Hoboken Gets Federal Funds For Coronavirus Relief

HOBOKEN, NJ — As the mile-square city continues to grapple with coronavirus cases — as of Thursday evening, two residents had died and the city had 152 confirmed cases — a bit of financial relief is on the way.

U.S. Sens. Robert Menendez and Cory Booker announced Friday that Hoboken is among the towns that will receive funds in the first wave of the federal stimulus package to help communities "on the frontlines of the coronavirus outbreak."

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Hoboken will receive $641,319 in this package. Also, Jersey City will get over $5 million in funds, Union City will get $622,932, and North Bergen will receive $418,593.

Jersey City's amount includes funds from an Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) for rental assistance, eviction prevention, and anti-homelessness programs. The other towns will receive CDBG (Community Development Block Grant) funds.

The funding is meant to assist in various ways, "whether it’s keeping our health departments fully staffed or retrofitting facilities for testing or providing grants to struggling businesses and non-profits," Menendez said in a release.

Right now, Hoboken has a coronavirus testing center uptown, run by Riverside Medical Group, that as of Friday afternoon is open to any resident.

In fact, the city announced Friday that residents with symptoms can call 201-420-5621 in advance to schedule an appointment. Calls will be taken Friday until 4 p.m., then 9-5 all weekend. The center is located on 14th Street between Jefferson Street and Madison Street.

Menendez said the federal funds are much needed in New Jersey.

"When we negotiated the largest ever emergency response package in our nation’s history, we demanded that it quickly deliver federal dollars to our communities on the frontlines of the fight against COVID-19," he said. “And we cut a whole lot of red tape in this bill so that local leaders can immediately put these dollars to work.”

The millions being released today come from three federal grant programs designed to give state and local governments flexibility to address urgent needs, including housing and business relief.

The two senators announced the funds in Bergen County, which is receiving the largest funding award in the state, more than $8.3 million. Bergen County, according to the release from Menendez's office, has 75 deaths and 3,494 confirmed cases.

Menendez, a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee that sets national health and tax policy, was one of the bipartisan negotiators working directly with the Trump Administration to craft the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Sen. Booker was also involved in negotiating certain aspects of the deal.

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