Public Notice:
PUBLIC NOTICE City of Jersey City Ord. 13-131 AN ORDINANCE GRANTING PERMISSION TO KENNEDY LOFTS URBAN RENEWAL LLC, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS, TO ALLOW EXISTING PRIVATE IMPROVEMENTS IN THE NEWKIRK STREET AND JONES STREET RIGHTS OF WAY ADJACENT TO THE PROPERTY LOCATED AT 100 NEWKIRK STREET, JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, ALSO KNOWN ON THE TAX MAPS OF THE CITY OF JERSEY CITY AS BLOCK 10703, LOT 18. WHEREAS, Kennedy Lofts Urban Renewal LLC (“Petitioner”), having an address located at P.O. Box 18, Jersey City, New Jersey 07303, is the owner of the property located at 100 Newkirk Street, Jersey City, and known as Block 10703, Lot 18 on the current tax maps of the City of Jersey City (“Property”); and WHEREAS, the Property is improved with a vacant 1960’s era eight (8) story building previously used as an office building; and WHEREAS, pursuant to a Jersey City Planning Board Resolution for Preliminary & Final Major Site Plan approval with deviations, Case # P12-080, the Property was granted approval for the renovation, rehabilitation, and adaptive re-use of the existing building to create fifty six (56) residential units at the Property, which is located within Zone 3: Commercial Center of the Journal Square 2060 Redevelopment Plan area (“Site Plan Approval”); and WHEREAS, certain portions of the building encroach on to the Newkirk Street and Jones Street rights-of-way; and WHEREAS, in order to comply with the comments of the Jersey City Division of Engineering in connection with the Site Plan Approval, the Petitioner has requested the approval of a franchise for the portions of the building that encroach onto the municipal rights-of-way, all of which is more particularly depicted and described in the Franchise Plan, Exhibit A, Site Plan, Exhibit B, and Metes and Bounds Description, Exhibit C, attached hereto; and WHEREAS, the franchise for the building encroachments within the Newkirk Street and Jones Street rights-of-way shall be in effect for ninety-nine (99) years from the date upon which this Ordinance shall take effect; and WHEREAS, there will be no negative impact or diminishment to the rights-of-way for pedestrian use as the encroaching improvements are existing and minimally invasive to the rights of way areas; and WHEREAS, the Petitioner has filed a petition for relief and represented to the Municipal Council of the City of Jersey City that the passage of this Ordinance is in the best interests of the City of Jersey City and essential for the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of the building; and WHEREAS, after due notice was given in accordance with law, a public hearing was held on the Petition filed by Petitioner to grant permission for use of the Newkirk Street and Jones Street rights-of-way for the following purposes: 1. The retention of the existing encroachments of the building within the rights-of-way, all of which is more particularly depicted and described in the Franchise Plan, Exhibit A, Site Plan, Exhibit B, and Metes and Bounds Descriptions, Exhibit C, attached hereto. 2. All costs associated with these encroachments will be incurred by the Petitioner, and there being no objections thereto. WHEREAS, a franchise ordinance is required to permit the retention of the private improvements within the public rights-of-way; and WHEREAS, by reason of the character of the development of the area within which this Property is situated and the Jersey City Division of Engineering comments to the Site Plan Approval, the retention of the said encroachments will advance the Property’s ability to be rehabilitated and adaptively reused by the Petitioner and will greatly benefit Jersey City and the surrounding neighborhood; and WHEREAS, the public interest will be served by said encroachments, which will be of great benefit to the citizens of Jersey City and Hudson County by permitting the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of the building and the rights of the public will not be injuriously or adversely affected by the requested relief. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED, by the Municipal Council of the City of Jersey City, that: SECTION I. Permission be and is hereby granted to Kennedy Lofts Urban Renewal LLC, its successors and assigns, for portions of lands located within the public rights of way adjacent to 100 Newkirk Street, Jersey City, and known as Block 10703, Lot 18 on the current tax maps of the City of Jersey City, said areas being more particularly described as follows and on the Franchise Plan, Site Plan, and Metes and Bounds descriptions attached hereto as Exhibit A, Exhibit B, and Exhibit C respectively to be used for the following purposes. 1. The retention of the existing encroachments of the building within the Newkirk Street and Jones Street rights-of-way, all of which is more particularly depicted and described in the Franchise Plan, Exhibit A, Site Plan, Exhibit B, and Metes and Bounds Descriptions, Exhibit C, attached hereto. 2. There will remain sufficient area in the rights-of-way for typical pedestrian use. 3. All costs associated with these existing encroachments will be incurred by the Petitioner. 4. The franchise is required in order to comply with the Jersey City Division of Engineering comments to the Site Plan Approval, and to permit the subsequent rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of the building by the Petitioner, which will benefit the Petitioner, the surrounding neighborhood, and greater Jersey City. SECTION II. There shall remain no damage to the sidewalks or roadways or interference with the free and safe flow of pedestrian traffic. Kennedy Lofts Urban Renewal LLC, and its successors and assigns, shall operate and maintain all encroachments for the entire term of this Franchise at no cost or inconvenience to the City. SECTION III. The franchise granted in this Ordinance shall remain in full force and effect for a period of ninety-nine (99) years from the date that this Ordinance becomes effective. This Ordinance shall take effect upon final passage and publication according to law. In the event that the Municipal Council determines that this Ordinance must be canceled in whole or in part because of a public purpose, the City reserves the right to cancel this Ordinance or any part thereof by giving written notice to the Petitioner one year prior to the date of cancellation. SECTION IV. All costs and expenses incident to the introduction, passage and publication of this Ordinance shall be borne and paid by said Kennedy Lofts Urban Renewal LLC. SECTION V. In accepting the privileges of this Ordinance and the maintenance and use hereby authorized, Kennedy Lofts Urban Renewal LLC, its successors and assigns hereby agrees to assume full, complete and undivided responsibility for any and all injury or damage to persons or property by reason of said maintenance and use, and to indemnify and hold the City of Jersey City harmless from all injury or damage to persons or property by reason of such maintenance and use (except such injury or damage which is caused by the negligence or misconduct of the City or its officers, employees or agents) for the term of this Ordinance. Kennedy Lofts Urban Renewal LLC, its successors and assigns, shall maintain in effect, during the term of this franchise, liability insurance naming the City of Jersey City, its officers and employees as additional insured, covering the use and occupancy of the public property subject to this franchise. A certificate of insurance, in the amount of $1,000,000.00 in a form deemed acceptable by the City’s Risk Manager, shall be delivered to the Risk Manager before use or occupancy of the premises subject to this Franchise Ordinance. SECTION VI. This Ordinance shall not become effective unless an acceptance hereof in writing is filed by the Petitioner with the City Clerk. In the event that the Petitioner shall not file with the City Clerk its acceptance in writing of the provisions of this Ordinance within 30 days after receiving notice of its passage, this Ordinance shall become void and be of no effect. SECTION VII. Only with prior written consent and approval by the City Council of the City of Jersey City, which consent and approval shall not be unreasonably withheld, shall Petitioner have the right to assign or otherwise transfer its rights under this Franchise Ordinance. SECTION VIII. An easement for the duration of this Ordinance is reserved for the benefit of the City of Jersey City and all public utility companies including any cable television company as defined in the “Cable Television Act”, P.L. 1972, c. 186 (c. 48:5A-1 et seq.) for the purpose of ingress and egress over and upon the area subject to this Franchise Ordinance in order to maintain, repair or replace existing utility facilities including water lines, sewer lines, gas lines and telephone, electrical and cable television wires and poles which may be located either beneath or above the surface of the area subject to this Franchise Ordinance. SECTION IX. For the rights and privileges herein granted, said beneficiary hereunder, its successors and assigns, shall pay annually to the City of Jersey City the sum of One Dollar ($1.00), which payment shall be made annually on the 1st day of July next succeeding the time when this Ordinance shall become effective and on each first day of July thereafter until the termination of this Ordinance. SECTION X. A. All ordinances and parts of ordinances inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed. B. This Ordinance shall be a part of the Jersey City Code as though codified and fully set forth therein. The City Clerk shall have this Ordinance certified and incorporated in the official copies of the Jersey City Code. C. This Ordinance shall take effect at the time and in the manner as provided by law. D. The City Clerk and the Corporation Counsel be and they are hereby authorized and directed to change any chapter numbers, article numbers and section numbers in the event that the codification of this Ordinance reveals that there is a conflict between those numbers and the existing Code, in order to avoid confusion and possible accidental repeals of existing provisions. Public Notice City of Jersey City NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the foregoing proposed ordinance was introduced and passed on First Reading at a meeting of the Municipal Council of the City of Jersey City, in the County of Hudson, State of New Jersey, held on Tuesday, November 26, 2013, and that said ordinance will be taken up for further consideration for final passage at a meeting of said Municipal Council to be held in the Anna Cucci Memorial Council Chambers 280 Grove Street Jersey City, New Jersey on Wednesday, December 18, 2013 at 6:00 P.M. or as soon thereafter as said matter can be reached, at which time and place all persons who may be interested therein will be given the opportunity to be heard concerning the same. A copy of this ordinance has been posted on the bulletin board upon which public notices are customarily posted on in the City Hall in the City of Jersey City, and a copy is available up to and including the time of such meeting to the members of the public of the City who shall request such copies, at the Office of the City Clerk, in said City Hall, in Jersey City, New Jersey. This ordinance may be found in its entirety at the City of Jersey City’s website: www.jerseycitynj.gov/agenda.aspx?id=1268 By Order of the Municipal Council of the City of Jersey City ________________________________ Robert Byrne City Clerk 12/10/13 $166.77