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Bayonne planning board approves what will be the city's tallest building

The Bayonne planning board has unanimously approved a plan for what will be the city's tallest building: a 22-story, 244-foot, mixed-use tower near the Eighth Street Light Rail station, according to city spokesman Joe Ryan.

The project, which is being undertaken by developer Lance Lucarelli, is slated to go up on a 1.9-acre empty lot at 26 North St., which was formerly the site of Pagano's supermarket, Ryan said.

The development, designed by Hoboken-based architectural firm Marchetto Higgins Stieve, is part of the Eighth Street Rehabilitation Plan, which was approved earlier this year, he said.

Currently, the tallest building in Bayonne is the 13-story Kennedy House condominium complex at 1225 Kennedy Blvd., Ryan said.

City Councilman-at-large Juan Perez said earlier this year that Eighth Street is one of three areas the city is targeting for development. The other two locations are Resnick's Hardware store on 46th Street and the Rendina medical arts building at 23rd Street and Broadway, he said.

"By focusing on these three strategic areas, we can revitalize Bayonne, bring back its pride and ensure that we will derive the maximum benefit out of every block and lot in the city," Perez said at the time.

The just-approved project on North Street will include 3,900 square-feet of ground-floor retail, a four-story parking garage on top of that, and 170 residential units on the floors above the parking garage, Ryan said.

Ryan said all of the residential units will be rental units, which will consist of 138 one-bedrooms, 26 two-bedrooms and six three-bedrooms. In addition, the parking garage will have separate entrances for commercial and residential, he said.

The project isn't expected to be completed until 2018, Ryan said.

Ryan said the developer has also talked of potentially building another tower on the same property, but no site plan has been submitted for that project at this time.

Asked how he'd respond to any constituents unhappy about the plan for a 22-story building, First Ward Councilman Tommy Cotter said "like it or not, we need development in this town."

"We haven't done any real development in years," Cotter said. "People are moving out...They don't stay here....There has to be a balance. You have to bring in youth for a town to grow, otherwise we'll become stagnant."

Meanwhile, Third Ward Councilman Gary La Pelusa, Sr., who is also one of the nine commissioners on the Planning Board, said the building's pros outweighed its cons.

"It's going to bring in people to come and live here. It's going to have density in the area, and that will hopefully bring in businesses and revitalize Bayonne," he said.

La Pelusa said the site of the development, which is located next to a Rite Aid and a Dunkin Donuts and across the street from a neighborhood of mostly two- to three-story family homes, will also create tax rateables for the city.

"If you compare this building to the 46th Street project, this is an area where it fits better," he said, referring to a planned nine-story building on Resnick's property at 46th Street and Broadway.

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http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2..._be_the_c.html