I am writing today from Australia (4:30am) about happenings at Hoboken’s uptown waterfront.
This is a fast, unedited note as I am getting on a plane shortly. I will be back in Hoboken on Wednesday.
FORMER MONARCH SITE – The administration is proposing to move three construction containers to the southern end of the Monarch site for the RBD project. The license to do this would be for one year, but I have a great concern that they will be there for the entirety of the remaining three years of the RBD project and the administration has not committed to this not happening. The administration has said without doing so it will cause considerable delays in the RBD project, but when I asked them to articulate the delays, they didn’t. I personally don’t believe there will be delays, this is just the contractor looking to have their offices moved out of the construction site if possible.
There is a resolution on tonight’s City Council agenda requiring City Council vote for this but City Council rules affords me the ability to carry this one meeting which I have asked to be done. In the interim, I would ask that you please email the mayor (who is away until June 28th, with Jason Freeman as acting mayor) and the City Council encouraging them to find a different location. One click gets you all three: HERE
I have been speaking with the administration and the contractor for EE Cruz about alternative locations instead of using our waterfront. I raised the possibility of the city’s own DPW site in NW Hoboken, just a few blocks further away. When we acquired this site for $90M, the administration represented to us that the DPW would only need 2/3 of the site and that 1/3 would be available to redevelop or sell to offset the initial cost of the site. I have also suggested using Grand or Clinton between 15th and 16th, both very wide streets that could accommodate trailers – in fact one is currently being used by NHSA. I have also suggested the area under the Willow Ave bridge on the far side of 1600 Park which I believe is owned by Hudson County. I am hopeful there is a better solution and for a little encouragement from you… (or better ideas).
As an aside, my name was listed as the sponsor because it goes through my Climate Action committee, although I have communicated repeatedly that I will not sponsor this. Without two sponsors it cannot be voted on so I do not know which of my City Council colleagues will step up into the role.
PIER 11 – This pier is owned by Shipyard. They have agreed to allow a barge to dock adjacent to the site and have a construction office on the pier for the Hudson Tunnel / Gateway project. They are permitted to do this as of right under Hoboken’s zoning for the area (maritime use). I have spoken to Shipyard’s representatives as well as the representative for the Hudson Tunnel project and am told this will only be a launch site for employees to get on and off a boat each morning to go to the construction site. There will be no parking on site – employees will use surrounding public parking lots. I have asked the Gateway representative to reach out to the boards at the adjacent Maxwell and N. Constitution condos to provide information and address any concerns they may have.
One issue that has arisen is there is a colony of Terns (birds) that had nested at the end of this pier. As you know I am a wildlife enthusiast and I am not at all happy that Applied have set up obstacles to keep them from from nesting on the pier in the future. A few nests have occurred there anyway this year, and at least one Tern has been snared in the wiring. My understanding is the barge operations will not take place until after the nesting season is over in August. I have spoken to other local bird enthusiasts who have communicated with the DEP and those involved to ensure this is the case.
PIER 13 – I have been made aware of the noise again this weekend. I am sorry I was not in town to do more. I will address this when I get back.
REBUILD BY DESIGN: There will be a virtual meeting Thursday night – 6/20 - to provide updates on the project. To register for the meeting, click here.
As always, please share this with everyone you know who may be interested and reach out any time on any issue important to you: 201-208-1764 or [email protected]. Click to subscribe to my newsletter.
Tiffanie Fisher
Hoboken City Council, 2nd Ward
Engage. Inform. Advocate.
“More Voices are Better”
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