Beyond the randomness of the argument about forecasted potholes standing in the way of "progress"...

I'm a native Jersey girl -- potholes are nothing! I swear, they should incorporate them into the drivers test here.

You had me at Dunkin Donuts.


One should never assume, but-

you mention Garden State Plaza, which leads me to believe you own a car. You are in favor of all the new housing in the area( I wasn't aware there was a shortage of affordable housing in the area).

Once these buildings are complete, and the people who can afford these new homes come into the neighborhood(with their cars as well), I wonder how long it will take for you to complain about all the potholes that don't get fixed in a timely manner.

Becareful what you wish for. Personally(and its a manner of opinion), I liked the empty factories(anyone else back me up about the great smell from the Colgate factory on a hot day?), and the skyline.

Eggzbenedict:

1. Any major retail offering will bring new jobs and more dollars to the city, of all ranges, which can only be a good thing. Various posts here have argued local small biz vs. the big guys so I won't get into it here.

2. Nope, I'm a registered Democrat. Actually pretty liberal, in fact. I find that the clothes at Banana actually skew a bit conservative to be honest, but whatever.

3. I don't care who is right or wrong here -- it's a matter of opinion. And in my opinion, I would rather funnel my dollars back into my own community -- whether it's via a national retail chain or a small local business. I just love me my shopping and would be psyched to do it down the street rather than at Garden State Plaza.

4. As some other posters know, I hate Starbucks. I'm a Dunkin Donuts girl. If you want to call that blue collar, that's your call, not mine.

5. Statue of Liberty rocks and yes, I too would like to see the view remain forever. But do some research and you will see that where they are building all these new things used to be factories now long gone or else were vacant disgusting dumps. Literally. So if progress means that we have to lose some view to bring more housing and more dollars to the neighborhood, then so be it. If it was historically valuable land, I would argue differently. But it's not. And I'm not interested in changing the rest of this big old city to suit these style and needs, I just think the downtown area can accomodate it. Again, a matter of opinion.

6. Nice to see a reference to Montclair instead of Westfield, which is normally where some of you hardliners send us off to. We're not going anywhere, by the way. You may want to consider Camden.

Thanks -- this was fun!

Improvement? How would a Banana Republic "improve" anything?

Oh wait, you probably only support big business. Republican I guess.

You're right. I'm wrong. lets throw a Starbucks or 8 around here too. Lets run all the small independently owned business right out of town. I hate ordering a "medium" coffe anyway. It sounds so, well, blue collar.

eggzbenedict, go move to Greenville or B-L if you don't like the improvement.

Yeah, more buildings. BUILD IT UP!!! BUILD IT UP!!!

I heard the Statue of Liberty was around here somwhere. Anyone seen it lately?

Also, I noticed a partial shadow the other day. Any one know how long til they build up so much they block out the sun? Thats gonna be great.


Bannana Republic? Whole Foods? Ever hear of a town called Montclair? Maybe that would more suit some peoples needs.

If all of this = Whole Foods coming to the hood, then I say YAHOO!

I keep hoping that Liberty Harbor is going to resemble the CityPlace complex in Edgewater. Would having a Banana Republic and an Anthropologie AND a Whole Foods be too much to ask?

And yes, before the backlash begins, I am proud yuppie scum.

Is Hudson Exchange going to be situated directly east of Mandalay? On that little vacant plot of land?

If so, i don't see how it can be "constructed in such a way as to not block much, if any, of the views from adjacent buildings."

Atleast there's some retail coming to the Second St.

Here is an article on even more stuff going up:
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Planning Board approves two Downtown buildings
Grand Street, Second Street residential projects get green light

Ricardo Kaulessar -Hudson Reporter - 10/07/2006

Hudson Exchange

The Second Street project, known as "Hudson Exchange," will build the units on a 60-foot high parking deck with 6,000 square feet of retail space designated for a restaurant. There will also 275 parking spaces. There will be a marina and a walkway along the Hudson River.

Brian Fisher of Fisher Development, based in Jersey City, said at the meeting that he looked forward to starting construction.

"I like building in Jersey City and I have built here before," said Fisher. "And I want to get started as soon as possible."

The project is expected to break ground in spring 2007 with a two-year construction schedule. He said he could not give any cost figures for the project.

Grand and Marin part of Liberty Harbor North

The $75 million Grand Street and Marin Boulevard development will be a mixed-use complex that includes buildings of four stories, eight stories, and 12 stories. It is part of the $2 billion, 80-acre Liberty Harbor North redevelopment project on the waterfront.

When completed in the next five to 10 years, Liberty Harbor North will have more than 6,000 residential units, 775,000 square feet for retail, 175,000 square feet for school facilities, 1.1 million square feet for a hotel, and 4.6 million square feet for offices. It is been considered by some urban planning experts to be a "city within a city."

Longtime developer and attorney Peter Mocco and fellow developer Jeff Zak are overseeing the entire Liberty Harbor North project.

The Grove Street and Marin Boulevard section will have nearly 4,000 square feet of retail along with 353 parking spaces, a new lot, and street access for the project, which sits next to the Hudson County Boys and Girls Club on Grand Street.

Applied Housing of Hoboken is working on this particular project, along with veteran developer Jeff Persky. Joshua Wuestneck, vice president of development at Applied Housing, said the project has been four years in the making.

No name has been given for the complex at the present time. The project is expected to take 18 to 24 months to complete.

At Tuesday's meeting, Sottolano asked the developers to commit to a total of 353 parking spaces, which would require valet service, as opposed to the original proposal of 249 spaces without a valet.

At first representatives of the developer were opposed, but then changed their minds and agree to put in more parking.

'Real exciting building'

The Planning Board was unanimously complimentary about the Second Street project, particularly the sleek glass tower design of the building.

"This is a real exciting building," said Planning Board Commissioner Leon Yost.

Commissioner Phillip Matsikoudis commented, "Great professionalism, beautiful building."

However, Planning Board Commissioner Michael Sottolano, also a City Council member, brought up the issue of whether the building will block the views of New York City for other buildings located west, such as the recently opened 26-story Mandalay on the Hudson, also on Second Street.

But Jordan Gruzen, the architect for the project, said the building will be constructed in such a way as to not block much, if any, of the views from adjacent buildings.

Among the conditions the developers would have to adhere to as part of receiving approval is making a color map of the project showing where building cranes and other construction equipment will be placed and how streets will be blocked off.

According to Fisher, this is the third building his company is constructing that directly overlooks the waterfront, following in the steps of Liberty Towers and Liberty Terrace, both on Hudson Street.

Robert Antonicello, executive director for the Jersey City Redevelopment Agency, was also at Tuesday's meeting. "This building, when completed along with the marina, will be one of the most desired locations in all of Northern New Jersey," said Antonicello.

Ricardo Kaulessar can be reached at rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com