HOBOKEN – Residents and activists turned out in large numbers on Wednesday night at the Hoboken City Council meeting, urging the members to vote on a resolution opposing the Monarch at Shipyard development proposed by Applied Companies.
Two 11-story residential towers are proposed for the 15th Street pier in uptown Hoboken along the waterfront. However, the city’s 2004 Master Plan recommends that the area be used for parks and open space.
Many residents in attendance at the meeting were from the luxury Hudson Tea Building, and their condo association’s attorney, Eric Goldberg, spoke on their behalf. Some residents of the building, owned by Toll Brothers, may have their view of Manhattan blocked if the two towers were to be built as proposed.
The building contains famous residents including athletes Eli Manning and Kris Humphries.
“Send the strongest possible signal that what is being proposed is inappropriate on so many levels,” Goldberg said to the council. “We implore you to please support the resolution in opposition to this project.”
Ron Hine, a member of Fund for a Better Waterfront, also spoke out, opposing the project on behalf of his organization.
Council President Ravinder Bhalla, who up until recently lived in a building near the site and sponsored the resolution, said he was told there would be tennis courts on the pier when he moved in, which he said was “an inducement for me to purchase that property eleven and a half years ago.”
Although the resolution has no legal enforcement, the council voted unanimously to oppose the project. Representatives from Applied Companies did not speak at the meeting. They have been contacted for a comment on this story, and one will be posted when it is received.
For more on this story, keep reading HudsonReporter.com. — Ray Smith