Decked in a red sweater and black ski hat and toting an acoustic guitar, tripod and video camera, Jersey City resident Hugh Hales-Tooke approached the podium at the Dec. 16 City Council meeting.

His goal was to lament the loss of an Art Deco building at 1 Jersey Ave. at the foot of Liberty State Park’s footpath entrance in Downtown.

City Clerk Robert Byrne cautioned Hales-Tooke to be mindful of the five-minute time limit.

“This isn’t going to be like ‘Freebird’ or ‘In a Godda Da Vida,’ (Iron Butterfly’s lengthy psychadelic rock epic) is it?” Byrne joked.

Hales-Tooke kept his folk song “One Jersey Avenue” at two minutes.

“If you’re proud of the city you live in/take a tour of historical buildings…I’m not saying I’m against new development/but let’s keep all the assets we have/art deco buildings are one,” he sang.

After the performance, the City Council and audience applauded loudly and cheered.

Sims Hugo Neu purchased the 1938 building in 1998. C.O.S. Properties, LLC bought the property in 2005. The building was demolished in November to make way for condominiums, Hales-Tooke later explained.

For more information, visit Hales-Tooke online at myspace.com/losttrain. A professional photographer, he has also been featured in the New York Fringe Theater Festival.