Dear Editor
When you get past all of the distortions and half-truths, you are left with this simple fact: Roseland plans to build a privatized waterfront in Weehawken, and the town has approved their plans. The developers have madeit look, feel and function like a private enclave. That’s how they are marketing it, that’s how they want it and that’s what Richard Turner’s government has approved.
If you don’t believe us, go look for yourself at the sign on the site of the future brownstones. It reads: “The waterfront’s most exclusive enclave of luxury homes.”
Meanwhile, Friends of the Weehawken Waterfront, a non-profit community group, has done everything in its power to convince the town and the developer to build a waterfront neighborhood that serves the public’s interest as well as those of the developers. But to no avail.
The developer and the Mayor would like you to think that FWW is somehow responsible for the plans and approvals to privatize our waterfront. This is completely absurd. Only the developer has the right to build, and only government has the authority to approve or disapprove such plans.
The so-called brownstone “compromise” is no such thing. The developers walked away from negotiating a legal settlement with FWW long before they offered and the town approved an amended plan. It was a deal struck solely between the town and the developer without FWW’s participation, and they know it. They showed it to FWW the night of the approval and said take it or leave it.
Since the amendment provides inadequate waterfront access, we oppose it along with all of the other inadequate plans that the town has approved. All of these plans propose that there will be no east-west access roads to the waterfront for six blocks (the same length as the entire Boulevard East promenade from the stairs at Liberty Place going south to the end of Hamilton Avenue). All of the roads in the proposed waterfront development will be private. There will be no public parking whatsoever along the substandard waterfront road that will either end at the Pershing Road intersection or will turn into a one-way alley instead of a proper public road.
The people of this town are smart enough to see through the scapegoating and buck passing. Richard Turner and the developer are taking away our waterfront for private use. This is what they wanted all along, and they have ignored all of our pleas for a better plan. If they get away with it, they alone are to blame.
Because FWW’s lawsuits are still pending before various courts, the town can at any time take responsibility for its actions and execute a master plan that provides proper public access to the waterfront. Any action that the developers take in the interim is at their own legal risk.
There is still time for our elected officials to act in the public’s interest, rather than simply cater to the private developer’s whims as they have done to date. It’s time for leadership with the courage to stand up against overdevelopment. Hoboken residents just toppled a political machine that failed to do so. Weehawken may be next.
Doug Harmon
President, FWW