Apparently, the slow national economy hasn’t stopped people from wanting to live and do business in Hudson County. Several residential and commercial developments rose and were announced over the past year. In addition, there was a lot of transportation news – including the announcement of a new Amtrak tunnel, and progress on the waterfront walkway and a light rail bridge. Here are some of the biggest stories in local development and transportation.
1) Train and tunnel projects move forward
Because of a strong demand from North Jersey commuters heading into New York City, officials have hoped for another train tunnel under the Hudson River. A major state-funded project, the $8.7 billion Access to the Region’s Core (ARC) tunnel, was crushed by Gov. Christopher Christie in late 2010. Christie blamed cost overruns and the expense in general.
The allure of living in Hudson County is still shining – despite the national economy.
____________
Also this year, local officials also jumped on the bandwagon in support of a New York City subway expansion project that may extend the No. 7 subway train to Secaucus and possibly Hoboken.
2) New residential developments even in economy; rents rise
Several major development projects underwent construction this past year.
In Hoboken, Toll Brothers is putting the finishing touches on 1450 Washington, a new mixed-use development site on uptown Washington Street near their luxury Tea Building complex.
Meanwhile, down 14th Street, Advance Realty continues construction of 14 Willow, another mixed-use and residential building on Willow Avenue.
Jersey City is seeing several areas of construction and future construction, including LeFrak expanding the Newport development, and the ongoing Van Leer Place development (438 residential units at the site of a former chocolate factory near the Jersey City/Hoboken border).
In North Bergen, the AvalonBay project broke ground in June. The community, located near Kennedy Blvd. and 56th Street, will consist of 164 studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments and an underground garage. The units will be a short walk from the Bergenline light rail station.
In West New York, Roseland Property broke ground on the $120 million luxury project RiverTrace, a 316-unit rental building in the Port Imperial neighborhood on the waterfront. The ground breaking for RiverTrace came less than two weeks after Roseland began work further south along the waterfront on a new part of the Henley on the Hudson project in Weehawken.
Meanwhile, the difficulties of getting a mortgage in this economy have led to more people renting, and thus, former condo projects have been turned into rentals. Also as a consequence, rents are high. Hudson County rents rose 7 percent this year, according to an article quoting Cushman & Wakefield’s analysis. Three-bedroom units in the county rent for an average of $3,848, according to the report, which is $1,200 more than surrounding North Jersey Communities.
3) Want to live near a gas pipeline?
Several towns saw controversies regarding natural gas pipelines near residential development this year.
The proposed Appleview development in North Bergen, near the Guttenberg border, got the municipal and county okay to build, despite protests from nearby residents. They said the project was too close to an existing gas pipeline, and they feared it would cut too far into the Palisade hills. In late October, the Hudson County Planning Board approved the five-story, 59-unit residential tower at 7009 and 7101 River Road, with some conditions.
Meanwhile, in Bayonne, Jersey City, and Hoboken, residents protested a proposed gas pipeline that would run through the area and into New York. The proposed Spectra Energy pipeline would provide natural gas to customers of Con Edison.
Spectra altered its route through Bayonne, satisfying many in that town. But officials in Jersey City and Hoboken remain opposed. The line would not run through Hoboken, but has a route near its border.
Other big development/transit stories
• Light rail gets longer. In May, the NJ Transit Board of Directors approved a plan to extend the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail into two parts of Jersey City: the Society Hill area, and the future 100-acre Bayfront development on the Hackensack River waterfront. The extension had been considered for two years. Hearings will soon be held to ultimately continue the line all the way into Bergen County.
• What should NJ Transit build on Hoboken border? The city of Hoboken and NJ Transit have yet to agree on a plan for development of 52 acres owned by the transit company in downtown Hoboken along the border with Jersey City. In July, talks broke off between the two sides, at least temporarily. The argument over what should be built there has gone on since 2006, with the city saying at least one proposal contained towers that were too tall for the scale of town. Meanwhile, the city is currently undergoing several development studies, primarily for the once industrial western portion.
• Two towns to buy reservoir. In November, Weehawken Mayor Richard Turner announced that a reservoir near the Weehawken/Union City border would be jointly purchased and preserved rather than be sold to developers. The decision also received the support of state Sen. Brian Stack, who is also the mayor of Union City. The reservoir is 14 acres, 100 years old, and will cost $11.3 million. A Green Acres $2 million grant covered some of the cost, while the remaining $9.2 million was covered by a DEP Environmental Infrastructure Trust grant procured by Union City and Weehawken.
• Waterfront walkway continues. Progress continued on the Hudson River waterfront walkway. The final 30-foot portion of Weehawken’s section behind the Sheraton Hotel area was set to be complete by the end of 2011, according to Ron Simoncini, a spokesperson. According to New Jersey law, all developers along the river are responsible for contributing the section of walkway on their properties.
• Historic ferry terminal reopens. NJ Transit officially reopened its historic ferry terminal in Hoboken in December after millions of dollars in renovations. The terminal is part of the Erie Lackawanna train terminal complex.
• ‘Bridge to Nowhere’ will lead somewhere. NJ Transit sought bids in December to finish a transit bridge from the Weehawken light rail station to the waterfront ferry terminal. It had been stalled for five years due to changes in the economy and development.
• 1,000 new units to be built at Exchange Place – Mack-Cali Realty Corporation and the Hoboken-based Ironstate Development Company announced in December that they had formed a joint venture to develop two high-rise towers of approximately 500 apartments each on the Jersey City waterfront. The project will be built on land owned by Mack-Cali Realty Corporation within its Harborside Financial Center, adjacent to the Exchange Place PATH station.
• Fare hikes cause a stir – Despite protests from residents, the Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey approved PATH, bridge, and tunnel fare hikes in August. The current $1.75 one-way PATH fare will increase by 25 cents for each of the next four years. Cars that use EZ Pass tags saw a $1.50 immediate hike at bridges and tunnels in 2011, and the tolls will increase by 75 cents per year until December 2015. Cars without EZ pass tags will see the same the increases, but will also be hit with a $2 penalty for paying with cash.
Ray Smith may be reached at RSmith@hudsonreporter.com
To read more of the 2011 Year in review click HERE.