Paris Pompidou Center Plans Jersey City Outpost

JERSEY CITY, NJ — Jersey City will host the first North American museum outpost for the Pompidou Center in Paris, bringing the famed art hub and its world-class collection of work, to New Jersey.

The iconic Pathside building in Journal Square will be transformed into the Pompidou's Jersey City satellite site, part of the Paris-based center's plan to roll out satellite museums in cities around the world. The Pompidou has outposts in Shanghai, Brussels and Málaga, Spain. Mayor Steven Fulop announced the big plans on Friday morning alongside Governor Phil Murphy and First Lady Tammy Murphy.

"This will be another feather in Jersey City's cap and in New Jersey's cap," Gov. Murphy said, "New Jersey Continues to be a place that attracts artists, thinkers and innovators from around the world — The addition of the Centre Pompidou is proof that our state's strength comes from this diversity."

The new satellite museum will be called Centre Pompidou x Jersey City.

The Pompidou is a major cultural hub in Paris and along with hosting about 120,000 works, the museum attracts thousands of visitors each year. The Pompidou holds the largest collection of modern art in all of Europe.

First Lady Tammy Murphy had a big hand in the collaboration and bringing the Pompidou to New Jersey. She highlighted the importance the Jersey City museum will hold for residents.

"Beyond what this will do for our economy, I am just so excited for all that this partnership will do for our students by exposing them to new ideas, cultures and perspectives," Murphy said.

The Jersey City museum could open as soon as 2024 and would serve as a museum and, "An unparalleled cultural anchor and arts destination for the region and beyond." The 2024 opening coincides with the planned closure of the Pompidou's Paris center for renovations, freeing up much of the acclaimed art to come to Jersey City.

The Pathside building is an old, four-story industrial building that was built by PSEG that the city bought back in 2018 and has committed to making an arts hub. Until recently, the building was being used by Hudson County Community College and was filled with classrooms and teaching space.

The building is 58,000 square feet and will need renovations, which Mayor Fulop estimates could cost between $10 million and $30 million. The city is partnering with OMA Architects to bring the vision to fruition. OMA Architects Partner-in-Charge Jason Long told the press on Friday that the building had the bones and potential to host the galleries that Pompidou and the city has in mind.

Demolition and work on the building has already begun — Friday's press conference was held in one of the hollowed out rooms that will serve as a gallery for the Centre Pompidou x Jersey City.

"It will work with the arts community here to amplify their voices," Mayor Fulop said, "The children of Jersey City will have programming integrated here so that young people can have their horizons broadened."

Mayor Fulop said in 2016 he approached Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise and Hudson County Commuinty College President Bill Netcher with the idea to build a "world-class museum" at the Pathside building.

Jersey City will assume the financial burden of operating the museum and pay the museum an annual fee for project development, branding and exhibitions. No word on how much the city will be paying the museum. Mayor Fulop said capital dollars have been set aside for the renovation and the city plans on leveraging the state to help financially.

The partnership with Pompidou is part of the city's plan to expand the arts and "To return Journal Square to being the heartbeat of New Jersey," as Mayor Fulop said.

Jersey City has been working hard to brand itself as a hub for the arts across the Hudson, promoting a street art festival that will include national artists this weekend, pushing the $72 million renovation of the Lowes theater, supporting an arts incubator space on Morgan Street and backing the newly implemented arts trust fund.