Phil Cohen has proudly represented Hoboken’s Fifth Ward on the Hoboken City Council since 2020.
Phil has lived in Hoboken for 37 years, moving to town after graduating from Tufts University to attend Rutgers Law School. Phil and his wife Rebecca Kramnick are proud to have raised their daughters, Madeline 28 and Anna 24, here in Hoboken.
For nearly two decades, Phil has been an engaged volunteer in Hoboken’s civic life. Since 2017, Phil has served as a member of the Citizens Advisory Board for Hoboken’s transformative $230 million federal Rebuild By Design project, working on the plan to implement protections for our City from rising tides and strengthening storms like Superstorm Sandy. As Councilman, Phil has continued his long-standing public service related to Rebuild by Design, serving as the Chair of the Council’s Ad Hoc Committee on Rebuild by Design.
Before he was elected to the City Council, Phil served eight years as a Commissioner on the Hoboken Zoning Board. As a Zoning Board Commissioner, Phil supported the adaptive reuse of abandoned industrial structures including the Pilsener Haus project. Phil also supported the introduction of new uses in the industrial northwest such as the Gravity Vault and the buildings that include the current and future homes of the Mile Square Theatre. He enthusiastically supported there construction of the American Legion Post, including housing for 6 homeless veterans, and as a Councilman, Phil was instrumental in securing a $100,000 contribution from the Jon Bon Jovi Foundation for the American Legion to expand this project to house an additional 18 homeless veterans on the site. Phil also has served as a Commissioner on the Hoboken Planning Board.
Phil serves as a Trustee of the Hoboken Business Alliance, and has served as the City Council’s Trustee representative for the last two years working closely with members of our business community on public art installations and beautifying and promoting Hoboken’s vibrant business district.
Phil is a longtime member of the Hoboken Democratic Party’s Executive Committee. Phil has been elected by residents of the 5th Ward to serve as a Committeeman for more than 15 years. In 2018, Phil was elected Chair of the Hoboken Democratic Party by the Party’s members.
Phil served seven (7) years on Stevens Cooperative School’s Board of Trustees and also served as Board Chair of the school. Phil also served as a long-time trustee on the Board of Trustees of the United Synagogue of Hoboken. Phil also has served as a trustee on the Board of the Liberty Humane Society — an organization from which Phil and his family have adopted 4 wonderful cats. Phil and his family are long-time volunteers and supporters of their 11th Street Island Association.
Phil served 7years on the Board of Trustees of Family Legal Care (formerly known as LIFT), a not-for-profit organization which each year provides free legal information and legal advice to tens of thousands of unrepresented families navigating New York’s Family Court system. Phil is the recipient of the Corporate Leadership Award from the Women’s Housing and Economic Development Corporation,a Bronx-based anti-poverty non-profit organization. Phil is a practicing attorney in the New York office of an international law firm where he is a shareholder in the firm’s litigation practice.
Committees
- Community Development and Housing (North) (Chair)
- Public & Transportation
- Administration Finance & Infrastructure
