Redevelopment Delays Continue as Harrison Agency Meets Feb. 9, 2026

The Harrison Redevelopment Agency (HRA) will hold its next public meeting on Monday, February 9, 2026, at 1 p.m. in the early afternoon at the Harrison Town Hall, 318 Harrison Avenue, 3rd Floor. Commissioners are expected to consider a series of administrative, financial, redevelopment, and stadium-related matters affecting ongoing projects throughout the Harrison waterfront and redevelopment districts.

Commissioners and Leadership

The agency is chaired by Mayor James A. Fife and includes, in alphabetical order, Commissioners Jesus Carrion, Daniel Choffo, Raymond Lucas, Miguel Simoes, and Harold Stahl. These six commissioners serve as the governing body of the redevelopment agency and vote on all redevelopment agreements, financial matters, and policy actions. The Executive Director of the HRA is Gregory Kowalski.  

Items Scheduled for Vote

At the February 9 meeting, the commissioners will consider several organizational resolutions and redevelopment-related agreements related to stadium operations and redevelopment properties. Among the key items scheduled for action:

Administrative and Financial Matters

• Approval of minutes from the agency’s last meeting held on November 24, 2025.
• Approval of the agency’s bill list for payment.
• Appointment of a Treasurer for the calendar year 2026.
• Designation of official newspapers for fiscal year 2026.
• Designation of official depositories of agency funds for 2026.
• Adoption of the agency’s cash management plan for fiscal year 2026.

Redevelopment and Stadium-Related Actions

• Approval of an easement agreement with Lester M. Entin Associates to allow Cape May Street access to a handicapped parking lot adjacent to Sports Illustrated Stadium during stadium events.

Extension of a stadium parking agreement with Advance Realty affiliates covering multiple redevelopment parcels used for event parking near the stadium.

Approval of an interlocal agreement between the Town of Harrison and the HRA for the operation of certain parking lots during stadium events.

Consideration of a request to transfer less than a 50 percent membership interest in Block B Partners Urban Renewal I, LLC, associated with redevelopment property within the district.

November 2025 Meeting: Extensions and Approvals Continue

The February meeting follows the agency’s November 24, 2025, meeting, where commissioners approved a series of significant redevelopment-related resolutions — including further amendments and deadline extensions tied to long-delayed projects.

At that November meeting, the agency adopted its 2026 budget and approved amendments to redevelopment agreements for major projects, including Harrison Commons and the Accordia/Eastone redevelopment along Frank E. Rodgers Boulevard South.

One amendment revised construction timelines for a residential project at 333 Somerset Street, setting a requirement that construction begin by May 1, 2026, and be completed by November 1, 2028. Another resolution granted additional deadline extensions and approvals related to financing and redevelopment milestones for the Rodgers Boulevard South project, including requirements for certificates of occupancy and submission of development plans into 2026.

These actions represent the latest in a series of timetable revisions and extensions that have characterized several of the agency’s major redevelopment agreements over the past several years, as previously reported by YourHarrison.com.

Short Meetings, Limited Discussion

Despite the importance of the redevelopment actions taken, HRA meetings have typically been brief and largely devoid of substantive discussion among commissioners. Mayor James Fife and Town Clerk Paul Zarbetski run the meeting.

The minutes of the November 24, 2025, meeting show that all resolutions were approved by unanimous roll-call votes, with no recorded debate among commissioners and no public comments offered before adjournment. The entire November meeting lasted 18 minutes, adjourning shortly after 1:18 p.m.

This pattern has been consistent at many agency meetings, where agenda items are read into the record by title and approved in rapid succession, often without detailed explanation of redevelopment delays, financing complications, or changes to project timelines.

Continuing Delays Raise Questions

The recurring need to amend redevelopment agreements and extend deadlines has fueled ongoing questions about the pace of construction and completion of key redevelopment parcels in Harrison’s redevelopment zones.

Several projects under HRA jurisdiction have received multiple extensions of deadlines due to financing issues, scope changes, or lender substitutions. The November 2025 resolutions again reflected shifting timelines for construction starts, certificate of occupancy issuance, and development plan submission.

While redevelopment in Harrison has transformed large sections of the town over the past two decades, some parcels — particularly those tied to earlier redevelopment agreements — remain incomplete or subject to revised schedules.

Toxic Sludge Plant: Causing Delays?

Maybe these developers and lenders are concerned about the Open Air Toxic Sludge Plant and Construction & Debris Staging Area at the PSE&G property that will expose residents in what is now a residential community in the Riverbend District across the street from the planned Harrison Toxic Sludge Plant and adjacent to the Harrison Path Station and apartments just across the PATH train tracks in another residential neighborhood home to several Urby apartment buildings each unique and luxurious in its own way.

Mayor Fife & Councilman Doran LIED

In 2022, Mayor James Fife lied to the public in the middle of a Mayoral election in the Town of Harrison.  Mayor Fife and then Councilman and Harrison Public Schools Director of Personnel James Doran stated that a Toxic Sludge Plant was NOT coming to the Town of Harrison.  Both were aware of the EPA's plan for an Open-Air Toxic Plant.  Both are now (and then) supporting the Open Air Toxic Plant, which is clearly detrimental to the community's health and the historic progress made in turning industrial-contaminated land into a vibrant residential community.

Balance Between Progress and Transparency

Supporters of the agency note that redevelopment projects are complex and often subject to market conditions, financing challenges, and regulatory approvals. Extensions and amendments to agreements are not uncommon in large-scale redevelopment efforts and may reflect efforts to ensure projects ultimately reach completion.

At the same time, the brevity of meetings and the limited on-record discussion of agenda items have led some residents and observers to question whether the public is receiving sufficient explanation about delays and changes affecting major projects.

The February 9 meeting will provide another opportunity for the public to attend and comment, though past meetings suggest formal actions may proceed quickly again.

Whether the agency offers deeper discussion of the status of long-delayed projects—or continues its pattern of swift approvals—remains to be seen.

Members of the Public, residents, stakeholders, reporters, or anyone interested may ask questions or make statements.  Public comment is limited to 5 minutes per person.  The 1 p.m., middle-of-the-day meeting sets the tone.  Who can attend a meeting at 1 p.m. on a Monday? 

Transparency is not one of Harrison Mayor James Fife's priorities, nor is protecting public health, as evidenced by his support for an Open-Air Toxic Sludge Plant in the Harrison Redevelopment Zone, which is now a vibrant residential neighborhood.  Who wants to live across the street from a Toxic Sludge Plant?

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