Council votes to remove 122 Clinton from redevelopment zone after months of neighborhood opposition

The Hoboken City Council voted to remove 122 Clinton from the city’s redevelopment designation after weeks of public comment and a sustained neighborhood campaign.

Residents and organized groups urged the council to block a proposed upzone that developers said could help finance a new hospital, saying a tall residential tower would change the character of the neighborhood and burden local infrastructure.

Public commenters including nearby residents and neighborhood groups said they fear an 11‑story building at the site would set a precedent for additional tall structures in the city’s interior. One commenter told the council the new hospital owner, Hudson Regional Health (HRH), had a corporate history she found troubling and warned the proposed real-estate financing plan would not deliver the promised funding for a new hospital.

Many residents described the Clinton Street school building as a historic, walkable neighborhood anchor and asked the council to preserve the master plan’s existing density rules. Fifteen‑year‑old Luca Batua told council members he wants to return to a Hoboken that retains its small‑town feel: “If the 122 Clinton Street historic school building becomes a tower, it won’t just change one block. It’ll open the door for towers to spread throughout the rest of Hoboken.”

On the dais, council members who previously supported working with hospital owners said they reached a different conclusion after hearing from neighbors and reviewing new information. Councilman Ramos and Council President Zano led the move to remove the property from the redevelopment zone, arguing that the community’s concerns and a lack of transparent funding plans meant the proposed 10‑ or 11‑story residential scheme was not the right path.

The roll-call recorded by the clerk shows the ordinance de‑designating 122 Clinton passed unanimously. Council members directed staff to continue engagement with the hospital’s owners and other stakeholders to find alternative plans that preserve neighborhood scale while addressing the future of health care services.

Council members stressed they want the hospital to remain open and viable; several said they will press the county and state partners to work on alternate funding and redevelopment approaches.

The council’s vote marks a pause in the use of upzoning at 122 Clinton as part of the hospital project and returns the parcel to the prior land‑use rules in the city’s master plan.