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| left: proposed site plan-rendering identifying the building programming, right: proposed schematic plan for "SW Hoboken Middle School" |
On December 5, 2018 the matter of a redevelopment proposal for SW Hoboken was introduced during New Business by then-Council Vice President Giattino. She addressed Councilwoman Emily Jabbour:
"I received an email from… I don’t know his name, but somebody from Academy telling me he had met with uh, the Educational Committee and Dr. Johnson about development in … redevelopment... and John Allen… about redevelopment in the Southwest. He actually said... the redev, uh, amending the southwest redevelopment plan…. He sent drawings if you’d like to update us on that. Are you the chair? Or Vanessa are you the chair?"
In fact, Academy had not met with the "Educational Committee." The meeting was called by the Hoboken District Schools Superintendent Dr. Christine Johnson to "share the components of the [Academy] plan that have to do with the public schools" with the mayor. She also invited Councilwoman Jabbour, who regularly attends BoE meetings, is current on the issues the district is grappling with and Chairs the Council Education Subcommittee.
Since that meeting, GA has asked various folks for drawings without success, so have obtained them through OPRA. Here you go:
(1) 439 units of residential housing in (4) tower blocks with parking [somebody get me a higher resolution image or the tower heights]
- Tower A: 84' (above BFE?)
- Tower B: [?]
- Tower C: [?]
- Tower D: [?]
(3) A middle school, 4 floors, 83.6K gross square footage
(4) Park adjacent to Middle School, SW park and Tower A
(5) An extension of Marshall Street through the site
John Nastasi appears to be the architect for the proposed site plan and base building residential/commercial space while the firm Mount Vernon Group (MVG) appears to be the architect for the proposed middle school for client, Hoboken District Schools.
Many Fourth ward residents are strongly opposed to loading this amount of density in SW Hoboken, and so far, the Administration has not taken a public position. The Council has not either; but it's clear from the record of Academy's political contributions to development-friendly Council members DeFusco and Ramos, their coalition will likely fall in line to support the project.
There you go, people. If anyone has better images, please shoot 'em over: grafixavenger666@gmail.com
No developer drops that much dough on the preliminary designs for a project unless they've been given some green lights by the administration, or rogue officials in city hall. There's more to this story than just ugly, out of scale buildings in an inaccessible, flood-prone part of town.
ReplyDeleteDoubt it-- the Council (a.k.a. Hoboken's Redevelopment Authority) has been in contact with this developer. Follow the money. Academy supported DeFusco for Mayor ($2,600 individual, $1,000 slate) and is currently contributing to Ramos ($800 for his 2019 campaign). Academy's VP of Real Estate told Emily that Defusco and Ramos were "very supportive" of the project. The mayor declined to attend Dr. Johnson's meeting- he sent his Chief of Staff. On November 1, DeFusco ran to Jersey City to pitch a massive 13-story building perched on the 4th ward-JC border, to the JC Zoning Board. Tell me, who is playing footsie with and reaping he financial rewards from Hoboken's most ambitious developers?
DeleteThe developer isn't the only one who invested time and money in this monstrosity - the Hoboken School District did as well.
DeleteIf Superintendent Johnson did that without consulting the Mayor or his staff (I believe John Allen is the liason to the district) the shame on her, but it seems odd that she would do that. That's why people are wondering how this came about.
The Mayor can and should clarify his position, end the speculation, and protect the district from wasting more time and money, by making it publicly clear ASAP that this is DOA and he stands behind the SW redevelopment plan unanimously passed with his enthusiastic support in 2017. I understand he has said that clearly privately, but the public, Academy and the School District need to hear it loud and clear as well.
And the sooner the better since the tactic of using school families as pawns is despicable.
We can meet our school facility needs without selling out our City to greedy developers like Academy.
The school board and the superintendent have to remain an autonomous body, otherwise they're no better than the bad old days when the schools were nothing more than a patronage mill.
DeleteDr. Johnson has to be able to take meetings to weigh all possibilities as there are more students than we can accommodate in our system, and that's only going to grow, and she doesn't need Allen's, Bhalla's or anyone else's position to hear what a developer has to say. If he thinks otherwise, then we can hang his portrait on the wall of shame with every mayor before Zimmer.
*permission
DeleteI'm with you, Anon @ 12:22. City Hall is not Lord of the Hoboken District.
DeleteSorry, but the idea that it would be somehow inappropriate (even corrupt!) for the Superintendent to discuss a city redevelopment project with the city is, to put it politely, nonsense.
DeleteThis is not a school project - it's a redevelopment project. It is not something the district can do on its own. Redevelopment decisions are made by the City, not by developers or the School District. Projects can't move forward unless they have the support of the mayor and a majority of the council.
Discussing this project from the outset with the mayor and council members would not only be completely appropriate, but failing to do so, if indeed that's what happened would be an unusual and surprising choice.
numbers, the Superintendent held a meeting for the mayor to share the elements of the redevelopmemt plan that had to do with the public schools. You can object to district's investment in a set of schematic plans, but that was the district's choice, and frankly a set of schematics is not a fortune. We're not talking about design, bid, filing or construction docs. Just glorified diagrams. Saying "shame on the Superintendent" is ridiculous. Shame on you, numbers!
DeleteIt's not corrupt for the mayor's office to be involved in these discussions. What's corrupt and inappropriate is if the mayor were to try to micro-manage our excellent school superintendent as previous administrations did. She needs the agency to take a meeting, advance the discussion, and keep moving forward.
DeleteEveryone knows that the City should and must be involved at every step, but we have a space crisis that is a priority for Dr. Johnson, who is ham-strung by the New Jersey School Construction Authority.
If Academy, DeFusco, Ramos, or any other combination of clowns didn't invite the mayor or his representative to attend, that's not Dr. Johnson's fault or her problem. She's an educator, not a politician engaged in quid-pro-quo politics as all the others are.
It was Dr Johnson's obligation to be transparent and loop in the Mayor and Hoboken officials from the very start. Not doing so she made it very political. Last time I checked Dr Johnson has zero authority to override or even modify existing redevelopment plans. The ends justifies the means argument that the school system needs it so she somehow was justified in her actions.
DeleteI get some want to defend Dr Johnson who the feel is "our excellent superintendent" but this sort of back room dealing undermines her credibility.
Have to ask why Dr. Johnson wasn't transparent the public with her development scheme ?
ReplyDeleteSneaking around makes it look sketchy. Saying Ramos and DeFusco who both took money from Academy knew about it only makes it look even more sketchy.
Her developmemt scheme? If anything, Dr. Johnson is a pawn in the developer's scheme. Dr. Johnson only wants what is best for the district and its students.
DeleteOh yeah she is a victim. LOL
DeleteI absolutely agree that Dr. Johnson and the school board were used as pawns. Speaking for myself, I am more interested in what people do going forward than in worrying about who did what so far.
DeleteThat's why I'm anxious to hear the mayor put an end to the debate about who knew what when by taking a clear public position opposing any density increase in the SW. He's already made that position clear privately so I'm hopeful he will make it clear publicly very soon.
I'm sure he has alot on his plate, but doing development right has always been a non negotiable core principle of reform.
well then at least we know the 4th ward will have some really strong representation (sigh)....
DeleteToday at the groundbreaking for the redesign of the Madison Street Park I was given assurances by a member of Mayor Bhalla's staff that he will issue a statement outlining his position on Academy's latest proposal for the property it owns adjacent to the South West Resiliency Park. I am cautiously opptimistic that it will be to uphold the existing redevelopment plan.
ReplyDeleteThis entire project needs to be dumped in the circular file and set on fire.
ReplyDelete