City Garage Empty Since Friday; Litigation Still Looms

Although the future of the city's municipal garage is far from decided—especially with one business owner suing the city over its new location on 1714 Willow—one thing is certain: for the workers who have spent the past week-and-a-half working all hours of the day to get everything out there, it's the end of an era. 

"It's like you're losing a home," said Freddie Moret, the city's parks superintendent, who has worked in the garage for decades. He was also saddened by impending lay offs of his colleagues. 

"We've built this place," said Moret, who started working for the city in 1977. 

Mayor Dawn Zimmer and Director of Environmental Services Jennifer Maier thanked the workers on Friday afternoon for their hard work and loyalty, even in times of lay offs.

Vacating the garage was an effort on the city's part to be in the strongest possible position for impending litigation from development firm S. Hekemian Group, after closing of the $25.5 million didn't go through. 

City Council decided to break the contract with Hekemian, after claiming that the development firm had no intentions of ever closing. The city also argues that Hekemian sabotaged the process of getting a "no further action" letter from the state's Department of Environmental Protection, which was the city's requirement for closing. 

But one Hoboken resident with knowledge about the process of an environmental clean up is saying that the city's poor planning—rather than Hekemian's actions—is the reason for the delay.

Michael Novak, president of Hoboken-based firm Atlantic Environmental Solutions, Inc., said that it usually takes between 6 and 9 months to get that letter, and that the city simply started too late. In his 22-year career as a licensed site remediation professional he said he has obtained at least 200 no further actions from the DEP. 

"From a business standpoint this deal wasn't going to happen anyway," said Novak, but he added, "our party (the city) could have closed and would have closed."

Novak added, "By not getting the ("no further action" letter) the City jeopardized its ability to keep the Buyer's deposit." Hekemian's $2.5 million deposit is currently sitting in an escrow account, and litigation will have to decide whether the firm gets its money back, or if the city will receive it (because it's in escrow, the city hasn't received it yet). Hekemian also paid $200,000 in administrative costs to the city (money that the city did receive already). 

Zimmer and other city officials visited the DEP in Trenton late last week to discuss the no further action letter. On Friday afternoon she said they had a "very productive meeting," but would not elaborate on what was discussed. 

"I went to reassure them that this is an important project for the city of Hoboken," Zimmer said. 

And although Hekemian sent a letter to the city stating it was still ready to close on Friday the 13th at 11 a.m., the mayor begs to differ. 

"I think discovery will show something quite different," said Zimmer. Ultimately, though, the matter will have to be decided by a judge. 

The other law suit related to the garage, between the city and Mike Stigliano—who owns Hoboken Unleashed and holds a lease to the —was filed on Friday afternoon. Stigliano, the city and the building's landlord appeared in court in Jersey City today.

Stigliano could not be reached on Monday afternoon. 

The city is currently planning to buy back the Observer Highway garage with the $16 million that was approved by the city council. In the meantime, though, the garage workers have had to say their goodbyes. 

"It is what it is," said Moret.