New renderings illustrate the latest mixed-use development that could rise in Downtown Newark.
The City of Newark has released a presentation from Inglese Architecture + Engineering that depicts the Kawaida Towers project, which is in the works for 17-21 Halsey Street by Central Avenue.
“Our application proposes the construction of a 16-story mixed-use building with a ground floor retail space and second floor [commercial] use, as well as an exhibition space at the building’s corner to be used as a gallery and offer [a] permanent display area for the historic district,” the presentation says.
The document shows that the complex would include seven studios, 13 one-bedroom units, 39 two-bedroom units, seven three-bedroom units, and 5,520 square feet of commercial space.
Newark’s municipal government described the development in March as “100 percent affordable.”
The existing building at 17-21 Halsey Street dates back to 1913 and was originally an automobile showroom, according to an April AECOM report.
“We believe the existing building to be [structurally] unsound and requires demolition to preserve life safety on two major thoroughfares,” Inglese’s presentation says.
TAPinto Newark reported that the Newark Municipal Council approved the sale of the municipally-owned property for close to $24,000 during its meeting on February 18. The version of the meeting agenda that was posted online by the City of Newark did not mention the proposed sale of the property, which is located in the heart of Downtown Newark across from the 31 Central site.
The Newark Landmarks and Historic Preservation Commission has since received two applications from Kawaida Towers, LP, which is registered out of the same address as Omni New York and Omni America on Manhattan’s East Side. The applications, which involve the demolition and construction plans, list the estimated cost of the project and the estimated completed date as “TBD.”
Kawaida Towers would consist of only one tower. The development has the same name as a project that was proposed decades ago by Newark Mayor Ras Baraka’s father, Amiri Baraka, for Lincoln Avenue in Newark’s North Ward. However, although construction began on the original Kawaida Towers project, conflict followed and the development never came to fruition.
