Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer gave her annual the State of the City Address last night, stressing that “flood protection does not have to be an ugly wall” when speaking about the Rebuild by Design plan.
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Assemblyman Raj Mukherji (D-33) was the nights emcee as performances took to the stage at the the Stevens Institute of Technology’s DeBaun Auditorium prior to Zimmer taking the podium.
In past meetings between residents and the Zimmer administration, concerns about building walls as a protection from coastal flooding has emerged through some community members.
The $230 million project will likely have the design concept selected by the State Department of Environmental Protection in January of 2017, with it possibly taking up to five years for construction to being.
During Zimmer’s speech, she made it a point to focus on Rebuild by Design plan.
“I understand there are concerns from the community about how we are going to protect from coastal flooding, but I hope that we can all work together to find consensus on what works best for Hoboken. The idea of the Rebuild by Design project is to integrate a flood protection measure into the urban landscape of our beautiful city.â€
“Flood protection does not have to come from an ugly wall; it could be a planter, a landscaped park, a vertical garden, a beautiful mural, a boathouse, outdoor seating, a playground, a dog park and more, depending on the community’s design ideas and preferences.â€
Zimmer added that having experts at Stevens and at the North Hudson Sewerage Authority are key in helping address the Mile Square City’s ongoing coastal flooding issues.
She concluded by stating that “I will fight for Hoboken, no matter what,” prioritizing keeping a responsible budge, investing in infrastructure, making streets safer and creating jobs – among many other things.
The DEP’s Rebuild by Design team will be hosting a meeting on February 18th at the Wallace Elementary School, located at 1100 Willow Ave., from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m.
Residents of Hoboken should be concerned about what is happening and get involved.
The hysteria that occurred in many cases was based on the absence of information and the misinformation being circulated. The upside of that is the community is now paying attention and is motivated to find a solution.