Does anyone walk anymore? Anywhere? It’s tough in New Jersey, but with carbon footprint being a buzzword of 2007, coupled with sensible redevelopment, maybe it can make a comeback.
Category Archives: Downtown
Going down? As soon as the state says OK
Among the expected developments Mayor James Kennedy mentioned Monday night in his State of the City address was demolition of the Hamilton Laundry site in 2008.
There have been plans for the site for years — including a Joe Piscopo-backed comedy club — but after last spring’s flooding, it was decided to focus a park and amphitheater on the Hamilton property. Plans still call for a 7,000-square-foot black box theater and 9,000-square-foot performing arts space, but they will be targeted for the nearby Bell building, Elizabethtown Gas property and the Shami Apartments, where flooding is not an issue.
The City Council in November authorized a $825,000 bond ordinance for demolition of the Hamilton Laundry building and an application for demolition is awaiting approval from the state Department of Environmental Protection. City Administrator/Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier said last week that demolition could occur three to four months once the state gives its OK (he’s hoping for February or March). The state, however, might require a historical soil analysis (basically searching for historical artifacts and such) since an ampitheater will be built. A similar soil analysis was required for The Savoy project on Main and Monroe.
On tap for 2008: Park Square, Sky View
Nothing Earth-shattering in the mayor’s State of the City address last night. The new year should bring with it the completion of Park Square and Sky View at Carriage City Plaza, which includes a Hotel Indigo. Mayor James Kennedy pledged that downtown redevelopment efforts would continue to see progress this year, despite a downturn in the national economy as a result of the subprime mortgage crisis.
The largest portion of the mayor’s nine-minute remarks focused on a new billing method for sewage. He expects the city’s assessment from the Rahway Valley Sewerage Authority (RVSA) to increase from $3.6 million in Fiscal Year 2007 to $6.1 million in FY 2010, or almost 70 percent in the next three years.
Speaking of the subprime mortgage mess, what effect has it had on Rahway’s plans? I happened to pose that question to City Administrator and Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier just last month, after reading about Asbury Park’s problems, and one Hoboken developer switching condo projects to rentals because of the housing market.
Pelissier said the city hasn’t been adversely affected by the real estate market — in terms of redevelopment — and rattled off an update on a number of projects:
* Park Square (rentals) has made plans to take out permits for the second building, which will face Main Street.
* Dornoch I (Main and Monroe streets) has taken out permits for The Savoy (36 units for purchase with 7,000 square feet of retail).
* Station Place (Five stories, with 80 units and 132 parking spaces, on Campbell Street between Elm and Cherry, for purchase) is still in the process of acquiring properties and relocating the main tenant, A&M Tool Co.
* Wheatena (Elizabeth and West Grand avenues) has requested assistance on the acquisition of properties for its 200-unit project (for purchase).
* Renaissance at Rahway, 72 units with underground parking, also requested assistance of the Redevelopment Agency to acquire the remaining three properties necessary to control the site (Triangle Inn area on Monroe Street). Five of the eight properties necessary are under contract.
* The Town Center project in the City Hall area is still being discussed, and the potential developer is negotiating with retailers as well as the property owners on the site. “As you can imagine this project is complex and will take some time to coordinate all the components of a project this size,” Pelissier said.
If a developer wanted to convert a condo project to rentals, as in some towns, the developer would have to come before the Redevelopment Agency again for approval, he said.
“Each week developers contact the mayor or myself inquiring as to the possibilities of developing in Rahway,” Pelissier said. “Also take a look around the downtown area, properties are being improved in the Arts District as well as throughout the downtown. This points out the small investor continues to believe in the future of Rahway as well as the larger developers.”
The mayor also mentioned that City Council has authorized demolition of the Hamilton Laundry site. I’ll have an update and potential timeline on that later this week.
Downtown Options, Part Two
With my coffee shop rant out of the way, welcome to Part II on the most recent poll results, which had grocery/specialty food store garnering 44 percent of the vote, ahead of brewpub/bar/restaurant, 32 percent, and coffeehouse/bagel shop, 20 percent.
To 26…and beyond!
Happy New Year! 2008 is off like a rocket as it’s been another record-breaking week for Rahway Rising. Everyone here (read: me) is thrilled and just trying to keep up. The blog poll has reached new heights yet again, a marked 25-percent increase in the number of votes cast from the last poll, jumping from 20 to 25 (Assuming everyone voted once and did not stuff the virtual ballot box, which wouldn’t be hard to do, but would impugn one’s voting integrity). On to the results…
“What would you like to see downtown?”
Grocery/specialty food store 44% (11/25)
Brewpub-style bar/restaurant 32% (8/25)
Coffeehouse/bagel shop 20% (5/25)
Other 4% (1/25)
Clothing 0% (0/25)
While none of the options garnered a majority, surprisingly (at least to me), there appeared a clear winner in grocery/specialty food store, a decisive 12 percent more than brewpub-style bar/restaurant. Poll results also might indicate that I was running low on options after that. The showing from “Clothing” was embarrassing, and might very well be banned from any future polls indefinitely, and “Other” was there in hopes that readers might get a little crazy with the comments section and go outside the box. To be fair, I think everyone’s got their fill of the Gap or comparable options at nearby malls or neighboring downtowns.
As for grocery/specialty food store, I know there’ s no room for a giant supermarket downtown, but there’s been talk of a Trader Joe’s-type store for the proposed Town Center project at City Hall. There are a few bodegas or glorified convenience stores, but apparently poll readers want another option when it comes to groceries.
Coffeehouse/bagel shop had a more than respectable 20-percent contingent, but judging from my conversations with people who live or are familiar with downtown, I expected it to challenge brewpub for the top spot. If there’s one takeaway in those discussions, it’s that a coffeehouse/bagel shop/coffee shop/cafe should be a gold mine downtown, or Rahway at least should be able to support more options. Never mind that you can’t find a decent bagel anywhere near downtown.
A coffeehouse might also address another complaint/concern common about downtown: there are just not many options when you’re out getting your Sunday paper. Is it that there isn’t enough foot traffic to support such an enterprise, or is it that the option isn’t there, and thus, foot traffic doesn’t follow (a.k.a., The old chicken or the egg)? If recent experience is any indication, perhaps it’s that the foot traffic isn’t here yet.
Moca Motion Cafe, in the train station, is a prime location but has been vacant for months (or is it already a year?). NJ Transit holds the lease on the space, which is perhaps too big if it’s only going to be a commuter coffee joint as opposed to a lounge/cafe. Reggie’s Roast (Main Street, at the end of East Cherry), was new, clean and pretty, but no one was ever in there (and it was more of a wholesale operation anyway, with the city pushing for the retail aspect). American Jubilee (89 E. Cherry, now an art gallery) was an absolute delight. More of a bakery/dessert place, it had the cozy vibe that many coffeehouses aim for (and brownies to die for), but one reason might have been that it could barely seat a dozen people. Both have been gone a few years already. Personally, I think the best coffee place was the old Eat To the Beat Cafe when it was on the corner of East Cherry and Irving (where The Lofts are), before it moved further in on East Cherry and changed its name to Beat Cafe (where A Taste of Portugal bakery and cafe is now). Taste is a good start, but with hundreds of new residences — and more coming — one would think downtown could support more options. What do you think?
Now that I’ve got my coffeehouse rant, there’s not much room for my brewpub/restaurant rant. I’ll save it for another time; stay tuned later in the week for Part II on the poll results.
Irving-Fulton realignment
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Intersection improvements at Irving Street and East Milton Avenue are expected to begin next month, and wrap up by April, the same time the hotel is scheduled to open. Improvements will include the realignment of Irving and Fulton streets, as well as signalization. The winning bid came in at about $875,000, which the City Council on Monday night officially accepted from Rahway-based Berto Construction.
Senior housing proposed for St. Mary’s
City Council members were presented Tuesday night with a plan for a four-story, 50-unit affordable senior housing development to replace the former St. Mary’s convent. Use of the church, gymnasium and school buildings at the complex on Central and Esterbrook avenues would not change.
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Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Newark initially needs approval from City Council, which would include a Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILOT), before even applying to the Planning Board. The project would be funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which looks for need and support for such projects. The Archdiocese has built five such projects through its Domus Corporation, a single-asset corporation that brings together government funds with parish properties, said Catholic Charities CEO Phillip Frese.
“The administration is more than convinced of the need for this,” said City Administrator Peter Pelissier.
Council members had some concerns about parking and the size of the new structure. The project would include 49 one-bedroom units and one two-bedroom unit (for a superintendent on site). The existing building would be demolished and some parking spaces and the driveway to Esterbook Avenue would be realigned, said Steve Cohen, an architect for the Archdiocese.
Fifth Ward Councilwoman Jennifer Wenson-Maier disagreed that a new four-story building would fit into the neighborhood, and expressed concerns about parking and that three adjacent residences were not yet contacted by the Archdiocese. Some creative redesign of the layout, she suggested, could allow the building to be pulled to the right, “making everyone happy.”
The population of such a project typically is associated with the municipality in which it’s developed, said Don Lubin, a consultant for the Archdiocese. He estimated 50 to 60 percent of residents have some connection to the municipality. Applicants for the affordable housing must meet three requirements: they must be someone in the household; someone older than 62; and income requirements of less than about $30,000 annually. The typical applicant to such senior housing projects in New Jersey are single females about 75 years old, he said. Individual units are about 540 square feet.
Third story to rise from ashes
Boarded-up windows and a charred facade could be transformed into a renovated three-story building along East Cherry Street by April. The Planning Board unanimously gave minor site plan approval Tuesday night for the former wig and beauty supply store that went up in flames in the summer of 2005.
The plan adds a third floor to the existing building, which would be set back to allow for a balcony, and also maintain the existing scale and proportion along East Cherry Street, said Michael Nelson, architect for Dornoch Rahway.
It minimizes the impact of the addition, and gives more of a two-story look from street level, he added. Dornoch has two other projects downtown: The Savoy and The Westbury. The first floor would have 1,402 square feet of retail, with another 2,863 square feet for three residential units on the second and third floors. A variance was necessary because zoning regulations require six parking spaces (1.8 per unit). The Rahway Parking Authority, which held ownership of the building until a plan was presented, will sell the property and as part of the sales agreement will designate the necessary parking spaces. The second floor will have two 700-square-foot, studio-type apartments with “very open floor plans.” The remaining roughly 1,400+ square feet on the third floor will feature a two-bedroom, two-bath unit. All three units are expected to be for purchase, not rentals.