ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, NJ-When LG Electronics walked away from mediation talks concerning the height of its proposed new headquarters building here, preservationists say they were genuinely surprised.
“We thought we were making progress” toward a compromise, said Hayley Carlock, a lawyer for one of the groups facing off in court with LG, speaking to The Record.
Scenic Hudson, the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference and the New Jersey State Federation of Women's Clubs, all parties to a suit in Superior Court, said they had been hopeful that design changes could be worked out that would bring the planned 143-foot building below the tree line of the scenic Palisades.
They planned to offer alternative designs for the Sylan Avenue campus that would have preserved the view of the cliffs from the east side of the Hudson River.
But on Friday LG officials broke off talks and issued a statement saying that “groups aligned with the interveners” failed to keep a promise not to discuss the issue with the media.
Also Friday, news broke that the federal Environmental Protection Agency withdrew its endorsement of the project. The EPA's action followed the release of an open letter from four former governors objecting to the height of the building by the New Jersey Conservation Foundation, a land-preservation group. The letter was signed by Democrats Brendan T. Byrne and Jim Florio and Republicans Thomas H. Kean and Christie Whitman — objecting to the height of LG's proposed headquarters.
THe EPA's regional administrator Judith Enck wrote this to LG: “The Palisades is a unique and treasured part of New Jersey that has been protected for generations. This viewshed is so important that the adverse impacts of construction of a high-rise building cannot be condoned.”
Englewood Cliffs' mayor, Joseph Parisi, immediately came out swinging on the side of LG, saying he was very disappointed in the four former governors, who "have nothing to do with this project."
“A majority of people in this region still want this project because they know how good it will be economically and for the environment,” he said. “Despite what the outsiders say, it will be good for the entire region, including all those who oppose it."
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The $300 million project would add $1.3 million in annual tax revenue for the city, and expand the electronic company's local workforce by 450 people.
LG is not commenting on the dispute at this point. Superior Court Judge Alexander Carver, who had ordered the mediated talks, will now have the matter back in his lap.
Previously, LG promoted its eight-story design as environmentally efficient, because it would cover only 9.5 acres of its 27-acre campus off Sylvan Avenue, and retain substantial open space.
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