To the Editor:
The solution to the possible construction of the residential tower at the Resnick Hardware outlet is not any easy one. The attraction of bohemians and yuppies to Bayonne is something that the mayor likes to fantasize about, but without enough express trains and buses, this isn’t going to happen anytime soon. Having another Washington Street in Hoboken isn’t in our near future unless we make the light rail have a 24-hour express train from Hoboken, or have a 24-hour express bus from the Port Authority bus terminal. The only businesses that now have even a slight chance of remaining open on Broadway are pizza parlors, junk-food establishments, and stores selling 99-cent items. When and if this building is constructed, it will appeal to family people who are a tad bit more affluent than our old timers, perhaps. Far better yet would be the construction of affordable, federally funded housing, where one could rent a one-bedroom for $700 if needy enough. The building on Avenue E at 45th Street is a step in the right direction but not nearly enough. Otherwise, we will all be priced out of here and the place will look like a ghost town. Having a geographically urban city which remains as remote as some insular hick town is a quality that I love about Bayonne, but it can’t go on like this for much longer. I have mixed feelings about this building and the decisions which we will make about Bayonne in the future. While we don’t want some elite burgh by the bay with a bunch of Subaru wagons with SAVE THE WHALE stickers on the back of them, we also don’t want or need Broadway looking like the downtowns of Elizabeth or Newark.
PETE DEMATTEO