Great article. I agree with Homer on his cost estimate, and if not it is on the low side. Could easily be $2M. And yes, it would involve the County's cooperation.
Regarding the traffic flow, I was in downtown Ramsey that other day working, and had to travel their Main Street, with has one lane in each direction and parking on both side, just like the genius plan for Hackensack. It was pure gridlock, and I wasted 10 minutes to go 3 blocks. And it was not because of a UPS truck parking to make a delivery, or a bus stopping to discharge and pick up passengers.
Random cars ahead of me were interested in making left turns, and they had to wait for the opportunity because traffic was heavy in the other direction, which meant all the cars behind them were also waiting. I am starting to think this will be the biggest problem in downtown Hackensack, of all the factors weighing against the traffic flow change.