JERSEY CITY | Projects and Construction thread

[C.]

I can never figure out which development is which in this part of town, but it looks like the second phase of Provost Square will be breaking ground in about 45 days or so.

It's a 28-30ish floor building.

[Hamilton]

Originally Posted by Crawford

The article is about a WeWork executive saying that Jersey City is currently pretty dead compared to Brooklyn, which I think almost everyone would agree with. JC has come a long way but no rational person is going to say it's Brooklyn's equal.

No rational person would summarily compare "Brooklyn" and "Jersey City" in such a sweeping way...for one thing, both are comprised of radically different neighborhoods (Brownsville? Greenville? Park Slope? Hamilton Park? Downtown Brooklyn? Grove St?), and for another, what counts as 'dead' or not is largely a matter of taste.

Let's make things more concrete (and set aside my first objection) by talking about the neighborhoods actually at play here: Journal Square, where WeWork may (or may not) lease some space, and Bushwick, where the WeWork executive said he wanted to company to focus. There's practically nothing of interest to me in places like Williamsburg or Bushwick...just generic overpriced fauxhemian schlock that wouldn't be out of place in Austin or Portland. Just my opinion, but the neighborhoods that i like in Brooklyn are actually pretty similar to Journal Square. Where a corporate real estate drone sees a "pretty dead" neighborhood, I see a vibrant multi-ethnic immigrant community. The first two pics are Journal Square, the latter three are Bushwick near the Morgan L stop and the Schlitz Brewery, where WeWork might take some space. For person A, the first two pics may depict a "dead zone" with no upscale bars, artisanal coffee shops, etc while person B may be more likely to apply the label to the latter three pictures... is one person or the other really more "rational"? I'd say that sort of a question isn't very productive...there's a reason city vs. city talk is banned on this board.

"Little India" on Newark Ave, Journal Square:



"Morgantown" area near Roberta's and McKibbin Lofts, the epicenter of Bushwick's gentrification:

[C.]

Wow!!!
http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2...ys_cool_q.html

[photoLith]

Diss Jersey City and you get the smack down.

[C.]

I'm disappointed that the 20 floor building planned for 2973 Kennedy Blvd., just north of Journal Square, has been postponed for a second time at the Planning Board. The next meeting is November 1. It needs support! Journal Square needs more mid-rise buildings like this. This is a very important development that will set a tone for the remaining development of the area.

The good news is that a bunch of smaller infill sites were approved last night, including this development just north of Grove St. PATH station:

[citybooster]

I hear you on the postponement yet again of consideration of the 20 story tower at 2973 Kennedy Boulevard. More midrises are an important necessity for a well balanced development around the Journal Square area and hopefully the third time is the charm on the November 1 hearing for this proposal.

Lol, love your updates and perspectives CIA... but a 41 story, 400 0r so tower sure ain't just landfill I'm thrilled that tower is getting the go ahead though and it looks really nice... hope we get more details too about any changes or interesting tidbits regarding the approval.

[chris08876]

Project: 136 Summit Avenue

After being tabled at a planning board meeting in September over community push back, the proposal for a new project at 136 Summit Avenue went back in front of the board on Tuesday. This time, it unanimously won approval.

The proposal, put forth by New York-based Monticello Equities, calls for razing the former Fairmount Hospital building and an adjacent parking lot and replacing it with a nine-story, 99-unit residential building with 2,240 square feet of retail and 75 interior parking spaces.

Designed by Kushner Studios, the project certainly bears a modern aesthetic. Striking curvatures, bold lines and a slate of non-traditional material give the structure a contemporary feel.

=============================
http://jerseydigs.com/136-summit-ave...hill-approved/

[C.]

Looks like we now have another midrise planned for Journal Square, this time next to the Lowes theater, adjacent to the PATH tracks. The address given is 2895 Kennedy Blvd but that isn't geocoded correctly when looking at Google.

I originally thought this may be the rendering, but that's for a different site next to 3 Journal Square.


The new building is planned for 25 floors, with the bottom 5 being used as commercial space. The floors above will be used for rental apartments. I'm a little surprised they're not aiming taller. It's across the street from the Journal Square PATH entrance and will be surrounded by 60+ floor buildings. Still, it's good to see some midrises coming to JSQ at last.

[citybooster]

The more mid rises the better, sounds good to me!

Read in Jersey City List that indeed the City Council very likely vote to create an arts district surrounding the area around the Loew's that is owned by the Harwood family that centers on the allowance of two high rises.... family spokesman Bruce Harwood says that while the plan would allow for the high rises to go well above the 37 story limit for that part of the Square area, they won't be World Trade Center big... 50-60 stories and 600-700 ft are far more likely as he says that wild supertall heights wouldn't be appropriate for the area. The plan allows the Harwoods to build tall and seeing the transformation of Journal Square starting with the 53 story first tower of the three towered Journal Squared development... the Harwoods, who have owned the land for nearly 100 years, want to get on it too. Of course, the Harwoods had a chance nine years ago when it seemed they would build the City Center towers where several businesses by the old bus station but nothing ever came of it as their partners decided to landbank rather than build(yet seeing fit to purchase Newport Tower for $400 million some time later) and eventually sold to Jared Kushner's group(let's hope after the election he spends more time on One Journal Square than being a political insider propping up father in law GOP Presidential nominee Donald Trump's crazy campaign). Let's hope the Harwoods are serious this time, but with the way things are going with Journal Square it will be in their best interests to be proactive and build, find serious partners with deep pockets who want to get moving and not procrastinate and only make the most conservative moves.

The Harwoods can build taller because the arts district plan will give them lots of room to tack on height and density in return for public investment in cultural institutions like art galleries, theaters, studios, museums, libraries, etc. Two smaller rise buildings in the area will house such cultural offerings as well as the high rises and one smaller building will accommodate a café and restaurants. There was talk of one 50 story and one relatively small tower behind the Loew's Theater recently but that was before the arts district...now CIA comes in with a 25 story tower in addition...hopefully with the 20 story tower being approved soon nearby we're talking about a Journal Square really coming to life as a residential and cultural center which would be incredible....by 2030 the Square could be even more important to the city than our downtown revitalization has been.

I really hope the Harwoods are serious, because this could be the jumpstart the really transforms the Square... and how about if we can finally get some group to pump real money into the Loews to make it shine brighter than ever as the centerpiece to all the cultural revival. Friends of Loews just can't invest the serious dollars needed by themselves to make the grand palace a viable night in, night out venue for shows...periodic movie nights are nice but come on, they can't make it operable and successful. Maybe this, instead of the heavy handed effort of the Fulop administration to push for profit AEG that boomeranged embarrassingly in the courts and give Friends of Loews basic rights on running the theater through 2021, impetus to pressure FOL to themselves get serious and accept that if they want to retain a role in the Loew's future(and we should indeed be deeply grateful and appreciative of their efforts to keep this classic entertainment palace alive)they need deep pockets for investment and strong managerial skills to make it commercially viable and prosperous.

Forgive my flights of fancy here, I'm dreaming blissfully of the Journal Square that is poised to be if they just don't screw it up.

[C.]

Originally Posted by citybooster

family spokesman Bruce Harwood says that while the plan would allow for the high rises to go well above the 37 story limit for that part of the Square area, they won't be World Trade Center big... 50-60 stories and 600-700 ft are far more likely as he says that wild supertall heights wouldn't be appropriate for the area. The plan allows the Harwoods to build tall and seeing the transformation of Journal Square starting with the 53 story first tower of the three towered Journal Squared development... the Harwoods, who have owned the land for nearly 100 years, want to get on it too.

I wonder if we can change his mind?



Something like the above would be awesome for Journal Square.

[C.]

From the NJ.com article:

If approved by the council tomorrow, the zoning changes offer a template to the Harwoods. There are no plans yet, Harwood said, adding that unlimited height restrictions would not lead to soaring skyscrapers.

"Nobody should have expectations that we're going to build another World Trade Center," he said. "It wouldn't be economical, it wouldn't be appropriate."

[aquakitchenbath]

This thread is really amazing! It's so great to see what is going on in the neighborhood.

[C.]

The 20-Story Tower at 2973 Kennedy Blvd. has been APPROVED!

I believe this to be of great importance for the area, right up there with 1 JSQ and Journal Squared. It establishes 20 floors as an appropriate building to rise along Kennedy Blvd, the main corridor. It will set the standard for future redevelopment. The site is very small and a 5 or 6 story building would have still been considered very dense. But 20 floors will result in densities that rival many neighborhoods in Manhattan!

Very exciting times for Journal Square, and the best may be yet to come.

[C.]

The site...



The vacant lot (it does not include the Indian supermarket next door). There is also couple of vacant lots along Cottage St. They would have normally been redeveloped into one or two-family homes. Big news!

[C.]

Marketing for the first Journal Squared tower is up!

http://journalsquared.com/neighborhood

[chris08876]

JC is going the way of Brooklyn. So many towers, and the good thing is that a lot of little 1 to 2 story structures and decaying lots are being bought up, so your seeing some nice infill on the mid rise level. Its nice that some of these smaller developments are in the 10-20 floor range. Will really help connect the high rise nodes, especially if its between Journal Square and New Port or JS and Downtown.

[C.]

Meet 100 Colden St., a 12-story building up for a vote at the Nov. 15 Planning Board meeting. I suspect NIMBY activity due to the area of town.



Also: check out this really cool vid showing many aerials of Jersey City. Click the Watch Video link at the top right corner and enjoy!

http://www.ajdconstruction.net/portf...url-harborside

[C.]

Journal Square Updates:

Journal Square plaza is undergoing a number of cosmetic upgrades. New glass railings are being installed replacing the wood ones, new fencing around grassy areas, and the ceiling on the concourse level is being replaced.

Deli Plus on the concourse level, the great little bodega\pizzeria is being renovated. I went in to buy my favorite bottle of cheap wine to find out that 3/4th of the place had been cordoned off renovations. The wine rack was gone and had been placed with top shelf spirits and fine wine. They're probably positioning themselves to be the main market for residents of the new Journal Squared tower when it opens. It's a smart move to do this now.

There is a lonely backhoe on the 1 JSQ site. Not getting too excited as they still have a number of permits to pull, so my guess would be Spring '17 at the earliest before we see any real construction.

I have a great track record on these types of things, but I'm thinking one of the Kushner families will acquire the new Arts District lands from Hartz Mountain, next to the Lowe's Theater. The site is the only one in the New York metro area that has no height limit and unlimited density bonus potential. Hartz is too conservative of a developer while Jared Kushner is one of the boldest in the business when it comes to big projects.

PATH trains are really starting to burst at the seams during rush hour. I was shocked to see a Newark bound train unable to take additional passengers and left a bunch of people at the platform at Journal Square. All those smaller developments in Harrison and Newark are really starting to impact and put strains on the system. The Port Authority will be forced to add capacity soon, especially with Journal Squared and 3 JSQ opening. Those two developments have the potential to add nearly 2,000 daily trips to the system.

[limak116]

Not to mention the huge makeover for the kiss and ride.

[C.]

Oh ya, that too.

I was thinking that construction was related to the construction of Journal Squared Phase II.

BTW,

Introducing 17-23 Bates Street



This is next door to 100 Colden posted above, and north of https://jerseydigs.com/one-bates-street/"]1 Bates St.