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Other developers presented with Savoy project

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The administration is working with undisclosed developers in an attempt to have The Savoy property purchased from Wachovia bank, according to City Administrator and Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier.

Mayor James Kennedy is working with the bank and Dornoch about a possible purchase of the Main Street property, Pelissier said during a Redevelopment Agency meeting earlier this month. While it may not look like anything is going on at the site, he added, they’re “aggressively working with developers to move forward.”

The city plans to repair the sidewalk and move the fence back along the Main Street frontage of The Savoy, according to Pelissier. Whoever ends up doing the project will reimburse the city for the sidewalk work, he added.

Homes By Maplewood apparently has an updated Web site which no longer now lists The Savoy as “Coming Soon” but no longer The Lofts as it once did on our Local Links to the right, the leased apartments at the corner of Irving and East Cherry streets. It still mentions P&F Management’s “urban division is currently developing residential communities,” in among other places, Rahway.

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Apartments, Wheatena

Wheatena project ‘economically infeasible’

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Developers of the proposed 130 units at the former Wheatena/Quinn & Boden facilities on Elizabeth Avenue want to build the project — just not in this real estate market.

Redevelopment Agency attorney Frank Regan emphasized to commissioners at their meeting Wednesday night that Matzel & Mumford is still committed to the project as approved but could not sell the condos for what they needed to. The city will continue to update the redevelopment study for that redevelopment area, which they hired an consultant for last fall, funded by Matzel & Mumford.

Market conditions, “coupled with the continued unrealistic expectations of the property owners within the redevelopment area, as well as other prohibitive costs and constraints have, unfortunately, rendered this project economically infeasible at this time,” wrote Carl Erler, attorney for Matzel & Mumford, in a Dec. 4 letter to City Administrator and Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier.

A market study for Matzel & Mumford by East Brunswick-based Otteau Valuation Group in November pegged the average overall selling price at $294,000, with condos ranging from 1,646 to 2,306 square feet, with an average 2,041. Carriage Park at Rahway would consist of 72 “stacked” and 58 “traditional” townhouses. The plan was scaled down in 2007 from 300 units (264 condos/36 townhouses).

Representatives of Matzel & Mumford met last month with Mayor James Kennedy, Pelissier and Regan to discuss the timing of the project and current conditions of the real estate market.

“We have a significant amount invested in this project and we remain confident that the project will be viable when the market conditions improve,” Erler said in his letter.

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MyCentralJersey.com had a writeup of tomorrow’s First Thursday (Jan. 7), including an opening reception from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Rahway Art Hive on East Cherry Street.

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Carriage City Plaza, Downtown

First sale of ’09 for Sky View at Carriage City Plaza

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For the first time in about 50 weeks a unit sold in Sky View at Carriage City Plaza, according to property transaction records.

Continue reading First sale of ’09 for Sky View at Carriage City Plaza →

Bars, Zoning Board

Former Koza’s Bar comes down this week

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Demolition of Koza’s Bar started on Monday, two years after an initial proposal to build 12 units at the site was rejected.

The developer returned to the Zoning Board in October 2008 with a revised plan for nine units in a two-story structure at the West Scott Avenue site, which is about 0.88 acres. Final site plan approval was granted early this year and demolition was expected in the spring.

At that time, the developer hoped to put them on the market for about $350,000 but did not rule out renting the condos until the real estate market improves. The three-bedroom units will be about 1,600 square feet.

Thanks to reader Christine who tipped me off via the Rahway Rising Facebook page when demolition began on Monday.

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Carriage City Plaza, Condos

Carriage City settlement still not executed

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Carriage City Properties (CCP) still has not finalized or executed the settlement agreement with the Redevelopment Agency, attorney Frank Regan told commissioners during their meeting earlier this month. The Redevelopment Agency approved a settlement at its meeting in May. (For details on the agreement, see this earlier post.) A representative of Carriage City Properties had no comment.

Continue reading Carriage City settlement still not executed →

Apartments, Redevelopment Agency, Wheatena

Wheatena developers meet with city

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Developers of the project proposed at the former Wheatena factory at Elizabeth and West Grand avenues are scheduled to meet with city officials this week.

Continue reading Wheatena developers meet with city →

Foreclosure

Foreclosures begin on final 19 Riverwalk units

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Bank of America has started to foreclose on the 19 remaining unsold units at Riverwalk, said Redevelopment Agency Attorney Frank Regan at the agency’s meeting last week. The city also has begun the process on seven of those units for failing to pay property taxes, according to City Administrator and Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier.

Parsippany-based Diversified Communities built the 86 Riverwalk townhomes off East Milton Avenue several years ago and at one point had considered plans for another three dozen or so on the neighboring Kings Inn property. The last Riverwalk unit to sell (that I could find) went for $420,000 in the fourth quarter of 2008.

The city still is pursuing the developers for failure to complete improvements, including street paving and striping. Regan said he was contacted by an attorney for the homeowners’ association to determine whether the improvements could be completed and paid through a mortgage commitment or if the city could complete the improvements and assess the units.

The city and county did some paving work on Essex and Johnson streets in the spring and will pursue the developer in court for reimbursement, but other work remains, such as drainage.

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Since we’re on the topic of foreclosure, here’s a Wall Street Journal story from yesterday about foreclosures hitting top-tier markets.

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