According to a legal notice from the Jersey City Zoning Board of Adjustment, changes have been proposed for a building at the center of Ward D.
The two-story building at 402 Central Avenue is slated to be renovated and expanded into a four-story structure. Developers Rohit and Jita Shah are planning to add 13 new apartments to the expanded building, renovate the first-floor commercial storefront, and expand the existing apartment inside.
Currently, the retail space on the ground floor is vacant, though it was previously occupied by True Value Silon Paint and Hardware, which served the neighborhood for several decades before closing. The building is owned by RJS Central, LLC of Union City, according to NJ Parcels, and dates to 1937.
402 Central Avenue is located at the heart of The Heights’ main business district. Dozens of shops and restaurants line Central Avenue, and the corridor is served by NJ Transit Bus 88 to Journal Square and Bergenline Avenue and Bus 119 to Manhattan and Bayonne. Just a few blocks away from the site sits Washington Park, a 22-acre county park straddling the border of Jersey City and Union City. The park, which includes tennis and basketball courts, hosts the Summer Concert Series in the warmer months, making it the cultural center of the community.
This is not the Shah family’s only development proposal in the Heights. The Shahs are planning to renovate the three-story building at 300 Central Avenue, which was previously occupied by Heights Liquors. The building will contain 12 dwelling units and was approved earlier this fall.
In addition, the family has applied to the Jersey City Zoning Board of Adjustment to renovate and expand a two-story industrial building at 114 Lincoln Street, between Milton Avenue and John F. Kennedy Boulevard. Under their proposal, the building, which was previously occupied by a driving school, will be converted into a four-story building with eight parking spaces on the ground floor, an adult day care on the second floor, and eight residential units on the upper floors.
