Officials Open Downtown Wet Weather Pump

Local officials officially opened the down town wet weather pump, which is supposed to alleviate Hoboken's long standing flooding problem, especially in the southwestern part of town.

The pump will be operational in about two weeks, said North Hudson Sewage Authority Chairman Richard Wolff. The second outfall of the pump—a large pipe that is supposed to help pump the water to the river—is almost cleaned out. The outfall of the pump had to be cleaned out manually, which caused a delay of the opening earlier this year.

. The pump—the city's first wet weather pump—cost roughly $18 million, which was paid for by the NHSA with the help of a $5 million grant from the federal government.

Mayor Dawn Zimmer and Weehawken Mayor Richard Turner as well Assembly candidate Sean Connors, Hudson County Freeholder Anthony Romano and several members of the NHSA were present on Monday afternoon.

An initial plan called for four wet weahter pumps to completely solve the flooding problem. Zimmer said on Monday that four pumps will not be necessary. She said that she wants to install other green initiatives, such as green roofs.

In next year's budget, Zimmer added, she wants to hire a firm that will evaulate the city's green initiatives and can help develop an inclusive plan.

The outside of the pump station was designed by John Nastasi of Nastasi Architects and houses the generator that powers the two pumps that can process 50 million gallons each.

The facade, Nastasi said, is supposed to fit in with the background, he explained. The copper on the facade will turn green over time, he said, at the same time as the tower at the Lackawanna Terminal.

With , including , the city has been especially unlucky and the southwestern part of Hoboken especially hard hit with flooding.

If the pump had been operational during the hurricane, Wolff said, it would not have been able to prevent all flooding. It would have, however, made the water go down quicker.

"We still have work to do," Zimmer said. "But today is a great day for Hoboken."