Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla has made a formal $11.63 million offer to New York Waterway in hopes of acquiring the Union Dry Dock property without using eminent domain.Â
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“I am authorized to submit to you this written offer to purchase, in fee, the property currently owned by Port Imperial Marine Facilities, LLC, and located at 901 Sinatra Drive … subject to the terms set forth below,” Bhalla wrote in a letter to NY Waterway Chairman Armand Pohan dated Friday.
A separate letter from Paul T. Beisser, of Value Research Group, LLC, addressed to Hoboken Business Administrator Stephen Marks on February 23rd, explains how they appraised the property for $11.63 million.
“The site contains 8.202-acres of land including 4.075-acres of upland and 4.127 acres of below the mean high water (MHW). Site improvements include three piers and several small masonry buildings. The site is paved and enclosed with chain-link fencing,” Beisser wrote.
Then, in an email sent to the media and Mile Square City residents, Bhalla explains what Hoboken officials hopes to accomplish here.
“The City’s goal in these negotiations are two-fold: to (1) secure the Union Dock Property and advance our long envisioned plan of a contiguous waterfront; and (2) work cooperatively with regional public and private stakeholders to assist NY Waterway in securing an appropriate location for their refueling, repair and maintenance operations,” the mayor stated.
“To be clear, NYWaterway’s intentions for this property is not to add another ferry stop in Hoboken, but rather to use the facility solely as a refueling, repair and maintenance location.”
Bhalla also noted that eminent domain “is a last resort” and that Union Dry Dock “is not an appropriate location” for NY Waterway.
After the March 15th city council meeting where they approved a measure to acquire Union Dry Dock for $11.6 million, Pohan told HCV that “higher powers are going to have to intervene” for NY Waterway to find a new home base.
A spokesman for NY Waterway declined to comment.
Does NY Waterway want a refund back for the UDD? Nope.
So, it’s just going to be posturing until NJ Transit and Phil Murphy decide.
That is, unless Ravi can turn this into another moneymaking job.
I walk up and down that waterline walk way frequently, passing by the shipyard and peering in at the property. It sucks. Hoboken wants to finally get rid of that eye soar and now NY Waterway wants to step in and keep it that way. You’re telling me a boating maintenance facility is going to be kept clean, quiet and not fill the area with the smell of fuel? Literally Bayonne has offered you an out and you refuse to take it and still want to play bad guy. Take the facility elsewhere, because people that live here and people that visit Hoboken don’t want it here. It’s nice to have an area, that’s surrounded by city dwellings and a city feel, to have something that brings a little tranquility and natural feel to it.