Another high rise project is gaining steam for a building that has strong ties to the Pronti Administration and council incumbents Karcic & Bocchino.
The building, that has been dormant for some time has served as the campaign headquarters of local Republicans, including the 2019 campaign of Donna Bocchino, who is seeking reelection this November.
Bocchino, a state employee and daughter of GOP political operative James Bocchino has voted not only to award her father with a 23% pay raise, but voted herself a pay increase too after serving in office for just six months!
Bocchino’s father served as campaign chairman last year and her mother as the campaign’s treasurer.
With Pronti in charge, Ridge Road has changed dramatically and some of his supporters are calling for 20-25 story buildings as an example of “progress” for the community.
“Dan Pronti is from Jersey City. He’s a real estate agent. His vision of North Arlington is about gentrification, density, more traffic and transforming the community into an extension of Harrison and Hudson County,” said one observer when asked to comment.
The developer has strong ties to the NA GOP and apparently has built hundreds, if not thousands of apartment units in neighboring Little Ferry.
Both Karcic and Bocchino have been enthusiastic in their support for more apartment dwellings, density and traffic which flies in the face of the small, safe and suburban character that was nationally recognized by the national media and embraced by both political parties for decades. Pronti seems to revel in undoing the progress of his predecessor, the late Joseph Bianchi as well as his predecessors Peter Massa, Russ Pitman and Len Kaiser.
“North Arlington once prided itself as being the first municipality in Bergen County, where Bergen County begins. Now under Pronti, Karcic and Bocchino NA is the last town in Hudson County as Ridge Road is now taking shape to be the next Bergenline Avenue,” offered one observer who asked not to be identified.
NA Today will be following this story closely over the summer months as well as the campaign contributions made to both Bocchino and Karcic in wake of their support of this project that fails to adapt to the structures around it as the curb appeal is dubious at best and further populates the community at a time where most purchasers of property seek space and a suburban lifestyle that was affordable, the cornerstone of North Arlington’s appeal to new residents.
“In this new normal, density, traffic and urbanization is not the answer.”
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