Dear Editor:
On June 20th, 720 Monroe became the largest development project to date that was approved under the Roberts administration. I attended the planning board meetings so I am fully aware that four 11 to 13 story towers of 435 units will be built within the next five years. The first time people became aware of the 101 Marshall project of two 17 story towers was when it broke ground last fall, although it had been approved in 1998.
Between the two projects, a total of six towers bordering the Palisades will be constructed in the West of town. We have no zoning in place to preserve or control the obstruction of the Palisades view from The Heights although Jersey City and Weehawken have enacted preservation rulings in their zoning laws. The approval of 720 Monroe sets a precedent for approving oversized projects without assessing their impact on the city.
The massive size, height, and density of 720 Monroe concerned many citizens, but you would never have known it from the Reporter’s coverage of the approval that anyone objected to it at all. In fact, the majority of the public’s testimony throughout the weeks of hearings, were opposed to the project. What was emphasized was the small percentage of artists that have remained in the building and would be kicked out because the owner/developer threatened to do so if this project was not passed.
The project’s 435 housing units will be at market rate, and includes penthouses and 44 spaces of affordable units — 18 of which will be live and work spaces. Considering the continuing glut of new housing in town, I wonder what impact this will have upon the existing rentals.
The public space allotted will not be phased in until the very end of the project and will be compromised by the fact that Jackson Street will be opened up to run right through it. Because four towers will obstruct and dwarf the open space, most likely it will eventually become a private space used by the tenants.
This project had so many unanswered questions and issues yet to be decided upon concerning the units. In fact, right before they approved the project, the board was dickering over the heights of the buildings as I walked out of that last meeting in disgust.
As large-scale development goes on, I must applaud board member Kim Fox for keeping the public’s best interests in the forefront. By voting ‘no’ against the project, she was looking to protect Hoboken’s future. Five years is a long time from now and no one knows or even tried to predict the degree of this project’s impact upon our town. With 1123 parking spaces planned for the project, on a one-way street, increased traffic will definitely be felt throughout the whole North, South, and West end of Hoboken. With future cars resulting from all these new developments, we will be overrun with exhaust fumes and traffic jams.
Mary Ondrejka