A vacant property that is a stone’s throw from the Garfield Avenue Hudson Bergen Light Rail station is set to see a two-tower residential development rise, as the planning board has signed off on a modern project that comes courtesy of a Brooklyn-based developer.
The development is the work of Wallabout Realty Holdings and combines a whopping nine adjacent properties at 87-99 Van Horne Street and 72-78 Woodward Street. The parcels span an entire city block, fall within the Morris Canal Redevelopment Area, and overlook Berry Lane Park, Jersey City’s newest green space that opened in June 2016.
Besides providing much needed recreational facilities, officials had hoped the park would be a catalyst to transform some of the post-industrial properties that dot the area. A few development proposals have emerged for the neighborhood, but this project, which is being referred to as The Parkview Apartments, is the first significant plan to be approved.
The development is years in the making, as Wallabout Realty acquired all the properties for $4.6 million back in 2016. Details of the proposal came to light last year via a Jersey City Redevelopment Agency agenda, and the company was granted final approval by the planning board at their March 26 meeting.
Designed by Ocean Township-based Monteforte Architectural Studio, the project consists of two buildings that will each rise seven stories over two floors of parking. The tallest portions will top out at just over 89 feet, and a total of 123 parking spaces will be included in the two-floor garage.
The 170 units break down as 65 one-bedroom, 95 two-bedroom, and 10 three-bedroom apartments, which are intended as rentals. Each tower will sport its own lobby, while a bicycle storage room will have space for 98 bikes on the first floor. A common amenity deck will be built between the two structures, and each of the towers will have rooftop spaces that include a lawn area, a paver plaza, and covered seating sections.
The Parkview Apartments is designed to reduce stormwater runoff and will include some major infrastructure upgrades. The project will extend Woodward Street to create new parking spaces for visitors, plus build an entirely new road to connect Woodward Street and Van Horne Street. New sidewalks and improved pedestrian access to the Light Rail station will also be constructed.
In a rarity for a project within a redevelopment plan, 18 units of moderate-income housing will be included in The Parkview Apartments that will be set aside as workforce units. Additionally, the development will be contributing to the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund in the amount of $324,000.
Wallabout Realty has not responded to our inquiry as to when the project might break ground.
