I'm so glad that we are all finally coming to are senses and fully forfeiting our communal rights for private enterprise. After all, dog, it's either you or me.

Attention! Be the first to buy into the most exclusive address in Downtown Jersey City. Exclusive of the citizens of Jersey City's regard for the necessity for open space, that is.


Four cases just popped up on the Planning Board Agenda for August 14
and they appear to be for 64 two-family home development along 6th Street Embankment
? See Below.

All four applications seem to be seeking approval for a total of 64
two-family homes along 6th street on the site of the embankment.

I hope I?m really wrong, but this has been strategically broken into
four separate cases with different legal entities to disguise their
nature and placed in the middle of the summer in the hopes we would not
notice.


6. Case:
P05-113 Final Major Site Plan
Applicant:
389 Monmouth Street LLC
Attorney:
Carmine Alampi
Review Planner: Kristin
Russell
Address:
449-453 Monmouth St.

Block: 389.1 Lot: 50
Zone:
R-1,One and Two Family Housing
Description:
16 new two-family homes

7. Case:
P05-115 Final Major Site Plan
Applicant:
317 Jersey Avenue LLC
Attorney:
Carmine Alampi
Review Planner: Kristin
Russell
Address:
621-627 Jersey Avenue
Block:
317 Lot: 50.A

Zone: R-1, One and Two Family Housing
Description:
16 new two-family homes

8 Case:
P05-117 Final Major Site Plan
Applicant:
280 Erie Street LLC
Attorney:
Carmine Alampi
Review Planner: Kristin
Russell
Address:
626 Jersey Ave.

Block: 280 Lot: 50.A

Zone: R-1, One and Two Family Housing
Description:
16 new two-family homes

9. Case:
P05-119 Final Major Site Plan
Applicant:
354 Coles Street LLC
Attorney:
Carmine Alampi
Review Planner: Kristin
Russell
Address:
99-105 Coles St.
Block:
354 Lot: 50.A
Zone: R-1, One and Two Family Housing
Description:
16 new two-family homes

Jeebus,
The whole point of the loan was that it would not ultimately put the city in debt. The loan would come from the State and
be repaid by grants from state and federal organizations who are more than willing to fund and sustain this worthy cause.
The city (that means us) would gain a huge asset in the Embankment, which would in turn generate continuing grants from a wide range of organizations, public and private.
Sure there would be maintenance issues for an Embankment park but the cost of these would be puny compared to the city services expended on multiple unit housing, which would probably be exempt from taxes for at least 20 years.
The city political machine has been robbing peter to pay paul for so long it has become its paranoid pathology to project creditors everywhere, and to see loansharks as benevolent benefactors.

The second part of my previous post was addressed to fedupjc,
not r pinkowitz. Sorry!

Dan L makes a crucial point.
If the stated policies of a given administration are not supported by the technical resolutions that would bring them to reality, then we truly do have a shadow government. A majority of the council voted to spend 20,000.00 of our money to pay for a lawyer to deal with the legal case for proper abandonment of the Embankment. By not supporting the technical resolution to follow through on that vote, they are wasting our time and our money.
This underscores how this administration operates autonomously as a political entity without accountability.

DoIt is right, there could have been a street demonstration and the vote would still have gone the same way. Anyone who was present for the Pay to Play vote fiasco can attest to the general contempt that most of the city council has for its constituents. Vote them the hell out I say!

Lets not make the mistake of blaming the victims here. By the victims I mean all of the citizens of Jersey City. The Embankment battle has been fought over the course of a decade, if that's not commitment to a cause I don't know what is.
The point here is that no matter how much work that a civic organization is willing to do , the city government ultimately goes its own way. The Reservoir announcement by the Mayor as a park is an exception to the rule, and their situation can be reversed at any time. Remember the Powerhouse Arts District? I hardly can- since it is primarily high rise development now.
Does the city intend to warehouse these public assets for eventual private development? That does seem to be the trend.

The City Council Meeting tonight once again has proven that the majority of our elected representatives do not represent us. When are our demands for adequate representation going to be heard?
The Council 4-3 to not file for loan application money for the Embankment. That's correct this resolution was simply to file, not accept or reject any financial obligation to the city.
Councilwoman Mary Spinello, who was one of the no votes, said "Shame on the city for not going after these funds previously". So why would she vote no now? Isn't she contradicting her vote by her statement? It boggles the mind how common sense and common good are repeatedly overlooked in these types of scenarios.
When are the residents of Jersey City going to say enough?

A general call has gone out for all supporters of the Sixth St. Embankment to show up this Wed (March 14) at 6:30pm for the City Council Meeting.

What's at stake: The council is voting on whether they should submit loan applications for purchasing the Embankment. These loans would be readily re-paid for by promised grants from multiple state and local agencies who support the idea of an Embankment park. There is no risk to the city or taxpayers since this is a no interest loan and the city doesn't have to accept the money if granted.

Why you should show up: Because the City Council has shown very little will to extend themselves on this issue and your presence would let them know that a lot of people want to be represented by their elected officials.

Remember, this is a citywide issue, if they fail to act on the Embankment with all the support and money raised already, then many other public park projects and issues of fixing sloppy planning throughout the city would be in jeapordy as well. Let them know that you want to be represented as a resident and a voter.
Thanks for your continued support

The City is up against a deadline to apply for available funding(grants) for the Embankment park. They city council and Mayor will be meeting next Monday to vote on a resolution on whether or not they should submit the required paperwork for the funds. Now is the time to make our voices heard. If you are interested in helping them to make the right decision, please contact your councilpersons as listed previously in this thread. Time is of the essence here, so please write, call, email the Mayor and councilpersons before the end of this week.

I can remember a time when there were picturesque ruins scattered throughout the area. Does anyone remember the old brick feed mill warehouse which used to stand where a condo development now sits at Manila and 10th? The nature of these abandoned lots(oak trees, willows , sumac ,and yes, the dreaded ailathus) gave a relief to the feel of urban density in the area. Romantic or not they provided passive green spaces dotted through the community. As development accelerates we are losing these inbetween green spaces and with them a certain wild quality to the area which could be retained in part by saving the Embankment and perhaps accenting its flora with supplemental indigeonous plantings.
From what I've heard, there are no definite plans for the form a park would take, the projected streetscape drawings and photos are just some of the possibilities. The process would be subject to public review.
The real issue here is whether or not we can retain the Embankment, as is, for the city and public to decide what it may become as opposed to a private development which would demolish the structure.
Urban public parks should be more ambitious than the median shrubbery which border parking lots.
The Embankment would be a phenomenal asset to the residents of not just downtown but all of Jersey City.

The Mayor's idea to route Light Rail via the Sixth St Embankment seems to have been developed over the last year. It is important to remember that the process of landmarking the site and the subsequent community minded efforts to save the Embankment for a city park has spanned a decade. As development in the downtown area has accelerated over the past few years, it is more important than ever that all residents of the city voice their concern to the Mayor and City Council members about the future of the Embankment. To help, please see the links posted previously on this thread.
If the Mayor's plan is genuinely helpful to environmental concerns then that is in line with many peoples idea of a healthy direction for the city to maintain. The site currently sustains migratory Monarch butterflies on their long journey from Canada to Mexico, due to the milkweed abundant on the Embankment. Predatory raptors like medium sized hawks could also maintain roosts there and help keep down the rodent population. Let's make sure that the primary purpose of preserving the Embankment is to retain a linear park which will benefit both the cities residents- and its plant and animal life.

"However, the city still has contend with the fact the rail Embankment is owned by local property owner Steve Hyman, who wants to build two-family homes there. There was controversy over the embankment for a number of years because activists wanted it to be part of a park. The city is going through legal channels contesting Hyman's ownership rights."

It is important to know that those "activists" that the reporter
refers to are members and supporters of the Embankment Preservation Coalition and that they are still actively involved in creating a city park on the Embankment. Like the community organizations that supported Reservoir#3, the Embankment Preservation Coalition's primary purpose is to maintain a green space for a future park. The city, with a large degree of assistance and guidance from the EPC, has been mobilized to navigate legal options for retaining the Embankment as a public park for the people of Jersey City.

I don't know if anyone told the prospective developers that there is something like an underground stream running through the area.I almost bought a below grade condo in that same area but was turned off by the chronic flooding of the place and seemingly all the buildings surrounding it Check out how badly this area floods the next time we get a downpour. The prospect of underground parking seems ludicrous in this area. Also another choke point for downtown traffic.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Jersey City is Leaning Green

Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Letters to the Editor
The Jersey Journal

As a longtime resident who would like to see more city space allocated for park lands, I applaud the recent announcement by Mayor Healy to designate Reservoir 3 a passive green space.

There is a movement afoot in Jersey City.

Organized groups of community-minded residents are working together to help create a healthy environment in Jersey City for our families.

I hope the next announcement the mayor will be making is that the Embankment, which runs along Sixth Street in the Downtown area, will be purchased by the city with the millions of dollars in county and state green space funds already at its disposal. An Embankment park would be an asset to all. A world class city deserves a world class park.

TENESH WEBBER JERSEY CITY

The developers First Amendment rights or ability to participate in the democratic process (as stated in Mayor Healy's pay to play response letter in the most recent Hudson Reporter) should not be maintained as mutually exclusive to the residents and citizens rights to representation by their elected officials.
The First Amendment guarantees free speech, not free action. When a contribution is made to a local representative in conjunction with a decision affecting the civic concern, the influence and appearance of conflicting interest must be acknowledged.
The lack of even the acknowledgement of the appearance of impropriety by the majority of the City Council is a mute witness to the political expediences routinely granted outside interests at the expense of the citizens of Jersey City.
To those who voted the ordinance down , Thee do protest too little!