A firehouse that once served as the music headquarters for Queen Latifah has started undergoing a conversion into a possible restaurant, as construction has ramped up at a property in the heart of the Powerhouse Arts District.
Jersey Digs reported last year about plans to overhaul 155 Morgan Street. Jersey City’s Council voted unanimously that same year to advance a resolution to study the property, which was once owned by Queen Latifah and used as offices for her Flavor Unit production company before sitting vacant in recent years.
Silverman, who is behind many Downtown revitalization developments in Jersey City, currently owns the land and is hoping to turn it into a restaurant and banquet hall with event space. The property is currently included in Jersey City’s Scatter Site Redevelopment Plan.
Construction has officially started on the property, which was first built in the 1900s. Permits issued for the property indicate that current work consists of reconstructing a structurally compromised masonry wall, new electrical work, new sewer lines, and a new fire sprinkler system.
The two-floor space is currently being constructed as a “vanilla box,” perhaps an indicator that a tenant is not yet in place. The building is situated in a prominent area that has seen a ton of growth, including the forthcoming Jersey City Symphony theater, currently under construction across the street.
The project is one of two former firehouses in Jersey City’s Downtown section that is undergoing renovation and repurposing. Another property at 244 Bay Street was recently approved to be converted into two apartments with ground-floor retail space at the former Jersey City Gong Club site, another historic building that dates to the 19th century.
