Hoboken Mayor Shuts Down Construction Work After Traffic Trouble

HOBOKEN, NJ — “This is not a Suez project.” That was the simple-yet-complicated reply that Suez Water spokespeople offered after Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla decided to shut down a construction project in the southwest portion of the city on Wednesday.

The hubbub began last weekend, when an underground water meter improvement project resulted in “serious traffic issues” that congested the city and frustrated residents, according to Bhalla.

City officials announced road closures for the project at Harrison and Newark streets on June 22, warning residents that they should "plan ahead and give themselves extra time when traveling."

• See related article: Hoboken Mayor To Suez: 'Ease The Pain' After Weekend Traffic Woes

After last weekend’s traffic woes – with an eye to the upcoming Independence Day weekend – Bhalla gave a stiff warning to the company in charge of the project, which he identified as Suez Water.

“I gave Suez Water until 9 a.m. [this] morning to present to me a new plan that would prevent the traffic problems that occurred last weekend, including credible assurances that other jurisdictions would perform their duties in directing traffic,” Bhalla said Wednesday.

The plan he received was “unacceptable,” the mayor said. And that was when he decided to indefinitely shut down the project, effective immediately.

“Because of this decision, the exit from and entry to Hoboken from Jersey Avenue will be now open over the weekend, and residents will have all exit and entry roads in the southwest area of Hoboken available for their use this holiday weekend,” Bhalla said.

He continued:

“My first priority as mayor is to the safety and well-being of the residents of Hoboken. Until Suez can credibly establish that they are taking our concerns seriously, this project will be placed on hold. Due to the nature of this project, the delays caused will have no negative impact on Hoboken’s water service.”

Patch reached out to Suez Water for comment on the mayor’s allegations. Chris Riat, general manager/NJ contract operations, provided the following reply:

“This is not a SUEZ project. As always, SUEZ stands ready to serve the administration and citizens of Hoboken in any way we can.”

When asked to clarify their statement and whether Suez had subcontracted the work to another company, a spokesperson provided the following response: “This is not a SUEZ project, nor is it being conducted by a SUEZ subcontractor.”

No additional information about the project or Suez’s alleged involvement was immediately available. However, the company posted the following advisory on social media on June 22:

“#JerseyCity and #Hoboken residents please be advised: Traffic will be altered from 8 p.m. this evening until 8 a.m. tomorrow morning on Newark St. and Harrison St. Streets highlighted in red will be closed. Those highlighted in green will be open.”

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Photo: Google Maps (Harrison and Newark streets)