A development site in Journal Square that has sat dormant after plans fell through could spring back to life as work is happening behind the scenes to bring another two towers to Jersey City’s fastest-growing neighborhood.
The property in question is located at 168 Sip Avenue, a parcel that includes a Hudson County Community College building and a surface parking lot. An Urby development was proposed for the site during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and would have included 466 residential units plus retail space.
The company behind that plan, Ironstate Development, eventually chose “not to pursue” the project in 2021. An unnamed developer is now seeking a partner for a project that would bring at least 720 apartments to the site in two 35-story towers.
First reported by RealEstateNJ, the new owners, represented by JLL, are seeking a joint partnership to realize their vision. The property is currently governed by a redevelopment agreement that calls for two 35-story towers on the 0.81-acre site.
The development in its current version is slated to include 648 market-rate units, with 72 to be designated as affordable housing. The proposal currently calls for 200 parking spaces in a garage plus 7,600 square feet of commercial space across two phases.
The development is within the Journal Square 2060 Rehabilitation Area, which has seen significant revitalization in recent years. A rendering of the proposed project was released by JLL, which has a marketing team led by Jose Cruz and Ryan Robertson, leading the effort to find a development partner.
“Jersey City continues to experience strong population and employment growth driven by its role as a primary residential alternative to Manhattan, with direct access to major employment hubs and a concentration of global financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, BNP Paribas, and Deutsche Bank along the Hudson Waterfront,” JLL wrote in its marketing materials. “This convergence of transit accessibility, retail activation, and employment density positions the property to capture sustained tenant demand and premium rent growth.”
An official application for the project has not been submitted just yet to the Jersey City Planning Board, which would have to approve any proposed development before construction can begin.
