New Waterfront Park For Hoboken: City Will Pay $18.5M For Land

HOBOKEN, NJ — Hoboken may finally get to buy the only piece of land along its section of the Hudson River that's not open to the public — and turn it into a park.

City and state officials made a long-awaited announcement Thursday that the city has reached an agreement to pay $18.5 million for waterfront space that may someday be used for a new recreation spot on New Jersey's Gold Coast.

In an agreement with the commuter ferry company NY Waterway — which uses a patch of land on the city's central waterfront for ferry maintenance — the city and the company have agreed on an $18.5 million purchase price for the former Union Dry Dock property, which for decades has been used to restore and maintain ships.

The Memorandum of Understanding and purchase agreement is subject to approval of the Hoboken City Council at the July 7 City Council meeting.

The mile-square city of Hoboken — located across the Hudson River from midtown Manhattan —already has numerous waterfront parks along the Hudson River, and has long sought the patch of land owned by NY Waterway to add to its open space along the Gold Coast.

The property is currently the only portion of Hoboken’s waterfront that is not publicly accessible.

More Details

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla, and New York Waterway announced that the ferry company "will work with the State of New Jersey to explore opportunities to expand their ferry operations at their current location in Weehawken," according to a press release.

“New Jersey is committed to protecting and preserving our shorelines and waterfront areas,” said Gov. Murphy on Thursday. “This agreement is a major step forward in our collective efforts to connect Hudson County’s waterfront and provide more open, public space for all New Jersey residents to utilize.”

Bhalla noted, “Hoboken has been fighting for a continuous waterfront for decades, and I’m beyond thrilled this will finally become a reality. Our residents can now look forward to a waterfront that will become fully public, fully accessible, and fully open for all to enjoy.”

He thanked the residents and officials who've contributed to the effort.

“I thank the Murphy Administration for helping to mediate this long-standing dispute over the Union Dry Dock property,” said Armand Pohan, President and CEO of New York Waterway. “Hoboken and New York Waterway are too important to each other to remain at odds. It is time for all of us to resolve our issues and move forward.”

"Fund for a Better Waterfront is excited to support this agreement that secures Union Dry Dock, one of the final missing links in Hoboken's public waterfront park,” said Ron Hine, Executive Director of Fund for a Better Waterfront, a Hoboken-based waterfront activist group. “Once built, the park will be a credit to the Mayor and the many people who joined in this hard-fought battle.”

“This is a win for open space and the protection of the Hoboken Waterfront,” said Taylor McFarland, Acting Director, Sierra Club New Jersey Chapter. “Union Dry Dock was the last piece of the puzzle to create a continuous greenway along the waterfront and allow people to enjoy the Hudson River walkway.”

“What an amazing day for Hoboken! Thank you to Mayor Bhalla, Fund for a Better Waterfront, and all involved who persevered to protect the waterfront,” said 2nd Ward City Councilwoman and waterfront advocate Tiffanie Fisher. “And especially the Hoboken community who never stopped advocating. Your voices were instrumental in making this historic day happen.”

The Timeline And Memorandum

The Bhalla administration and New York Waterway are collaboratively preparing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) of the City’s acquisition of the Union Dry Dock property.

After the adoption of the MOU, the City and New York Waterway will formalize the terms agreed to by the parties, which will include acquisition costs of approximately $14.5 million from Hoboken’s Open Space Trust Fund at no impact to the municipal budget, as well as an additional $4 million, which the city will bond for.

As a part of the agreement, upon the city’s acquisition of the land the city would temporarily lease back the Union Dry Dock property to New York Waterway for a designated period of time, until the permanent ferry station in Weehawken is complete.

During that time, the Bhalla Administration proposes to initiate a thorough public process to determine the permanent design of the park.

Previously, Hoboken appraised the Union Dry Dock property at $13.1 million, while New York Waterway appraised the property at $24 million.

The agreement between the parties will end all eminent domain proceedings and potential litigation, which may have subjected the city to several million dollars in additional costs as determined by a jury during eminent domain proceedings, and could have taken several years to complete.

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