HUDSON COUNTY EXECUTIVE DECLARES STATE OF EMERGENCY REGARDING SINATRA DRIVE NORTH IN HOBOKEN
Declaration will speed repairs of damaged roadway. County and Hoboken officials pledge to work cooperatively to ensure work is done swiftly and safely.
Jersey City, NJ — Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise will issue a state of emergency declaration today regarding the collapse of a section of the Sinatra Drive North roadway in Hoboken.
Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer is also issuing a state of emergency in order to ensure the safety and welfare of Hoboken residents.
Constructed by the County along the Hudson River waterfront in 1997, Sinatra Drive North is a two-block section of road created as part of the effort to extend 14th Street in anticipation of new development in Northeastern Hoboken. It runs from 12th Street to the 14th Street Extension north of the ferry terminal.
Shortly after the completion of the roadway, the Hoboken-based Applied Companies constructed The Shipyard, a residential/retail complex. Applied also constructed the section of Hudson River Waterfront Walkway alongside Sinatra Drive North.
On Friday, a 15x50 foot sinkhole opened in front of the Lua Restaurant, located at 1300 Sinatra Drive North, requiring the closing of the road to vehicular and pedestrian traffic.
Under the state of emergency to be declared today, the County administration will be able to bypass the usual rules that would slow down the selection of the engineering and construction professionals who will have to be brought in to assess and repair the roadway.
County Engineering expects to issue a status update on Monday, October 18th regarding the status of the roadway and the underlying roadbed on which it sits. Divers will go into the Hudson to look at the structures below Sinatra Drive North to evaluate their current physical condition and evaluate whether the road north and south of the sinkhole is indeed stable.
“We will work around the clock to get the answers necessary to get Sinatra Drive North fixed swiftly and safely,” said County Executive DeGise. “We will know by Monday what the conditions are beneath this road are so that whatever repairs are done are permanent solutions to this problem.”
County Executive DeGise, County Administrator Abe Antun, County Counsel Donato Batista and staffers from the County Division of Engineering, met this morning with Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer and
“We truly appreciate the County declaring a state of emergency in order to expedite the full evaluation and complete repair of this road,” said Mayor Dawn Zimmer.
As a result of the meeting this morning and the predicted upcoming storm, the City of Hoboken is taking additional precautions and the Mayor’s office will be providing further information today.
Updates regarding the status of the road will be available via the County’s Twitter feed, which residents can sign up to follow at: HudCoTweet@twitter.com. ◦
