In a presentation Thursday night, Sept. 8, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the city of Hoboken announced Rebuild by Design “Alternative 3” as the preferred approach to making the city more flood resistant.
The recommended alternative, also known as the “Alleyway Alignment,” calls for construction of a “flood resistance structure” beginning at the Lincoln Harbor light rail station and following the rail track south, down along Weehawken Cove and into Harborside Park. It then turns east up the alleyway located between 14th and 15th streets and turns south on Washington Street for about one block. The southern end of the resist structure has two options either running west along Observer Highway or West through the New Jersey Transit rail yard.
This resist structure will not take the form of an “ugly wall,” according to Mayor Dawn Zimmer.
The project will prevent flooding using infrastructure like floodwalls, seawalls, and soft landscaping such as berms and levees which could be in the form of parks, rain gardens, bicycle parking, murals, and more.
The alternative will protect 85 percent of Hoboken’s residents in the floodplain during100-year storm surges like Hurricane Sandy.
The project began in in June 2014 when the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded the project $230 million.
David Rosenblatt, DEP’s assistant commissioner for engineering and construction, said in a media release “that this recommended option provides the most cost effective level of protection from storm surge while preserving waterfront access and views of the river and New York City skyline, goals expressed by the communities.”
Rosenblatt believes this alternative to be the “perfect balance of the essential character of the city while offering the most protection.”
He said the project can be constructed with the available funds and has the lowest maintenance cost as well.
Alternative 3 is the least expensive option with an estimated cost ranging from $230 million to $274 million and will be the least expensive to maintain with an estimated annual maintenance cost that ranges from $1.4 million to $2.4 million.
At the last meeting in July, residents asked how the project would be paid for; as it’s lowest estimated cost consumes the entirety of the money awarded from HUD. The panel of experts and city and state officials stated that a partnership with North Hudson Sewerage Authority and others will be required to fully fund the project, including maintenance and operations, with discussions about funding of maintenance and operations underway.
Rosenblatt also said the project has the fewest moving gates with the least impact on views and access to the waterfront and yet it will provide a “high degree of flood risk reduction.”
Alternative 3 has roughly 19 to 23 gates according to Dewberry employee Rahul Parab. These gates when open will be stored within the resist structures and be deployed during costal storm surges to block off gaps.
The least amount of gates is considered a positive factor because it leaves less room for human error.
After months of development and community input solicited through public meetings Alternative 3 was chosen over Alternative 1 and Alternative 2, which were more costly but protected more than 85 percent of the town.
Alternative 1 protected 98 percent of the population and Alternative 2 protected 86 percent of the population.
Alternative 3 will leave a few buildings without protection including one Fire Station located at 1313 Washington St. and 52 buildings such as the Hudson Tea building and Maxwell Place.
Zimmer stated she has had several meetings with such buildings and plans to have a workshop in the coming months to discuss deployable systems for the buildings which will help them be “comprehensively protected.”
According to the analysis matrix used to determine the best alternative; Alternative 3 will also have an “adverse effect” on 64 historic properties.
Construction of the project is expected to begin in 2019 and take about three years to complete finishing by Sept 2022. Before this time the DEP will continue to solicit public opinions before a definitive final design is completed.
Zimmer said in the release that she “agrees with the consensus reached for Alternative 3 because it protects the vast majority of our city while integrating with our urban fabric and preserving access to our beautiful waterfront.”
Zimmer also stated in the release “rising seas, stronger storms, and skyrocketing flood insurance costs are no longer hypothetical threats for Hoboken.”
“The threat is real,” said Zimmer at the meeting. “Science shows that these storms are getting more and more severe.”
“We are also working to protect Hoboken from the financial threat,” she added explaining that flood insurance rates are continuing to increase and that this project could help reduce those costs.
Mayor Richard Turner of Weehawken said that he also supports the choice of Alternative 3 and that he would have eliminated Alternative 1 early on in the process. He thanked everyone for their collaboration and joked that he just wants to see the project built before he passes away.
Residents’ comments and questions
Residents asked some questions at the end of the presentation, including if the barriers could be extended in height if climate change and rising sea levels are higher than expected, if the school on 15th and Garden Streets will be impacted by the construction, and how the public will be able to address future design concerns.
Dennis Reinknecht, project manager for Rebuild by Design, said a design contractor hasn’t even been engaged yet but that their job will be to work with the community and solicit feedback on design aspects.
Zimmer stated that she has already begun a conversation with the Elysian Charter School to try and find a solution to potential construction noise during classes.
Parab explained that the current design does take rising sea level into account but that if the barrier could be extended in years to come if need be as he believes the sub structure below ground will be in place to do so.
Dr. Meika Roberson, Hoboken resident and Carepoint Health employee, said she has been attending the Rebuild by Design events on and off for about a year and began attending the events because of Hurricane Sandy’s affect on Hoboken University Medical Center.
Roberson said that since moving to Hoboken in November of last year she became more interested in the project and commended the rebuild by design team and the community for their work.
“You guys are experts and very smart,” said Roberson. “It’s been wonderful listening to you, but also getting to know you guys as a community. You are some smart, very intense, very opinionated, wonderful people to hear. It’s been quite an experience over this past year.”
Roberson said “I think we have come to such a point that this is a nice compromise from what I’ve heard from the community as well as your expertise and I am just honored to be here and I am looking forward to moving towards the next part of this process.”
City Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher also commended the community and the project team for their work on determining a recommended alternative.
Fisher, who lives in the Hudson Tea Building, stated that although she lives on the “not so good side” of the resist barrier that she believes the administration and the mayor have been incredibly responsive when addressing the 2nd Ward’s concerns.
Fisher said, “I commend the mayor and the administration for going out of the way to work with members of the 2nd Ward where the alignment will be going through.”
She added that the city has been very responsive in providing her neighbors with the resources available for their buildings and that she is grateful to her neighbors for being so understanding.
For more information on the project go to hudsonreporter.com
Marilyn Baer can be reached at marilynb@hudsonreporter.com