects $2.4B offer, saying it ‘substantially undervalues’ firm–Mack-Cali Realty Corp.’s board of directors came out strongly against a $2.4 billion offer for its suburban and waterfront assets by Bow Street Special Opportunities Fund and the notice that the fund intends to nominate a majority stake of six candidates to the board at its upcoming annual meeting of stockholders. www.roi-nj.com