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Ron Leir

Could Liberty State Park Have More Amenities?

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With its spectacular views of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, Liberty State Park (LSP) easily ranks as the crown jewel of New Jersey’s state park system but some people are asking why it can’t offer more in the way of amenities. Questions surrounding food concessions, transportation options and a renovation of the crumbling train shed have been overshadowed by the debates over Caven Point and the restoration of the park interior.

The park’s northern end features the historic Central Railroad Terminal of New Jersey, where millions of immigrants entering the country from around the Civil War to 1967 boarded trains and ferries taking them to homes and jobs in a new land.

As many as 5 million visitors from near and far are drawn annually to LSP’s 1,200-acre expanse where walkers, runners, and cyclists traversing the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway can gaze out at the New York skyline and the Hudson River. A host of migratory birds also flock to the site.

At the park’s northwestern entrance sits the Liberty Science Center, the state’s first major science museum. Inside the park are the Liberation, a bronze sculpture memorializing the Holocaust; The Sail of Columbus, a two-story bronze monument commemorating the 500th anniversary of Columbus’ voyage, and Empty Sky, the state memorial to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

There’s also a nature interpretive center, which sponsors periodic tours and lectures, a public boat launch, a kiddie playground and interior park trails. Closed for years due to damage sustained during Superstorm Sandy, the center will reopen with the lifting of  COVID restrictions by Governor Murphy. And it will feature all new exhibits (and bathrooms that will remain open  even when the building is closed.)

Liberty State Park is flanked with a few other privately owned enterprises. On its southern end is the 18-hole Liberty National Golf Club across from which is the RPM Raceway for indoor go-karts; a private marina occupies part of the park’s northern tip under a lease arrangement with the state.

So why with all these attractions and loads of visitors does LSP offer not a single food concession? Why does the rail yard of an historic transportation landmark remain fenced off to visitors due to unsafe conditions? Why are only a handful of the scores of walkway pole lights working and increasing numbers of benches showing their age? And when will operation of the commercial ferry service from the park to Liberty and Ellis Islands resume?

Caryn Shinske, spokesperson for the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), which manages the state parks, said the ferry service was temporarily disrupted when the barge that was used as the embarkation and disembarkation facility partially sank on Christmas Day 2020.

“The ferry service will resume Memorial Day weekend utilizing the existing north ferry slip directly in front of the (Central Railroad of New Jersey) terminal building,” Shinske added. There are plans to remove the existing barge and replace it, which could take 18 to 24 months, but no start date for the work has yet been set, she said.

Then there is the matter of the rail facility. The opening of the federal immigration station on Ellis Island in 1892 opened the floodgates to millions of new U.S. residents who streamed through the CRNJ terminal.

At its peak, an estimated 75,000 travelers flowed daily through the terminal on 150 New York-bound ferry runs and 300 trains.

To better accommodate the commuter demand, in 1914 the CRNJ completed a 300,000 square foot train shed—covering the length of six football fields—affording cover for riders accessing 12 platforms and 20 trains operated by the Central Railroad of New Jersey, Baltimore & Ohio, and Reading and Lehigh Valley lines. The aging structure still stands today along with a modernized terminal at the foot of Communipaw Avenue.

Stretching back to the 1600s the location has served as an embarkation point for New York-bound ferries, even for steamboats plying their way through the vast harbor.

Liberty Historic Railway and other advocates for the shed’s preservation say the restored facility could host such activities as interpretive exhibits, a display of historic locomotives and rail equipment, crafts and food fairs, and an end point for a park trolley shuttle.

Curtis + Ginsberg Architects and Donald Freeman of Old Structures Engineering, both of New York, were retained by Liberty Historic Railway in 2012 to review the structural integrity and future use of the shed.

Central Railroad of New Jersey train shed

The structure features 10 concrete platforms and 30 cast-iron column bays supporting a steel frame and concrete roof. While the consultants saw huge potential, they concluded  that such factors as “falling decorative elements, connector plates, and pieces of concrete make the structure generally unsafe for people to be present in the train shed for any purpose, including maintenance.” In engineering jargon, the shed is a “stabilized ruin.” Shoring up the structure, removing the roof, remediating asbestos in the roofing membrane system, removing concrete and repairing steel would cost $23 million, they estimated. Demolishing and rebuilding the structure would take about $14 million (all figures as of 2012).

Asked about the prospects of fixing up the shed as a future tourist attraction, the DEP’s Shinske said the department has “no current plans” for the train shed. “The current management practice is to maintain [the shed] as a ruin.”

Whether that position will translate to DEP budgeting or to seeking outside funds remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, Shinske said the main terminal building and concourse will reopen to the public Memorial Day weekend and continue to remain open for access to the ferry ticket office, ferry passenger waiting room, exhibits, events, programs and meetings.

Perhaps the most newsworthy development Shinske had to report concerned food vending. The park has not featured a food concession since just prior to Superstorm Sandy in October 2012 when it sustained significant damage. All that will change this summer: The DEP is currently soliciting bids for mobile food vending.

Vendors will be expected to dispense food such as hot dogs and hamburgers, chicken nuggets, salads, and wraps, non-alcoholic beverages, ice cream and other desserts, and novelties from a fully equipped, self-contained mobile retail food unit or truck at seven individually licensed locations within the park (outside the park office at the southern end of the park, the Freedom Way Playground in park’s center, and outside the CRNJ terminal at the northern end of the park).

For the right to provide the service licensees will pay an $1,800 annual fee. The DEP will have the right to pre-approve all retail prices.

Sam Pesin, president of the nonprofit volunteer Friends of Liberty State Park, an open space advocacy group with about 800 members, said he was “glad the DEP has worked on this change after about three summers with about one ice cream truck in LSP.”

According to Pesin, the DEP had exploratory talks with a prospective café concessionaire last year. But Pesin said those talks ended after the prospective vendor’s representatives asked the DEP if the company could run 30 catered events outside the terminal under a tent during summer weekends. Potential conflicts over the use of the space for parking by other weekend park guests may have helped sink the vendor’s pitch, Pesin said.

If the rail shed is ever renovated and becomes a viable attraction, the DEP may consider providing a public transit link for visitors, connecting the Hudson/Bergen Light Rail station between Communipaw and Johnston avenues, just outside LSP, to the CRNJ terminal.

For about a decade, NJ Transit ran a bus shuttle between the Light Rail station and the park but dropped it in 2010 as a casualty of budget cuts. The Hudson Transportation Management Association (TMA), a unit of the county Improvement Authority, filled the gap in 2011 with a summer shuttle, but that failed for lack of funding. A private operator picked up the slack the following summer but couldn’t continue.

McKelvey of Liberty Historic Railway is pitching an historic rail trolley hookup. But here again, money is an issue.

In 2013, Jersey City, in collaboration with the New Jersey Transportation Planning Authority, commissioned Sam Schwartz Engineering of New York to investigate transportation enhancements servicing Liberty State Park destinations.

He found that an historic trolley would require $3 to $6 million to build and more than $600,000 a year to run while a bus service could be launched for roughly $70,000 at an annual operating expense of about $450,000.

Another idea, Schwartz volleyed would be a park “circulator,” a vehicle that would transport people in a loop inside the park. That option could be possibly be realized with federal or private funding.

Jersey City has yet to go this route. Nevertheless, the city is partly funding the new vehicular bridge from Jersey Street to Audrey Zapp Drive (at the park’s northern end) that is currently under construction.

Then there is the matter of maintaining standard park equipment like the benches and lamposts. Said Shinske: “Light poles and benches are maintained year-round. Now that winter storms are behind us and as we onboard more seasonal maintenance employees for the warmer months, we can focus on repairs.”

How much the DEP figures to spend on those fix-ups is unknown. LSP derives revenues from three basic sources: lease fees from the Liberty Landing Marina and Hornblower Cruises, special events such as film and TV productions and polo exhibition; and a share of the state corporate business tax.

Compare that to New York City’s 843-acre Central Park with more than 40 million visitors annually. The Central Park Conservancy, a private organization with millionaire donors, provides tons of money to the park to support its several storage reservoirs, lakes, a boathouse, 36 ornamental bridges, 20,000 trees, zoo, two skating rinks, 26 ballfields, 21 playgrounds, and two indoor restaurants—plus annual events like the NYC Marathon, Shakespeare in the Park, and Summer Stage concerts.

While LSP has, so far, successfully fought off threatened intrusions by developers looking to expand a golf course and a marina or to build a giant casino/hotel within the park borders, Central Park has been impacted – literally – by the long shadow of development: residential skyscrapers have cast a gloomy parlor over the southern edge of the park, causing documented temperature drops that discourage kids from playing and folks from walking along paths in the beloved park.

As to the future of LSP, says Pesin “I’m very optimistic provided Governor Murphy signs the Liberty State Park Protection Act which protects the park from privatization. It provides for small scale commercial activities like a winter ice skating rink, bike and kayak rentals, food vendors and after-hours activities. It’s very empowering law because it prevents backroom deals and requires public hearings and a comment period.”

 

Elizabeth Morrill

Eight Great Winter Walks Nearby

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American naturalist and nature essayist John Burroughs may have put it best. “I go to nature to be soothed and healed and to have my senses put in order.”

After a ten-month-long lockdown and a nerve-wracking election culminating in last week’s Capitol insurrection, we could all use a little soothing and healing.

Below are eight walks in and around Jersey City you might want to consider for lifting your spirits the next brisk, sunny winter day. Seven of them traverse beautiful wetlands and offer great birding. One is in a 2,000-acre mountain reservation. All are dog friendly. Some are near playgrounds and other attractions for young kids.

Before we begin, a note about provenance. Most of these pathways were built thanks to a 1988 state law requiring municipalities to provide public access to the state’s shorelines (a right that traces back to Byzantine emperor Justinian in 500 A.D.). Credit for developing and maintaining these paths belongs to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, private developers, local municipalities, and agencies like the Hudson County Improvement Authority. Nonprofit environmental organizations including Hackensack Riverkeeper, the Hudson River Waterfront Conservancy, and the NY/NJ Baykeeper work to promote use of the walkways, develop educational programming along them, and occasionally litigate to protect private and commercial encroachment upon them.

The walks are organized by point of origin starting with those in Jersey City.

Hackensack Riverfront Walkway in Lincoln Park West (Jersey City)

Lincoln Park West used to be home to an 80-acre landfill. Now, thanks to efforts spurred by the NJ Department of Environmental Protection in 1998, it’s the site of a .75-mile-long public walkway that’s won not one but two prestigious awards for excellence in environmental restoration.

Pennsylvania Railroad Hudson & Manhattan Railroad passenger bridge as seen from Lincoln Park West Walkway

This western part of Lincoln Park (so called because it’s on the west side of Route 440) is 120 acres in size. The walkway itself meanders through 34 acres of restored wetlands planted with approximately 100,000 plants attractive to all sorts of wildlife: raptors, black skimmers, ospreys, egrets, waterfowl, fish and aquatic invertebrates.

Edgewood Lake, which allows for fishing, is on one’s right as the walk begins. All along the route are views of the Hackensack River and two of the four bridges in the Hackensack River Vertical Lift Bridges Historic District. Just beware of errant golf balls.

Most of the pathway, while protected by bluffs, is adjacent to Skyway Golf Course.

For more exercise, options abound.

Visitors can explore a similar type of path perpendicular to the main walkway (adding another quarter to half mile round trip), meander through the rest of Lincoln Park West past tranquil ponds and scenic overlooks, or, of course, walk over the ramp to Lincoln Park East.

Those who tackle both the riverfront walkway and the loop in Lincoln Park East will log 2.75-miles. Dogs are welcome as long as they’re leashed.

How to Find It: Lincoln Park West is located on Route 440 between Duncan and Communipaw Avenues, but it can be accessed only via a ramp (for both cars and pedestrians) from Lincoln Park East. Lincoln Park East has several entrances including ones on West Side, Communipaw, and Duncan Avenues.

Parking: There is free parking in both Lincoln Park West and Lincoln Park East.

Public Transportation: Via Rideshare

Walkway Hours: 24/7

Route Length: 1.5 miles (out and back)

Activities for Kids: Lincoln Park East has a playground

Caven Point to Port Liberte (Jersey City)

Perhaps more familiar to readers but by no means more mundane is the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway section from Caven Point (in Liberty State Park) to Port Liberte.

Indeed, so beautiful is this stretch that billionaire Paul Fireman is attempting to transform the wildlife refuge within it to more holes for Liberty National Golf Course, which he owns. (Fireman is trying to block passage of the Liberty State Park Protection Act and is hoping for cooperation from Governor Murphy; ongoing—and tireless—efforts to pass the act, which would keep Caven Point public among other things, are being been led by Sam Pesin, president of  Friends of Liberty State Park.)

Port Liberte as seen from Caven Point Wildlife Refuge

The walkway itself is beautifully designed. Initially curving around Liberty National’s hilltop clubhouse, the path is bounded by tall grasses and rocky shores. Past the glass-enclosed clubhouse the walkway proceeds to the peninsula’s 15-acre bird sanctuary that itself features beautiful boardwalks, scenic overlooks, and panoramic views of New York Harbor. Local photographer and blogger Shayna Marchese notes, “It [the sanctuary] consists of upland meadow, saltwater marsh, maritime forest, tidal pools, tidal mudflats, and the longest natural beach in Upper New York Harbor and the Hudson River. It is one of the last undisturbed natural estuaries in the New York City area.”

Upon leaving the refuge (which is open from October through March), turn left onto the walkway and continue until you get to Port Liberte. Turn left and go down a few steps, and the public path will continue by heading south. (Do not enter Port Liberte as it is private.) You will now be treated to unencumbered views of Brooklyn to the east and glimpses into the backyards of Port Liberte homeowners to the west.

Keep going.

The walkway again appears to end—this time at a swimming pool. In actuality, however, it continues as it wraps around the pool, parallels “Intrepid Place,” and dead ends at Chapel Avenue.

Why is Port Liberte worth the trip? Because it’s so different.

Modeled after Venice—and with architecture inspired by French fishing villages—the Disneyworld-like community consists of ornately styled homes situated along serpentine canals, many with their own boats and docks. The development is gated, so nonresidents are prohibited from entering without invitation. But the public walkway provides glimpses of the unusual domicile.

How to Find It: The entrance to the walkway is located off Morris Pesin Dr. across from the Liberty Park Diner.

Parking: While it remains closed due to COVID, Liberty Park Diner, located right at the rotary at the intersection of Burma Rd. and Morris Pesin Dr., offers the closest free parking. No-cost parking is also available in the Liberty State Park parking lot at the east end of Morris Pesin Drive.

Public Transportation: Via Rideshare

Walkway Hours: 24/7

Route Length: 4 miles out and back

Newport to Uptown Hoboken (Jersey City to Hoboken)

Yet another stretch of the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway runs from Newport to Uptown Hoboken. This route showcases  spiffy urban planning and postcard views of Manhattan. And like the entire pedestrian path, it’s part of the East Coast Greenway.

Pier C Park along the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway in Hoboken. 

Arguably the most enchanting part of the route is Pier C Park  in Hoboken, an irregularly shaped protrusion that sits atop stilts in the river between Third and Fourth Streets. But other appealing spots dot the four-mile out-and-back walk, too. Pier A Park, just north of Hoboken Terminal, offers an expansive lawn great for groups of people to meet (masked, of course). Maxwell Place Park, at the northern end of the walk, features similar grassy expanses plus some cool seating and a nicely designed playground and dog run.

The walk ends  a stone’s throw from the Hoboken Historical Museum. Check out their great array of memorabilia and first-rate art and historical exhibitions.

How to Find It: Heading north on Washington Blvd. in Jersey City, turn right onto Park Lane South just before you get to Target. You will see the walkway at the river’s edge.

Walkway Hours: 24/7

Route Length: 2 miles in each direction

Nearby Points of Interest: Hudson Street in Hoboken (featuring a half mile of eye candy in the form of magnificent brownstones), the Hoboken Historical Museum

Activities for Kids: Pier C Park and Maxwell Place Park have state-of-the-art playgrounds

Hudson River Waterfront Walkway Around Bayonne Golf Club (Bayonne)

Just seven miles south of Jersey City—and jutting out into New York Harbor—is a stunning section of the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway, arguably the most beautiful section of this fantastic 19-mile amenity. The path circumscribes the Bayonne Golf Club, features a gorgeous foot bridge, and offers dramatic views. You’ll feel as though you’re on the set of Poldark by Masterpiece Theater.

While this is a route on which dog owners (or is the polite term now dog parents?) would definitely want to keep their charges leashed, the walk offers benefits that others in the area don’t: feeling part of a larger community, lots of independent boutiques and restaurants just yards away, and wide pathways for strollers (to name just a few).

 

View of Bayonne National Golf Club clubhouse from Hudson River Waterfront Walkway. Photo courtesy of Sue Kaufmann.

Almost the entire 1.25-mile trail borders wetlands. As a bonus, two other worthwhile spots to visit—Atlas Yacht Club and the  9/11 Teardrop Memorial in Bayonne (that Jersey City didn’t want)—are a short drive away.

How to Find It: The walkway is adjacent to South Cove Commons Shopping Center at One Lefante Way in Bayonne.

 

Distance From Jersey City: 7 miles

Parking: Free parking at South Cove Commons shopping center (park near Home Goods)

Public Transportation: Hudson-Bergen Light Rail to 34th Street Station, Bayonne. This station is diagonally across the street from the South Cove Commons shopping center. The trail head is behind Home Goods.

Walkway Hours: 24/7

Route Length: 2.5 miles (out and back)

Nearby Points of Interest: Costco, Atlas Yacht Club, 9/11 Teardrop Memorial

Twin Parks: Richard A. Rutkowski and Stephen R. Gregg (Bayonne)

Two adjacent parks on Newark Bay in Bayonne offer a great combination of wetlands, fishing opportunities, jogging and bicycle paths, birding, beautifully canopied hills, historic artifacts, even a formal garden. For warmer-weather outings there are also athletic fields and tennis courts.

Historic Elco crane in Rutkowski Park

While little has changed in the stately 98-acre Gregg Park for many years, Rutkowski Park got refurbished recently as part of an environmental remediation project.

Upon entering the northern edge of Rutkowski Park off Route 440 South, one can pick up a gravel path on the right. Just look for the sign with a backpacker logo on it. This trail borders Newark Bay and leads to a scenic wood footbridge that meanders through wetlands for a quarter mile. Along the way are spots to fish, interpretive signs describing the area’s wildlife, and a reassembled crane from Elco Boat Works with a plaque honoring the history of the boat builder and the servicemen who served aboard their torpedo patrol units in Newark Bay during World War II.

The walkway south from Rutkowski Park leads right to Gregg Park. In fact, the only thing separating the two parks is an iron archway. Once through the gate, turn right to behold an impressive half-mile long waterfront promenade with unimpeded views of Port Newark. To the left are ball fields, and beyond them the remaining 90-plus acres that unfold as so many undulating hills. Tall trees dot the interior throughout. The vibe is gracious and relaxed.

Gregg’s winding paths, stone stairs, porticos, and monuments are a testament to the foresight of Charles N. Lowrie, who designed the park and was active in the City Beautiful Movement.

How to Find It: Stephen R. Gregg Park is located on JFK Blvd. in Hoboken between 37th and 48th Streets. Richard A. Rutkowski Park is on the water just to Gregg Park’s north. To drive to Rutkowski Park, take Route 440 South and exit on the right just past the overpass for NJ Turnpike Extension 78.

Distance From Jersey City: 7 miles (20–25 minutes by car without traffic)

Parking: Gregg Park offers free parking in the southwest corner, which is the equivalent of 37th Street and Newark Bay. Rutkowski Park’s free parking lot is at the entrance to the park off of Route 440 South.

Walkway Hours: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Route Length: Up to 2.5 miles of combined trails

Activities for Kids: Gregg Park features playgrounds and athletic fields

Mill Creek Marsh (Secaucus)

If you want to immerse yourself in the Hackensack River wetlands with the shortest possible drive from Jersey City, the Mill Creek Marsh in Secaucus is for you. The 209-acre property features a mile-and-a-half-long trail that loops around a marsh situated right in the Atlantic Flyway. Lots of ducks and birds are on view.

Waterfowl in Mill Creek Marsh Park

While you are right off both the Turnpike and Route 3, you will still make some enchanting discoveries: stumps of ancient Atlantic white cedar trees (a species that has been gone from the area since 1923,) ducks such as green-winged teals and northern shovelers, attractive wood footbridges, and thoughtfully placed benches on which to sit and reflect.

Mill Creek Marsh is one of many areas highlighted on the “Parks and Trails” page of the New Jersey Sports and Exhibition Association’s website (NJSEA is essentially the Meadowlands administration). It is open from 7 a.m. to dusk.

How to Find It: The entrance to the walkway is located right next to the Secaucus, NJ location of Bob’s Discount Furniture in the Mall at Mill Creek on Route 3. The address is 3 Mill Creek Drive.

Distance From Jersey City: 7 miles (20–25 minutes by car without traffic)

Parking: Free parking available near the walkway entrance

Walkway Hours: 7 a.m. to dusk

Route Length: 1.6 miles of trails total

Richard W. DeKorte Park (Lyndhurst)

Another jewel along the Hackensack, Richard W. DeKorte Park consists of nearly 640 acres of marshes and coastal impoundments in the town of Lyndhurst in the Meadowlands. Like so many of the trails that Hackensack Riverkeeper (and its founder Captain Bill Sheehan) helped develop, it’s not crowded. So, don’t tell anyone.

 

Interpretive sign along trail in Richard W. DeKorte Park. Photo courtesy of NJSEA.

But it is important for scientific and environmental reasons. “The region is classified as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by New Jersey Audubon and is an area of conservation interest to the USFWS [U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service], mainly due to a high diversity of wetland birds and wildlife,” according to the The Coastal Impoundments Vulnerability and Resilience Project.

DeKorte park also feeds the soul. It offers three-and-a-half miles of trails including one over a long jetty that will make you think you’re on Cape Cod (Provincetown has a jetty that’s pretty impressive).

Signs highlighting the park’s resources and wildlife are found intermittently along the pathways; other resources include an observatory for star gazing and a center for environmental and scientific education (both of which are unfortunately closed during the pandemic).

Dogs are allowed on leashes on most of the trails.

How to Find It: The entrance is located at 1 DeKorte Park, Lyndhurst.

Distance From Jersey City: 11 miles (30 minutes by car without traffic)

Parking: Free parking right inside the entrance

Walkway Hours: 7 a.m. to dusk

Route Length: 3.5 miles of assorted trails

Attractions for Kids: NJSEA.com provides information on numerous environmental education opportunities geared to children (temporarily suspended due to COVID-19).

South Mountain Reservation (Maplewood-Millburn-West Orange)

For those readers who want a nearby hike, not just a walk (and who have access to a car), South Mountain Reservation in Essex County fits the bill. Over 2,000 acres big, the complex is just 17 miles from Jersey City, but its mostly wild, forested habitat gives one the sense of being hours away.

Wooded trail in South Mountain Reservation. Photo courtesy of All Trails.

Your sojourn will be handsomely rewarded. Visitors will find numerous trails ranging in length from less than one mile to over 30 miles. And the preserve has an impressive pedigree: According to Essex County Parks, renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted visited the reserve and considered it amongst “the most beautiful and promising terrain he had ever seen.” While Olmstead did not design the reservation himself, he delegated the job to his stepson’s firm, and it was eventually finalized by Olmstead’s two sons, both prominent landscape architects in their own right.

South Mountain Reservation is also known for having a pretty snazzy dog park. Pooches from far and away get their humans to take them there because of its agility courses and equipment.

How to Find It: South Mountain Reservation is located in parts of Millburn, Maplewood, and West Orange. Best to find directions to the trail of your choice.

Distance From Jersey City: Approximately 17 miles (30–40 minutes by car without traffic)

Parking:  Free parking lots are sprinkled throughout the complex. For just a few dollars one can also Park N Ride.

Park Hours: dawn to dusk

Route Length: The complex features a range of trails from less than one mile to over 30 miles in length.

Nearby Points of Interest: The reservation’s popular dog park with an agility course.The towns of Maplewood, Millburn, and West Orange offer a variety of shops and restaurants.

Attractions for Kids: Numerous offerings including a zoo and an award-winning 19-hole safari golf course (all unfortunately closed during COVID)

Correction: A previous version incorrectly stated that Paul Fireman was no longer pursuing privatizing Caven Point.

David Roberts

International Theatre Festival Comes to Liberty State Park Oct. 16

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Jersey City Theater Center (JCTC) presents the second annual “Voices International Theatre Festival” from Friday October 16 to Sunday October 25. This year’s Festival is a unique hybrid of virtual and live events featuring the work of twenty-one groundbreaking theatre companies from Europe, Eastern Europe, South Asia, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and the United States. The Festival is the largest of its kind in New Jersey

The festival’s opening ceremony on Sunday, October 18 is a specially designed, socially distanced live assembly gathering in Liberty State Park in Jersey City, combining both live and virtual elements, including classes during the afternoon and a performance-ceremony broadcast live at 6:00 p.m. EST. JCTC has obtained forty-eight hour licensing agreements with performers to make this event possible.

The 2020 “Voices International Theatre Festival” showcases daring and thematically provocative multi-disciplinary work that has been curated to offer festivalgoers a deeply stimulating cross-section of ethnic, racial, gender, and political perspectives.  Among the notable companies and artists participating are the internationally acclaimed Belarus Free Theater; Palesa Mazamisa (from South Africa); Ranan (from India; Roman Viktyuk Theatre (from Russia); RAAAM Theater Group of Estonia; Manuel Vignoulle (from France); Matara (from Israel); New York-based Sidra Bell Dance; Los Escultores del Aire (from Spain); and Haeboma (from South Korea).

“Many of the artists and groups we invited are acclaimed in their home countries as well as internationally,” says Olga Levina, the artistic director of the Jersey City Theater Center, who is originally from Belarus.  “Their work is a direct response to the state of our world and the need for greater equity and unity.  Their stories are eloquent, forceful, and often surprising, and their messages and testimony are riveting and shattering.  They deserve as wide an audience as we can give them.”

Several of the companies chosen would not otherwise be able to travel to the United States for a variety of reasons.  Because their performances will be staged and livestreamed from their home-base theatres, the companies will share not just the perspectives and rich performative content of their most mature work, but also the context in which they create their work. 2020  Voices is supported by the City of Jersey City (Mayor Steven M. Fulop), the Jersey City Municipal Council, the Jersey City Office of Cultural Affairs, the New Jersey Division of Travel and Tourism, Hudson County Cultural Affairs, businesses and organizations across the state as well as several neighborhood groups in Jersey City.

“We are very interested in sparking a far-reaching conversation with this festival,” says Levina.  “Of course, the voices of the different groups will interact and combine with one another, but it is crucial for the participants to
enter a conversation with the host city and the diverse local audience we nurture at JCTC.  That is why our partnerships with the city of Jersey City and with organizations throughout New Jersey and even on-the-ground neighborhood groups and individual artists are so important.  We want the conversations of 2020 Voices to be uniquely inclusive both locally and globally.” Levina also stressed the importance of the Festival’s “significant contribution to the reopening of theatre locally and globally.”

The festival is divided into three parts: “conversations,” performances, and classes and workshops.  The conversations section includes “Meet the Artists” (Friday Oct 16) and a “Festival Forum” about the work (Friday Oct 23).  Performances are scheduled throughout the ten-day festival and livestreamed in their entirety over two days (Saturdays Oct 17 and 24) with a special live performances section staged from Merseles Studios at JCTC on Saturday, Oct 24.  Classes and collaborative workshops take place on Sunday Oct 18 and on the festival’s closing day, on Sunday Oct 25.

The festival’s opening day ceremony will be staged live on Sunday, October 18, at 6:00 p.m., on Crescent Field in Liberty State Park. Several live, socially distant presentations and workshops will take place there from 12:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Co-hosted by the city itself, the opening ceremony reflects Jersey City’s status as the “golden gateway” of the United States, something Levina celebrates:

“America, of course, finds itself very conflicted right now,” Levina remarks.  “People like me who have come to America and found opportunity are so grateful for what we believe America stands for.  At the same time, many Americans—descended from immigrants ironically enough—are demanding that our borders get shut down, that we stop and even turn away people from around the world who are still yearning to breathe free.  A festival like Voices will no doubt capture this struggle, but hopefully it will give voice to those who love and respect the cultural diversity of the planet and who are ready to celebrate this no matter where they live!”

Included in the 2020 Voices International Theatre Festival are works about racial and social justice; gender equality; climate change; globalization; the tech revolution; personal freedom vs. totalitarianism; materialism and hedonism; war and terror; and traditional vs. modern culture.  Participating companies and the racially diverse participating artists are from Europe, Eastern Europe, South Asia, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, New York, and New Jersey. Three of the festival’s events have a Jersey City focus:  Jersey City resident Kyle Marshall’s “King on Saturday October 17;” the opening ceremony; and the  photo contest.

Tickets for the opening ceremony are $35 for the live event and $15 for the online.  For more information about Voices including tickets, the Voices Festival Pass, the photo contest, and the festival calendar, visit https://www.jctcenter.org/ or contact JCTC (339-345 Newark Avenue) at 201-795-5386.

Jersey City Times Staff

Trenton to Restore Liberty State Park Interior

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The Department of Environmental Protection announced today that it is committing tens of  millions of dollars to the ecological restoration of 234 acres of Liberty State Park’s interior, creating knolls with sweeping views of the Jersey City and Manhattan skylines and increasing public accessibility, according to Governor Murphy and Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Catherine R. McCabe.

The proposed design would restore natural resources and create access to the interior of the park that has been off limits to the public for decades due to historic environmental contamination.

The DEP will host a public meeting in late September and make presentation materials available online (https://nj.gov/dep/nrr/) to invite comments and suggestions from the public.

“Liberty State Park is a cherished cornerstone of our state that improves the quality of life for New Jerseyans and offer great services and experiences,” said Governor Murphy. “Today’s investment will allow us to not only rebuild, but enhance the site while preserving the environment, to provide opportunities for residents to discover and enjoy for generations to come.”

The restoration project area has been closed off to the public by a chain-link fence due to contamination from low levels of metals and hydrocarbons. The site was used to deposit soil in the late 1800’s and covered tidal wetlands, in more than 70 acres of the area.

As part of the redesign, the contaminated soil will be excavated and then capped with clean soil. The clean soil will then be planted with trees, grass and other vegetation. All other open public areas of Liberty State Park were remediated similarly in the past.

At approximately one-third the size of New York City’s Central Park, the proposed natural resources restoration will increase the park’s accessible space by 40 percent and will:

• Clean up contamination
• Restore the natural ecosystems
• Create additional access to the park for nearby residents
• Improve water and air quality
• Reduce runoff
• Help mitigate climate change
• Create public-use enhancements

The draft plan aims to restore several habitat types for a wide variety of species and includes 72 acres of fresh and saltwater wetlands. The proposed design also creates seven miles of additional trails within the park, adds more than 300 new parking spaces, and includes a variety of wildlife viewing, educational, and passive recreational opportunities for visitors.

“Engaging with and listening to our communities is critical to all of our environmental justice and equity work,” said Olivia Glenn, DEP’s Deputy Commissioner for Environmental Justice & Equity. “The public conversation to come is necessary to ensure that the future of Liberty State Park truly incorporates the needs of its neighbors and the visiting public. We know that improved access to natural landscapes are priorities for our communities, but there are often other community priorities that we can address like reducing flooding and brownfield revitalization, making this conversation critical to the success of the design.”

“Liberty State Park is one our most protected treasures here in Jersey City and it’s a welcomed initiative and well-worth celebrating when the State promises actions like this,” Jersey City Mayor Steven M. Fulop said. “Ensuring that Liberty State Park remains a protected open space for everyone is essential, but by significantly enhancing it by making large areas that currently lie behind chained fences, which were polluted during the past industrial era years ago, now open, cleaned and made safe for the use of residents, and visitors – how do you not applaud this endeavor.”

Sam Pesin, president of The Friends of Liberty State Park is pleased.  “This tremendously exciting news about the urban nature restoration to benefit urban residents and all visitors, comes 25 years after Governor Whitman listened to the overwhelming majority and rejected the interior golf course plan. In addition to this spectacular nature wonderland and the DEP’s pledge to collaborate on some active recreation and other amenities, the passage of the Liberty State Park Protection Act is essential to fully ensure a great future for the People’s Park behind Lady Liberty.”

“After 30 years of being fenced off to the public and a ceaseless parade of private development schemes for Liberty Park’s 234-acre interior, NJDEP is delivering an exceptional natural restoration and public access plan for this area. We are thrilled!” said Greg Remaud, Baykeeper & CEO of NY/NJ Baykeeper.

“I welcome today’s announcement about reaching a new milestone for the Liberty State Park interior restoration project, which will ultimately benefit Jersey City’s children,” said Senator Sandra Cunningham.

“We are deeply appreciative to Governor Murphy and Commissioner McCabe for investing in Liberty State Park, which is a national treasure and the keeper of this country’s diverse, rich history with markers that have guided generations of citizens and attracted people from all over the world,” said Assemblyman Raj Mukherji of Jersey City, Chairman of the Assembly Judiciary Committee and a longtime champion of Liberty State Park.

The restoration project is funded primarily through Natural Resource Damages (NRD) settlements. NRD settlements use compensation from polluters who have caused environmental harm to fund projects that restore injuries to New Jersey’s natural resources, like the forests and wetlands proposed in Liberty State Park.

Header photo by Shayna Marchese

City Hall of Jersey City
Sally Deering

COUNCIL VOTES TO PROTECT PARK

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Call the Guinness Book of World Records. The Jersey City Council’s virtual meeting Wednesday night set its own record at nine hours and 20 minutes with 175 callers dialing in with concerns about Liberty State Park and defunding police. Callers voiced support for the Liberty State Park Protection Act and demanded the $159 million designated for police personnel in the FY2020-2021 municipal budget get reduced by half with the balance going to programs that support the needs of the Jersey City community.

In an 8-1 vote, with Ward F Councilman Jermaine Robinson dissenting, the City Council passed the resolution to support the Liberty State Park Protection Act. Before the 175 callers were invited to speak, Council President Joyce E. Watterman motioned for the resolution to be deferred to an early vote prior to the call-in speakers. 

“The City Council has done this before, moved things up to the top of the agenda, when there are a large number of speakers,” Council at Large Rolando R. Lavarro, Jr., said. “It’s been done in the past. Still, I’m going to vote no in this instance. I think we should hear from the speakers.”

The council voted 6-3 to move up the vote with Councilmen Lavarro, James Solomon and Jermaine Robinson dissenting. Before the vote, Councilman Solomon made a motion to amend the resolution, seconded by Councilman Lavarro, to include a provision for “the communities of Ward F and A which deserve fair and equitable treatment in the decision-making in the future of Liberty State Park”.   

“We are trying to make things better,” Councilman Solomon said. “Amendments will make it a better piece of legislation.”

Last week, Councilman Robinson held a public forum for his Ward F constituents to express their concerns about having a voice in the Liberty State Park Protection Act. Although more than 200 residents tuned in to the Zoom meeting—with many callers hoping to air concerns about saving Liberty State Park’s Caven Point wildlife estuary from privatization—the moderator turned off their computers’ audio, and the callers were completely muted. In the time since, Councilman Solomon drew up the amendments with input from Councilman Robinson, but according to Councilman Robinson, the amendments did not go far enough.

“We all agree Caven Point should never be touched,” Robinson said of the possibility of additional privatization, “but I do have deep concerns over the bill in Trenton right now. I want to send a stronger message.”

Councilman Robinson was referring to the bill in the New Jersey Legislature to pass the Liberty State Preservation Act. In January, the bill passed in the New Jersey senate, but when it came time to post it for a vote in the assembly, Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin (D-19) refused, and it died on the final day of the 2019-2020 legislative session. The next day, three Hudson County assembly members reintroduced the bill. 

Meanwhile, just yesterday, billionaire Paul Fireman, who owns Liberty National Golf Course and who has expressed interest in turning Caven Point wildlife estuary into three holes for golfers, issued a press release stating he is not going forward with his intention to obtain Caven Point. Councilman Lavarro says it’s a temporary pause.

“Fireman’s not saying he’s out of the business,” Councilman Lavarro said. “We need to stay vigilant, redouble our efforts, and fight back against these billionaire interests.”

Preserving the People’s Park

Sam Pesin, the president of the Friends of Liberty State Park refers to Liberty State Park as the ‘people’s park.” In 1976, Pesin’s father, Morris, helped found the park. Since his father’s passing, Sam Pesin has followed in his dad’s footsteps, devoting his time to his non-profit, the Friends of Liberty State Park (FOLSP) which has thousands of supporters. His petition to support the Liberty State Park Preservation Act has 18,000 signatures. He called in to the council meeting to offer his thanks to the City Council for passing the bill and to warn the council against Fireman’s land grab. 

“For 44 years, the people have put democracy into action and have fought for this people’s park behind Lady Liberty,” Pesin said. “The overwhelming majority strongly opposed park privatization every time, no matter what revenue was promised in return for sacrificing park land. From the time of its opening, the park has sustained overwhelming public support for green and open space and overwhelming opposition to privatization and commercialization proposals as expressed by people in public hearings, countless public comments, petitions and a series of coalitions of local, regional, and state-wide groups.”

Supporter Jill Posterino said protecting Liberty State Park from privatization is intrinsic to the Jersey City community. She said land should not be given away because wealth and privilege demand it.

“The golf course owner has inserted money and arguments into this democratic process in such a way to sow division and muddy the issue at hand,” Posterino said. “It is a strategy we have seen used time and again by those who want exemptions carved out only for themselves and who want to take ownership of something that doesn’t belong to them.”

Steve Krinsky, a retired school teacher warned that the work is far from done. 

“The fight moves to Trenton,” Krinsky said. “I hope you’ll stand up for this issue. We should be appalled at things like this and speak out against them.”

Defunding the Police

The City Council held a public hearing on the FY2020-2021 municipal budget and heard from many Jersey City residents demanding the $159 million allocated to the Jersey City police department be cut in half with the balance used for social services and community programs. Elena Thompson, a member of Solidarity Jersey City, said the diverted funding should be invested in services like affordable housing, youth programming, and access to quality healthcare. 

“Downtown Jersey City is safe not because it has the most police,” Thompson said. “Downtown is safe because it has the most resources. Decrease the JCPD budget by 50 percent. This is the civil rights movement of our time.”

Ward F resident Andrew John, a member of Solidarity Jersey City, agreed that the police should be defunded with the money re-allocated to housing, and health and human services.

“We’re all in agreement that the vulnerable need resources,” John said. “We need to look beyond this to what the community needs. This money is spent on police salaries. Since 2013 the force has nearly doubled in size. $50 million could create more youth programs, better mental health programs, initiatives like the ‘I love Greenville’ plan.”

CEO of Hudson Partnership Care Management Organization Robin Gorman called in and spoke to the council about the work she does with Hudson youth. Gorman works regularly with approximately 800 young people, and she receives most referrals from Jersey City where children are traumatized by gun violence, domestic violence, physical abuse, and addiction. 

“When I look at the youth of Jersey City, I feel we are shortchanging them,” she said. “The average age of youth that come to us are 15. By the time they come to us, they’ve experienced a lot of trauma. They’ve been disconnected from the educational system. If we had a handle of identifying their needs sooner, we could intervene in an impactful way. We choose to fund police, probation officers, the courts, detention centers, and prisons. If we’re going to put our money where our mouth is and be invested in anti-violence efforts, we need to move this money away from public safety and put it into kids’ programing.”

The next City Council meeting will be held Wed., Aug. 12 at 6 p.m.

 

Jersey City Times Staff

Fireman “Halts” Caven Point Effort and Launches Blistering Racially Charged Attack on Pesin

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Paul Fireman, through his public relations firm Kivvit, issued a statement today that he is “halting any efforts to pursue a public private partnership at Caven Point.”  For several years, Fireman has been engaged in an effort to convert Caven Point, a 21 acre piece of land that park advocates and environmentalists consider an important nesting area for wildlife, into three holes for his Liberty National Golf Club.  A vote to support a state law protecting Liberty State Park from privatization is scheduled for tonight’s city council meeting.

The statement reads as follows:

“For decades, Jersey City’s minority communities have been systematically shut out of the decision-making process on Liberty State Park. No one asked the communities’ opinions or cared about what was truly needed, and decisions were made for them. Meanwhile, 40 years later the Park is still incomplete.

“This fight for social justice is the most important fight taking place at Liberty State Park today. Those who do not want to empower minority communities are using me in an effort to distract from the real issue of who gets to make decisions. If people are serious about listening to minority voices, then we need a new effort that lets those voices be heard.

“I will not be used as an excuse for inaction any longer. That is why I am halting any efforts to pursue a public private partnership at Caven Point. I am doing this to force the supporters of the Liberty State Park Protection Act to address the social justice problems connected to Liberty State Park without using me as an excuse to keep ignoring minority communities.

“A new effort must be launched on Liberty State Park that will allow Jersey City’s minority communities a seat at the table AND ensure no actions are taken until there is community say in the decision-making process. When the Park was created 40 years ago community leaders, faith groups, politicians and business leaders were brought together. Their recommendations, after a thorough process, became the Liberty State Park Master Plan. This plan remains active today and is still being ignored. Its principles and ideas should serve as the basis of a new effort and a new plan.

“Sam Pesin should have been the leader of making that original plan a reality. Instead, after 40 years, Sam has done nothing to implement the grand vision for Liberty State Park. Pesin has reinforced a do-nothing policy and shut out minority communities from the decision-making process. This exclusion would continue under the Liberty State Park Protection Act.

“Sam Pesin and the Friends of Liberty State Park do not support proper decontamination of the interior 235 acres of the Park, which sits next to a minority neighborhood. Pesin wants this land to be a preserve, not a park. The toxic contaminated land currently sits behind a chain link fence where recreational opportunities – which were promised to minority communities – should exist. This contaminated land should be cleaned and converted into a swimming pool, arts and recreation center, ballfields, basketball courts, picnic areas and natural habitat restoration. There was also supposed to be a transportation system at the Park, which would help minority communities get there. That has not happened either. The fact that none of this has happened shows Pesin has been focused more on control of the process at the Park, rather than making Liberty State Park a better place for all.

“I have never advocated for privatization of Liberty State Park. I do believe the reality is our parks need public and private support to be great. It is a model used across the world. But I am halting efforts around Caven Point so there can be a real discussion about empowering minority voices to have their say about the future of Liberty State Park and the 235 acres of the Interior.”

Fireman’s statement comes on the heels of a controversial “Ward F Community Conversation” hosted on Zoom by Councilman Jermaine Robinson, Arnold Stovell and Bruce Alston.   Neither invited panelist and president of Friends of Liberty State Park, Sam Pesin, nor any of the approximately 200 guests were permitted to speak.   The “conversation” was preceded by the dissemination of a racially charged flyer that made many of the same allegations contained in Fireman’s press release today. Some observers of the Zoom meeting had suggested that Fireman was behind the flyer and Zoom meeting.

In response, Pesin and FOLSP released the following statement.

All supporters of a free public park behind Lady Liberty will be relieved to read about Paul Fireman claiming to give up his relentless self-serving false narrative about the park and his goal of privatizing and destroying the Caven Point natural preserve and urban environmental education resource to relocate exclusionary golf course holes closer to the bay for a better view for his millionaire members.

Paul Fireman is in a long line of would-be LSP privatizers who have met with consistent, overwhelming opposition in 44 years of grassroots battles. Over 85 groups are in the current “Coalition to Pass the LSP Protection Act”, and over 18,000 citizens have signed an onlne petition without the opportunity to engage the public during the pandemic.

Most importantly, the LSP Protection Act is needed now more than ever to end privatization assaults on LSP. We urge the Speaker of the Assembly and the Senate President to post the legislation championed by Senators Brian Stack and Loretta Weinberg and Assemblypersons Raj Mukherji. Angela McKnight so that the Governor may sign the essential and landmark law to protect, once and for all, our urban, state and national treasure behind Lady Liberty.

Without the Protection Act, Paul Fireman will come roaring back with his disinformation, political contributions, and lobbyists under a new governor for his ultimate goal of a land grab of Caven Point.

Minority communities and all park visitors would of course benefit from park improvements including active recreational offerings (which our group has always supported, and the NJDEP, which manages LSP,  is open to collaborating on) and the Protection Act requires comprehensive public participation.

If Paul Fireman actually cares about minority communities in Jersey City and about LSP, we hope his offers of philanthropy and a First Tee youth golf academy  will not go the way of his privatization proposal now that no quid pro quo is attached by way of seizing public parkland.

The Protection Act must become law to once and for all protect this priceless park, and establish a peaceful and positive era of collaboration with the public, elected officials and the NJDEP to make this great park even better!

We thank all park supporters who have fought once again against LSP privatization plans, including the main sponsors of the Act  – Asm Raj Mukherji, Asw Angela McKnight, Asm Nick Chiaravalloti, and Sen Stack and Sen Weinberg. We also thank the media for their news coverage and the editorials which informed the public about Paul Fireman’s privatization land grab of Caven Point. Thank God for the People, whose involvement is still needed until the Act is signed into law, for advocating for a free park behind Lady Liberty and thanks for our nation’s free press!

It should be a no-brainer for the legislature and the Governor to protect LSP for future generations as a free park for all to enjoy behind Lady Liberty.

Photo of Red Tailed Hawk at Caven Point by Shayna Marchese

 

Aaron Morrill

Editorial: Do What’s Right Councilman Robinson

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Thursday’s Orwellian “community conversation” about the future of Liberty State Park marked a new low even by the already low standards of Jersey City politics. Promoted by Ward F Councilman Jermaine Robinson, “moderated” by Arnold Stovell, and featuring “panelist” Bruce Alston, the Zoom meeting was anything but a conversation. The tireless Sam Pesin, president of Friends of Liberty State Park, who was also billed as a “panelist,” wasn’t permitted to speak—at all. Nor were the approximately 200 people who logged on in the mistaken belief that they would have a chance to participate in a meaningful discussion. Instead, what ensued was a shameful exercise in faux democracy that would make Vladimir Putin blush. The microphones of all but Stovell, Alston and Councilman Robinson were silenced, and listeners were treated to a misinformed diatribe apparently calculated to sow division and pave the way for the conversion of a pristine wildlife habitat into an expanded golf course for billionaires.

It’s hard to know where to begin. Let’s start with the timing. According to local observers, Mssrs. Robinson, Stovell, and Alston had never before expressed interest in Liberty State Park. So why now?  As they say, timing is everything. The current offensive appears to have begun a month ago. On June 9, Assemblywoman Angela McKnight announced that her charity Angela Cares had received a 10 thousand dollar donation from The Paul and Phyllis Fireman Charitable Foundation.  McKnight, whose district includes Ward F, is a sponsor of the Liberty State Park Protection Act against which Fireman has fought a multi-year battle. We would hope and expect that Ms. McKnight won’t be influenced by this money, but greasing important political hands is apparently nothing new for Fireman. According to the New York Times, Fireman, who lives in Massachusetts, has given out $420,000 to New Jersey Democrats and Republicans. It would be nice—though unlikely—if all of our local pols would be as transparent as McKnight.

On June 30 an unknown legislator slipped a provision into New Jersey’s “stop-gap” budget that would allow businesses to submit proposals for development in state parks. Observers say the provision could only have been written with Caven Point in mind. Directing Fireman’s offensive against wildlife is the Trenton lobbying firm River Crossing Strategy Group, which boasts that it is “a powerhouse with institutional reach.” Its founder, Eric Shuffler, worked on both the Fulop and Murphy transition teams.

On July 1, Alston posted a slick race-baiting flyer to his Facebook page entitled “Broken Promises of Liberty State Park.” Stamped at the top and bottom was the Black Lives Matter slogan “White Silence = White Violence.” It included among a plethora of misstatements and half truths the straw man that amenities “important to Black and Latino communities” included in a 1977 master plan for the park had not been built. Not long after, these scurrilous flyers began appearing on car windshields in Ward F.

It’s hard to imagine a more cynical, Trumpian strategy than that dreamed up by the creators of the flyer and its disseminator and agent, Bruce Alston. To attempt to divide Jersey City residents along racial lines is bad enough. To do so by co-opting the social justice message of Black Lives Matter in order to destroy a wildlife refuge and provide three scenic holes of golf for billionaires is as surreal as it is vile.

The flyer’s claim, adopted by Alston, that Friends of Liberty State Park has stood in the way of active recreational amenities in the park was and is baseless. First, as Pesin points out today, it is the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection that manages the park and is responsible for collaborating with the community. As to the role of FOLSP, Pesin recalls his father’s hope that Liberty State Park would have a “Central Park-type future,” i.e., that it would include athletic fields and small concessions. Pesin and FOLSP have always supported that vision.

Thankfully other voices from Ward F have spoken out against Fireman and his surrogates. Among them is Daoud David Williams, 77, a lifetime resident of Jersey City,  army veteran and member of the NAACP. He put it bluntly: “It is disgusting that they want to racialize this. They are co-opting Black Lives Matter. They want to pretend that they are representative of the community.” 

That it’s come to this is sad, indeed. Liberty State Park should not be a cause for division but, on the contrary, a place in which we all take pride. At this very moment, it is a place where people from all walks of life and every neighborhood mix. Tomorrow, the Jersey City Municipal Council will vote on Councilman James Solomon’s resolution in support of the Liberty State Protection Act. In 2019, Councilman Robinson supported a similar resolution. We hope he will chalk up this ill-conceived “community conversation” to experience and that he and the rest of the council will vote to approve the resolution. All communities in Jersey City should gather together to protect and improve the precious land we call Liberty State Park.

 

 Photo from Caven Point by Shayna Marchese

 

Sally Deering

Liberty State Park Meeting Sparks Outrage

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Councilman Jermaine Robinson and Other Event Organizers Prevent Community Residents From Speaking

Jersey City Councilman Jermaine D. Robinson scheduled a “Ward F Community Conversation” on Thursday for Bergen-Lafayette residents to voice their concerns on the Liberty State Park Protection Act. Instead, the Ward F community meeting sparked controversy when the roughly 200 community members attending the virtual event had their audios muted and the meeting’s moderator Arnold Stovell, panelist Bruce Alston, and Councilman Robinson were the only ones permitted to speak. Still intent on being heard, many of the silenced attendees held up makeshift signs to their screens for the three speakers (and for one another) to see.

“Tonight, I’m going to ask everyone to be respectful, but I want all three sides of truth and honesty to come out,” Councilman Robinson said. “I believe Liberty State Park is the best park in the world. I believe it should be for all of the people. I want everyone respectful so that all of our voices can be heard to come to some kind of happy medium. I want to hear what the community has to say.”

“How is this a community conversation when only three people speak?”  community member Ryan Moser wrote in the meeting’s chat room.

Privatizing a State Park

The Jersey City Council meets next week to vote on whether or not to support the Liberty State Park Protection Act. This would prevent further privatization of the park’s 1,200 acres, some of which already house the Liberty House restaurant, Liberty Landing Marina and Liberty National Golf Course owned entirely by billionaire Paul Fireman. Among its protections would be the Caven Point Peninsula, a wildlife estuary that lies next to the course. The protection act would extinguish Fireman’s proposed plan to extend his golf course and turn Caven Point into three golf holes with a spectacular view of the New York Skyline to lure PGA golfers.

“The fear of those who are accustomed to the status quo are putting forth a story that suddenly it’s going to be privatized,” Stovell said. “We’re talking about a state park meant to be enjoyed by the citizens of New Jersey. Jersey City is one of the most diverse cities in the country.

There’s no reason one set of people should be making the decisions.”

The issue of privatization has to do with selling off parcels of Liberty State Park to the highest bidder, and the protection act would prohibit further privatization to protect Caven Point Peninsula’s wildlife refuge. Alston seemed to confuse the wildlife refuge with areas of the park that he said are contaminated and in need of remediation.

“I’m going to keep saying this: New Jersey is the only place I know that will pass legislation to protect contaminated land,” Alston said. “I’m not saying give anything to Liberty National (Golf Course). I never had a conversation with Liberty National. When it held the Barclays event, we believe black people were shut out from vending opportunities and jobs to have that PGA event. I have no relationship with any developer or Mr. Fireman.”

One community member held a sign, “How much is Fireman paying you?”

“I haven’t received a dime from him,” Stovell said in response. “People were making it seem that because he has money, his intent is to take over the park. Aside from the fact that’s really ridiculous, what’s more important is the association of all people with money being bad. The things that he has offered to do would benefit the community. I’m seeing things with other billionaires that are helping the community. You need a millionaire or billionaire to get something done. We need to stop this nonsense that there’s a push by Fireman to privatize the park. It’s coded racism.”

Viewing the meeting, DK said, in the chat room: “Such BS. Suddenly the answer to racial equality is an expanded golf course?”

Evelyn Ibarra of Jersey City expressed her opinion in the online chat room: “This is a huge outrage, this entire meeting.”

The Master Plan of 1977

Stovell brought up the 1977 master plan for Liberty State Park that was created with input from community groups. Since then, all that’s changed, he said.

“What was the sense of having a master plan if it never was going to be followed, never going to be implemented,” Alston added. “The 1977 master plan promised people of Jersey City retail shops, restaurants, ball fields, and tennis courts. This park is big enough to have everything. If it takes public-private partnerships to get it done, that’s something we need to explore.”

Meanwhile, there have been several additions to Liberty State Park since the 1977 master plan, was written, notably the Liberty Science Center, which was built in 1993.

Alston said forcing Ward F residents to accept the Liberty State Park Protection Act without their input was a “Trump-like moment” and referred to a comment by right-wing commentator Laura Ingraham who told NBA star LeBron James no one cared about his political opinions.

“Our community needs to have the opportunity to state what we want to have inside Liberty State Park,” Alston said. “There should not be any legislation proposed until legislators come to Jersey City. This is the systematic marginalization of black and brown people. I was very disappointed with Assemblyman Raj Mukherji. He was going to support some type of legislation. Assemblyman Mukherji, Senators (Loretta) Weinberg, and (Brian) Stack, you need to review that master plan before we decide anyone passes legislation. You’re going to push something on Black people and then say Black Lives Matter. This is what is being said: ‘Shut up and dribble’.”

Some supporters Friends of Liberty State Park protested that Sam Pesin was not part of the event even though the flyer advertised him as a panelist.

“We invited Sam, but he did not want to be a part of it,” Stovell said. “So, I left it alone. Basically, it’s not about Sam, it’s about this community having this conversation.”

Pesin did attend the virtual meeting and later said Stovell barred him from speaking.

“I never indicated I was not going to the meeting,” Pesin said. “They totally lied by saying I refused to participate. Then they muted me and blocked me from writing anything in the chat room. The meeting was a sham. Last night they expressed a lot of distortions, falsehoods and lies.”

Pesin clarified the confusion about Caven Point and Alston’s description of it as contaminated land. He said the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) does not require any further remediation of Caven Point which was cleaned up in 2004. If Fireman does a land grab of Caven Point for a golf course, golf is an active recreation and the land would need remediation if golf holes are put there, Pesin said.

“Caven Point is a priceless, natural habitat,” Pesin said. “The sign at the entrance states it’s a, migratory bird habitat and nesting area. It’s also an urban, environmental education resource. Over 600 students a year go out there for programs, and it’s a nature sanctuary enjoyed by a few thousand people a year for bird watching and for families to enjoy a peaceful place.”

Local historian and former vice president of the Friends of Liberty State Park Mandy Edgecombe attended last night’s virtual meeting, but her audio was muted, too.

“I was muted, and the chat was disabled the entire time except for the end,” Edgecombe said. “Then you saw it explode. They turned it off after five minutes.”

You could see through the lies, Edgecomb said of the meeting last night.

“The entire script comes from Paul Fireman’s lobbyists, River Crossing Strategy Group,” Edgecombe said. “It is owned by Eric Shuffler, the same lobbyist that got Mayor Fulop elected and Governor Phil Murphy elected. (Last night) they made completely false claims, claims that are boastful enough and interesting enough to catch people’s ears. It’s a marketing campaign. They’re using Black Lives Matter issues to attack Sam.”

Edgecombe said she doesn’t understand why Fireman would want to destroy Caven Point to install three golf holes when he already has a hole right behind Caven Point.

“He has a hole, he just wants more,” Edgecombe said.

There was no clear reason why the meeting ran 1 1/2 hours and yet no community members were invited to speak. The flyer stated the Zoom meeting would be from 6:30-8:30 p.m., but it ended at 8 pm. In order to have the 200 meeting attendees speak—it was billed as a community conversation, after all—Robinson could have extended the meeting to hear what they had to say since this was his original intention when he asked the City Council to table the protection act resolution.

“It was this conversation between two people trying to flood our communities in Ward A and  Ward F with lies,” Edgecombe said. “Most of their platform that the south side of Jersey City is voiceless with Liberty State Park and their concerns are not listened to, is just an attack. The voices of the south side were on that meeting, and they were holding up signs. People had to hold up signs on their videos on the Zoom chat to be heard. It was like a protest. Everybody on the meeting said our voices are right here, we see through this, we see there’s some kind of agenda. It was a complete sham. They did a really good job of embarrassing themselves. They have no platform. No valid claims. They did not invite the DEP when their questions were for the DEP What are you pushing here? You want the south side to have a voice, but all you’re doing is attacking people and not saying anything valid or getting anything done. Jersey City doesn’t swallow pills that easily.”

The City Council votes on the Liberty State Protection Act at its next virtual meeting held Wed., July 15 at 6 p.m.

 

Sally Deering

Council Pauses on Liberty State Park Protection Act

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With July 4 approaching, the Jersey City Council voted to table a vote on the resolution urging the state legislature to enact the Liberty State Park Protection Act until its next meeting on July 15.

As Wednesday’s council meeting got underway, Councilman Jermaine D. Robinson asked council members to table the vote on the Liberty State Park Protection Act to allow him the opportunity to meet with Ward F constituents to hear their concerns prior to the vote. Since Ward F borders Liberty State Park, Robinson felt constituents’ voices needed to be heard.

“I wanted to have a conversation with the community,” Councilman Robinson said. “I’m in a tough position, the ‘tale of two cities.’ I represent the downtown Van Vorst area, and I have a part of the community in Ward F crying out to let their voices be heard. Liberty State Park is right in the middle of it. Nobody wants to hurt Liberty State Park, especially not me. I’m not here to play politics. I’m asking for another month.”

In the public comments section of the meeting, 78 callers signed up to speak to the council, and close to 50 callers supported the Protection Act.

Protecting Liberty State Park and Caven Point’s Estuaries

Privatizing Liberty State Park has been an issue for the past 40 years according to Friends of Liberty State Park president Sam Pesin, whose father Morris Pesin and environmentalists and historians Audrey Zapp, Ted Conrad and J. Owen Grundy led the movement that created Liberty State Park in 1976. Since then, developers have built on privatized sections like the Liberty Landing Marina where pricey yachts are moored and Liberty House Restaurant, which boasts perfect views for splashy weddings and corporate and political shindigs.

Billionaire Paul Fireman built the Liberty National Golf Course at Liberty State Park, and in exchange for giving the park perks like new basketball courts and a golf-training program to underserved youth, he wants to take over Caven Point, one of the last undisturbed estuaries that provides a nesting area for sandpipers, songbirds, turtles, horseshoe crabs, egrets, osprey, and small animals. But according to a recent article in The New York Times, a Liberty National spokesman was more blunt, saying the land was needed to woo major PGA tournaments to Jersey City.

“If we are not able to accommodate what these tournaments need, then they will simply go somewhere else that can,” Chris Donnelly told the Times.

The council, along with members of the public, voiced concerns about Fireman’s proposed intention. Sam Pesin called in to ask the council to pass the resolution.

“The resolution is only a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ vote on whether you’re for or against privatization,” Pesin said. “My father, Morris Pesin, the park’s father, fought to have it an inclusive park, and the park users reflect our city’s beautiful diversity. The act would already have been law if not for Paul Fireman, so he can have a showpiece eye-candy golf course. Liberty Park is at a crossroads. This is a war for the public good. Fireman is wealthy and should just donate money for improvements without getting Caven Point as a quid pro quo. Please do the right thing. Stand up for the park.”

Councilman James Solomon, who introduced the Protection Act resolution, said there seems to be an agreement among the council members that the land will never be privatized, but that there’s a big fight ahead.

“We are fighting a billionaire,” Councilman Solomon said. “All Jersey City was unified on the Protection Act six months ago. The council passed it. The mayor was all in about it. It did not pass the state legislature. The assembly speaker killed it. We are fighting against an extremely powerful person with extraordinary influence. It requires us to push. To present a unified front.”

Dana Patton, a long-time resident of Ward F said the park is used every day by people in Ward F and every other Jersey City ward. She said the resolution supporting the park’s Protection Act would finally take away “the threat that is constant every year of casinos, racetracks, of every single thing that a billionaire wants to do to make money off this park that belongs to the people”.

“We shouldn’t have to keep fighting this fight,” Patton said. “This Protection Act does not prevent anyone from having active recreation in the park, from having free things for the public to do, for serving the public. I’m unclear about why there’s hesitation to support this act when this act is purely to keep private developers from being able to make money off of this park.”

Gregory Remaud works for the NY/NJ Baykeeper, a conservation organization that has worked in and around the New York Harbor for thirty years.

“I want to urge the council to approve the resolution to approve the Protection Act,” Remaud said. “It says our great park is a local and national treasure. It deserves the same protections and privileges as every park in the United States. With other parks, you don’t have the kind of nonsense where developers have a say of what happens and doesn’t happen. You don’t have that anyplace else. You have that at Liberty State Park.”

Retired school teacher, Steve Krinsky has lived in Jersey City for more than 30 years. As a teacher, Krinsky brought his students to Liberty State Park.

“I taught middle school Social Studies,” Krinsky said. “Liberty State Park was their introduction to nature, to the environment, to get away from the noise of the streets. At Caven Point beach, we would talk about how the Lenape Indians would come every day and pick food off the cherry trees and the blackberry trees. Before the Europeans arrived, Caven Point would be covered with oyster shells that the natives left behind. Caven Point is one of the last remaining saltmarshes on the New York waterfront. Please don’t let anyone destroy this amazing spot. Let’s make Caven Point a destination point for children of Jersey City to learn about wildlife habitats and history.”

After listening to hours of callers supporting the Liberty State Park Protection Act, the resolution was about to come up for a vote. Councilman Solomon agreed that the conversation Councilman Robinson proposed was an important one, but likely wouldn’t resolve much before the next council meeting on July 15.

“I don’t want to withdraw it,” Councilman Solomon said. “For me, it’s something that’s important to take a clear stand on.”

Councilman Rolando R. Lavarro, Jr., agreed, saying that postponing the vote made it seem like the council was not standing its ground against privatization. Council President Joyce E. Watterman said she preferred tabling the resolution so the council can show unity on July 15, while giving Councilman Robinson time to talk to Ward F constituents.

“I’m trying to keep this council together to send a strong message that we are one on this issue,” Council President Watterman said. “That will send a message. Us divided does not send a message. That’s why I will vote to table it, so when we come back, we will have one voice. We can’t keep ignoring Ward F. I’m listening, and there were some people from Ward F, I haven’t heard their voice. Councilman Robinson wants to talk to them. Why can’t we grant that?  I vote to table it to July 15.”

Council approved the motion to table the Liberty State Park Protection Act in a 7-2 vote with Councilmen Solomon and Lavarro dissenting.

In other news, the council also voted to uphold the state’s ban on fireworks.

 

Photos courtesy of Shayna Marchese and Friends of Liberty State Park

 

 

Lincoln Park
Daniel Levin

Lincoln Park Will Reopen on Sat., May 2

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Lincoln Park will reopen on Saturday, May 2, however numerous restrictions on its use will apply according to the Hudson County Executive’s Office.

Open will be:

  • The dog run
  • The lawns
  • The ring road for bicycling
  • The jogging track (starting Tues., May 5)

Closed will be:

  • The basketball court
  • The tennis courts
  • The picnic areas
  • The bathrooms

In addition:

  • Face masks must be worn at all times
  • Users must remain six feet apart
  • Parking will be restricted to half the regular number of spots
  • Vehicular traffic will be banned Saturdays and Sundays from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. and weekdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

For further details and for information on the visitation status of other Hudson County parks, click here HERE.

Also reopening (with restrictions) on Saturday, May 2 will be Liberty State Park.

 

Header: Lincoln Park by David Wilson/Jersey City Times file photo

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