Public gets left out in rush to seal deal

Monday, January 14, 2008

New development along the Newark Bay side of Jersey City is always welcome. The tentative settlement with Honeywell International Inc. is expected to spur construction of housing, office buildings and shops on about 80 acres and provide more open space on nearly 20 acres.

This newspaper has editorialized that on the surface it appears to be a good deal.

What sends up a small red flag is the speed at which this settlement and major development project was rammed through the City Council, whose members hardly asked a question but nevertheless unanimously approved the agreement.

This deal was supposedly negotiated over the course of a year. Yet, the public announcement about the proposed development and the agreements between the city and Honeywell, and then the council's vote, all took place in less than one week.

The question here is when will there be any time for any substantial public input? Will it be during Planning Board sessions when Honeywell sells property to potential builders - after the financial considerations in the agreement are completed?

Honeywell is expected to buy the 41 acres of city land currently occupied by the DPW, the Municipal Utilities Authority and the Incinerator Authority, and then sell - after a chromium clean-up - this land and roughly 60 acres the company already owns, to builders who agree to follow redevelopment plans drawn up by the city.

Members of the public did not have enough time to question this deal. Where are the DPW, MUA and Incinerator Authority being moved? Apparently there is no plan for such a move, because Ward B Councilwoman Mary Spinello objected to plans to move these government facilities to the Marion section of the city. Now the MUA will stay where it is, but it will be rebuilt as a streamlined facility. The other two have yet to find new homes.

Perhaps the reason city officials want to expedite the agreement is that there is a hole in the city budget that has to be closed. Quarterly tax bills have gone out and there are some angry homeowners. The Healy administration wants to repair the damage, and this deal will do it.

Honeywell has agreed to upfront payments of $15 million this year and $10 million next year, money that would come out of the city's 40 percent share on the land sales to developers.

Development on the west side can only help this city, but the administration should have given its citizens time to digest what is being offered.

© 2008 The Jersey Journal
© 2008 NJ.com All Rights Reserved.

October 9, 2007

We are deeply concerned with the recent proposed changes to the remaining Powerhouse Arts District redevelopment plan by Toll Brothers for the historic Manishewitz Building, as this proposal would represent a dramatic, wholesale change to the existing PAD redevelopment plan.

Prior to considering the proposed changes, we request that City Planning perform a needs analysis to determine if these changes are warranted and what, if any, community benefits would result. Further, any evaluation of the changes must be done under the assumption of the completed PAD plan, not current conditions.

We also believe that it is necessary to evaluate the impact of the proposed changes on the study area, also to be performed under the assumption that the rest of the plan is fully built-out, as designed, including previous (and significant) increases in density at 110 and 111 First Street. Included in this impact assessment should be the loss of light and air, and congestion, factoring in the PATH system’s already maxed-out rush-hour capacity and the recently completed Regional Waterfront Access and Downtown Circulation Study, which concluded that the local street system is overburdened and will soon fail.

Lastly, we request that Planning Board commissioners acknowledge any conflicts of interest that they may have on this issue and summarily, properly recuse themselves from the proceedings, if so conflicted.

The public needs to see conclusive evidence that any approval of the proposed changes is not a subjective and arbitrary dismantling of the historic warehouse district and thoroughly researched Powerhouse Arts District Redevelopment Plan.

Civic JC is a non-partisan, community-based initiative, designed to promote good government practices and a comprehensive, positive vision for the future of Jersey City as a “World Class City.” We can be found on the web at civicjc.org.

Sincerely,

Daniel Levin, president
Civic JC
PO Box 248
Jersey City, NJ 07303
www.civicjc.org

The final report for the Jersey City Regional Waterfront Access and Downtown Circulation Study Final Report has been issued and can be found at Final Report - Jersey City Regional Waterfront Access and Downtown Circulation Study.

Civic JC supports and urges the City to quickly move forward on the highest ranked option, Enhanced No Build which provides for almost immediate improvement at the lowest cost.

We have submitted a request asking that the City reopen and amend the Jersey City Bicycle Plan section of the Jersey City Master Plan to include the study recommendations, most significantly the Jersey City Downtown Proposed Bikeway System Striping Plan for on street bicycle lanes. As part of this process, we also request that the city revisit the April 2000 Jersey City Bicycle Plan report prepared by the Transportation Policy Institute of Rutgers University to include city-wide stripped on street bicycle lanes as recommended by that plan, but excluded from the approved plan.

Lastly, we have requested that the city initiate efforts to fund and perform a comprehensive city-wide traffic impact study.

March 18, 2007

Re: Toll Brothers Revised Development Plans for Manischewitz and Caputo Lots

Dear Friends,

As you know, the Powerhouse Arts District (PAD) is being redeveloped at lightning speed. As a neighborhood, our residents expect –indeed welcome –development. However, we believe this development should be done with an understanding of the intrinsic character of the neighborhood, a sense of history, and the wishes of its residents in mind. As many Downtown residents recognize, the City’s failure to support its own laws as they related to the 111 First Street settlement established a precedent on how developers could effectively negate zoning law that impacts their ability to maximize profits. This precedent is now having a “domino effect” on other planned development in the PAD. A proposed development for the Manischewitz Matzo Factory lot and the adjacent “Caputo” lot (directly east) could represent the next domino to fall.

Toll Brothers, a national developer, is circulating a proposal around City Council and City Planning for the Manischewitz/Caputo sites that would radically change the look and feel of our growing neighborhood. If this proposal is approved, it will forever alter the scale and character of the PAD – and not for the better. The Toll proposal will among other things,

• Demolish irreplaceable historic warehouses,

• Double the density permitted by law,

• Build four times higher than permitted by law,

• Appropriate and destroy one of the last cobblestone streets in Jersey City, and

• Cast large portions of the neighborhood into permanent shadow.

Developers, the City administration, and the Planning Department agree that this proposal violates the PAD Redevelopment Plan which was adopted by the City to encourage the sensible and stable long-term development of the area, and to create a lively arts district that would benefit all of the residents of Jersey City.

Moreover, neither Toll or the City have conducted environmental impact studies on how Toll’s proposed doubling in housing density would affect existing sewer, water and electrical service, traffic and parking within the immediate and surrounding neighborhoods, and overcrowding at Grove Street PATH station and on trains.

Over the past several months, PADNA has worked diligently to make our concerns known – meeting with various City politicians and bureaucrats, members of the press, and repeatedly attempting to meet with Toll. In addition, we are conducting a door-to-door voter registration drive to ensure that we have a strong voice in the future of our neighborhood and the City in the next election.

If we don’t stop the Manischewitz/Caputo domino from falling, the Powerhouse Arts District, as sensibly envisioned in 2002 will cease to exist. There are dominos located throughout Downtown. We can either choose to stand up now or look forward to fighting this battle elsewhere as the same sort of developer greed creeps into other historic Jersey City neighborhoods.

For more information, please contact us at padna.communication@gmail.com with any questions you may have or to aid us in fighting the Toll Brothers proposal for a historic area of the City or other similar ill-advised future development or visit www.padnajc.org/Keeping_the_PAD.html

Sincerely,
Rich Tomko
PADNA President

Edited by Civic JC 3/19/2007

Civic JC opposes a plan to rezone the former PJP landfill site for a proposed high cube warehouse. At issue is the reuse of a long standing Superfund site known as the PJP Landfill sitting just west of Sip Avenue\'s intersection with Routes 1-9 which best offers the chance of a lifetime to significantly increase both recreational facilities and open space in Jersey City and Hudson County.

A warehouse developer, AMB proposes the construction of a state of the art high cube warehouse of 880,000 sq feet. (8 football fields). The facility would be used as a distribution center for goods arriving via Newark Airport or Port Elizabeth and then shipped out locally. The project promises job opportunities (potentially 165 construction jobs and 300-500 permanent jobs offered to Jersey City residents first) and adds $1.1 million to the tax roles each year, AMB will ask for no abatements to develop the land, claims their investment will be $100 million and recently added a $125,000 as a donation to Ward B community development projects.

Why it is Important:

All across Jersey City more active recreational facilities and open passive space is needed. The huge residential boom downtown, without any new municipal parkland continues to stress existing limited park space. Proposed development south of the PJP site includes 10,000 new residential units. The opportunity to acquire park land now sets the stage to support new development and build a stable, healthy community for the future. The PJP site bordering the Hackensack River includes wetlands and diverse flora and fauna that have reclaimed the area. It offers an unprecedented opportunity to develop more active recreation opportunities - soccer, football, baseball, cricket, tennis, lacrosse - as well as passive waterfront walkways and bike paths.

Current Concerns:

The proposed warehouse raises big truck traffic and air quality issues in an area with significant existing problems. As AMB is only the developer and its tenants will be operating the warehouse, the job promises are not guaranteed and possibly overstated since this will be a state of the art warehouse.

There is also an alternative proposal by Hudson County to acquire this land to expand Lincoln Park west. Ward B contains little park space and only one Little League field. Across the city there is a shortage of active recreational facilities. Lincoln Park facilities are overburdened with lengthy waiting lists. The PJP site could double the park’s facilities. The Hudson County Open Space 2004 report illustrates that both Jersey City and Hudson County park systems could double and triple their size respectively and still not fulfill the open space needs of Jersey City residents. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity.

The city council has tabled the ordinance to rezone the area for the proposed warehouse since March 2006. However, the process has been started to create a redevelopment plan for this area which could include the high cube warehouse.

What you can do:

If you support Open Space, please contact Mary Spinello, Ward B councilwoman and make your opinion known. A simple email containing the words - I support open space at the PJP Landfill site is sufficient. Also contact our At-Large council members, Council President Mariano Vega, Willie Flood, Peter Brennan and your council representative.

Mary Spinello (Ward B Councilwoman)
Tel: (201) 547-5092, Fax: (201) 547-4678 (Council Office)
spinellom@jcnj.org

Mariano Vega, Jr. (Council President)
Tel: (201) 547-5268, Fax: (201) 547-4678 (Council Office)
mariano@jcnj.org

Willie Flood (Councilwoman-at-Large)
Tel: (201) 547-5134, Fax: (201) 547-4678 (Council Office)
floodw@jcnj.org

Peter Brennan (Councilman-at-Large), Tel: (201) 547-5319, Fax: (201) 547-4678 (Council Office), brennanp@jcnj.org

This is a tale of two warehouses.

The Jersey City administration is promoting a misguided plan to build a vast new warehouse on the west side, while it surrenders the 111 First Street warehouse in the Power House Arts district to rapacious development. The result is that a throwback industrial zone is being created on the Hackensack River where is does not belong, while the invaluable historic warehouse district on the Hudson River, with its potential for generating tourist dollars and jobs is being dismembered. The proposed AMB warehouse on the PJP site is a vivid example of "the wrong place at the wrong time." The abandonment of the PAD is exhibit A for the mind-boggling failure of vision that characterizes this administration.

The Power House Arts District should be the center city "destination" that Jersey City lacks, and needs desperately. It should be the place where people come to find art and entertainment and will also discover a sense of the unique history and the character of this place. This vision requires protecting the majestic warehouse buildings there, nurturing the core community already living there and working to make the dream a reality. This course is charted very clearly in a detailed report by the prestigious Urban Land Institute; a report commissioned, paid for and repeatedly approved by the same politicians who are now abandoning it. It calls for a reuse of historic industrial buildings that has been at the heart of the urban renaissance in Minneapolis, Lowell, Albany and dozens of other cities.

That is the vision. The reality is that our city government is rubber stamping the march of developers from the Hudson River to the historic districts. Their plan for PAD is to tear down the historic buildings and erect high rise towers surrounded by sterile concrete "empty space." In 2004, Paul Goldberger, architecture critic for the New Yorker magazine called Newport "a dreary assemblage" and "an incoherent splatter of buildings." This is what will replace the irreplaceable. With the ink barely dry on the settlement with New Gold Equities to build towers up to 60 stories high at the 111/110 First Street sites, another 40 story tower is now proposed for the nearby Manischewitz property. The city promised no "domino effect", but the dominoes are already falling. Jersey City's best shot at greatness is being squandered.

Over to the Westside. A huge tract of undeveloped land under the Pulaski Skyway is about to be developed. The Westside also has a waterfront, on the Hackensack River, which like the Hudson is a natural magnet for residential and small business development. The site known as PJP and adjacent sites should include residential and small business development suitable to a twenty-first century urban environment. It should be anchored by a river walkway and significant adjacent open space. There is a pressing need for active recreation fields, and this is the place for it.

The city's plan is to put a vast high cube warehouse there which will bring some jobs, but few for the local unskilled workers who need them most. It will also bring nightmare big truck traffic headaches. It's a vision for city planning half a century behind the times.

Also, troubling is the division among citizens on the rezoning of the PJP site that emerged at the August Council meeting. Some groups support the City's plan citing jobs and tax revenue; however most citizens living near the site prefer residential, small business and recreational use. CIVIC JC opposes the AMB high cube warehouse proposal. The promise of jobs appears to be a largely empty one. Tax revenues and jobs would also come from more appropriate development. Citizens need to get together and seek common ground and the right direction, because our government is leading us in the wrong one.

It is now official. If you are a developer in Jersey City and can afford to tie up the City with litigation, you will eventually get what you want, the public be damned. That was the clear and unambiguous message sent by the Jersey City Municipal Council when, on June 28th, it voted to settle lawsuits with a developer, New Gold Equities. The settlement will allow New Gold to demolish a historic downtown warehouse and, in its place, erect up to a 67-story residential tower. Not only will this regrettable decision deal a body blow to historic preservation in Jersey City, but it calls into question the very integrity of the City’s planning process.

Ironically, this sad episode began with one of the Municipal Council’s finest moments. In 2004, Mayor Jerramiah Healy, Council President Mariano Vega, Councilman William Gaughan, Councilman Steve Lipski, Councilman Peter Brennan, Councilwoman Viola Richardson and the rest of the Council voted unanimously to approve the Powerhouse Arts District Redevelopment Plan (PAD). This visionary plan would create a lively 24-hour, intimate, pedestrian-friendly environment with loft-style residential condos and rental units, restaurants, clubs, galleries, theaters, and work/live spaces for artists in ten blocks of historic warehouses.

In approving the PAD, the Council members rightly saw an opportunity to showcase and leverage Jersey City’s rich industrial heritage. The Warehouse Historic District is one of the last intact, rail-centered manufacturing and distribution centers that once dominated the Hudson River shoreline in the 19th century and a great example of late-19th and early-20th century industrial architecture. In its day, this area was an economic giant that included Lorillard Tobacco at 110 and 111 First Street (when tobacco was so big it accounted for one third of all the United States internal revenue); the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company (A & P, the first economy super store); the Butler Brothers (suppliers of Five and Ten Cent stores nationwide); and the majestic Powerhouse, which provided the electricity for the Hudson & Manhattan Railroad Company\\\'s subway (now part of the PATH system) that connected, for the first time, New Jersey and New York.

The results were encouraging. Two historic buildings were renovated as residences with an artist affordable-housing component. Several more historic warehouses were approved for renovation, along with approvals for hundreds more housing units. Artists and others interested in this life-style moved in, collectively investing more than $75 million. Two art galleries opened, with a third in the works. Prices continue to rise in this district.

Shortly after the creation of the PAD, New Gold Equities – which owns both the standing 111 First Street historic warehouse and the since-demolished 110 First Street warehouse within the district – filed suit, claiming procedural issues with the historic designation, spot zoning, and that their civil rights were violated. New Gold was hardly unknown, as the City had already assessed New Gold $75 million dollars in fire code violations. Until recently, the City expressed confidence in the strength of its position, its commitment to protecting the PAD, and defeating New Gold’s lawsuit. Moreover, outside attorneys that reviewed the legal cases have been emphatic that Jersey City could remedy any procedural and technical deficiencies in creating the historic district and defend the spot zoning issues. The City had already moved to have the civil rights violations dismissed. Thus, the abrupt and unexpected June 28 vote to settle the lawsuits represented a dramatic reversal in City policy. (To their credit, Councilwoman Richardson remained consistent in opposing the settlement and was joined by first-term Councilman Steven Fulop.) The City’s corporation counsel, Bill Matsikoudis, provided no outside legal opinions in support of the proposed settlement.

The scope of the settlement is breathtaking. It would immediately allow for the destruction of an historic warehouse. It would dramatically “up-zone” New Gold’s properties, permitting a potential 67-story tower where historic 111 First Street now stands. It will allow a 40-story building across the street at 110 First Street. It eliminates the 10% affordable artist housing requirement. The settlement effectively guts what was to become the cultural heart of Jersey City.

Beyond the immediate damage to the PAD, the City has lost all credibility as an enforcer of its own redevelopment plans and zoning ordinances. What developer will now feel constrained by those pesky zoning laws when they’ve seen that the City will fold when hit with a lawsuit? When combined with the Municipal Council’s near-unrestricted granting of tax abatements to any and all developers who request them, it is hard to see how the Council will be taken seriously on development issues.

It is clear that the very future of city planning in Jersey City and the credibility of Jersey City’s elected government is at stake. We call upon the Municipal Council to stand behind its own vision of turning the PAD into a vibrant cultural center that preserves Jersey City’s architectural heritage. Civic JC calls on the Municipal Council to rescind its June 28 vote, vote down the amendments to the redevelopment plan, and to enforce its own zoning laws.

Jersey City is revitalized and renewed by development. New buildings rise on once vacant lots; older buildings are rehabilitated. But there is a hidden cost to many long time residents. As redevelopment spreads from the waterfront through all the wards, rents increase, and many working families are finding that there is no housing they can afford in Jersey City.

The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) is leadings the effort to create housing working families can afford.

The Powerhouse Arts District is a distinct neighborhood of historic warehouse buildings connecting the waterfront development area and the historic downtown residential districts. The area is currently neglected and most of the buildings are under used. This area will be developed. The question is how. The prestigious Urban Land Institute did a study, initiated by the city, which recommended preserving the district intact as a historic landmark area, and redeveloping it as a residential area with an emphasis on arts uses.