JERSEY CITY — Jersey City’s council did something stunning on Wednesday. It took away a tax break from a Downtown real estate developer.

Under its last two mayors, the city has approved tax abatements for nearly every developer who asked for one, unless they are related to President Trump. But Mayor Steve Fulop, who asked the council to rescind the tax break, characterized the move as a fulfillment of his 2013 promise to curtail tax long-term abatements.

The city has accused developer Shuster of not complying with local hiring requirements on its new Ninth Street project. Shuster protested, telling council members on Wednesday it did not receive enough notice about the alleged deficiency to respond adequately, but the nine-member body voted unanimously to rescind the project’s 15-year tax break anyway.

It was the first time in recent memory the council has punished a real estate developer by taking away a tax abatement.

Councilman Jermaine Robinson said if developers want tax breaks from the city, "then you’re going to make sure you hire residents of Jersey City.”

Shuster’s project is a $30 million, six-floor building on Ninth Street near the New Jersey Turnpike Extension that houses 66 units, 88 parking spaces and retail space. It is phase two of Hamilton House. Construction is completed.

Two-bedroom, two-bathroom units in the building can cost a renter up to $3,745 a month.

The abatement is lucrative for the developer, which under conventional taxes would pay $6.7 million more over the course of the 15 years than it would with the tax break.

The city told Shuster in an October notice that it had not met requirements of local employment required by the tax abatement and could not prove it made a “good faith” effort to hire locally. In one instance, Shuster offered as proof a Craig’s List post seeking Jersey City laborers that was posted online in the final weeks of construction, according to the city.

Shuster attorney Charles Harrington said the abatement allows for a “cure” period that has not ended yet. Harrington also noted that construction is complete.

“What do you want us to do?” he said. “The project’s done.”

Harrington warned the council the city should expect a lawsuit.

Councilman James Solomon said the city has in the past not punished developers for skirting local hiring requirements. He wants Wednesday’s action to set a precedent, he said.

“This is the standard,” he said. “You violate for one quarter, you don’t have good faith, then it’s a termination.”

Fulop asked the council to rescind a second tax break, a 20-year abatement for a project on Fisk Street near the Miss America Diner. The city has also accused the developer of that project of not complying with local hiring requirements.

The council voted unanimously to postpone a vote on taking away that abatement after attorneys for the developer said the project is stalled because its general contractor was fired and absconded with documents needed to move forward with construction.

When Fulop ran for mayor in 2013, he pledged to ease back on abatements. After taking office, he pushed ahead with more than 40, arguing that developers seeking to build in areas of the city outside of upscale Downtown neighborhoods needed them. Abatements largely dried up in 2017 as Fulop prepared to run for a second term.

Kushner Companies, the firm run by Trump son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner, alleges in court that Fulop rejected a tax break request for their One Journal Square project because of his animus for Trump. Fulop has denied this.

Terrence T. McDonald may be reached at tmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @terrencemcd. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.