Bayonne council approves 15 E. 20th St. redevelopment with 25-year tax pilot after heated resident questioning buffers and parking

Bayonne Municipal Council voted Aug. 13 to approve a financial agreement with 15 East 20th Street Urban Renewal LLC for a six‑story mixed‑use building after residents and council members pressed the developer on building setbacks, buffering and parking arrangements.

The ordinance approved the financial agreement for a project the city’s consultant described as 114 market‑rate residential units, about 2,700 square feet of street‑level retail and 119 parking spaces. Daniel Banker of NW Financial Group told the council the estimated project cost is about $43.5 million, including a contract purchase price near $3.5 million, and a $228,000 community‑benefit payment (about $2,000 per unit).

Banker said the developer requested and the city negotiated a 25‑year payment‑in‑lieu‑of‑taxes (PILOT) structure intended to make the project financeable. Under the structure described at the meeting the developer will pay 10% of gross revenue in the first 10 years, 11% in the next 10 years and 12% in the final five years; the agreement also phases in payments tied to conventional tax levels under a scheduled ramp. Banker said the pilot would produce an estimated total annual payment from the project of about $392,000 once stabilized, of which roughly $373,000 would go to the city; the 25‑year city share was projected at about $12.8 million. He…