Saint Peter’s College, city officials to break ground on new student center
This Wednesday, Saint Peter’s College will break ground on a new 90,000-square-foot, six story student life center. The site of the future student center is currently a parking lot between Bergen Avenue and Kennedy Blvd.
The center, which is scheduled to be completed in 2013, is part of the formerly-controversial McGinley Square East Redevelopment Plan. The redevelopment plan will overhaul three city blocks in an attempt to revitalize an economically stagnant neighborhood south of Journal Square. Three months ago, controversy surrounding the possible use of eminent domain as part of the redevelopment plan threatened to derail it after residents in the area were warned their homes could be condemned so the plan could move forward. They protested, and the city changed its plan.
Now that the controversy around eminent domain has been eliminated and the redevelopment plan has been approved by the Jersey City Council, Saint Peter’s College is wasting no time with its portion of the plan.
The groundbreaking will take place at 4 p.m.
No. 4, No. 99S bus routes to continue
For those who missed it, Montgomery Bus Lines will take over the No. 4 bus route beginning Dec. 1. Red and Tan Lines, which currently operates the No. 4 bus from Newport Centre Mall to Merritt Street, recently announced plans to discontinue this route, effective Nov. 6.
Red and Tan Lines announced recently that it would discontinue both the No. 4 and No. 99S routes next month, a move that had many Jersey City and Bayonne residents scrambling to find other ways to get to work and school. The 99S bus runs from the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York, through Jersey City to West Third Street in Bayonne.
The 99S bus will also be salvaged. Effective Nov. 7, NJ Transit will contract with Academy Bus Lines to continue the 99S route during the morning and evening rush hours. These hours include 5 to 10 a.m. and 3 to 10 p.m. The bus will be re-numbered and will become the 119 bus. During off-peak hours NJ Transit’s No. 88 bus will pick up a portion of the former 99S route.
Chromium cleanup meeting
On Tuesday, Nov. 1 at 6:30 p.m., the Chromium Cleanup Partnership will hold a meeting on the next stage of chromium cleanup in Jersey City. According to the partnership, now that about 10 percent of the contaminated material on Garfield Avenue has been removed, the next phase of land remediation is set to begin. The goal is to have 25 percent of toxic material removed by next summer, and all of it gone by 2014.
The Chromium Cleanup Partnership is an alliance between the New Jersey Dept. of Environmental Protection, Jersey City, a court-appointed administrator, and PPG Industries.
The meeting will be held at the Mary McLeod Bethune Life Center, at 140 MLK Drive.
Fall fundraiser at Temple Beth-El
On Sunday, Oct. 23 from 3 to 7 p.m., Temple Beth-El will host its fall auction extravaganza in the Nickelsporn Social Hall, at 2419 Kennedy Blvd. The auction will include vacations, gourmet meals, gift certificates, and a selection of services from local businesses in Jersey City, Hoboken, and New York. All are welcome, regardless of religious affiliation. Admission is $40 at the door.
Halloween Drawing Contest winners to be announced next week
In recent weeks, the Reporter ran a contest encouraging local children ages 3-12 to design the pumpkin that was printed within these pages. The contest has ended, and the winning work will be published in the issue of Sunday, Oct. 30, the day before Halloween. Watch the Reporter next weekend for the winning pumpkins!