Council Weighs Developer's Saturday Construction Proposal

Hoboken City Council will convene a court-ordered special meeting Wednesday to consider a noise mitigation plan proposed by SJP Properties, the developer behind the waterfront construction at Second and River streets next to the W Hotel.

The proposal, which represents the final offer in litigation involving weekend construction on the Waterfront Corporate Center III development, would permit some construction work on Saturdays and after-hours during the week, but enforces restrictions on the greatest noise-producing construction activities like pile driving, sheet rock installation and jack hammering during those periods.

If the city council does not agree to the developer's proposal, the decision will be taken out of its hands and go before a Superior Court judge on Friday. If the court does not rule in the city's favor, the developer will be permitted to perform any construction deemed necessary to complete the project.

Saturday construction isn't allowed under  but SJP, behind schedule on its construction and in jeopardy of failing to meet certain milestones required in its lease agreement with anchor tenant, Pearson Education, asked the council for a waiver that would permit construction work to be performed on Saturdays.

The developer later withdrew its request for a noise waiver and continued performing construction on Saturdays without the city's permission.

“I’m just asking them to follow the process — that they develop the noise mitigation plan," Mayor Dawn Zimmer said. "We asked them to go before the council, and then they refused to go before the council and then they proceeded to then work on Saturdays. So we went to court to stop them and that’s where we’re at."

With the developer's noise mitigation plan now submitted, council will vote on it at 7 p.m. Wednesday in City Hall Council Chambers. Residents are encouraged to attend.