Tuesday, May 6, 2003

Mayor Glenn Cunningham
City of Jersey City
280 Grove Street
Jersey City, NJ 07302

Dear Glenn:

During the Schundler administration, the City Council approved ordinance 99-154. The city gave an easement / public right of way on city owned land to 55LotDev LLC. That allowed developer Michael Mandelbaum to build a street to the property, which he intended to buy and build luxury apartments. That parcel is adjacent to the footbridge over the Morris Canal in Liberty State Park (LSP). Without a legal street to that parcel, which they paid close to a million dollars for, the lot is worthless! In return for the easement on City owned land, 55LotDev had 2 years to construct, at their own expense, “improvements to the adjacent walkway into Liberty State Park and to the specifications dictated by Jersey City.” Two years came and went and nothing happened. That ordinance expired December 31, 2001.

Since the ordinance was expiring it was resurrected as 01-112 under your administration. Had someone not called me, it would have passed omitting the improvements to the walkway/ footbridge! The ordinance was up for a second reading and vote but I contacted you in writing on September 24, 2001 and the ordinance was re-written to include the improvements. As usual, I contacted everyone regarding this ordinance including Frank Gallagher, the Administrator, Division of Parks for NJDEP, who was totally unaware of the footbridge improvements. Consequently the LSP people became involved in the design of the footbridge. Well, that ordinance expired December 31, 2002 and again, no improvements. The developers built their street in anticipation of getting the TV tower built on their land but have not rebuilt the footbridge! During the last few months, Sam Pesin of the Friends of LSP and Steve Ellis of LSP have been in contact with Dan Horgan, 55LotDev’s attorney. He keeps blaming the MUA but what do they have to do with the footbridge? It’s one excuse after another!

According to the Faulkner Act, the Mayor is responsible for the enforcement of all contracts approved by the city. I am requesting that you send someone out to the dilapidated footbridge to substantiate my claim, and then have the law department send a Notice of Default to Dan Horgan, of Water McPherson McNeil, the attorney for 55LotDev LLC.

If the footbridge is not renovated in 30 days, then the ordinance must be revoked. They didn’t live up to the terms of the contract. They want valuable park land for nothing. If then they decide to comply, 30 days is plenty of time since summer is approaching and we don’t want the footbridge out of service for any length of time. Many joggers, bikers and walkers depend on that walkway for access to LSP.

Please advise me of your actions regarding the status of this footbridge. By the way, many of the current Council members were in office in 1999 and the controversy over the footbridge and the Jersey Avenue extension was a major one. You guys really dropped the ball on this one.

Regards,

Mia Scanga

CC via Fax- BA Carlton McGee, Mark Munley - HEDC, Alex Booth – Corporation Counsel, CC President L Harvey Smith; via Email- Sam Pesin, Steve Ellis- LSP, Jersey Journal, JC Reporter