35 years of citizen action has produced an exemplary public waterfront for Hoboken
FBW | November 19, 2025
“Every time I think about the waterfront, I know I had a small part in making that happen,” Lynda Weinstein
“Witnessing 12 votes changing the future of our city changed both the quality and focus of my life,” Thaler Pekar
“It gave us a breathtaking alternative,” Sarah Colker
“Every time I go to vote, I remember the one Big Vote where such a small difference in yeses and nos made such a big difference in the quality of all our lives in Hoboken, then and now,” Susan Copeland
“The 1990 referendum precipitated our civic activism debut in Hoboken,” Martin & Christina Andersen
These are several of the statements read at our November 13 Connect the Waterfront fundraising party at the Hoboken Elks Club. These comments are reflections on the July 1990 and March 1992 referendums that altered the course of Hoboken’s waterfront development and significantly impacted the lives of many who voted.
In his statement, Tony Soares exclaimed that FBW registered him to vote in the 1992 referendum. Years later, after becoming actively involved in local affairs, he was elected to the Hoboken City Council. Diane Imus, who was just elected as the Sixth Ward Councilwoman, read in her statement, “My very first vote, when I moved to Hoboken in 1990, was to support the open space referendum and stop the Port Authority from building a 33-story tower on Pier A.”
A group of Hoboken residents began a petition drive to put the 1989 agreement between the City and The Port Authority on the ballot in accordance with New Jersey’s “Initiative & Referendum” statute. The City/PA proposal for the South Waterfront included a 33-story office complex for Pier A and 500,000 square feet of residential development for Pier C.
The 1990 referendum pitted a small citizen group against a dominant political machine. It was a classic David & Goliath battle. After a hard-fought campaign that became the talk of the town, 4,418 people voted ‘no’ and 4,406 voted ‘yes.’ We had won by just 12 votes. Subsequently, several leaders of this campaign formed the nonprofit Fund for a Better Waterfront (FBW). At the November 13 event, FBW Executive Director Ron Hine stated, “If it were not for the thousands of people who voted “no”, we would not exist nor would we have had the opportunity to shape the development of Hoboken’s waterfront as we have done.”
With a grant from the Fund for New Jersey, FBW hired architect Craig Whitaker who worked with a team of volunteer professionals to create a Plan for the Hoboken Waterfront. The centerpiece of this plan was a continuous, public park at the water’s edge from the Hoboken Terminal to the Weehawken border. When the City attempted to reverse the election results with a second referendum in 1992, the “NO” vote again prevailed, this time by several hundred votes.
The statements read at the event prompted an emotional response in the room. For those who remembered that time, it evoked the passion of that moment. For a younger generation attending, it inspired the idea that citizen action can bring about significant change.
After prevailing in the 1992 referendum, the City of Hoboken agreed to work with FBW and others to revise the South Waterfront Redevelopment Plan. The revised plan, in accordance with FBW’s concept, reserved everything on the riverside of Sinatra Drive, including Pier A and Pier C, for a public waterfront park. In the years that followed, FBW’s continued advocacy helped to secure Maxwell Place Park and the former Union Dry Dock property as public parkland. In the coming years, in accordance with its original vision, FBW seeks to fully connect the entire 1.5 mile length of Hoboken’s waterfront park.
Additional statements read at the event:
Lisa Vickery: I remember the bad old days when Hobokenites couldn’t even see the Hudson River: It was walled off by fences to keep people away from a series of collapsed piers. Now, thanks to FBW, we enjoy beautiful walks along the river and the spectacular view of the Manhattan skyline.
Steve Zane: Coming off [October’s] “NO KINGS” rally, and looking back on the Pier A initiative, I can really appreciate Pier A being a genuine lesson in how Democracy works. Fast forward to this week and I see No Kings being an extension of that. The need to take action and educate the electorate is what Democracy is all about and, hopefully, in the end, will always win out.
Laurie Petersen: I grew up hearing stories about the Hoboken waterfront from my great-uncles whose parents ran a German saloon on Newark Avenue at the turn of the century. The 1990 waterfront vote was personal for me and a significant turning point for Hoboken because it started a revival that continues today.
David G. White: The first blush of moving to Hoboken was fading. No more bullhorn pronouncements by Tommy Vezzetti, who became my client, instead a new mayor who wanted to develop our prime resources. Then these rascals emerged, the neighbors who became FBW. And we won! Twice! I knew I had made a good landing.