Tag Archives: redevelopment

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‘Four more years!’

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So, if I’d started college at the same time I started this blog, I’d be done (at least with a bachelor’s degree — luckily I’ve already got one!). Well, that certainly puts things into perspective. But hey, happy anniversary anyway. I doubt I’ve had as much time to devote to the site in 2011 as in years past but I hope it’s been valuable or helpful to you in some way. Regardless, thanks for reading.

On average, the site gets about 1,000 visits and about 1,500 page views per week. In all, there have been almost 181,000 visits, more than 284,000 page views, and 57,500 visitors. Some other statistics about the blog:
– 380 Facebook friends
– 247 Facebook fans
– 161 Twitter followers
– 302 e-mail subscribers

People seem to have really gathered on Facebook in the past year, while email subscribers fluctuated, strangely, between 300 to as many as 330. Facebook and Twitter have been used to sprinkle in some related or interesting development-type stories that might be linked to at the end of an original blot post. Whether it’s a story from a Jersey media source or maybe something in New York or nationally-focused, there’s always something interesting going on elsewhere that provides perspective (or a good idea to steal) for local issues. Let me know if it’s worth continuing, or if you hate it.

Some ideas for the coming year, if I can keep it up, are doing a blog poll more often, and since we’ve got four years worth of writing, maybe a “retro blog post” occasionally, to revisit certain places or projects. Perhaps you have some other ideas for the future? Of course, I know we’re long overdue for another Rahway Rising happy hour.

And of course, here’s how it all started, with the very first blog post.

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It may not be specifically about a Rahway business, but this nj.com story from last week got me thinking about what it takes to start a small business and keep it going: “NJ Couple’s dream of owning business ends in disappointment.”

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City Council

Bond sale included $7.8M for redevelopment

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It’s long overdue for some details about the city’s bond sale this past spring that I promised last month when I posted the city’s top 10 property taxpayers.

The city borrowed almost $12 million in general improvement bonds, including almost $8 million for redevelopment- and arts-related items.

Ten of the 22 items in the $11.765 million bond sale were related to redevelopment, totaling $7.78 million for redevelopment, more than half of it related to the Hamilton Street arts projects. About $783,750 was authorized in 2007, which covered architectural concept plans, planning and engineering, surveying, DEP permitting, floor plans and elevations, and demolition of the Hamilton Laundry building. Another $4.5 million was authorized last year, but only $3 million borrowed so far, for the Arts District’s amphitheater, which would cover the renovation of the Bell Building (now referred to as the Hamilton Stage), construction of the amphitheater, acquisition of arts related equipment and eventual acquisition of the Elizabethtown Gas building (Block 167, Lot 1).

A breakdown of the 10 items, some dating back to 2000, can be found in this Excel file, including the amounts authorized and bonds issued, along with a brief description. At the April bond sale, the city secured a rate just below 4.51 percent over 20 years from J.P. Morgan (UBS Financial was the other bidder, coming in at under 4.59 percent). The bonds mature annually on April, beginning in 2012 at $350,000, increasing to $450,000 in 2015, $550,000 in 2016, $560,000 in 2017 and $640,000 in 2018, before leveling out at $700,000 annually through 2030. The complete maturity schedule can be found in this Excel file.

In tomorrow’s post, we’ll take a look at what Standard & Poor’s had to say in its report on the city.

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NJ Monthly magazine’s Table Hopping with Rosie paid a visit to Patria Restaurant and Mixology Lounge. She called it “a place in NJ that should be on your must-try list.” Overall, she had quite a few good things to say, calling the garlic shrimp better than anything found in Newark, and advising not to miss some entrees (including Patria pork, and I must agree) as well as dessert.

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City Hall Plaza

Meridia developer proposes 116-unit complex

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Parking and density issues are some of the initial concerns over a 116-unit development proposed along the Rahway River behind the public library. Developer George Capodagli made the presentation to the Redevelopment Agency Wednesday night with his daughter Kim, who manages the firm’s other complex in Rahway.

Pompton Plains-based Capodagli Property Company built Meridia Grand on East Grand Avenue, which broke ground in fall 2009 and started leasing last summer. He credited the Redevelopment Agency for its patience as his firm acquired several properties over the years before the 88-unit project could come to fruition.

The 0.755-acre lot behind the Rahway Public Library and Center Circle athletic complex is owned by the Redevelopment Agency and the initial design appears similar to Meridia Grand, with a sort of triangular-shaped building, with an interior courtyard, abutting the levee along the Rahway River.

The five-story complex, dubbed Meridia Water Edge, would have 116 units (96 one-bedroom/20 two-bedroom) with 91 ground-floor parking spaces. There would be 24 one-bedroom units (650 square feet) and five two-bedroom units (800 square feet) on each of the remaining four floors. Kim Capodagli, who manages Meridia Grand, said rents could run $1,500 for a one-bedroom and $2,000 for a two-bedroom but possibly more since it’s closer to the train station.

“A town grows on heartbeats,” said George Capodagli, who was effusive about redevelopment efforts in the city. “You need people to make a town move,” he said, adding that the proximity to downtown and city facilities like the recreation center and library, make it an ideal location.

To address parking concerns, Capodagli hopes to work out a plan to share spaces in adjacent, underutilized city parking lots, which he described as “virtually empty at night.” More parking likely will be necessary, as Capodagli said he’s not finding as many commuters as expected at his Grand Avenue development.

The project falls within a flood plain and Capodagli said parking would be two feet underwater  in a 100-year flood but residents could come out and parking in nearby city lots which are level.
City Engineer James Housten suggested to commissioners that the developer seek a preliminary application conference with the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) about the flood plain because he would have to demonstrate that residents could access the property during a flood. “I’m not saying it’s undoable but he has to address it,” he said.

Redevelopment Agency commissioners were complimentary of the design for the most part, with some minor questions about landscaping. While Capodagli told commissioners he’d like to be “in the ground” in six months, City Administrator and Redevelopment Director Peter Pelissier said that’s a very ambitious schedule considering the project would still needed approval from the City Council and Planning Board after a redeveloper is designated – which the agency should do next month.

Pelissier said the presentation was merely a preliminary conceptual proposal that was made on short notice to make Wednesday’s meeting but praised Capodagli’s cooperation with city departments and his track record on his previous project. He was confident that further discussion could iron out issues relating to parking and density.

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Uncategorized

Agency discusses potential developer

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Rahway is apparently drawing interest from a developer that has the funding to back a project Redevelopment Director and City Administrator Peter Pelissier told the Redevelopment Agency at its March 2 meeting that he and Mayor Rick Proctor met with a developer within the last couple of weeks who’s “very, very interested,” and has financing available, for development in Rahway. Later in the meeting, the Redevelopment Agency went into closed session for about 40 minutes to discuss the matter.

Government bodies are allowed to close portions of their meetings when discussing matters of personnel or potential litigation.

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David Ginfrida, owner of David Ginfrida Home Improvements on Elm Avenue, passed away March 10. His obituary appeared in The Star-Ledger and his funeral will be tomorrow morning.

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Apartments, Downtown, Rahway

Zoning Board to take up St. Mary’s senior housing

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The Zoning Board of Adjustment is expected to take up an application for a 51-unit senior housing development at its meeting Monday night. The four-story structure would be built on the St. Mary’s Church (now Divine Mercy Parish) complex, where the former convent building on Esterbrook Avenue was razed last year.

After three hours of testimony, questions from board members, and some public comment at its Jan. 28 meeting, the Zoning Board instructed the applicant, Domus Corporation, to come back with more feasible parking options. Domus is the development arm for Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Newark, building similar affordable senior housing in other New Jersey towns, with funding from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), including rent subsidies.

At issue is whether the project will provide enough parking. The current plan eliminates eight of the 86 existing spaces from St. Mary’s parking lot while adding 27 specifically designated for senior housing, leaving a total 105 spaces. The applicant seeks several variances in addition to preliminary and final site plan approval.

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A good read from NJ Monthly about two brothers who have helped to redevelop Jersey City over the past 30 years, and in particular their current project, a former hospital in the Hamilton Park neighborhood.

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City Council, taxes

State of the City 2011

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In this first State of the City address, Mayor Rick Proctor pledged to continue redevelopment focused on the arts, remove barriers to stimulate revitalization and recruit new business and redevelopment projects while beginning to actively market the city.

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Happy anniversary Rahway Rising

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Nov. 1 really snuck up on me this year. I don’t think I expected to still be doing this when I started three years ago, but here we are with Post #373.

I started out looking to post once a week — at least according to the very first blog post. I’ve gotten into the habit of aiming for two to three times a week if there’s something to tell, but it really ebbs and flows: some weeks I can’t find the time to get to the computer, other weeks I’ve got blog posts piling up (at least in my head).

I usually aim to provide some readership data in my anniversary posts but I haven’t had much time to compile anything about the most popular individual posts over the last year. Perhaps you’d like to share some your observations of the changes you’ve seen around town since we started?

We do get about 1,000 visits in a good week, and more than 200 visits during an average weekday. Since we started tracking data on Google Analytics in January 2008, in all, we’ve had 36,000+ visitors, 125,000+ visits and 205,000 page views. Some other current stats:

– 289 e-mail subscribers
– 190 friends on Facebook
– 183 fans on Facebook
– 95 followers on Twitter

All that has translated to maybe a penny a week through Google Ads since we gave that a shot starting in summer 2008. That’s not why I do it (thank goodness!). We’re always open to trying new stuff, even doing the Facebook and Twitter thing, as well as two happy hour events in the past year (and yes, we should do that again soon…). The mission of the blog remains the same: to provide information about what’s going on with redevelopment efforts throughout town, given the dearth of coverage.

I think the most fun for me are the random emails from readers, either inquiring about a certain project or something they saw, offering suggestions, or just a pleasant note to tell me how much they enjoy the blog. Whether you take an active or passive role in this little effort of mine, thanks for reading.

2nd anniversary blog post
1st anniversary blog post

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City Council, library

Mayor won’t seek re-election

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Mayor James Kennedy, who’s pushed downtown redevelopment efforts since first winning election in 1990, told members of the Democratic Committee Monday night that he won’t seek re-election to a sixth term.

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