Monday Morning News Roundup

By • Apr 20th, 2009 • Category: Blog

- The Harvey Smith campaign is blasting developer Steve Hyman’s latest plan for the 6th Street Embankment, saying it “makes a mockery of our city’s legacy and dismisses the heroic efforts of groups like the Embankment Preservation Coalition.”

- The Star-Ledger‘s resident curmudgeon Paul Mulshine once again takes Jersey City to task for receiving special state aid. He argues that special aid to distressed cities is a major reason why “many other states offer their residents an equivalent level of services to New Jersey but with lower taxes.”

- The Insider visits Ward F to pick the mind of some voters there. The residents he speaks to are none too pleased with the current administration.

- The city’s decision to begin enforcing the requirement to have backflow preventers present in some buildings — a code policy that was previously ignored — has caused a backlash from property owners.

- Two men were shot on Martin Luther King Drive on Saturday night — officials say one of them is facing life-threating injuries.

- A car accident near the Bayonne border involving an alleged drunk driver has left two pedestrians in critical condition.

- Walks across the state — including one in Jersey City — raised an estimated $2.5 million for the Multiple Sclerosis Society yesterday.

In statewide news:

- The $200 million bond approved by voters two years ago to preserve farmland and open space is almost gone, and legislators are trying to figure out how to replenish it at a time when funds are scarce.

- Days after leaving her position as campaign manager for Republican gubernatorial hopeful Brian Levine, the Rev. Shannon Wright launched her own campaign for governor on Saturday.

- Even Princeton, one of the richest schools in the nation, is having to cut back during this recession.

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is the founding editor of the Jersey City Independent; he now works for a public-policy nonprofit in Trenton.
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  • Steve Hyman

    Harvey Smith, It is you that makes a mockery out of yourself. Why don’t you pick on someone your own size? You passed on the offer to take over my contract to buy the Embankment while you were City Council President and the interim Mayor in 2004. You also voted against the Flintkote Tax Abatement and threatened to veto it when it was approved by the majority of the Counsel. Had you done both of those things Jersey City would have been in bigger financial trouble than it is today. Fortunately, you were probably looking in the mirror for the 10 days that you had the power to veto. That was probably the best move you ever did not make. You can not reconcile your own check book but you have been willing to accept campaign donations from me. Maybe that helps you balance your life. I have been bending over backwards to try to work with Jersey City. They not me refused to buy this property from Conrail. You are continually trying to hurt me and undermine my efforts. What would you like me to do that you think is reasonable. I have spent in excess of $7M. I can balance my check book. All I can say is
    HEALY FOR MAYOR he might not be the best but he is better than the rest.

  • Steve Hyman

    Harvey Smith,

    I remember sadly your quote in the newspaper ” we have Hyman right where we want him”. What did you mean by that and I guess you fell on your face one more time. With those qualifications you would make a great leader and Mayor. GO HEALY he is not the best but better than the rest.

  • ELECtellsall

    Hyman is just being his scumbag self.

  • ELECtellsall

    Hymie..
    seems you missed my reply

    Meet up for what reason?
    To discuss what?
    There is nothing to discuss in private and everything can be done here for all to read.
    Where would you like to begin?
    Flintkote?
    What have you built beside just being a property flipper?
    The FBI?
    Mark Munley?
    Lloyd Goldman?
    Steve Lipski?
    Steve Fulop?

  • ELECtellsall

    The Federal Bureau of Investigation has recently seized documents pertaining to the Flintkote deal between Mark Munley and Steve Hyman

    Happy Reading Everyone::
    http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=flintkote+property

  • Steve Hyman

    Eggshell,

    I am sorry I was so nice to you in the past. Your lack of response was welcomed and I believed it to be a submission on your part. I knew you were a bit scrambled and your use of the phrase ” scumbag self” is very self serving and descriptive on your part. MY, MY those are big words. Are you sure that your mother lets you use words like that. Stay in the closet and leave me alone or meet me at your shrink’s office or in your dreams. It is hard to tell you an agenda for a meeting that your refuse to have but I would be happy to discuss all the disgusting “in your end does”. Mano a mano unless you are a girl then it would be Mano a girlo. Go back into the refrigerator you are starting to rot. Silly enough for you.

  • ELECtellsall

    Steve Hyman are you avoiding the questions?
    Maybe I was throwing too many out at once?
    No problem, we can do one at a time

    Let’s start with this one and we will go down the list

    http://www.nj.com/news/jjournal/jerseycity/index.ssf?/base/news-7/122725239734000.xml&coll=3

    FEDS SNIFF OUT CITY DOCS ON PROPERTY
    Seek info about site that stirred controversy 4 years ago
    Friday, November 21, 2008
    By AGUSTIN TORRES
    EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR

    Federal investigators have subpoenaed Jersey City planning documents concerning a waterfront parcel of land known as the former Flintkote property that was the center of several momentous city government decisions, including a controversial tax abatement in 2004.

    The subpoena from U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie was dated Oct. 16 with a return date of Nov. 4, according to several sources.

    But given the scope of the request, city officials have requested more time to prepare and copy all the relevant documents, sources said. The federal prosecutor does not comment about the existence of an investigation or a subpoena.

    Yesterday, New York developer Steven Hyman, who then owned the property in question, was asked if he’s heard about an investigation. “No . I’m not aware of anything going on with Flintkote,” Hyman said.

    City Planner Robert Cotter had no comment.

    Most city officials were attending the League of Municipalities Convention in Atlantic City and could not be reached or did not return calls.

    The former Flintkote property is a prime piece of Downtown real estate at the corner of Luis Munoz Marin Boulevard and Grand Street. It is now owned by Hoboken developer Dean Geibel, who has built the Gull’s Cove condo enclave.

    The land’s controversial history goes back to when Hyman brought a lawsuit against the city in 1994 to remove the parcel from a Jersey City Redevelopment Agency Liberty Harbor North Redevelopment plan calling for a 28-block-long mixed-use waterfront community.

    Left in the plan, the property would have been subject to eminent domain. While city officials pegged the land’s assessed value at $700,000, sources back then with knowledge of waterfront property values said it was worth closer to $15 million on the open market.

    On Dec. 12, 2002, the City Council approved an ordinance, which newly appointed Housing, Economic Development & Commerce Director Mark Munley initiated and signed, that removed Flintkote from the redevelopment plan. It ended Hyman’s lawsuit.

    The previous July, Munley had revealed to the city he had had a previous business relationship with Hyman. After the December council vote, Munley never responded to The Jersey Journal about a possible conflict of interest and city Corporation Counsel Alexander Booth declared there was none……………………………

  • Steve Hyman

    Eggshel, Lets go on Radio Pat’s TV show. You want publicity and fame and notoriety for whatever purpose. I will give it to you in an open forum but first tell me how if anything you are alluding to hurt or affected you or anyone else. I owned a property that I bought in 1981 and from 1983 till 2002 the City tied me up without condemning by designating three different developers over the years to develop the property (Flintkote). First Manila Realty, then Roseland Properties and lastly Applied Housing, all of whom were known and qualified developers in the market place. JC would not let me develop my own property that I bought and paid for and even paid taxes on. For almost 20 years they tied me up. So I sued JC in the 90′s and in 2002 they settled with me. Jersey City did not give me an apology on the other hand they made it a torturous event just to resolve the settlement. I did not get anything from them except the right to develop my own property with better zoning than I could have gotten but that they gave to Applied Housing. The settlement was signed by the City & Redevelopment Agency and Corporation Counsel as I remember it. If you want, I could send you a copy of the agreement. I did not get any tax break or money on the contrary I forgave Haney Levy (Manila Realty) $1000000.00 and gave him a check for $500000.00 just to get rid of him and break up our partnership in the property. Applied was to pay him $1500000.00 in $750,000.00 increments. I doubt it happened. When all is said and done, Applied, at least, had the same zoning that I had when I got the settlement. Roseland walked away from the designation and so did Applied as it related to the 3 acre piece I owned with Levy. They are pretty smart people that should have known that this was a developable property. I went out and got site plan approval for an as of right development and then after 24 years of fighting and owning the property sold it to Giebel. Not exactly a flip. Now under the circumstances, would you have wanted to stay in the picture and develop it yourself if you were me after suffering almost a quarter of a century fight with Jersey City. I think not but I do not know you or your capabilities. I do know when to take the money off the table. Enough was enough and I am happy with my decision. My timing was good and insight better and luck superb. If you want to connect the dots in some other vision of what happened, I can not stop you. Harvey Smith was angry afterwards cause he could not give it to one of his friends to make money. Regarding the Embankment he sympathizes with “heroic efforts of groups like the Embankment Preservation Coalition.” but passed on buying it when he was on the Counsel. He attacks me because I had the foresight, perseverance and nerve to put my life on the line to make something of what was a problem that lesser people probably like yourself Eggshel would have cracked try to figure it out. Because of my persistence and Giebel getting an abatement on the second try, Jersey City, New York City and the Federal government probably benefitted with taxes alone to the tune of $10000000.00 never mind the amount of jobs and materials that were sold and the continued taxes. I think the Pilot is about $1.6M a year $900,000.00 in open space donations and fixing a roadway for the boys club. I myself gave Giebel $400,000 at closing to share his open space obligations and somewhere around $5,000,000.00 in capital gain income taxes. I am sure the numbers are to big for you to imagine no body got hurt. JC benefitted and I should be praised instead of scorned but I know where the jealousy and mean spirit comes from and have to live with it. I did nothing wrong and would take a lie detector test to prove it. JC abused me and to their chagrin I lived. Smith felt that if I could sell it for $25M then if the City did not give it up they could have sold it and made money for the City. One of the councilmen, might have been Smith, said in session that Mr. Giebel could have bought it from the City for less. But obviously they would have had to condemn it first and the value was the value and would have had to pay fair market value before they could even be ready to sell it. You are so not in touch with reality. Life goes on. Now what do you want to do. BTW, what do you do other than threaten and obfuscate and hide. I am ready for the Pat show. Do you feel lucky cowboy and have the nerve to expose your ignorance. I doubt it. So stop this nonsense before you get yourself in a place that is going to cost you plenty. I am very litigious a will give you a pass for now but anything in the future, I am coming to take you down legally. Hope you can afford the costs. I can.

  • ELECtellsall

    Thanks for the reply.

    If you would like to sue me for copying and pasting published print and Internet accessible news stories and a Google search link along with any ELEC reports please go ahead this would make for some interesting headlines. “Steve Hyman vs the World Wide Web”
    Make sure you include the all parties, Google; The Jersey Journal; U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie; The Associated Press; The Federal Bureau of Investigation; The Election Law Enforcement Commission; Every Web Site on the worldwide web that have these news stories running.

    Maybe you should have thought about the consequences of posting on a “blog” before doing so. Did you not think there would be replies to you initial post? Let me refresh your memory :
    //www.jerseycityindependent.com/2009/04/02/embankment-demolition-application-denied/
    “Steve Hyman on April 5th, 2009 at 4:40 am
    “You closed your paragraph with “The choice is yours. Pigs get slaughtered, no pun intended” .Should the person you wrote that to or about take that comment as a Terrorist Threat on his/her personal safety? Are you trying to threaten them as well?

    Maybe the one who needs to step away from the PC is you, Mr. Hyman. You cannot have it only one way and as long as you keep posting, I will keep replying.

  • Shorty

    Perhaps Flinkote was no “quick” flip from the time of its original acquisition, but in reality it was immediately disposed of for many more millions of dollars than it was worth without the abatement. In that sense, it was flipped. You got your abatement in the end from the city. What’s keeping you from honoring your original offer to the city to give them back the Embankment for a dollar in return for the abatement you did, in fact, receive the second time around? Why should anyone expect you to do differently with the Embankment than you did with Flinkote? In some ways, it’s nice work if you can get it, but then again, how did you get the inside track on the Embankment? Get the necessary approvals and then dispose of property for multiple millions of dollars more… or in this instance, extort the city for a high valuation on the condemnation?

  • Steve Hyman

    Eggshell, You did not accept my offer or answer any one of my questions. How can one terrorize or threaten and eggshell it is a nameless empty shell. If you want this is the last thing that I have to say. I guess you are afraid to come out of your shell and get on TV.

    Shorty,

    I guess the name fits. short on brains. Geibel bought Flintkote and got the money from a bank. Nobody forced them to give me the money. Nobody developed anything in JC in those years without an abatement. You could not be competitive without one. Flintkote got developed as I explained and explained the numbers. What is your problem with that? FYI, I made my first offer on the Embankment property in 1999. If you go down any of the cross streets from Marin to Newark Avenue you could see the Embankment. That is how I became aware of it. I kept my eyes open. Maybe you should do the same and read the info I provided so that you understand. Both properties took a lot of money to buy and build value into while fighting with JC, yes I do that and the City is better for it. Gulls Cove, Wilzig Hospital and part of the Park & Ride in Liberty State Park. I also bought the Jersey City Watershed property in Denville in the 80′s from Jersey City for $7.6M. That was not such a good deal. That property was advertised by Jersey City and like the Embankment I was the only bidder. Luck is taking advantage of opportunities that come your way. They come everyones way. You have to recognize them act on them and still be lucky and hoope that they work out.