EDITOR’S NOTE: The Zoning Board has postponed the hearing date for 201 Newark Avenue, which is now slated to be heard during their meeting scheduled for October 10.
A proposed hotel project that is looking to partner with some of the biggest names in New Jersey’s art scene is getting pushback from the community over its height and the precedent it could potentially set in commercial zones.
Jersey City’s Zoning Board will soon be considering a project from Landmark Hospitality to convert a former bank property at 201 Newark Avenue. The building, first built in the 1930s by the Trust Company of New Jersey, was purchased by Landmark in 2019 for $5.35 million.
Landmark owns a variety of other high-end hospitality venues in New Jersey and Pennsylvania including Jersey City venues Liberty House, Hudson House, and The View at Lincoln Park.
The company is looking to convert the property into the seven-story Albion Hotel, which has been redesigned a bit since Jersey Digs broke the news on the proposal almost four years ago. The newest plans have been drawn up by Hackensack-based architect Michael Graves to include 72 hotel rooms, a founder’s suite and numerous amenities such as a recording studio, a Peloton studio, and a rooftop with a bar and pool.
Under the plans, the existing bank building will remain and house a two-level Asian-inspired restaurant called Anzu Social. The mezzanine floor will also include an art gallery and a green roof as part of the revamp.
The proposal would expand the current parking lot portion of the property significantly and is looking to partner with legendary names in art for the spaces. The third-floor recording studio will be dubbed The Stone Pony Studio in partnership with the famous Asbury Park venue, who will also host a robust live jazz music calendar on the building’s rooftop.
Speaking of that rooftop, it is set to feature an indoor theater space plus an outdoor rooftop deck that includes a bar plus an indoor grand room. The Albion has agreed to partner with Mana Contemporary on the artwork component of the hotel, which will be highlighted on the roof deck and also throughout the interior of the building.
Landmark will also feature an artist-in-residence program at the hotel in partnership with The Monira Foundation. The hotel will feature an indoor art wall as part of the revamp of the building’s interior plus a 42-space parking garage using a lift system in the basement level.
The application from Landmark notes that the as-of-right zoning allows for over 40 residential units on the site, but the company is instead proposing hotel use. That itself requires a variance and several of the other deviations being sought have drawn the ire of local groups.
The Harsimus Cove Association, Van Vorst Neighborhood Association, The Village Neighborhood Association, Hamilton Park Neighborhood Association, and Paulus Hook Neighborhood Association have all come out against the plan, mainly based on the height variance being sought. The proposed hotel would rise just over 108 feet where only 64 feet in height is allowed.
Councilman James Solomon, who represents the area, also confirmed to Jersey Digs that he opposes the project. The Saffron, a condo development just west of the proposed hotel, has started a petition and hired counsel to fight the development.
The proposed Albion Hotel would also require variances from the Zoning Board related to minimum rear height, maximum building height in stories, parking space size and loading spaces, maximum signage on the ground floor, and for illuminated signs not allowed in the zone.
Jersey City’s Zoning Board is slated to hear the application for Landmark’s latest hotel during their August 8 October 10 meeting, which begins at 6:30 p.m. and is being held in the Boardroom at the Holloway Building inside 4 Jackson Square.
