The North Bergen

Concerned Citizens Group

1215 Kennedy Blvd, North Bergen, NJ 07047                                    201-766-4108 

Thom Ammirato

973-403-7836

Citizens’ Group Decries Tax Break

For Another Millionaire Developer

Says Mayor  & Commissioners Helping Out Political Donor

(North Bergen, January 23, 2013)Mayor Nick Sacco and the North Bergen Board of Commissioners today are awarding a 30 year tax break to a controversial millionaire developer from Bergen County who is a major Democratic Party political campaign donor with a spotty development record.

The three-decade-long tax break negotiated without public knowledge will save the developer Fred Daibes of Edgewater millions in taxes, while saddling township taxpayers with the burden of providing services for a 122 unit development on 53^rdStreet, said Larry Wainstein, a member of the North Bergen Concerned Citizens Group.

“At a time when township residents are struggling just to make ends meet, Mayor Sacco and the commissioners are giving away 30 year tax breaks to millionaires who don’t need them,” said Wainstein.

Wainstein pointed out that many of the large scale development projects  in town that were approved in recent years by the commissioners received substantial tax breaks.

“The mayor likes to tout the big box stores he’s brought to town, but they all got big tax breaks to come here while our residents get nothing but more traffic and bigger tax bills,” said Wainstein. 

According to the tax abatement documents obtained by the NBCCG,  Daibes development firm  -- 1122 53^rd Street LLC -- will pay just $250,000 a year in taxes on his 122 unit residential development for the first 10 years of the tax abatement plan. That amount comes to just $2,049 per residential unit. Slight increases will be made in taxes every 10 years under the agreement negotiated by the town and Daibes’ firm.

Wainstein said the residents of each unit will eat up more than $2,000 in services provided by the town. “In effect  the mayor will have residents who pay their full, and fair share of taxes subsidizing a millionaire developer. That’s just an outrageous abuse of the power on the part of the mayor and the commissioners.”

In addition, the developer will pay no taxes to the school board until and unless the development produces 10 or more children going to the local school district.

“Our schools need financing for a better education but the school children will not benefit from this back door development deal,” said Wainstein.

NBCCG attorney Mario Blanch said it is unclear yet whether Daibes is building condominiums or rental apartments on 53^rd Street, but regardless, the tax abatement will be a big help to Daibes efforts to market his units.

“Mayor Sacco and the commissioners are giving Fred Davies a big advantage in selling his residential units, because the prospective buyers know they will be getting tax break that will last for 30 years,” said Blanch.

The attorney said the tax break for  Daibes, who according to reports, has  donated more than $300,000 to local politicians, is a “nothing more than a financial favor for a deep pockets campaign donor at the expense of North Bergen citizens.” 

Daibes has been a major player in North Jersey political and development circles and has made headlines with some of his dealings   

• Daibes was fined $1.9 million by the state Department of Environmental Protection for building violations near his upscale Le Jardin, restaurant in Edgewater.According to published reports, the state ordered Daibes to restore a portion of the Hudson River waterfront after determining that he illegally filled in 1.23 acres of riverbed during construction at Le Jardin restaurant on River Road.

• Daibes was sued by the federal  court-appointed trustee seeking to recover billions of dollars for victims of Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme. The trustee claimed Daibes gained about $8 million in "fictitious profits" from the multibillion-dollar fraud perpetrated by Madoff, according to published reports.

• State and federal banking officials investigated a bank started by Daibes --Mariner Bank. According to a report last year in The Record, government banking officials laid down  “ unusually strict requirements on lending to insiders, who at times have included Daibes, his relatives and companies that he controls or manages.”