Reitred Police Chief Ferrante Hired As Hoboken Public Safety Director

HOBOKEN, NJ — Former Hoboken Police Chief Ken Ferrante, who retired last summer, has been hired to oversee public safety in the mile-square city starting next week, Mayor Ravi Bhalla announced Thursday.

Ferrante will oversee the Hoboken Police Department, Fire Department, and Office of Emergency Management. He will earn a $155,000 salary in the post.

The city also announced late last year that Freeholder Anthony Romano would be a part-time public safety consultant to the city for $50,000 per year. A city spokesperson said he'll remain in that role.

The Police Department is headed up by Acting Chief Steven Aguiar as of March 1. The Fire Department is headed by Acting Chief Anton Peskens. (The city's Fire Chief Brian Crimmins remains on leave with pay from last May, the city confirmed.)

“With our expanding population and city services, Ken’s nearly 30 years of Hoboken experience put him in the best position to lead public safety and assist City Hall as we build off the successes of the past several years,” said Bhalla. “I look forward to working with Ken in his new role as he leads the process to modernize our public safety facilities.”

Ferrante was known for his willingness to disseminate public information, including his tongue-in-cheek reports on bar crawls like Santacon.

Ferrante became a police officer in Hoboken in 1993, serving as chief from October 2014 until his retirement in July 2021.

During his tenure, Ferrante has earned numerous awards, including the Combat Cross, Honorable Service Award, and Exceptional Duty Award.

He has a master's degree in criminal justice from New Jersey City University and served as President of the Hudson County Chiefs of Police Association.

He also served as the City of Hoboken's Office of Emergency Management Coordinator from 2013 and 2014, during which time he responded to all active fires and worked with the Administration to launch the Hoboken Ready program and the Rebuild by Design project.

As chief of the Hoboken Police Department, he has created the HPD's first-ever Waterfront and Parks Unit in 2015 and the department's first Emergency Service Unit.

He has also tripled the size of the department's Traffic Unit and doubled the size and hours of the Investigations Bureau, the city noted.

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