There are two things that people will remember about 2013 (at least according to traffic on this site): the hotel closing and the mayor resigning. If you look at the Google Analytics for 2013, the graph has a steady pace until September when it shoots up like a rocket and then comes back to Earth. Of course, there were other things that occurred in 2013, like construction under way on the 116-unit Metro Rahway and pending completion of another project, the 108-unit Meridia Water’s Edge.
Tag Archives: East Milton Avenue
Office center settles for 25% tax appeal reduction
Due to “popular demand,” our “Tax appeal week” posts have been extended into another week. OK, the real reason is I couldn’t get it done last week.
Continue reading Office center settles for 25% tax appeal reduction
‘Zero tolerance’ for parking under railroad tracks
In an effort to improve traffic safety as well as security around the train station, the Police Department has startd installing lane barriers along Milton Avenue, beneath the train trestle.
Illegal parking under the railroad has been an issue for some time. “This is something we have put a lot of thought into, and we have tried enforcement with negligible results,” Police Chief John Rodger said. “When we issue summons or chase cars out they come back pretty quickly and we just don’t have the ability to be there every moment.”
A layout was tested two weeks ago and the east side of the street was installed on Monday, with the other side pending weather and manpower, the chief said.
It’s always been illegal to park under the bridge and with the alert system in place post-9/11 the area was specifically designated a problem, Rodger said. Police also get a lot of complaints that motorists trying to turn left from Broad Street onto Milton Avenue can’t see and have to pull out into the intersection.
“We are hopeful that this solution will deter parking in that area, and eliminate the mid-block pedestrian crossings to get to vehicles previously parked under the bridge, while at the same time providing line of sight for vehicles trying to enter the intersection,” he said.
Once both sides of the street are completed, Rodger said there will be zero tolerance for vehicles parked in the bus stop or taxi stand on West Milton Avenue.
Hotel Indigo leaving, could convert to apartments
The 102-room hotel within Carriage City Plaza will lose its corporate flag next month and the condominium association will consider whether to convert the hotel space into another 68 residential units.
Continue reading Hotel Indigo leaving, could convert to apartments
Agency cool to preliminary plan to replace Mangos
A preliminary plan that would replace Mangos Bar & Grill and adjacent properties with a five-story residential development likely will have to go back to the drawing board to find more parking, among other concerns from the Redevelopment Agency.
Continue reading Agency cool to preliminary plan to replace Mangos
Home2 Suites coming along on Route 1
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| View from East Milton Avenue |
A new extended stay hotel is taking shape off Routes 1 and 9, with signage recently going up for the Home2 Suites by Hilton.
Plan moves forward for top floor of Carriage City
The top floor of Sky View at Carriage City Plaza will be renovated into 20 mostly one-bedroom apartments this year after the Planning Board granted a parking variance last week.
Under the revised redevelopment plan, approved by City Council last month, residential units within the downtown redevelopment area are required to provide 1.25 parking spaces while the previous plan required one per unit. The project already had been approved for an additional seven units units on the 17th floor — for a total 232 units in the building — but a parking variance was needed since seven units now would require nine parking spaces.
The 17th floor has been unoccupied and used as a staging area for materials that were supposed to be built as part of what was planned to be a penthouse level of two- and three-bedroom units, according to architect Greg Waga of Rahway-based Waga Enterprises. Instead, 20 rental units will be built (18 one-bedrooms and two two-bedrooms), along with amenities for residents only: a fitness center, WiFi library, and club room. Waga anticipates construction will begin around Memorial Day and continue into the fall.
Sky View’s owner has found that one- and two-bedroom units, ranging room 800 to 1,100 square feet, are very marketable in this area, Waga said, and the new design is more functional and a better use of the space. About 60 units of Sky View are owner occupied and the remaining 152 are rental units, which range in occupancy from 75 percent (114 units) to 85 percent (174), he said, adding that the leasing agent has a goal of reaching 85 percent this spring.
Waga presented a plan last October to the Redevelopment Agency to convert the 17th floor into apartments. He deferred questions about any possible uses for the rooftop to building manager Joe LoMonaco. There was talk that the original developer, who went into foreclosure after selling barely a third of the units, planned to use the rooftop for some type of bar or restaurant for use by residents and/or hotel guests.
Given the location and transit-oriented development, a mitigating factor is that the plan offers fewer but larger units, said Paul Phillips, planner to the Planning Board, adding that nearly all of the 20 additional units being one-bedrooms lowers the parking demand.
Attorney Christopher Armstrong presented a letter from the Parking Authority indicating they were satisfied with seven spaces. A daily count in the Lewis Street parking deck by the Parking Authority reveals an average of 246 vehicles, less than half of the 524-space capacity, he said, with uncovered portions of the deck sometimes being closed. There are a fair number of Sky View residents that do not have cars, which is part of the reason why the building was built where it was built, Armstrong told the Planning Board.
Mangos Grill on the block
Mangos Grill, a downtown restaurant and bar on Fulton Street, is up for sale.
Woodbridge-based Kislak Realty is handling the real estate listing, describing it as “large kitchen with opulent dining room, bar and entertaining area,” as well as on-premises parking. The liquor license is available for purchase, according to the listing. No word on asking price.
The property at 1349 Fulton St. is owned by G&T, Inc., which bought it in January 2004 for $555,000. The 0.7-acre site houses a two-story building and is assessed at $518,300, yielding a property tax bill of more than $32,000 last year, according to property records.