Both the City of Hoboken and a citizens’ organization called the Hudson County Alliance have filed appeals of a dismissal of their suit against the developer of two 17-story towers at 101 Marshall St. on the city’s southwestern border. The project is commonly referred to as the Gateway Towers.
Construction on the 326-unit high rise was approved by the city’s Zoning Board in 1998 and construction began nearly a year and a half ago. Both towers now stand 17 stories tall, and construction of the exterior is nearly complete.
The plaintiffs argue that approvals for the project were given illegally, and that the tall towers will add to congestion and sewer problems.
Uphill fight continues
At this point, the odds of success are stacked against the city’s and the HCA’s appeal. The first obstacle is that the project was approved back in 1998, meaning that it is going to be exceedingly difficult to argue that the statute of limitations hasn’t run out. Normally plaintiffs have one year to file.
The HCA continues to argue that because Jersey City, whose border is within 200 feet of the project, was never notified that the project was before the Planning Board, “the clock [for possible litigation] never started.”
Jersey City had joined the HCA and Hoboken in earlier litigation, but has since dropped out after reaching a six-figure settlement with the developer, Gateway I LLC and Harrison Street Apartments.
The second thing working against the city is that Superior Court Judge Arthur D’Italia on August 21, 2002 threw the HCA, Jersey City and Hoboken’s case out, and in his ruling scolded Hoboken, Jersey City and the HCA for filing years after the project was approved. In his ruling, the judge said that all parties involved failed to act “with due diligence and dispatch” an that even under “the most liberal” interpretation the city “slept soundly on its rights.”
The judge added that stopping work would be an “onerous” hardship on the project’s builder, which has received $58 million in bank loans to erect the buildings.
The final obstacle that faces the HCA and the city, and maybe the most obvious, is that the buildings are already built.
While there is a precedent of developers being forced to shave floors off the top of buildings, it’s highly unlikely, according to one high-ranking city official, that any judge is going to make a developer tear down 326 units of already-constructed housing.
What’s to gain
All of these factors beg the question to be asked, what is there to gain from appealing the approvals for a building that is already built?
One reason is to show current developers, and those who might want to develop in the future, that there are watchdog groups scrutinizing development closely.
“We still strongly feel the [Zoning Board and the North Hudson Sewerage Authority] were wrong and that still needs to be addressed,” said Eric Volpe of the HCA. “We believe that it is important that court hears our arguments and rules on the legality of these approvals.”
A second rationale for continuing litigation was presented by Councilwoman Carol Marsh. She said that the issues of legality and of possible remediation should be looked at separately.
“Let’s first find out if these approvals were illegal,” she said. “Then we can talk about what can be done.” She added that the buildings being nearly finished shouldn’t be a reason to stop litigation. If a wrong was committed during the approval process, it should be brought to light no matter where the construction is.
Neither the HCA’s nor the city’s appeal gives any suggestions as to what a possible remediation might entail. Also, both Marsh and Volpe both declined to speculate what might be an acceptable resolution if their appeal is successful.
History of the project
Foundation permits were granted in September of 2001 by the city of Hoboken for two 17-story towers at 101 Marshall St. The original zoning approval was granted in 1998. Developer Rene Abreu, the owner of several real estate, mortgage, and tax appraisal companies, submitted and got approval for the 17-story towers for one of his companies, Gateway 1 LLC. He sold the properties and the company and the company in 2001. In May 2002, Abreu was indicted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office on charges of bank fraud, mortgage fraud, check kiting, money laundering and bribery of bank officials.
While 101 Marshall was not listed in the indictment, there were checks cited that were deposited into the accounts for “Gateway 1 LLC,” which is the name of Abreu’s company that was developing 101 Marshall. Those checks were dated before the sale of the property. The current owners are in no way related or linked to Abreu’s alleged indiscretions.
Variances approved for the project in 1998 included parking height and lot coverage. Gateway was allowed to have a 17-story height and 100 percent lot coverage, while city ordinance stipulated a five-story building with only 60 percent lot coverage.
Similarly, parking ordinances called for 484 off-street parking spaces, and the project got approval for only 431 spaces.
On July 1, 2002 litigation was initiated by the Hudson County Alliance (HCA), a local citizens’ group, to stop construction.
On July 9, 2002, both Hoboken and Jersey City joined the litigation. The lawsuit aimed to overturn the project’s Zoning Board approvals and those from the North Hudson Sewerage Authority that will allow the builder of the project to connect the building to the city’s sewer lines.
The buildings – which will feature 326 rental units, two restaurants, a health club, retail space and an enclosed seven-story garage – are nearly complete. The suit filed against the property owners named the Hoboken Zoning Board and the North Hudson Sewerage Authority as defendants. The Hoboken City Council and the HCA were co-plaintiffs along with Jersey City.
Members of the Hudson County Alliance have stated in previous reports that the organization’s resistance to the project is due to both possible improprieties in securing variances and permits and also the traffic and flooding problems the complex may cause.
Property values are also at stake, as the 158-foot towers would obscure sight lines to Manhattan and New York Harbor from the Jersey City Heights neighborhood at the edge of the Palisades.
On August 21, 2002, Judge Arthur D’Italia dismissed nearly every count of the case. On Sept.5, 2003 the HCA filed its appeal with the state Appellate Court, and on Monday the city filed its appeal.