Letter to NJDEP, May 24, 2005

Mr. Andrew Clark
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
Bureau of Inland Regulation
P.O. Box 439
Trenton, New Jersey 08625

RE: LURP File #: 0905-03-0003.1 (Hoboken World War II Memorial)

Dear Mr Clark:

The proposed memorial at the foot of Third Street at Hoboken's waterfront would usurp an 842 square foot area coincident with the water's edge that has been designated for the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway. This portion of the state mandated walkway has attained the highest standards for public access as well as park design along Hudson River as acknowledged in the two awards granted, one by the American Society of Landscape Architects and the other by the Waterfront Center in Washington, D.C. This permit application would seriously erode these standards and violate a number of portions of the Coastal Zone Management Regulations, including the following:

1) 7:7E-8.11 (a) Public access to the waterfront is the ability of all members of the community at large to pass physically and visually to, from and along the ocean shore and other waterfronts.

7:7E-3.40 (f) Provision of barrier free access to public open space is encouraged.

As you must agree, the protection of free and open access to the water's edge and the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway is of utmost importance. Both the State of New Jersey and residents of waterfront communities have both fought long and hard to protect these rights. To now propose to take away this significant and precious portion of the public walkway that is currently enjoyed by people from all walks of life would be a violation of both the spirit and the letter of the Coastal Zone Management Regulations.

This permit application also creates some problems with the design dimensions specified for the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway. There is a requirement for a 16 foot unobstructed paved portion for the walkway within the 30 foot easement. The 13 foot width for this proposed memorial would reduce the unobstructed paved portion of the walkway to about 14 feet in violation of the design guidelines.

The easement granted by the City of Hoboken to the state NJDEP for the walkway, I believe, does not allow for such an intrusion on the publicly accessible walkway at this location. Granting this permit would set a dangerous precedent where portions of the state-mandated walkway could be usurped for other purposes. We depend on your office to provide strict enforcement of walkway regulations and standards. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration of these objections. If I can be of any further assistance, do not hesitate to contact me.

cc: Commissioner Bradley Campbell

Ron Hine, FBW
Hoboken