Jones Lang LaSalle
Lofts proposed for E. Newark
Friday, April 21, 2006
By ROSE DUGER
JOURNAL CORRESPONDENT
EAST NEWARK - A developer is proposing constructing between 700 and 800 loft apartments, as well as commercial space, at the First Republic industrial complex on Passaic Avenue.
The mammoth site, which is currently leased to a number of commercial tenants, houses several four-story brick structures that date to the mid-1800s.
Mayor Joseph R. Smith said preliminary plans call for commercial space to occupy the first two floors. The $100 million project would roll out over a span of three to five years, he added.
Several other developers have also expressed interest in the site and have presented plans for projects including two-family houses, a hotel and a big-box home improvement store.
"I can honestly say the others didn't seem to have a logical theme," Smith said. "There were also concerns about traffic. These plans are tentative, but if we can keep the building there's a historical value to that."
The buildings once housed the Clark Cotton and Thread Company, a firm that is widely credited with drawing the influx of Scottish and Irish immigrants to the West Hudson area in the late 1800s and early 1900s. At one time the company was the largest thread manufacturer in the nation.
Row houses were constructed on North Third Street for the mills' managers, with a smaller group of row houses on John Street for the mill workers, according to Smith. The row houses are still standing today.
The industrial complex is now owned by First Republic Corporation.
Borough officials are updating East Newark's master plan and have hired Anne Babineau, an attorney specializing in redevelopment matters, to advise them.
"We're working on updating the master plan and when that's complete we'll set up a redevelopment agency," said Smith, who explained that the borough's agency would be comprised of himself and members of the borough council. "In my opinion that will give people a voice in who's on the board. If they don't like what the mayor and council are doing they can vote us out."
© 2006 The Jersey Journal
© 2006 NJ.com All Rights Reserved.
Lofts proposed for E. Newark
Friday, April 21, 2006
By ROSE DUGER
JOURNAL CORRESPONDENT
EAST NEWARK - A developer is proposing constructing between 700 and 800 loft apartments, as well as commercial space, at the First Republic industrial complex on Passaic Avenue.
The mammoth site, which is currently leased to a number of commercial tenants, houses several four-story brick structures that date to the mid-1800s.
Mayor Joseph R. Smith said preliminary plans call for commercial space to occupy the first two floors. The $100 million project would roll out over a span of three to five years, he added.
Several other developers have also expressed interest in the site and have presented plans for projects including two-family houses, a hotel and a big-box home improvement store.
"I can honestly say the others didn't seem to have a logical theme," Smith said. "There were also concerns about traffic. These plans are tentative, but if we can keep the building there's a historical value to that."
The buildings once housed the Clark Cotton and Thread Company, a firm that is widely credited with drawing the influx of Scottish and Irish immigrants to the West Hudson area in the late 1800s and early 1900s. At one time the company was the largest thread manufacturer in the nation.
Row houses were constructed on North Third Street for the mills' managers, with a smaller group of row houses on John Street for the mill workers, according to Smith. The row houses are still standing today.
The industrial complex is now owned by First Republic Corporation.
Borough officials are updating East Newark's master plan and have hired Anne Babineau, an attorney specializing in redevelopment matters, to advise them.
"We're working on updating the master plan and when that's complete we'll set up a redevelopment agency," said Smith, who explained that the borough's agency would be comprised of himself and members of the borough council. "In my opinion that will give people a voice in who's on the board. If they don't like what the mayor and council are doing they can vote us out."
© 2006 The Jersey Journal
© 2006 NJ.com All Rights Reserved.
posted by Jones Lang LaSalle NJ News Blog at 11:04 AM
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