A neighborhood in the center of Jersey City that has seen more than its fair share of development in recent years could welcome another construction site for a mixed-use project with affordable housing.
During their June 24 meeting, Jersey City’s Planning Board unanimously approved an application for 359 Johnston Avenue. The project additionally includes properties at 409-411 Pacific Avenue, meaning the development would rise at the intersection at the corner where those roads meet.
A company registered in Monsey, New York, owns both properties. They currently house a pair of two-story homes and a surface parking lot. The total lot size of the project is 7,500 square feet, or about 0.17 acres.
The development, situated inside the Lafayette Park Redevelopment Zone, was designed by Long Valley-based Bodnar Architectural Studio. The plans call for a six-story complex that tops out at 67 feet tall.
The development’s ground floor includes 2,080 square feet of retail, seven parking spaces for cars, and 18 spots for bicycles. The plan includes 35 residential units, skewed smaller and broken down as 25 one-bedrooms, eight two-bedrooms, and a pair of three-bedroom spaces.
Under the board’s approvals, 8.6% of the development’s residential component, or three units, will be set aside as affordable housing.
Other notable features of the development include a first-floor amenity space, a 1,120 square foot rooftop terrace, and a green roof that spans about 820 square feet.
The development is slated to utilize brick veneer on the lower floor exterior plus corrugated metal panels on the top floor. A total of six trees will be planted as part of the work, which will replace the sidewalks and add new landscaped planters along Pacific Avenue.
The development was granted two variances from allowable zoning by the board, with deviations being granted for maximum building coverage and landscaping requirements. A groundbreaking date for the project has not been announced.
Developments like this one have popped up all around this stretch of Bergen Lafayette in recent times, with the area seeing massive growth over the last decade. The neighborhood, which is walking distance to Liberty State Park and a Hudson Bergen Light Rail Station, welcomed its first proper high-rise last year.
