Brick by brick - More development coming to Hudson in 2009

by Timothy J. Carroll
Hudson Reporter

HIGH ABOVE THE HUDSON ? Hoboken plans to build an 80-story building as the centerpiece to an overhaul of the New Jersey Transit rail yards by the Hoboken Trail Terminal. The $500 million project will move forward this year.

The resurrection of Journal Square, the possible rise of an 80-story office tower near the Hoboken train station, two new luxury hotels near the Hudson County waterfront, and the long-awaited opening of the retail and entertainment complex Xanadu in the Meadowlands will be the main topics of development discussion in 2009.

The Hudson County waterfront earned the moniker of ?Gold Coast? years ago because of its proximity to and easy transportation to New York City. Even in an economic downturn, people like living here for its commute, views, and amenities.

Several major projects are scheduled to rise in formerly industrial areas of our towns this year.

Jersey City

In October, Mayor Jerramiah Healy released his ?vision? for Journal Square. The Greater Journal Square Redevelopment Plan ? which has been proposed by the administration but not yet approved by the city?s boards ? calls for 10,000 to 15,000 new residential units, thousands of square feet of commercial and retail development, and 9 acres of parks.

The entire project encompasses 244 acres, from Vroom Street to the south, Tonnelle Avenue to the west, State Highway 139 to the north, and Baldwin Avenue to the east. Some officials think it could take between 20 to 50 years for completion of the entire project.

The centerpiece will be two $400 million towers, 50 and 68 stories high, built adjacent to the Journal Square Transportation Center by a private developer who already owns that land.

The Journal Square area is not the only one that the city intends to revitalize over a long period of time.

Designs are also in the works to redevelop a 111-acre stretch of industrial land east of Garfield Avenue, known as the Canal Crossing Redevelopment Area.

This area was formed from the southern portion of the Morris Canal Redevelopment Area and a portion of the Claremont Industrial Redevelopment Area.

Part of that area, an 18-acre factory site, is said to be contaminated by chromium, and the city hopes to wrap up negotiations with owner PPG Industries to clean it up. City lawyers have said that they may take legal action at the end of the year if no plan is in place.

The redevelopment plan will require buildings to abide by ?Green Building? guidelines and is scheduled to be an example of a sustainable community that reduces reliance on automobiles and includes a diversity of building sizes, housing types, and affordability ranges.

In yet a third massive redevelopment area, a 100-acre site off of Route 440 will be developed once a different chromium contamination is addressed.

Honeywell International Inc., a Morristown-based multinational conglomerate, owns some of the land and settled a lawsuit in January filed by the city over cleanup of the land. The settlement leaves the city on the hook for cleanup of a portion of the site that was granted to them off Route 440.

Honeywell also paid the city $13 million for relocation of city-owned buildings near the site.

The area is part of a redevelopment plan the city has in place that calls for 8,000 housing units, 20 acres of open space, and more than 1 million square feet of commercial and retail space.

Meanwhile, tall condo buildings and a hotel are still on the rise in various parts of town.

On the waterfront, Crystal Point, a 42-story luxury condominium building, is expected to open for sales in March of 2009. The new structure is on Second Street about 25 feet from the Hudson River, on the final piece of developable waterfront land in Jersey City that directly faces Manhattan. The building features 269 premium residences and views of the skyline stretching from lower Manhattan to the George Washington Bridge.

Also in that area, Ironstate Development will officially break ground on 225 Grand in early 2009. The 15-story rental building will be adjacent to the Marin Boulevard Light Rail Station in the Liberty Harbor redevelopment zone. Designed by the architectural firm HLW, the new residential tower will feature 348 rental residences, an enclosed parking garage with up to 350 spaces, and 1,700 square feet of retail space. The building will offer views of the Manhattan skyline and the Statue of Liberty.

The Westin Hotel in Jersey City, at Washington Boulevard and Sixth Street near the Newport Mall, will open its doors in February 2009. The hotel is currently accepting reservations. The joint venture of LeFrak Organization and Melvin Simon & Associates, in the heart of the waterfront financial district of Jersey City, is just minutes from New York City. It will provide 429 guest rooms, expansive meeting facilities, upscale dining, and all of the Westin?s signature amenities and services.

As far as smaller buildings go, Crescent Court, 54 new condominium homes being developed by The Matzel and Mumford Organization, is located at Second and Merseles Streets in the Village neighborhood west of Hamilton Park.

This new mid-rise building features one- and two-bedroom residences, with one enclosed parking space per unit.

Hoboken

The city has been working on an agreement with NJ Transit to develop 36 of the 54 acres owned by NJ Transit on the south end of town. The 54 acres are split between Hoboken and Jersey City, and each city is currently pursuing plans with the railroad to develop over and beside the train tracks. The Hoboken part is projected to cost over $500 million and take 20 years to complete.

The plan for Hoboken includes several condominium and office buildings that are over 50 stories high, including an 80-story mixed-use centerpiece tower. NJ Transit is offering givebacks, such as a park and city infrastructure improvements. The development would add an estimated 6,000 new residents to the mile-square city, which already has an estimated 38,000 people.

The city is facing considerable pushback from the local community. Residents are concerned that the height and density of the development will overload the southern half of town, which already has flooding and parking issues. NJ Transit has already committed to contributing funds for infrastructure improvements, but many residents contend that the improvements will only cover the influx of people that the development itself will bring.

Members of the City Council are meeting with officials from NJ Transit and their planning firm, FX FOWLE, before considering the plan as a whole.

Also on the southern end of town, the city has sold its Municipal Garage, on Observer Highway near Newark Street, after years of missteps. But they are still in the process of finding a suitable space to relocate their equipment and supplies. Once the city has a new garage, the developer in control of the old location, S. Hekemian Group, will construct a nine-story condominium building that includes 240 residential units, roughly 8,000 square feet of retail space, 180 parking spaces, and a public art studio.

Not far from that site is another potential project. A developer wants to convert the old Neumann Leathers buildings, a group of former tanneries on Observer Highway, Willow Avenue, and Newark streets, into residential units. The zoning board is hearing arguments for a series of variances that would allow them to demolish the site and rebuild. As a giveback, they will also include a building for artists.

However, the artists who already have their studios in the factories are fighting the conversion, as they think the building should be preserved.

The board has heard testimony from both sides and should decide the case early in 2009.

Meanwhile, not everything is going smoothly in all the old industrial areas. A bankruptcy filing by Hoboken real estate owner Dil Hoda could jeopardize the development of 800 Monroe St., a 5-acre site on the western edge of town near the Ninth Street Light Rail stop. The project has been bogged down by environmental issues over the past few years. Hoda is awaiting the outcome of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing on Nov. 15, but has said that the project will continue.

The project is scheduled to have 435 condominiums, 125,000 square feet of retail, and 1,120 parking spaces. It is located next to the existing 720 Monroe St. arts center that Hoda?s development group already owns and has preserved for use by artists.

In commercial news, W Hoboken Hotel & Residences, the city?s first luxury hotel, will open on the south waterfront in February of 2009. The property features 225 guest rooms, 40 condominium residences (which are already sold out), 5,750 square feet of meeting and event space, and a Bliss Spa. Owned and developed by Applied Development Company, W Hoboken will also features a chic lounge bar and signature services, such as inspiring wake-up calls and the pet-friendly P.A.W. (Pets Are Welcome) program.

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