POTHOLES & PARKS: Hoboken City Council Moves Forward on Washington St. Repaving, NW/SW Park Initiatives

Hoboken City Council voted last night to replace water mains and repave Washington Street, meanwhile approving construction of the Southwest Resiliency Park, and acquiring 6 acres of property to create the design for the Northwest Resiliency Park.

“I thank the City Council for voting to move forward on very important projects to improve our infrastructure and quality of life including repaving Washington Street and creating parks to provide much-needed open space and flood mitigation,” said Mayor Dawn Zimmer. “As we finalize engineering plans to repave and renovate our main commercial corridor next year, it is critical that we upgrade our brittle, century-old water mains so we don’t find ourselves immediately patching up our newly repaved street. In addition, with the continued support of the Council and the public, we are on track to break ground this summer on the first phase of the Southwest Resiliency Park and to acquire 6 acres of land for a large Northwest Resiliency Park, both designed to capture stormwater and alleviate flooding. Additional votes from the City Council will be required to complete these projects, and I hope the community and Council will continue to support these improvements to our city.”

As for the bill, the City Council approved three applications for low-interest financing with 19% principal forgiveness from the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust.

In 1994, the City initially entered into an agreement with United Water, which only provides sufficient annual funding to make emergency repairs, but no long-term infrastructure upgrades.

The City’s plan includes a renegotiation of that agreement with United Water, including more favorable terms that incorporate the cost of water main upgrades to Washington Street.

(NJ.com photo)