On April 23, the City of Lambertville held their Regularly Scheduled City Council Session via Zoom. They did not vote to endorse Ordinance Number 01-2020, which is the first part of a controversial two-part development proposal. However, they are still moving forward with the Redevelopment Plan that will set the development proposal in motion.

“The City of Lambertville is still moving ahead with their controversial development projects. They voted to not endorse the plan, but this was just for show. They still support the plan and are planning to go to court to get it approved by the judge, and they can still endorse the plan later. They want to rezone and sell the police station to developers, which will put them on track to build a new City Hall to house the new police station. What’s worse is that they are still moving ahead while we are in the middle of a public health emergency,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “They are hiding behind the pandemic to push this through. They don’t care that people are sick or worried about their jobs or how to pay rent. They just want to take care of developers.”

They also introduced an ordinance for $85,000 to continue to work on the plan. Ordinance Number 03-2020 authorizes the issuance of $85,000 bonds for “Various Actions Including Planning and Design Costs and Professional Fees in Furtherance of Various Redevelopment Efforts in and by the City of Lambertville.”

“Even though Mayor Fahl says that she has put the development plan on hold, she introduced an ordinance for $85,000 to continue work to work on it. The plan includes not only the police station, but also the historic City Hall and Library. Since they are part of the Redevelopment Plan, she is looking to sell them as well. Unemployment in New Jersey is already close to a million people and the state is looking at borrowing money to avoid layoffs. Money to state aid and city tax revenues are being cut down,” said Tittel. “We are in a fiscal emergency, but the City of Lambertville is still borrowing money to continue working on the plan.”

During the meeting on Thursday, they approved a $35,000 bond to pay for previous consultation work on the Redevelopment Plan. Ordinance Number 06-2020 appropriates $35,000 “providing for the Creating and Implementation of a Housing Element and Fair Share Plan in and By the City of Lambertville”, according to the meeting agenda.

“They also voted to approve $35,000 in bonds to pay for previous consultation work on the plan. Once the police station sells, it will force the City to pay another $14-16 million to build a new City Hall Complex that will house the new police station. We are on the verge of a recession. It is fiscally irresponsible to spend millions of dollars when we will be seeing a big loss in state aid and taxes going up. Hundreds of people have already lost their jobs in Lambertville, dozens of businesses are closed,” said Tittel. “The Mayor has said that we have too much debt, but now she wants to go into even more debt to overdevelop Lambertville.”

Lambertville residents expressed their desire to preserve the current sites of the town library and city hall, citing their significance as historic landmarks of Lambertville. Fahl emphasized that other sites beyond the ACME Screening Room on South Union Street are being considered as potential locations for the municipal building.

“These projects are entirely wrong for Lambertville, and Mayor Fahl knows it. She is trying to push through her new City Hall using the police station site for affordable housing as a ruse to get it done. Designating the site for affordable housing is inappropriate because the City already has an affordable housing plan that has locations for all the units. This will change the character of the town for future generations during a period when the public has virtually no ability to comment on it. It seems as if corporate lobbyists and developers are taking over our town to suit themselves and the businesses they represent,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “If the City Council and Mayor are so concerned about the coronavirus and the impact to the town, they should delay the meeting until there can be a real public hearing where the public can show up. This is just as much about democracy as it is about the future of Lambertville.”