Hackensack, NJ Community Message Boards

This was the subject of an earlier post.

There is an abandoned warehouse on Linden, just behind George's Liquor Store. See picture and text to follow:



The warehouse sits right next to the Anderson Street Rail stop, and the trains practically open to the rear door of the warehouse.



As far as I know, the buidling hasn't been used in years and I'm not sure if its on the market.

I think the potential here is enormous. This would be the ideal spot for a good coffe shop/newsstand/dry-cleaning operation. Naturally, it would cater to commuter needs. This is just the sort of property that the "NJ Transit Village" program encourages.

Anyone with some money and decent business skill may do very well there.

A recent article in The Record reports that the State Local Finance Board censured Mayor Zisa for his role in "Underwood".  Click here to read the article.

Many people have tried to explain Underwood to me, but I still don't quite get it. The chronology of events (according to the Record):
 
1.    City needs parking
2.    City buys State Street lot for parking spaces. 3/00
3.    Underwood buys nearby property from College. 6/00
4.    Underwood requests 45 spaces for property from the City. 8/00
5.    County leases building from Underwood for $1.6M. 9/00.  (Why lease back a building it just sold?) [Update: I understand there are several different county entities (Special Services School District being one) and that one entity did not necessarily know what the other was doing.  Also, there were issues of timing that influenced the decision. -  More on this later.]
6.    City leases 45 spaces to College. 10/00.
7.    City votes to pave lot. 11/00.  
8.    City votes to pay contractor 5 times in 2001. (What does this have to do with it? - simply because Mayor Zisa had an interest?)
 
The Record article says the deal cost city taxpayers $213,031. How is this figure calculated?  Didn't the city benefit from the leased spaces at $55 per month?  How did this deal cost the City money?
 
Did the County do anything wrong?
 
Did the mayor push the city into purchasing the State Street property knowing full well that the county would be interested in leasing that space if it had adequate parking?  Or, - did the mayor simply benefit from the city's decision (with or without his vote or influence) to purchase that property?  
 
In short, what is the net harm of the transaction(s)?  I'm trying to understand the level of Mayor Zisa's alleged culpability.  What did he know and when did he know it?  What should he have done?  What is his defense?

I hope the comments to follow address these concerns in a reasonable way.  I would also hope to hear from some Mayor Zisa supporters.  

Also: Please note that the determination by the Local Finance Board is only the first step in rendering a final decision.  

The Planning Board meets at City Hall, 65 Central Avenue

Meetings are at 7:00PM and are open to the public.

 

Established in 1939 and incorported in 1952, the purpose of the Club as stated in our constitution is to promote interest in the fine and applied arts in Hackensack and surrouding communities.  At present, we have 60 members representing 30 communities.  Our membership year runs from September through June.  Application for membership can be made at any meeting.

Boz and the Bard
presents a reading of a new play by Frank Avellino

The Gingerbread Children

Sunday, March 28, at 8:00pm and Tuesday, April 6, 2004 at 8:00pm

At the Hackensack Cultural Arts Center
39 Broadway, Hackensack, NJ
Tickets: $7.00, purchased at the door

After the presentation, there will be an opportunity to dicuss this new adaptation of the Brothers Grimm fairy tale, Hansel and Grettel.  This dark, psychological approach to the familiar tale is not intended as children's theatre and is appropriate for ages 12-adult.

For more information, visit our website at: www.bozandthebard.com