While Downtown, Bergen-Lafayette, and Journal Square have seen plenty of new development proposals over the last few years, many other Jersey City neighborhoods are seeing more applications by developers. In Ward F, not only are new buildings rising and slated to be constructed close to the Liberty State Park Light Rail station, but more plans are emerging closer to McGinley Square and West Side.
For instance, a large new mixed-use project is in the works for the neighboring properties of 43-49 Fairview Avenue, 209 Monticello Avenue, and 654 Bergen Avenue in the Jackson Hill Redevelopment Area, according to legal notices. An application by the developer to the Jersey City Zoning Board of Adjustment (ZBA) calls for a 10-story building to be constructed on the premises. Of the 92 residential units that would be included in the building, 50 would be designated as “affordable housing,” according to the notice. In addition, the building’s ground floor would contain a daycare center along with a community room. 47 parking spaces would be provided on the premises in a surface lot.
The properties in question include a gated private parking lot on Monticello Avenue that was once home to Dawson’s Dairy, a larger parking lot on Fairview Avenue, and the former YMCA on Bergen Avenue that is now home to the Bergenview housing complex. However, while part of the Bergenview property is included in the application in order to allow for a subdivision, the building is expected to remain as is, though a density variance is being sought “to permit the existing residential units” inside.
The firm behind the proposal is known as Community Builders, Inc, an affiliate of a group officially known as The Community Builders. Unlike other developers that are beginning to build in Jersey City for the first time, The Community Builders is a non-profit organization that has been involved in these properties for nearly two decades. With offices in Boston, New York, Chicago, Boston, and Washington, D.C., the group is also responsible for the Hope Manor Apartments and the Lord Stirling Apartments in New Brunswick.
Preliminary and Final Major Site Plan approvals are being sought from the ZBA in order for this project to move forward. Variances that are being requested by the developer include use, lot depth, and maximum building coverage. The board is scheduled to hear the plans during its meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, August 16.
