A French Museum Collides With New Jersey Politics

Plans to build an outpost of the Pompidou Center in the heart of Jersey City were put on hold after the State Legislature voted last week to rescind $24 million in funding for the Paris museum’s project.

Another $34 million in state and federal assistance for what would have been the Pompidou’s first satellite location in North America was also put in jeopardy by the vote.

Tim Sullivan, chief executive of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, addressed a letter to museum officials saying that the project was called off.

“Due to the ongoing impact of Covid and multiple global conflicts on the supply chain, rising costs, an irreconcilable operating gap and the corresponding financial burdens it will create for New Jersey’s taxpayers, the Legislature has rescinded financial support,” Mr. Sullivan wrote, “leaving us to determine that this project is unfortunately no longer feasible.”

Steve Fulop, the mayor of Jersey City and a major supporter of the museum, blamed the cuts instead on his deteriorating relationship with the state’s governor, Phil Murphy, who had supported the Centre Pompidou x Jersey City initiative when it was announced in 2021 as a way to attract tourists and New Yorkers into a rapidly developing neighborhood.

Mr. Fulop said the situation changed after he rescinded his support for Tammy Murphy, the governor’s wife, in the state’s Democratic primary to replace Senator Robert Menendez, who is on trial for federal bribery charges. In March, Mr. Fulop pledged support for Representative Andy Kim, saying his initial endorsement of Tammy Murphy was “wrong.”