A proposal by developer Academy Capital to build a five-story apartment building at an empty lot at the intersection of Communipaw and West Side avenues recently took a step forward after the Jersey City Planning Board voted to approve a site plan for the project.
On March 31, the board approved a plan for 38 apartments and more than 2,000 square feet of commercial space to replace the vacant lot at 792 Communipaw Avenue. The lot has approximately 74 feet of frontage along Communipaw and spans nearly 7,300 square feet, which is substantial for commercial tenants seeking access to one of the city’s busiest corridors. It is also located one block from Lincoln Park and JFK Boulevard.
The project will span a combined 32,583 square feet across five stories and a cellar level. Its footprint will be 7,259 square feet, and it will include 4 affordable units – a studio, 2 one-bedrooms, and 1 three-bedroom unit – and a green roof covering 2,750 square feet. The application is fully compliant with the city’s code, and while the project will not include parking, it will include bike storage for up to 21 bikes.
Academy Capital said that unit sizes will range from 360 square feet for a studio to 1,040 square feet for a three-bedroom unit. They also noted during the meeting that the developer has been seeking board approval since 2024.
Records from the Hudson County Clerk’s office show that the empty lot has an assessed value of $1,432,600. The property last sold in February 2024 for $1.4 million from a firm based in Holliswood, New York, to 792 Communipaw Holdings LLC. A portion of the site once served as an auto shop, but it is currently vacant.
The site sits on one of the city’s oldest roads, dating back almost three centuries. Communipaw sits along the road, the former Ferry Road, that was chartered in 1765 to connect downtown Newark via Ferry Street and the ferries at Paulus Hook in Jersey City via Grand Street. The road was later divided into Ferry Street in Newark, U.S. Route 1&9 Truck, Communipaw Avenue, and Grand Street, but it has always been a major commercial corridor for Hudson and Essex counties.
The portion of Lincoln Park closest to the site was once home to the Jersey City Skeeters, a minor-league baseball team that played at an 8,500-seat stadium where the park’s entrance now stands. The baseball stadium known as West Side Park opened in 1902 and was demolished three years later when the eponymous 273-acre park opened in 1905. The park was later renamed in 1930 to honor President Abraham Lincoln.
Academy Capital lists the project on Communipaw as one of 18 other projects it is currently developing.
Jersey Digs reported in August that the firm is currently developing the site at 262 New York Avenue, where it is erecting a four-story building with 10 condominiums and 1,350 square feet of ground-level commercial space.
