The purchase of 6.1 acres for open space in northwest Hoboken, the construction of the Southwest Park, and water main upgrades beneath Washington Street all moved one step closer to fruition this past Wednesday. The City Council approved applications for three loans with a cumulative value of just over $24 million from the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust (NJEIT) to fund the projects.
The first loan covers the $9.7 million offer the city is making to chemical corporation BASF for 6 acres of empty lots in northwest Hoboken, which it hopes to turn into a park for the neighborhood’s burgeoning residential community featuring a large underwater stormwater retention chamber.
The city is still in negotiations with BASF over the value of the property, and will seek to secure the land through eminent domain if they cannot agree on a price. The NJEIT loan application approved Wednesday also includes $2.29 million for final design construction of the park.
The second loan will fund approximately $4.7 million for the construction of a park on a parcel of just below an acre acquired by the city at the corner of Jackson Street and Observer Highway in the southwest part of town. The final touches are being put on the design of the park, which will feature a 200,000 gallon water chamber, and construction is expected to begin in July.
The third loan will fund a $7.36 million capital improvement program for the water mains below Washington Street, which are owned by the city but operated by United Water. The water utility has advised the city that the 100-year-old mains have to be replaced before Washington Street is resurfaced lest the milling work triggers an increase in main breaks.
The loan applications for the Southwest Park and future Northwest Park passed with seven affirmative votes and abstentions from council members Michael Russo and Theresa Castellano.
The loan application for the Washington Street water main improvements also passed with seven affirmative votes. Councilwomen Beth Mason and Castellano abstained to be cautious about a potential conflict of interest because they own businesses on Washington Street.
Favorable rates
All three loans contain, in the words of Assistant Business Administrator Stephen Marks, “a more favorable rate than the city could get if we go out to market on our own”—19 percent forgiveness on the loan principal and zero percent interest on 75 percent of the loan itself, with market rate interest for the last 25 percent. Additional incentives like increased principal forgiveness may be available, as the NJEIT program is a competitive process.
In a memo to the City Council this past week, Mayor Dawn Zimmer said the debt payments for the BASF site and Southwest Park loans would be covered completely by the city’s Open Space Trust Fund, which is replenished annually with a $2.2 million municipal open space tax on property owners.
In terms of the city’s overall debt obligations, Wiest said they currently equaled 1 percent of the city’s total assessed value, which he characterized as well below the state-mandated cap on municipal debt obligations at three percent of assessed value.
Paying for new mains
When United Water learned that Hoboken was planning to fully resurface Washington Street as part of its comprehensive redesign of the crucial commercial corridor, it advised the city that the cast iron water mains beneath the street, some of which are at least 100 years old, would likely have difficulty sustaining the added pressure of milling and paving.
“The road resurfacing efforts will cause disturbance to the water mains, which will exacerbate the already poor condition of the pipes and will likely result in increased pipe failure,” wrote United Water Corporate Engineering Support Director Alan Weland in a letter to Mayor Zimmer. Weland said the Washington Street mains have experienced nine breaks and 62 customer service line leaks during United Water’s time in Hoboken.
Several council members, including David Mello and Michael Russo, argued that United Water should be on the financial hook for the upgrades rather than the city. “We have these authorities in place for a specific reason, and I just don’t think that our residents should bear the cost for this year over year,” said Russo.
United Water’s contract with the city obligates it to spend only $350,000 per year on the maintenance of Hoboken’s system. United Water Senior Director Chris Riat said Wednesday that this obligation was already being met by the utility with just the repair of emergent breaks and leaks in the system.
Assistant Business Administrator Stephen Marks pointed out that it would take 15 years for United Water to replace the Washington Street water mains if it spent $350,000 per year on the project and no other repairs.
SIDEBAR
Parking matters: Fine increases dropped; meter program re-approved
On Wednesday, the City Council approved an ordinance setting the time limits and hours of operation for the meters that will soon govern the visitor parking side of almost every street in Hoboken. The meters have a four-hour time limit and are in operation from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., allowing unrestricted parking on the visitor side overnight. Holders of every type of Hoboken parking permit will be exempt from feeding the meters.
The same ordinance had been passed as a resolution by the City Council on Feb. 3, but Corporation Counsel Mellissa Longo advised the body subsequently that “such regulations should be ordained rather than resolved.”
Also on Wednesday, an ordinance raising the fine for violating alternate side parking rules from $45 to $150 after snowstorms was dropped with little fanfare by Councilwoman Jennifer Giattino. Mayor Dawn Zimmer has pushed the fine increase hard for the past month, saying it is necessary to ensure that payloaders can plow parking lanes after big storms. She devoted seven paragraphs of her Feb. 18 memo to the City Council to the ordinance, saying “it is absolutely critical for our city’s emergency vehicles to have the ability to navigate our streets.”
After Wednesday’s meeting, Giattino said she removed the ordinance from the agenda because it did not have enough votes to pass. The ordinance passed on first reading on Feb. 3 by a vote of five to four, but Councilman Cunningham said he was providing the fifth affirmative vote “begrudgingly” and questioned the accuracy of the database the city relies upon to inform parking permit holders of when alternate side rules are in effect.
Carlo Davis may be reached at cdavis@hudsonreporter.com.