Judge Orders Mediation in LG Lawsuit

A judge has ordered all parties involved with a suit seeking to block construction of LG Electronics USA's 143-foot tall Englewood Cliffs building to seek an out of court settlement, according to court documents. 

State Superior Court Judge Alexander H. Carver III issued the order Feb. 21. Mediation is scheduled to begin in May, according to an LG spokesman. 

"It is inappropriate to speculate about possible outcomes, but at least as far as LG Electronics is concerned, we are entering the mediation with a good faith effort to get the pending matters resolved so we can commence construction in 2013," LG Vice President John Taylor said in an e-mail. 

Two lawyers representing opponents of the project told the Record they were not optimistic an agreement could be reached. 

“There are too many moving parts. I have no idea what’s going to happen here,” attorney Michael Lubin, who represents Englewood Cliffs residents Carol Jacoby and Marcia Davis, told the Record. 

The two residents filed suit, claiming the Englewood Cliffs Board of Adjustment gave LG an improper variance and accused the board of "spot zoning." 

That suit was merged with one brought by conservationists who claimed the building's height would damage years of efforts to preserve the Palisades. Larry Rockefeller, the grandson of John D. Rockefeller, Jr., has asked LG to reconsider the building over concerns the design would tarnish the undeveloped view of the Palisades. 

Englewood Cliffs Mayor Joseph Parisi told the newspaper mediation would delay the project, expected to bring $1.3 million per year in tax revenue. 

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