Court grants extension in appeal of Hook lawsuit
Plaintiffs in suit have retained new counsel
BY LIZ SHEEHAN
Correspondent

Plaintiffs in a lawsuit seeking to block a commercial development at Fort Hancock on Sandy Hook have been given additional time to mount legal opposition to the plan.

The U.S. District Court in Trenton has given Save Sandy Hook (SSH) and Monmouth County Friends of Clearwater an extension of time in which to appeal the court's decision dismissing their motion to have the lease overturned.

The plaintiffs are seeking to overturn a 60-year lease granted by the National Park Service to James Wassel, a Rumson developer who plans to commercially develop at least 36 buildings at historic Fort Hancock in Sandy Hook.

Ed Dlugosz, president of Clearwater and a board member of Save Sandy Hook, said Monday that a 45-day extension has been granted to the plaintiffs to resubmit their argument as to why the lease should be overturned.

SSH, a grassroots organization formed to block commercial development at Sandy Hook, and Clearwater filed the suit in December 2004. The plaintiffs presented their arguments in U.S. Federal Court in Trenton before Judge Mary Lou Cooper in June. The defendants were represented by Irene Dowdy of the U.S. Attorney 's Office.

Cooper issued an opinion in July, dismissing the suit without prejudice, and gave the plaintiffs 60 days to respond.

On Oct. 2, retired Judge James Coleman, an officer in SSH and one of the plaintiffs, said he had applied to the court for an extension.

The extension was opposed by Ronald Heksch, who is Wassel's attorney.

Coleman said he was seeking the extension because the lawyer that had been handling the case was no longer involved and a new attorney would be retained.

Dlugosz said Monday the selection of a new attorney for the appeal was being finalized.

While the legal action is still pending, the CEO of a firm that said it would invest in the Fort Hancock redevelopment project said his company will hold off until the case is settled.

"We have to wait until the appeal is over" to invest, Billy Procida, of Palisades Financial LLC, Fort Lee, said Tuesday.

At the end of September, it was announced that the company would provide the financial backing for Wassel's Sandy Hook Partners project.

Wassel's controversial proposal for Fort Hancock was chosen by the National Park Service in early 2000.