An Ocean County company is looking to create three developments near a Newark intersection.
The Lakewood-based LLC that simply goes by Emmet Mulberry is planning to construct two new buildings and adaptively reuse and expand another on lots surrounding the corner of Mulberry and Emmet Streets in the Ironbound neighborhood of the city’s East Ward.
At 529-531 Mulberry Street, the company is looking to replace what was a private and gated surface parking lot for the Ace Tool & Manufacturing Company with a five-story mixed-use development. The project calls for 16 residential units along with a commercial space, according to a legal notice from LLC member Jacob Miller. Parking would be provided on the premises, but the number of spaces is not listed in the notice.
Meanwhile, across the way at 526 and 528-532 Mulberry Street, Emmet Mulberry is seeking to turn the old Ace Tool building into an all-residential development. An auction of the company’s equipment was held in February. A legal notice from Miller states that a fourth floor would be added to the three-story structure and that 28 units would be included in the entire building, which is also known as 164 Emmet Street. A small part of the structure, likely the one-story northernmost portion, would be demolished to make way for 16 parking spaces.
The facility has been used for industrial purposes since it was built just over 100 years ago for $25,000 by John F. Schrink & Son. It had been occupied by Ace for decades and once contained companies such as the Harry Bentz Engineering Company, which produced metalware, and the Federal Tool Equipment Company.
Next door to the property at 166-170 Emmet Street, Emmet Mulberry applied to tear down two buildings that stand on the premises in order to develop a five-story residential building. 19 units would be included inside, according to a notice from Miller, and the ground floor would contain space for parking.
The properties are all located in the South Ironbound several blocks from public transportation. NJ Parcels records show that Emmet Mulberry paid $1.25 million for at least part of the premises from Ace Tool in the winter.
All three matters were initially scheduled to go before the Newark Zoning Board of Adjustment during its meeting on July 12. The developer applied for Preliminary and Final Site Plan approval with multiple variances, ranging from insufficient parking for 529-531 Mulberry Street to exceeding the maximum building height for the adaptive reuse and expansion project.
