BERGEN

New county building opens in Hackensack

Steve Janoski
Staff Writer, @SteveJanoski

HACKENSACK — The largest construction project in Bergen County history took another step toward completion Tuesday afternoon with the opening of 2 Bergen County Plaza, the county government’s newest administration building.

An array of county officials gathered in the lobby of the six-story building for a ceremony hosted by Bergen County Executive James J. Tedesco III.

2 Bergen County Plaza, the county government’s newest administration building.

He was proud to recognize “all the hard work by all these people to make this happen,” Tedesco said. “I’m happy to say it turned out beautifully."

The building, at the intersection of County Plaza and South River Street, cost about $82 million and took 3½ years to build, said Raymond Dressler, county director of public works. It is the new home for several county agencies, including the Bergen County prosecutor, sheriff, surrogate, and tax board.

Bergen County Freeholder Chairwoman Tracy Zur said the building would help serve Bergen residents in a more effective and efficient way.

Tedesco demands fire code changes in State of the County speech

Demonstrators rally for unity at Bergen County Courthouse

Candidates emerge in race for Bergen freeholder board

“All of us who have been part of this project feel this immense sense of pride in what we’ve been able to accomplish here today,” she said.

Construction was financed by $147 million in county bonds approved by the Freeholder Board in 2012 and 2014, Tedesco said. Those bonds paid for four other county projects, including a new parking garage and maintenance building in Hackensack and a DPW facility in Paramus. Taken together, the five projects represent the largest capital project Bergen has ever attempted.

The remaining money will fund coming renovations at the neighboring Bergen County Courthouse, Tedesco said. The project, still in its design and approval phase, will upgrade the 105-year-old courthouse’s electrical and heating and air conditioning systems and improve access for the disabled, he said. It will also add new elevators so prisoners don’t have to be transported in the public elevators.

Dressler, the DPW director, said the project will likely cost about $80 million. It is unclear if the county must borrow more money to finish the courthouse improvements.

The courthouse is already undergoing $1 million worth of emergency repairs to fix the façade by the now-closed Court Street entrance, where stone is falling from the building.

Several freeholders last week lamented the state of the courthouse, with Freeholder Steve Tanelli saying someone could “literally be killed by falling debris.”

An array of county officials gathered in the lobby of the six-story building for a ceremony hosted by Bergen County Executive James J. Tedesco III.

Tedesco said the repairs are long overdue.

“Many of these buildings the county owns are very old and haven’t had a lot of work done to them,” he said. “When you don’t take care of them, it costs a lot to renovate them.”

Although some projects — like the DPW facility in Paramus — suffered from cost and time overruns, 2 Bergen County Plaza was delivered on budget and on time, Tedesco said.

Several other officials spoke during the ceremony, including Democratic Surrogate Michael R. Dressler, Democratic Sheriff Michael Saudino, and Democratic Prosecutor Gurbir S. Grewal.

Grewal, whose Prosecutor’s Office occupies two floors and is the building’s largest tenant, called it “truly a space the public can be proud of.”

Email: janoski@northjersey.com