It looks like another vacant lot in Downtown Jersey City will soon be home to a mixed-use project. Shuster Development appears to be readying a property for a 13-story building that would be the second phase of its existing The Oakman development.
The first phase is at 160 1st Street and the second building will be at 175 2nd Street. Initial plans for both buildings were approved by the Planning Board in 2014. Shuster has made some minor changes to the second phase and they were presented to the city last week.
The T-shaped 2nd Street site currently serves as surface parking and falls within the Powerhouse Arts District Redevelopment Plan. A historic property housing Packer Shoes, at the corner with Marin Boulevard, will stay put under the approvals, and the new development will be built around it.
Like the first phase, the design for the second comes from New York-based Fogarty Finger Architecture. It will rise 13 floors to 135 feet, using grey brick and large glass windows on its exterior. Renderings show a large, analog-style clock on an upper portion of the building, which will face the massive Metro Plaza redevelopment project.
175 2nd Street will also feature over 4,600 square feet of ground floor retail split between two storefronts, one facing 2nd Street and the other along Marin Boulevard. The 2014 version of the project called for 138 units, but the latest approvals upped that number to 150. There will be 91 one-bedrooms, along with 12 studios, 43 two-bedrooms, three three-bedrooms, and one four-bedroom penthouse.
The first phase was a condominium project, but it’s unclear if the new building will be condos or rentals. Shuster has not replied to a request for clarification.
A 2,695-square-foot parking garage with space for 28 cars will be built on the ground floor. Private patios and gardens will be featured in certain rear-facing units, a design similar to that of the first phase. Amenities will include a fitness room, bike storage, and a 3,396-square-foot communal roof deck sporting a swimming pool.
Per the requirements of the redevelopment plan, seven moderate income affordable units will be created on-site when the project’s second phase is complete. Another eight will be built at 239 Liberty Avenue, a property in The Heights also owned by Shuster.
No timeline for the project has been released, but changes to the development were approved by the Planning Board on November 28.
