HOBOKEN — After so much public uproar about where the city will relocate their municipal garage, a few inside sources have said that odds are the facility stays right where it is.
Confused? Here’s what happened:
The city’s public works garage on Observer Highway is the place where city vehicles are repaired and equipment is kept. In 2005, the city figured that a piece of property so close to the PATH station could command a good sales price from a developer, and they could relocate their garage to a less utilized part of town. In order to fill a budget gap, the city sold the property to the Hudson County Improvement Authority (HCIA), a quasi-governmental agency that tends to find ways to help cities fill budget gaps.
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Even thought he city didn’t technically own the building, the garage was sold in 2008 to S. Hekemian, a large development company, for $25.5 million.
The city’s logic at the time was to pay off $16 million in debt to the HCIA once it found an alternate location for the garage and turned the site over to Hekemian. Hekemian planned to turn the facility into a residential condo building, and the city is due to hand over the still-in-use property on this Aug. 13.
But some of the information released in advance of tonight’s City Council meeting — along with credible information from sources — hints that the building may be staying put.
Tonight, the city is asking the council to vote to bond for $16 million to pay back the HCIA, so that the city owns the property once again should the official sale to Hekemian be finalized.
Zimmer said in a communication to the council released on the city website that, “The only appropriate reason for moving our Municipal Garage would be if there’s another location that would better serve our community.”
This seems to support sources who claim the best option for the city and residents — like those near Sixth and Jackson streets who came to the last council meeting to vociferously oppose their neighborhood as a new garage location — is to call off the deal with Hekemian. One source said the developer would be happy to step aside from the investment in such bad financial times.
Tonight, watch the City Council discuss the $16 million bond, potential locations for the garage, and several other interesting agenda items live here after 7 p.m. (Agenda and backup). — TJC