More chances this week to hear mayoral candidates Fulop, Matsikoudis square off

Mayor Steve Fulop and his only challenger, Bill Matsikoudis, met on the New Jersey City University campus Monday night in their first debate.

Steve Fulop on why he should be re-elected:
Fulop, 40, who is seeking a second term on Nov. 7, highlighted his administration beefing up the police force by over 150 officers, installing new closed-circuit security cameras and starting a city prisoner re-entry program as achievements. "I'm here to tell you that I'm running for another term because we still have more work to do," he said.

Bill Matsikoudis on what needs to change:
Matsikoudis, 45, painted a starkly different picture of Fulop's first term, noting a sharp increase in homicides -- 13 homicides in 2012 versus 24 in 2016 -- saying there is a "dearth" of recreational facilities on the city's south side and characterizing relations between police officers and residents as deteriorating. "We can do a better job," Matsikoudis said twice.

So, round one is in the books and round two comes -- WHOA, tonight friends! The talk is at at School 11, 886 Bergen Ave. starting at 7 p.m. and tonight will be sponsored by Safe Streets JC and Bike JC and will center on safe streets, safer bike lanes and pedestrian safety, something important to ALL Jersey City residents. Follow this link for more on the Monday debate and upcoming times Fulop and Matsikoudis will debate.

Today's big number -- 2,500

That's roughly the amount who rode through all six Jersey City wards today during the  Jersey City Ward Tour. That's an impressive number. One can easily see this growing to 5,000 or more and if you get that many and they stay active on bike issues throughout the city, you can definitely set policies.

Here's to growing 2,500 to 5,000 in the next five years.