The Jersey City Council is poised to vote on a measure that would terminate a tax abatement for a stalled West Side Avenue development because, city officials said, since the developer “failed to be in compliance with local laws.”
By Corey McDonald/Hudson County View
The 20-year tax abatement was first awarded to the developer, 305 West Side Urban Renewal LLC, in 2016. They then broke ground on the property, at the corner of West Side Avenue and Fisk Street, in August 2017.
But what should have been a 5-story mixed-use building with more than 30 residential units has made little, if any, headway since then.
City officials say that the developer has neglected to contribute the more than $24,000 to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, as mandated under their financial agreement.
Additionally, the city had sent the developer two two default notices that their failure to correct the deficiencies could result in the tax abatement’s termination.
The developer did not immediately return an inquiry seeking comment.
In a statement, Mayor Steve Fulop touted the legislation terminating the tax abatement as part of a continued “effort to crackdown on delinquent developers and hold them accountable for their obligations to the neighborhoods they’re affecting.”
A long-term tax abatement has not been awarded by the city for more than three years, according to city spokeswoman Kimberly Wallace-Scalcione.
Additionally, Ward B Councilwoman Mira Prinz-Arey said she had made “multiple attempts” to work with the developer after the project stagnated, but “they’ve not made good on their contractual obligations, and have been completely unresponsive.”
The City Council is set to introduce the ordinance this week. A second vote would have to be taken to officially rescind the agreement if the council introduces the legislation.
Follow Corey McDonald on Twitter @cwmcdonald_
