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From the December-January 2001 Edition
Fair Lawn News Interview: Bob Gordon Fair Lawn News sat down with Bob Gordon to talk about economic development issues affecting Fair Lawn. Bob Gordon served on Fair Lawn’s Council from 1986 until 1995 and as Mayor between 1988 and 1990. Mr. Gordon now runs an emergency management consulting business (www.emergencyadvisors.com) and serves on the River Road Improvement Corporation’s Board of Directors. What changes have you seen in our commercial areas? I remember when Paterson and Hackensack had vibrant downtowns and both River Road and Broadway were major commercial districts. The Paramus malls took business away from all these areas. River Road and Broadway were not able to satisfy the requirements of modern retailing. Why did people think it was important to help revive River Road and Broadway? It is hard to be proud of a town with a dilapidated shopping district and many vacant stores. And that pride can hurt efforts to retain and attract new residents. People realized that a lack of economic activity can start a downward spiral. If our commercial areas thrive, commercial property values will increase, which reduces the taxes of Fair Lawn homeowners. It is important for our bond ratings, which also affect taxes. One of the ways our credit worthiness is judged, is by whether businesses are moving in or out. What early steps were taken to encourage economic development? In the late 80’s, River Road was in much worse shape than the other commercial areas, particularly in terms of physical appearance, so that’s where we focused our efforts. Both small and large Fair Lawn businesses were eager to see the town prosper and they contributed money to kick off efforts on River Road. They also sent representatives to meetings of the newly established River Road redevelopment organization. This effort represented the first time business and local government formed a partnership in Fair Lawn. We got all the key players in the same room—municipal officials, county leaders, large and small businesses, and even the media. We went through a painful consensus-building process to develop a strategic plan for River Road. Many businesses and individuals contributed money to jump start our redevelopment efforts. Were you looking for big developments? We didn’t want big office buildings. River Road and the parking infrastructure couldn’t support big developments and it is smack in the middle of residential areas. In addition, we surveyed the adjacent residents and they clearly preferred a small-scale shopping district for the neighborhood. What steps have been taken to revitalize these areas? Anti-litter laws, signage ordinances, and millions of dollars of infrastructure improvements including road improvements and a new parking lot. Most of it was funded with county, state and federal funding. A design manual was also created to guide physical improvements; we’ve had subsidized loans for façade improvements and also zoning changes. The physical improvements are obvious to all. We’ve added decorative paving, new lighting fixtures, benches and trash bins. We’ll add further enhancements in the spring. Since these efforts started, there has been a 30% increase in the value of commercial property on River Road. That translates directly into increased tax revenue. Before ShopRite rebuilt their store and Walgreens moved in, it was important for them to see the efforts that were being made to upgrade River Road. Are
there more efforts to add parking? Early on in our planning process, our consultants suggested that River Road have a shared parking scheme. They said that if we could join the existing parking spaces behind buildings, there would be a significant improvement in parking and it would help attract new stores. Parking behind stores would also allow for more attractive development, since the parking wouldn’t need to face the street. Since the mid 1980s, all River Road applicants to the Planning Board must promise to allow cross access for shared parking. A formal Shared Parking Program should be implemented soon, and the River Road Improvement Corporation will soon be proposing a management entity and a plan for financing and maintaining the lots. Why doesn’t River Road have the same kinds of stores as Ridgewood? We are often asked why don’t we get a Mandees or Villager’s Hardware. The problem is the size of the stores available. Since there is no retail building with 50,000 square feet on River Road, it’s hard to attract national chains. In addition, companies like Starbucks look at car and foot traffic to determine where they will locate and River Road does not meet their criteria. I think we need to do something about the properties, without losing the suburban feel. I believe the site of the Fair Lawn Arts Center, the old library building, can be the catalyst for a new River Road. The existing building is underutilized and an eyesore. Wouldn’t a small scale movie theater at that location be nice? We might actually attract evening shoppers to River Road. There is no reason why we can’t have a vibrant shopping district like the one in Ridgewood. As a member of the borough’s economic development committee, what do you see happening next? We’ve gotten to the point where we can take what works on River Road and apply it to other areas of the Borough. I think Broadway should be a priority. The way we started our River Road efforts are a good model for doing economic development. The major lesson we learned is that there must be a consensus regarding the vision for an area. All the stakeholders—adjacent residents, businesses, and local government—must agree on the ultimate goal. Achieving that consensus takes a lot of effort, but without it, a project is doomed to failure. On River Road, we now know where we want to go and we’re on our way. I am confident that we will be able to do the same on Broadway, in Radburn and in every other commercial district in town.
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