When will Jersey City get a new tallest?

[C.]

Inspired by the Chicago/NYC threads. The current tallest in Jersey City is 99 Hudson, rising 79 floors, 899 ft tall. The tower was originally proposed to be 95 floors and 950 ft tall. The height was reduced as the design got finalized. The public meeting for this one was interesting as no one seemed to care about the proposal. Even the resident NIMBY wasn't against the tower since it wasn't in her neighborhood. She simply made a reasonable suggestion to look at potential wind tunnels by having such a tall building. The planning board placed a zoning cap on the height of 1,000ft. The developer choose only to use 899 of it. Pity.

There was also the infamous Paul Fireman Liberty Rising Casino and hotel, also proposed at 95 floors. It was contingent on the New Jersey Assembly expanding gambling outside of Atlantic City. It would have been the gaming destination for the entire region, but especially the Manhattan market.

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/10/n...rsey-city.html

With NYS expanding gambling to the city, there probably isn't as strong as allure of of traveling to New Jersey for gaming anymore. Still, the quote from the NY Times article and Mayor Steven Fulop's statements were fascinating:

"The tower would presumably be as tall or taller than 1 World Trade Center, now the tallest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere. It would loom over the Statue of Liberty and offer panoramic views of the harbor, Lower Manhattan and New Jersey.

“You’ve got to think big,” said Mayor Steven Fulop of Jersey City, adding that he had been discussing the project with Mr. Fireman for eight months. “The opportunity to have a world-class facility on the waterfront is significant from a job-creation standpoint, for tax relief and for tourism. Paul Fireman is capable of executing something like this.”

Lastly, there was 55 Hudson, also planned to be 95-storys (good things come in 3s?). However, that proposal was split into two buildings as of late.

As I look to other places, Journal Square technically has no height limit but proximity to Newark Airport might prove a challenge to build tall. ~850 feet seems to be the max developers are willing to ask. 99 Hudson's crown looks safe for now, but maybe some surprise project will overtake it in the future (at 95 floors, of course).

[xzmattzx]

Not to get off-topic already, but will there be a thread for every city in the US on when they'll get a new tallest? I could ask that question about Wilmington, of Buffalo or Lancaster or Harrisburg or St. Catharines or any other city that I am in a few times a year. But then we would have 30 of them on the first page.

[Docere]

I'm waiting for the "when will Jacksonville get a new tallest" thread. Toronto's skyline might be catching up...

[JManc]

After Dubuque gets theirs.

[C.]

An example of what is proposed in Journal Square.


You can see the Lowe's Theater in the back. Early concept, but ultimately the developers choose to go with a much safer, conservative version.

Same deal for this one on the other side of Journal Square.


One day, a developer will be bold enough to embrace the no height limit policy and battle the FAA.

[BnaBreaker]

9

[Crawford]

Jersey City isn't that far from Newark Liberty, so I imagine it will be tough to go much beyond 1,000 ft. unless the FAA changes its rules.

But there have been some proposals at that general height. 1,000 will likely happen.

[iheartthed]

Doesn't Jersey City get a new tallest like every year?

[photoLith]

The real pressing question is, when will Rockaway, NJ get a new tallest?

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

Doesn't Jersey City get a new tallest like every year?

LOL, yeah JC just got a new tallest 3 years ago, so this thread is not quite as warranted as the Chicago one, a city where the Sears Tower has now reigned over the skyline for half a century.


Anyway, whenever JC comes up, I always mention how under recognized it's skyline is. If you picked up the city and plunked it on some Iowa cornfield, it would become the second largest skyline in the Midwest after Chicago.

[C.]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

Doesn't Jersey City get a new tallest like every year?

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

LOL, yeah JC just got a new tallest 3 years ago, so this thread is not quite as warranted as the Chicago one, a city where the Sears Tower has now reigned over the skyline for half a century.


Anyway, whenever JC comes up, I always mention how under recognized it's skyline is. If you picked up the city and plunked it on some Iowa cornfield, it would become the second largest skyline in the Midwest after Chicago.

True.

Good article on the history: https://www.nj.com/hudson/2017/08/je...the_stars.html

April 2000


Aug 2017


1899


Jersey City has come a long way.

[photoLith]

Wow, I’d forgotten how little was there just 20 some odd years ago. Pretty incredible transformation for sure.

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by C.

True.

Good article on the history: https://www.nj.com/hudson/2017/08/je...the_stars.html

April 2000


Aug 2017

Look at all of those surface parking lots that got erased. Just beautiful. Don't ever let anyone tell you it can't be done.

[James Bond Agent 007]

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

Not to get off-topic already, but will there be a thread for every city in the US on when they'll get a new tallest?

Seriously, this is getting ridiculous. After this one, no more of these.

[Xing]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

Look at all of those surface parking lots that got erased. Just beautiful. Don't ever let anyone tell you it can't be done.

Yay!

There’s still hope, for all those cities with ridiculous amounts of surface parking!

[Steely Dan]

Yeah, if you had told me 25 years ago when I first joined this forum that JC was soon gonna have a larger skyline, all by itself, than major cities like Minneapolis, Denver, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Cleveland, etc., I wouldn't have been able to stop laughing.



Who's laughing now?

[Crawford]

I'm almost certain that first pic isn't from 2000. That looks more like a 1980's pic.

JC was much more sparse in 2000, but nothing like that. I had a college internship in the World Financial Center, in 1999 and the JC waterfront didn't look like that. It was pretty developed then. We could stare at JC from our office windows.

I also remember visiting the JC waterfront sometime a little before 9-11, and it didn't look anything like that first pic. Those lowrise office buildings in the forefront were definitely there already.

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

Yeah, if you had told me 25 years ago when I first joined this forum that JC was soon gonna have a larger skyline, all by itself, than major cities like Minneapolis, Denver, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Cleveland, etc., I wouldn't have been able to stop laughing.



Who's laughing now?

A similar thing is happening in Brooklyn and Queens. Neither borough had a very tall skyline in the early 2010s. Today Brooklyn's skyline rivals many of those cities, and Brooklyn Tower is taller than any building in the Midwest outside of Chicago. Until 2009 the tallest building in Brooklyn was a clock tower lol.

[Crawford]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

Yeah, if you had told me 25 years ago when I first joined this forum that JC was soon gonna have a larger skyline, all by itself, than major cities like Minneapolis, Denver, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Cleveland, etc., I wouldn't have been able to stop laughing.

Who's laughing now?

I mean, sorta, but it isn't really a great comparison. JC isn't an independent skyline, it's Manhattan overflow. It's part of the regional core, same with all the waterfront-adjacent stuff in Brooklyn and Queens.

From most perspectives, the JC skyline just melds with the Lower Manhattan skyline. From the NJ Turnpike, or a Midtown Manhattan tower, it just blends with Lower Manhattan.

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by Crawford

I'm almost certain that first pic isn't from 2000. That looks more like a 1980's pic.

JC was much more sparse in 2000, but nothing like that. I had a college internship in the World Financial Center, in 1999 and the JC waterfront didn't look like that. It was pretty developed then. We could stare at JC from our office windows.

I also remember visiting the JC waterfront sometime a little before 9-11, and it didn't look anything like that first pic. Those lowrise office buildings in the forefront were definitely there already.

70 Hudson St is under construction in the photo (on the waterfront). It was finished in 2000.