Hoboken Set To Vote On 'University District' At Stevens Institute

HOBOKEN, NJ — A proposed Hoboken city ordinance that would create a “University District” around Stevens Institute of Technology has gotten a thumbs-up from the city's mayor and planning board. But a local community development group says that the plan still needs some tweaks.

During a meeting of the Hoboken City Council at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 15, its members will hold a second reading for a potential law that would create a special zoning district around the Stevens Institute campus (see meeting agenda here).

Hoboken residents got a glimpse of the proposed rezoning ordinance at a city council meeting on July 25 (watch a video of the meeting here).

• See related article: Hoboken May Create 'University District' Around Stevens Institute

A map of the proposed University District is included below. See the full ordinance here. More details can also be seen online here.

According to Stevens Institute representatives, on July 10, the Hoboken City Planning Board deemed the ordinance “substantially consistent” with city’s Master Plan and Land Use Element and that it “mirrored the intent and purpose of the [newly-adopted] Master Plan.”

See Stevens’ presentation on the proposed university district here.

Hoboken Mayor Ravinder Bhalla authored a memo of support for the ordinance on July 23, writing that Stevens Institute has “cooperated with its neighbors, with key stakeholders and with the City of Hoboken in good faith to make adjustments to its original proposal in order to address our community’s key areas of concern.” (Read the full memo here)

According to Bhalla, possible benefits of having a university district include:

• Reduction of traffic congestion caused by the Stevens shuttle program, which serves more than 600 students in 10 buildings throughout the city
• Reduction of noise and “other impacts” of students who live in apartments near local families
• A boost to the business community along Washington Street

TASK FORCE QUESTIONS COVERAGE, HEIGHT

The Responsible Development Task Force of Hoboken released a statement about the “significant campus development” on Tuesday, writing that “although many aspects of the ordinance are well-crafted, we recommend further revisions prior to passage.”

The task force raised several concerns about the proposed district, including coverage area, the allowable height of buildings and potential impacts to the city’s viewscape. (Read more about their concerns here)

According to the task force:

“Because of earlier discussions, the allowable impervious coverage for the Edge and Core Sub-Areas is now proposed for 60%, instead of the originally-proposed 70%. However, it still represents significant increases vs. what Stevens states is the current coverage. Although the 60% includes impervious coverage other than building footprints, the ambiguity could allow future buildings to cover most of that 60%. And current coverage in the large Core Sub-Area is estimated by Stevens to be only 45%.”

The task force added:

“Meanwhile improved pervious sidewalks, parking lots and roads could greatly reduce their fraction in the overall calculation. We are also concerned that the proposed new zoning requires as little as 10 feet between buildings. Such conditions are a long way from the campus we know: a popular oasis in our midst. It is the largest open area in Hoboken, with welcoming spaces of grass, trees and other plantings. The only rationale for adding towers to the campus is to preserve the current openness of the Core.”

In addition, task force members raised particular concern about the allowable heights of buildings in the university district. In particular, the task force questioned the potential impact of a pair of 200-foot towers.

Its members wrote:

“The July 25 presentation from Stevens [did] not include some very important visuals. This makes it hard for Hoboken residents to assess the towers’ impact… We suggest that no buildings go higher than Howe Center, already a dominant feature in many views across our city. One of the new buildings would be the equivalent of 14 feet higher. The ‘block the sky’ view looking east, up 7th Street, troubles us. Although it is hard to hide two 200-foot-plus towers, perhaps the towers could be shifted to be better align with Hoboken’s grid.”

According to the task force, potential issues with the proposed glass towers include:

• How will they impact upper-floor views around Hoboken?
• How will the residences avoid casting out light late at night?
• Will the towers throw a sun glare onto Hoboken streets and sidewalks as sunset approaches?

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Image: City of Hoboken

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