Development Watch

From the Star Ledger:
New life for old factories in Orange

The boarded-up factories where John B. Stetson and his family built a thriving hat manufacturing business in Orange's Valley section may be transformed into lofts and retail space for artists.

That's the goal for the Stetson family's long-abandoned No Name Hat Factory complex, off Mitchell and South Jefferson streets. It is at the northern end of what used to be Orange's hat manufacturing district.

The Orange City Council recently made a deal with developers to breathe new residential and retail life into that site as well as into two adjacent properties: the one-time Monroe Calculating Co. and the Harvard Press building.
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The initial redevelopment plan calls for the creation of 100 residential and retail spaces where artists will live and work, Morrissy said.

"There will be artist live-work lofts, artist retail spaces, artist studios, and art program spaces," Morrissy said. "The project will include a new pedestrian entrance to the Valley, along the east branch of the Rahway River, and another 350 condominium units, in either the old industrial buildings, or new buildings."

From the Star Ledger:
900 housing units plus retail proposed

Another 900 residential units are proposed for the township.

At its Wednesday meeting, the planning board will review an application calling for constructing the homes and a shopping center on 168 acres of farmland that borders School House and Randolph roads. The application, submitted by Summerfields at Franklin, includes plans to construct single-family dwellings, semiattached homes, a clubhouse and a retail center.

As proposed, except for 150 single-family homes, the balance of the community would be age-restricted. One out of every nine units built would be set aside for low to moderate-income housing.

Part of the township's Council on Affordable Housing obligation would be met through two proposed three-story buildings of 50 units each that would be reserved for low- to moderate-income housing.

The project is estimated to take 10 to 12 years to complete. The site is nearby the Canal Walk development and is slated to have more than 1,300 age-restricted units.

From the Jersey Journal:
19 condos on Bergen Ave. hailed as evidence of rebirth

A host of local officials yesterday kicked off the sales of 19 condos on the 600 block of Bergen Avenue in Jersey City, hailing it as a sign of increasing investments in areas of the city other than the Gold Coast.

The family team of Santomauro General Contracting turned two four-story row homes into 19 condominium units.

From the Record:
Condo plan angers neighbors

Proponents of a 196-unit condominium and town-house complex proposed off Palisade Avenue say it would bring tax revenue to the township and raise property values in the surrounding neighborhood.

The Park View development would be built on the site of an old soap factory adjoining Herrick Park. "There are no downsides" to the $92 million complex, said Frank DeVito, lawyer for the developer, Holuba Realty.

Residents in Teaneck and neighboring Bogota view the proposal through a decidedly different lens.

"This is a high-density development in a single-family neighborhood," said Mark Gold of Van Buren Avenue, just up the street from the proposed development. "It's completely inconsistent with the character of the neighborhood."