Journal Square Towers gets one step closer...

[Brooklyn]

Cool Fang, thanks for the explanation.

[TheFang]

BTW - Why is it called Downtown?  Is it bcuz of its location (being on lower ground)?

Very few metropolitan areas are like NYC where Downtown is physically located south in the city. Everywhere else Downtown just means the center of town where there are places to hang out and things to do and where people gather. Mainly the cultural center of the town. Also, depending where you are in the city it is south or "down" from other areas.

[Brooklyn]

definitely true jcpeace.

However, I find JSQ housing stock is a lot more varied, many different styles if your into that.


BTW - Why is it called Downtown?  Is it bcuz of its location (being on lower ground)?

[jcpeace]

JSQ is coming along.  I have no doubt that soon it will be the spot and sorry Downtowners but JSQ just might take the lead in a few years as being the true center of Hudson county.

Just my gut feeling.

sure it's coming along....but its housing stock doesn''t match downtown's.

[Brooklyn]

JSQ is coming along.  I have no doubt that soon it will be the spot and sorry Downtowners but JSQ just might take the lead in a few years as being the true center of Hudson county.

Just my gut feeling.

[MCA™]

JJ:


IT'S ALL UP FROM HERE
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
By CHARLES HACK
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

The structures that have stood vacant for several years on the block next to the Journal Square Transportation Center in Jersey City are now gone, making room for a highly anticipated twin-tower project.

Dozens of union workers joined developers and politicians next to rubble and bulldozers yesterday to trumpet the latest step toward the future $500 million One Journal Square development.

Construction of the mixed-use complex will begin this year and take three years to complete, officials said.

(more)

[MCA™]

Let's recap:

May 21, 2007
Harwood Properties LLC has closed on its $28 million acquisition of a 1.5-acre parcel in the Journal Square Redevelopment Area of Jersey City, NJ, for the development of two residential towers containing 1,000 units.

August 08, 2007
The twin-tower development proposed for Jersey City's Journal Square is changing shape. Originally proposed as two towers of more-or-less equal size, the latest design for of the mixed-use development to be built on the block adjacent to the Journal Square Transportation Center calls for a south tower between 35 and 40 stories and a north tower stretching 55 to 65 stories, according to the developer. ... Even though there is no change in the 1.2 million gross square footage of the development, Planning Director Bob Cotter said the design change would likely add more units to the projects, a number originally pegged at 1,034. ... Jersey City Redevelopment Agency Executive Director Robert Antonicello predicted existing structures on the entire block would be leveled by the end of the year so construction can begin.

September 14, 2007
Demolition and site work for the two-tower development slated for the heart of Journal Square will begin in January, the project's builder told a roomful of Jersey City department heads yesterday. ... Actual construction on the foundation and the seven-story base is scheduled to begin next spring.

February 11, 2008
A Jersey City developer who has already received a 30-year tax abatement to help build an ambitious twin tower project in Journal Square - and has recruited a deep pockets partner to the deal - is now asking the city for a multi-million low-interest loan, city officials said. ... Downtown Councilman Steven Fulop blasted the request for additional assistance, especially since the developer received a 30-year tax break calling for annual "payment in lieu of taxes" of 10 percent, the lowest PILOT rate handed out in recent years.

03-27-2008
Fences have been erected in the Square around the old buildings that are on the site.  It looks like they're prepping for demo.

October 06, 2008
The Jersey City Planning Board will consider tomorrow night an amended site plan for the two-tower, mixed-used development proposed for the old Hotel on the Square block in Journal Square. The revised plan adds height and residential units to the development, while it cuts retail space; particularly the retail space that was planned to go underground. ... Lowell Harwood said plans to build a below-ground retail level were scratched due to a "problem with hard rock." "It would be too expensive to remove," Harwood said. "It would have added a lot (of cost)." ... [H]e predicted breaking ground within six months.

October 07, 2008
The Jersey City Planning Board approved a revised site plan for the Journal Square development tonight that slashes its retail space by more than half and boosts the height of its two residential towers by a few stories. The Planning Board voted unanimously at a special meeting to approve the modifications to plans it approved in January. The revised plan slashes retail space planned for below ground from 156,196 square feet to 70,385, according to the approved plans. It also cuts the number of parking spaces from 783 to 687, and places them above ground, squeezing out some more retail space. The revised plan also boosts the number of rental units from 1,503 to 1,615. The north tower will now rise 667 feet and 68 stories. The shorter south tower will have 50 stories.

November 26, 2008
The Jersey City City Council last night, before a chamber packed with hundreds of union workers, unanimously approved the most generous tax abatement deal in the city's history for a giant two-tower development in Journal Square. The 30-year abatements call for annual payments in lieu of taxes to the city of 10 percent of gross annual revenues for the mixed-use 68-and 50-story towers. ... The $400 million development on 1.5 acres next to the PATH Transportation Center is planned to have 1,615 rental units, 70,000 square feet of retail space and 700 parking spaces. The 68-story north tower will be built first, with construction expected to begin within months, officials said.

03-20-2009
There is supposed to be a celebration at Journal Square on April 7th, 2009 for completion of the demolition and the beginning of the new construction. ... I live in the area and the demolition has not even started.

[MCA™]

SOON TO BE GONE
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
By AMY SARA CLARK
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Jersey City residents can finally say good-bye to the dilapidated buildings still standing next to the Journal Square PATH station.

By April 7, the remaining structures on the 1.5-acre site will be gone, a spokeswoman for one of the partners developing the site said yesterday. Work begins Monday, she said.

The buildings - most vacant for more than three years - will be demolished to make way for a $500 million, two-tower development containing 1,615 rental units, 70,000 square feet of retail space and 700 parking spaces.

Construction will start before the end of the year, said Liz Opacity, a spokeswoman for Jersey City-based Harwood Properties, one of the development partners.

Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy - who has made the rejuvenation of Journal Square a priority of his administration and part of his campaign for re-election - applauded the movement.

"My administration has been the first in decades to take the necessary steps to restore Journal Square as the central business district of Jersey City, and we are pleased to see this project move forward," Healy said.

Part of an adjacent parking lot will be fenced off during the demolition, but no other Journal Square facilities will be affected, Opacity said.

The walkway in front of Hudson County Community College at 25 Pathside is blocked, but that is unrelated to the demolition work, Opacity said. Officials at the college couldn't be reached for comment.

[Soshin]

It won't take long to knock down the old "3 Guys" and McDonalds however I seem to remember this was supposed to have started months ago and they were arguing over extended tax abatements or something like that.

The photo-shopped invitation is scary as hell tho....

[vsega72]

There is supposed to be a celebration at Journal Square on April 7th, 2009 for completion of the demolition and the beginning of the new construction. You may RSVP here:

http://thenewjournalsquare.com/pdf/square-renaissance-invite.pdf

I live in the area and the demolition has not even started.

[MCA™]

JJ editorial:


Development, yes. This tax deal, no.
Tuesday, December 02, 2008

Last week, the Jersey City administration of Mayor Jerramiah Healy did all but give away the first-born of every family in the city to make certain that the designated developers of the Journal Square Towers will realize an immense profit.

Two nights before Thanksgiving, the City Council set the table for MEPT Journal Square Urban Renewal LLC by approving the most generous tax abatement deal in the city's history.

What does one make of the fact that most of the City Council members voiced the opinion that the abatement is a bad deal for the city, and then voted to approve it? It is not a good deal for the city.

The 30-year abatements calls for annual payments instead of taxes to the city of 10 percent of gross annual revenues for the mixed-use 68- and 50-story towers. The city will receive $500,000 in the first year, with payments increasing in stages to $3 million a year - about $74 million over the life of the deal averaging nearly $2.5 million per year.

This is a result of original developer Lowell Harwood having to partner with a bigger player with deeper pockets. Maryland-based Multi-Employer Trust, an equity fund that is immune to the credit crunch, did not like Harwood's original tax abatement deal enough to justify it to shareholders - thus the renegotiation.

This newspaper has been clamoring for Journal Square development for years. It is potentially the most important first step in defining the above-the-Palisades-city for the 21st century. It is so significant that it was this opinion that the city is trying to ram a "vision" of Journal Square area redevelopment down the throats of its taxpayers solely to improve financing for certain projects that are on the drawing board, including the Journal Square towers.

One other item: The invasion of trade union members at the City Council meeting was a crass display. This was pulled in Bayonne to intimidate government decision making on use of the former Military Ocean Terminal. In Jersey City, these decisions are so momentous to a large neglected part of the city that unless more than 50 percent of these construction workers live here, they should have stayed home.

[MCA™]

Council approves Square abatement
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
By PAUL KOEPP
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

The Jersey City City Council last night, before a chamber packed with hundreds of union workers, unanimously approved the most generous tax abatement deal in the city's history for a giant two-tower development in Journal Square.

The 30-year abatements call for annual payments in lieu of taxes to the city of 10 percent of gross annual revenues for the mixed-use 68-and 50-story towers.

Under the terms of the three agreements - two for the towers and one for a seven-story pedestal of retail space and parking - the city will take in $500,000 in the first year, with payments eventually increasing in stages to $3 million a year.

The city is expected to take in $74 million over the life of the deal, which officials and the developer, MEPT Journal Square Urban Renewal LLC, have said is crucial to getting the project underway.

Union worker after union worker spoke in favor of the abatement, delaying the vote.

"Right now we're hurting," said Hudson County Building Trades president Mike McCade. "We can use the work."

Lowell Harwood, one of the project's principal developers, promised the towers would bring a "new era" to the Jersey City neighborhood.

"Journal Square can revive if we get together and do it," he said.

The $400 million development on 1.5 acres next to the PATH Transportation Center is planned to have 1,615 rental units, 70,000 square feet of retail space and 700 parking spaces.

The 68-story north tower will be built first, with construction expected to begin within months, officials said.

[OneJC]

The Hotel on the Square site remains a hole in the heart of the city, with development once again stalled. The failure to seek proposals from developers with nationwide experienced in mixed-use projects of this scale has left us with a no-bid redevelopment contract. Its latest version proposes two 10-story parking garages with 50- to 70-story residential towers above and limited and reduced retail space, which will minimize this project as a destination. Prior to the financial meltdown in October, the developer sought tax abatement terms that would cost the city $500,000 per year.

We will never know if the current plans are the best use of one of the regions premier redevelopment sites, adjacent to a PATH station and the county transportation hub with 8 million annual commuters passing through. When will the city rein in no-bid development contracts of this scale and clean up the redevelopment process banning pay to play campaign contributions to city officials responsible for approving redevelopment plans and tax abatements?

Please join us at City Hall on Tuesday, November 25th when the largest tax abatement ever in JC is up for approval by the City Council.

For more information please visit:
OneJerseyCity.org

<a href="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2152622&amp;amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;amp;show_title=0&amp;amp;show_byline=0&amp;amp;show_portrait=0&amp;amp;color=00ADEF&amp;amp;fullscreen=1" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2152622&amp;amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;amp;show_title=0&amp;amp;show_byline=0&amp;amp;show_portrait=0&amp;amp;color=00ADEF&amp;amp;fullscreen=1</a>
 

[alb]

Does Journal Square have a merchants' association that really represents the interests of the businesses there?

There are really a lot of great, unique businesses there, and I think it would be good if someone could make sure that the redevelopment efforts don't trample them.

[Case]

Just make sure someone tells Lipski where the bathroom is. 

It's right where he likes it.

[Ski Palisade]

Just make sure someone tells Lipski where the bathroom is. 

[MCA™]

2 TALL TOWERS, 1 MASSIVE BREAK
Push for 'biggest discount' on developer's taxes
Thursday, November 13, 2008
By PAUL KOEPP
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

The Jersey City City Council gave the redevelopment of Journal Square a boost forward last night when it introduced the most generous tax abatement package in the city's history for a landmark two-tower development.

The abatements call for payment in lieu of taxes to the city of 10 percent of gross annual revenues for the mixed-use 68-and 50-story towers over the next 30 years.

Under the terms of the three agreements - two for the towers and one for a seven-story pedestal of retail space and parking - the city would see revenue of $500,000 in the first year, $1 million in the second and $1.5 million in the third year, said Business Administrator Brian O'Reilly.

The payments would then increase to $2 million annually in years four to seven, $2.5 million in years eight to 19, and be $3 million in each of the remaining years, he said. The developer would lease the buildings to an intermediate entity. The city's 10 percent share would be based on that lease agreement, not the higher amounts collected in rents.

O'Reilly said he did not know how much of a break that would mean for the developer, MEPT Journal Square Urban Renewal, LLC.

"There's no doubt this is a big tax concession," he said. "This is the biggest discount on property taxes the city has ever given to any developer."

But city officials and the developer say the long-term payoff will be huge, bringing in more than $50 million in Urban Enterprise Zone revenue, parking taxes and permit fees and adding $2.8 million to the city's affordable housing trust fund.

The $400 million project on 1.5 acres next to the PATH Transportation Center is planned to have 1,615 rental units, 70,000 square feet of retail space and 700 parking spaces.

The developer and city officials have insisted the project would be financially impossible without the tax abatement.

O'Reilly said the project is unique because it is being self-financed by its majority partner, the Maryland-based Multi-Employer Property Trust, and is therefore insulated from the credit crunch. MEPT is a national real estate equity fund that invests union pension funds.

The abatement could be finalized after a public hearing at the next City Council meeting, Nov. 25.

The 68-story north tower will be built first, officials said. Construction is expected to begin within the next few months.

The City Council also adopted a resolution designating the surrounding area as "an area in need of rehabilitation," allowing the city to advance its plans to redevelop Journal Square.

[MCA™]

Amended Journal Square mega project is approved
by Charles Hack
Tuesday October 07, 2008, 10:34 PM


Rendering of the development planned for Journal Square.


The Jersey City Planning Board approved a revised site plan for the Journal Square development tonight that slashes its retail space by more than half and boosts the height of its two residential towers by a few stories.

The Planning Board voted unanimously at a special meeting to approve the modifications to plans it approved in January.

Not all went smoothly, as an attorney for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owns the neighboring transportation terminal, said the agency is concerned about the safety of its passengers.

The attorney, Harry Barr, asked the city to transfer authority for approval of the building plans to the P.A.'s chief engineer and wanted assurances that PATH would be indemnified against injury during the construction.

After a sometimes heated discussion, the developer's attorney, Eugene Paolino, agreed to show the plans to PATH engineers.

Many of the plan's approved changes are landscaping improvements to the plaza in front of entrances to the towers facing Kennedy Boulevard and to a rooftop terrace, but to keep costs to the approximately $400 million budgeted for the project.

The revised plan slashes retail space planned for below ground from 156,196 square feet to 70,385, according to the approved plans. It also cuts the number of parking spaces from 783 to 687, and places them above ground, squeezing out some more retail space.

The revised plan also boosts the number of rental units from 1,503 to 1,615. The north tower will now rise 667 feet and 68 stories. The shorter south tower will have 50 stories.

Lowell Harwood, the principal of Harwood Properties, which is involved in the project with Multi-Employer Property Trust and Becker and Becker, said demolition may start by the end of the year.

[MCA™]

Jersey City's Journal Square mega project could get taller
by Ken Thorbourne
Monday October 06, 2008, 4:48 PM

The Jersey City Planning Board will consider tomorrow night an amended site plan for the two-tower, mixed-used development proposed for the old Hotel on the Square block in Journal Square.

The revised plan -- which modifies a proposal the board approved in January -- adds height and residential units to the development, while it cuts retail space; particularly the retail space that was planned to go underground.

The revised plan hikes the number of rental units from 1,503 to 1,615 and slashes retail space from 156,196 square feet to 70,385.

It also bumps up the height of the north tower from 65 stories to 68 stories and the height of the south tower from 45 stories to 50, according to documents submitted to the city. The higher tower will now stretch 667 feet, about 8 feet lower than the maximum height allowed for the project, city officials said.

Tomorrow's planning board meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m., 30 Montgomery St., 14th floor.

Lowell Harwood, one of the development partners, yesterday said plans to build a below-ground retail level were scratched due to a "problem with hard rock."

"It would be too expensive to remove," Harwood said. "It would have added a lot (of cost)." Harwood is the principal of Harwood Properties based in Jersey City and he predicted breaking ground within six months.

The previous design called for relocating and reconstructing the Journal Square fountain. According to the new plan, the fountain will remain in place and receive upgraded filtration and mechanical equipment.

This $400 million venture is being self-financed by its majority partner: The Multi-Employer Property Trust based in Bethesda, Md., a national real estate equity fund that invests union pension funds.

During the summer, administration officials rejected the terms of a 30-year tax abatement sought by the developer. Eugene Paolino, the developer's attorney, said yesterday he plans to submit an amended tax abatement "shortly."

[MCA™]

Another JJ editorial. Anyone see demolition/construction crews at work there lately?


What's up with Square project?
Thursday, September 04, 2008

Whenever the subject of development at Jersey City's Journal Square comes up, city officials always make very positive comments. The only questions this newspaper has are what will go up on the eyesore block adjacent to the PATH Transportation Center, and when will construction begin?

There appears to be an idea of what is planned. Last thing heard is that it is a $500 million project that will include twin residential towers, offices, shops, and some parking. History has shown that there are often changes, particularly when development is delayed.

This brings us to the "when" question.

In November, officials suggested that the much needed change on the Square would begin in the summer of 2008 with construction of the towers' foundation. It would be a two-year project.

Unfortunately, summer is over and the buildings that once housed McDonald's, KFC, and other businesses are still there.

The last thing the public heard was that there were negotiations for a proposed 30-year tax break for the development that would provide payments in lieu of taxes to the city of 10 percent of gross annual revenue.

Several months ago, both sides said it is too early to say what negotiations may yield. Is it still? Why has the project stalled?

After decades of the city having to endure a rotting, dilapidated group of buildings in the heart of the city's transportation hub and what was once a major shopping district, it seemed miraculous that buyers for the property were found in February 2006. There were even artist's renderings of what could be constructed on the site.

Now that the Democratic National Convention is over, it is time for City Hall to tell the public where this project is going.

How about it, mayor? How about it, City Council?

[MCA™]

JJ opines on the towers:

Towers deal can't shortchange city
Thursday, June 12, 2008

The good news is that Jersey City may finally see new residential towers with some commercial space start to go up on what is the eyesore block of Journal Square. The bad news is that at least one proposed tax abatement would be a bit of a sweetheart deal for the developers.

A proposed 30-year tax break for the development would provide payments in lieu of taxes to the city of 10 percent of gross annual revenue.

Negotiations indicate the majority investor - the Bethesda, Md.-based Multi-Employer Property Trust, a national real estate equity fund - prefers that the city's 10 percent be based on the lease agreement, not the possibly greater amount collected from the building's residential and commercial tenants.

The reason is that the Multi-Employer Property Trust and partners plan to create a company that would lease the building and then sublease to tenants. While the payments to the city would be based on the master lease, the new leasing company would theoretically be reaping greater revenues.

In essence, the developers are creating another layer of ownership by leasing the building to itself to realize bigger profits while the city is shortchanged. This begs the question of whether similar tax abatement deals exist in the city.

A Journal article by Ken Thorbourne reveals the existence of a May 20 memo by Stephen J. Skrocki, the city's division director of abatement management, that explains there would be $323,000 in tax abatement payments and fees to the city in the first year of this kind of deal. He adds that in that year the city would have to provide $793,000 in government services.

Skrocki also does not have high hopes for fiscal improvements over the remaining years of such an agreement.

Both sides say it is too early to say what negotiations may yield. City officials point out that the effort is to meant to realize a $500 million project next to the PATH Transportation Center.

The city has desired redevelopment on the Journal Square site for more than several decades, but it should not be done at any cost.

[MCA™]

In talks on tax break for Square towers
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

A proposed 30-year tax break for a landmark development in Jersey City's Journal Square would be a huge money loser, costing the city nearly $500,000 in the first year alone, according to a memo by a city official.

While the deal would bring in $323,000 to the city in the form of payments in lieu of taxes and other fees during the first year of the abatement, the city would have to shell out $793,000 for various government services, according to the May 20 memo by Stephen J. Skrocki, the city's division director of abatement management.

And the years following Year 1 don't look too hot either, according to a copy of the memo obtained by The Jersey Journal.

Although "it is not possible to project past the first year, negative results can be expected over the life of the tax exemption unless the revenues from the Master Lease are improved," Skrocki wrote.

The proposed abatement calls for payment in lieu of taxes to the city of 10 percent of gross annual revenue.

But to maximize profits for the project's majority investor - the Bethesda, Md.-based Multi-Employer Property Trust, a national real estate equity fund that invests union pension funds - the development partners plan to create a company to lease the building.

The city's 10 percent would be based on the lease agreement, not the far greater amount collected from the building's residential and commercial tenants.

City officials and a representative of the developer - MEPT Journal Square Urban Renewal, LLC - were quick to emphasize last week that the tax abatement is still being negotiated.

"My hope is those discussions will conclude shortly," said Alan Marcus, a spokesman for MEPT. "It would not be appropriate to describe something that is at best ethereal right now."

Business Administrator Brian O'Reilly said the city might have to stomach a property tax loss to get the signature, $500 million project, next to the PATH Transportation Center, built.

"The renaissance of Journal Square is a priority of my administration," Mayor Jerramiah Healy said. "The benefits (of this project) for the entire city will be increased tax revenue, the creation of hundreds of construction and permanent jobs, and the jump-starting of the revitalization of Journal Square."

Lowell Harwood, one of the development partners, had predicted completing demolition of the 1.5-acre site by May and starting construction this summer.

"We all want this to happen. But it has to be favorable to us," said City Council President Mariano Vega, a member of the committee negotiating with MEPT. "We are not just surrendering."

[Ski Palisade]

Fences have been erected in the Square around the old buildings that are on the site.  It looks like they're prepping for demo. 

[MCA™]

2 towers promise to jump-start rebirth
Thursday, February 21, 2008
By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

When he was 8 years old, Lowell Harwood got his first taste of the family business. His job was parking cars on the family's lot on Cottage Street in Jersey City. His feet couldn't even reach the pedals.

"I used to put the car into neutral, and there was a little hill. So I used to roll the cars down and pull the brake up," Harwood recalled. "That's how I learned the parking business."

In many ways, Harwood, now 78, hasn't applied the brakes much since.

Together with brother Sanford, Harwood parlayed a four parking lot inheritance into a garage giant. By 1996, they owned 135 lots in the United States and Canada.

Then in 1997 they flipped it, selling the operation to Central Parking, the nation's biggest fish in the parking-business pond, for close to $100 million.

Since then, Harwood, a Lincoln High alum, has been making a second fortune assembling and selling real estate, mostly in Manhattan. With Sanford now retired, Sanford's sons - Brett and Scott - are now his top lieutenants.

The third-generation family operation, with headquarters at 26 Journal Square, is also investing in their own backyard.

Three years ago, as part of a quartet of partners, the Harwoods opened the 130-unit State Square apartments at the site of the old State Theater on Kennedy Boulevard in the Square.

But that effort pales in comparison with their newest venture: a massive $500 million, mixed-used development that holds the promise to make Journal Square the bustling, magnetic center of the city it used to be.

The two-tower development planned for the old Hotel on the Square block next to the Journal Square PATH Transportation Center is to consist of 1,500 market-rate units, 150,000 square feet of retail, and, not surprisingly, five levels of parking.

"Journal Square was the historic hub and center of Jersey City," Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy said. "We have removed a couple of unproductive eyesores from Journal Square and we look forward with great anticipation to the development of two spectacular towers that will bring retail, commercial and residential units to Journal Square and restore it to its former place as the heart and hub of our city."

Having agreed to buy out a slumlord who slinked out of town after paying a record-setting $1.1 million in building and fire code fines, Harwood Properties signed a redevelopment deal with the city in May 2006. Then came a couple of minor details: How to finance and build a $500 million development?

Through a family friend, Harwood generated a list of 25 potential partners. One choice topped the list: The Multi-Employer Property Trust based in Bethesda, Md., a national real estate equity fund that invests union pension funds. With $6.2 billion in assets, MEPT's presence on the development ticket meant the project could be essentially self-financed.

Last September, the newly formed MEPT Journal Square LLC - a partnership that includes MEPT, Harwood Properties and Becker + Becker, MEPT's builder - signed a new redevelopment agreement with the city.

MEPT has a 66 percent stake in the project, Harwood Properties 21 percent, and Becker + Becker 13 percent. The plan now calls for a 65-story north tower and a 45-story south tower. A terrace level on the seventh floor is to feature a swimming pool, fitness center and courtyard terrace.

Harwood hopes to start construction in the spring.

Asked about his motivation to get the project done, Harwood harkened back to a meeting he had with the partners in the State Square project.

"We felt sitting around the table that Jersey City has been very good to us," Harwood said. "We felt very strongly we have to do something to show Jersey City is going to rise up and be the old Jersey City it used to be back in the '20s when everyone was coming to Jersey City."

© 2008  The Jersey Journal

[MCA™]

From the JJ:


City may not see revenue for decades
Monday, February 11, 2008
By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

A Jersey City developer who has already received a 30-year tax abatement to help build an ambitious twin tower project in Journal Square - and has recruited a deep pockets partner to the deal - is now asking the city for a multi-million low-interest loan, city officials said.

Lowell Harwood, managing partner of Jersey City-based Harwood Properties, is asking the city to lend the project $20 million to $40 million by floating "revenue allocation bonds," city officials said.

In keeping with state guidelines, the developer would repay the loan, plus interest.

But with revenue allocation bonds, the developer deducts the costs to cover the loan from whatever taxes are owed the city. This means it could be years, even decades, before the city sees any revenue from this $500 million, mixed-use development planned for the block adjacent to the PATH Transportation Center, officials said.

Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy said his administration is hearing the developer out, but the public need not worry.

"I know they are looking for some kind of assistance having to do with infrastructure," Healy said. "Just because someone may be looking for assistance, the city is not obliged to tender that assistance. Before any agreement is struck, the city council and I will be most vigilant with the taxpayers' money."

Harwood, who has joined forces with the Multi-Employer Property Trust based in Bethesda, Md. - a union pension fund investment company with $6.2 billion in assets - to build the project, didn't return phone calls seeking comment.

But Elizabeth Opacity, his spokeswoman, said: "We have been working in partnership with the city on an ongoing basis to discuss the best way to move this overall program forward and revitalize the entire area. There have been no final determinations. Only discussions. There are no conclusions."

Journal Square Councilman Steve Lipski believes the city should give Harwood the money. "I support this one billion percent," Lipski said. "Helping the jewel of Jersey City and the only central business district of Jersey City is the right thing to do at this time."

Downtown Councilman Steven Fulop blasted the request for additional assistance, especially since the developer received a 30-year tax break calling for annual "payment in lieu of taxes" of 10 percent, the lowest PILOT rate handed out in recent years.

"The city is obviously broke and this is a dangerous door to open," Fulop said. "The next thing Lowell is going to ask for in a couple of months is for the city to build the building for him."

© 2008  The Jersey Journal

[Case]

"It will be sited on a bluff high above Jersey City's downtown, with Manhattan and Hudson River views from each unit."

Sounds like they have this in mind:




New Buildings to Dance in the Wind
By Bill Christensen

posted: 22 May 2007 12:00 pm ET

A series of rotating buildings based on Dynamic Architecture will be built around the world, starting in Dubai, U.A.E. The Dynamic Architecture concept was introduced by Florentine architect David Fisher.

The rotating buildings [VIDEO ] get their electrical power from wind turbines that are placed between floors and which rotate freely with the wind. Additional power is provided from solar cells on the tops of the individual floors.

Each individual floor is able to rotate slowly, based on commands issued by the owners of condos or apartments on that floor. I assume that the building owners can also take control, for coordinated movements of the floors. Note that the rotation of the floors is slow and uses power - the rotation of the floors does not produce power.

The building is constructed around a central core; each floor is composed of individual pie-like sections that are pre-built and hoisted up the central core (see illustration). The builder claims that rotating buildings can be constructed by just ninety people on the construction site; compare this to the typical skyscraper construction site, which may have up to 2,000 workers at a time.

Construction dates for the first building have not yet been announced, but the first one will be built in Dubai. Pre-fabricated units for the tower will be produced in a facility set up in Jebel Ali (a port 35 kilometers southwest of Dubai). The same units will then be shipped to eleven other major cities, including Moscow, Milan, New York and Tokyo, where similar towers will rise.

[Soshin]

call me kooky, but this following spoonfed statement is physically impossible, no?

"It will be sited on a bluff high above Jersey City's downtown, with Manhattan and Hudson River views from each unit."

No, not impossible. But they won't be great, panoramic views. If you angle the building properly, you can get at least a partial view of Manhattan/the Hudson from three faces, so as long as there are no apartments with windows only on the west-facing side, then all apartments will have "Manhattan and Hudson River Views," no matter how partial those views are.

Even on the lower floors?  It's gonna be hard to see over the concrete carbunkle...eh...sorry I mean PATH station.   

[Bobblehead]

call me kooky, but this following spoonfed statement is physically impossible, no?

"It will be sited on a bluff high above Jersey City's downtown, with Manhattan and Hudson River views from each unit."

No, not impossible. But they won't be great, panoramic views. If you angle the building properly, you can get at least a partial view of Manhattan/the Hudson from three faces, so as long as there are no apartments with windows only on the west-facing side, then all apartments will have "Manhattan and Hudson River Views," no matter how partial those views are.

[Kindelan]

Take me to the bluff. I want to see this motherfucker.

[NON]

call me kooky, but this following spoonfed statement is physically impossible, no?

"It will be sited on a bluff high above Jersey City's downtown, with Manhattan and Hudson River views from each unit."

[Kindelan]

Here is a picture of the newly designed Journal Square towers. Looks pretty cool.  Enjoy!


http://s58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/?action=view&current=renderingofproject-1.jpg

GEE WIZ That sure does look cool! Gee willikers thanks for taking time out of your day to post this on here.

You sicken me.

[Bobblehead]

Here is a picture of the newly designed Journal Square towers. Looks pretty cool.  Enjoy!


http://s58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/?action=view&current=renderingofproject-1.jpg

Holy crap. "Gee, let's jam in every possible ("upscale") retail tennant at street level, and build some green space ON TOP of that, so only OUR tennants can enjoy it."

I would think developers of the tallest building in New Jersey could give back a little to the neighborhood for stealing all their sunlight.

Oh, wait, there will be a Starbucks.  Never mind.

[MCA™]

Article from developer rag The Real Deal:


Bargain prices, new development stir interest in Jersey City's Journal Square
Harwood Properties building tallest towers in Jersey City
By John Celock

Jersey City is beginning to look inward. As the city sometimes called "New York's Sixth Borough" grows, it is expanding westward from its waterfront. As part of this trend, developers are turning their eyes to Journal Square, a historic neighborhood located three PATH stops from Manhattan. A hub for the city's burgeoning Indian American community, Journal Square is filled with small shops and low-rise buildings -- but two planned residential towers will set a height record not only for the city, but for New Jersey overall.

A middle-income area of the city -- named for the Jersey Journal newspaper, which has been headquartered there since 1912 -- Journal Square has also been attracting growing commercial interest, as demand for Class B office space for back-office operations rises.

In the past, Journal Square had not seen the same boom as the city's waterfront, which is dotted with luxury condo and office towers, or downtown, which has attracted new shops and cafes as well as residents. However, with prices going up on the waterfront, and land running out, Journal Square, historically a retail and commercial center, is generating more interest.

"There are a lot of people looking for close proximity and larger spaces for less money," Lynda Lee, a sales associate with DJK Residential, said. She noted that she has been doing more work in Jersey City as young professionals look for lower prices than those they find in Manhattan. "It's 11 minutes from the city, and for a lot of New Yorkers, it feels like they never left Manhattan," Lee said.

"They are running out of property on the waterfront," added Lowell Harwood, managing partner of Harwood Properties, which is developing the new complex. "The cost is higher on the waterfront."

Harwood Properties is planning a two-tower, 1,500-unit residential complex, with 150,000 square feet of retail space, slated to start construction in the first quarter of next year. According to Harwood, the project will consist of a 60-story and 40-story tower on top of a seven-story parking deck. The 60-story tower will stand taller than the Trump Organization's much-heralded condominium project in the Powerhouse Arts District along the Hudson River.

Currently, Journal Square is a relative bargain as existing condos run approximately $300 a square foot, while Jersey City's waterfront has been selling at roughly $500 a square foot for new construction. Manhattan condo prices, by contrast, ran nearly $1,350 a square foot in the third quarter, according to numbers from Miller Samuel appraisers.

One-bedroom rents in new construction on the Jersey City waterfront average $1,600 a month. Harwood has not yet announced whether units in the new complex will be for rent or for sale.

Yeon Benkovitz, a real estate agent with American Homes Realty, said that she is seeing more clients willing to look at Journal Square. She said the demographic that had been looking at the waterfront five years ago has been turning its head toward Journal Square in recent months. This includes young professionals, young married couples and suburban empty nesters.

Harwood identified all of these groups as key demographics he hopes to lure to his project. He also said that transit options played a key role in his selection of the site, along with the historic aspects of Journal Square. The neighborhood has long been known as Jersey City's transit hub, with a PATH Station providing service to both Lower Manhattan and Midtown, along with a New Jersey Transit bus depot providing service to the rest of northern New Jersey.

The project will sit across the street from the PATH station and steps from the bus depot. It will be sited on a bluff high above Jersey City's downtown, with Manhattan and Hudson River views from each unit.

Harwood plans to start demolition on the project in January, with groundbreaking slated for March. Completion is scheduled for the summer of 2010. Building amenities will include a fitness center, residential courtyard, rooftop pool, child care and a playground -- amenities that are lacking in many of the existing buildings in the neighborhood.

Architect Bruce Becker of Becker and Becker Associates, the designer of the Octagon on Roosevelt Island, said the design will incorporate the existing historic elements of the neighborhood such as the Loew's Jersey City Theatre. That approach is similar to what the firm did with the Octagon, where it incorporated historic elements from an old mental hospital into a modern luxury building.

Plans for the complex's retail component include recruiting an upscale grocery store, a Starbucks, a bank and several restaurants. There have also been recent talks about bringing a Staples to the area. There are currently no large bookstores and upscale grocery stores in Jersey City, though there have been unconfirmed reports that Whole Foods will be opening a store in the Jersey City waterfront district.

Harwood said that while service retail, such as banks and dry cleaners, will be brought into the new complex, he does not want it to be a main aspect of the site.

On the commercial front, the financial services clearing operation Pershing LLC has been a longtime presence in Journal Square. The square had been a commercial center since the newspaper moved there in 1912, but fell behind the 1990s boom when new Class A office buildings sprouted along the waterfront. In recent years, six Class B buildings have been constructed and rehabbed, and are being marketed for the back offices of financial services companies.

Jonathan Merrill of Time Equities said the square's reputation as a mass transit center, along with the new development interest in the square, contributed to the area being a destination for some office space.

Merrill said that while Journal Square remains in demand, it is lagging behind the burgeoning waterfront commercial space because of the lack of Class A buildings and the fact that waterfront properties are closer to Manhattan.

So even as new development comes into the square and more buyers show interest, the question is whether Journal Square will take off like the downtown and waterfront neighborhoods or remain an afterthought.

"Clients do not come looking for Journal Square; they come looking for downtown," said Lauro Arantes, an agent at Weichert Realtors. "I've shown them Journal Square when they are priced out of downtown."

[elgoodo]

I heard that there's a Whole Foods coming to Journal Square.

[bdlaw]

But they're gonna have a GAP!

A GAP!

[NON]

Here is a picture of the newly designed Journal Square towers. Looks pretty cool.  Enjoy!


http://s58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/?action=view&current=renderingofproject-1.jpg

UGH! NOOOOOOOOOO MOOOOOOOOOOORE BOXES!

i was totally excited about the first design, largely because the towers were sleek and curved and a sort of response to the hideosity down the hill that is Newport box-town.

And of course, design 2.0 is straight out of the Lefrak playbook.

UGH.

[10Huron]

Here is a picture of the newly designed Journal Square towers. Looks pretty cool.  Enjoy!


http://s58.photobucket.com/albums/g245/jcwalkingman/?action=view&current=renderingofproject-1.jpg

[bdlaw]

I have a semi-related question.

Why are we always starting demolition in the middle of winter when the ground is firmer and thus in theory shock waves travel further and affect the surrounding buildings more?

[MCA™]

Final OK for Journal Square plan
by Ken Thorbourne
Thursday October 04, 2007, 5:18 PM

The two-tower development planned for the old Hotel on the Square block in Journal Square has received final site plan approval from the Jersey City Planning Board.

In a 7-0 vote on Tuesday, the board gave the half a billion dollar mixed-use project a unanimous thumbs up.

"The new buildings are quite impressive, very stylish," Leon Yost, the board's vice chairman, said today. "These are going to be icons for Jersey City."

The 1,500-unit project is to consist of a 7-story base with retail and parking, and two residential towers rising from the base -- a 58-story north tower and a 38-story south tower. Construction is scheduled to start in the spring.

The development team is comprised of three entities: The Multi-Employer Property Trust based in Bethesda, Md., a national real estate equity fund that invests union pension funds; Harwood Properties based in Jersey City; and the Fairfield, Conn.- headquartered Becker + Becker, an architecture, planning, preservation and development firm.

With $6.2 billion in assets, MEPT is expected to self-finance most of the construction.

"When pension funds start investing in your town, you know you're on solid ground," said Planning Director Robert D. Cotter. "They have deep pockets and need guaranteed return over the long haul. They are looking for sure things."

[MCA™]

Update from the JJ:


Building in Square will start in April, builders tell city

Friday, September 14, 2007
By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Demolition and site work for the two-tower development slated for the heart of Journal Square will begin in January, the project's builder told a roomful of Jersey City department heads yesterday.

Actual construction on the foundation and the seven-story base is scheduled to begin next spring, said Bruce Becker, president of Fairfield, Conn.-based Becker + Becker, an architecture, planning, preservation and development firm that has a 12.5 percent stake in the development.

Some of the buildings at the site have been demolished, while others still have tenants operating businesses.

Becker revealed the latest timetable for the $500 million mixed-used development planned for the block adjacent to the Journal Square PATH Transportation Center at a meeting of city officials called by Housing, Economic, Development and Commerce Acting Director Robert Antonicello.

It is the second such gathering for a group Antonicello has dubbed the Smart Development Interdepartmental Team (SDIT), which will be responsible for coordinating and tracking development projects in the city. Yesterday's meeting was roughly 40 percent presentation by Becker, 60 percent brainstorming session.

Along the way, Becker revealed the project was reconfigured from two more or less equal-sized towers to a development that will now feature a north tower rising 58 floors above the seven-story base and a south tower that will add 38 stories to the base.

The redesign makes the project more profitable by taking better advantage of views of the city and upping the number of studio, 1-bedroom, and 2-bedroom rental units from 1,200 to 1,500, he said.

The seven-story base will contain five levels of parking and three levels of retail, both components having one level below grade, Becker said.

A terrace level on the seventh floor will feature a swimming pool, fitness center, and courtyard terrace, he said.

The seven-story base and north tower will be built first and the market will drive when the south tower gets built, Becker said.

The plan goes before the Planning Board on Sept. 25 for site plan approval.

[NON]

Holy crap, 36 million for an acre and a half?!   

that's including legal fees yo.

[bdlaw]

Holy crap, 36 million for an acre and a half?!   

[MCA™]

From the JJ:


New investors for Journal Square development
by Ken Thorbourne
Friday August 24, 2007, 5:56 PM

The Jersey City-based company designated over a year ago to develop a key block in Journal Square is now a minority owner in the mixed-use, $400 million project.

At a meeting of the Jersey City Redevelopment Agency earlier this month, representatives of the partners said that Harwood Properties, headquartered in Journal Square, now has a 22 percent stake in the development.

The majority owner is the deep-pocketed Multi-Employer Property, based in Bethesda, Md., a national real estate equity fund that invests union pension funds. That company has a 66 percent interest in the project, representatives said.

MEPT has already invested $36.2 million, according to its Web site, mostly to help purchase the 1.5 acre site adjacent to the Journal Square PATH Transportation Center.

With $6.2 billion in assets, MEPT is expected to self-finance most of the construction, giving the project the advantage of eschewing conventional financing from banks, city officials said.

The third partner in the development is Becker + Becker, an architecture, planning, preservation and development firm based in Fairfield, Conn., which has a 12 percent stake in the development.

According to representatives of the companies, Becker + Becker has worked with MEPT on several projects, most notably "The Octagon," a 500-apartment renovation on New York City's Roosevelt Island.

Lowell Harwood, managing partner of Harwood Properties, said the reconfigured development team is a sign of confidence in the project.

"They came to Jersey City and they like what they saw and they are doing what should have been done in Journal Square many years ago," said Harwood, whose company has mostly built and owned parking lots.

The Journal Square project, which started out conceptually as two equal-sized towers, is due to return to the Planning Board Sept. 25 for preliminary site plan approval.

As currently conceived, the north tower, to be built first, would be 62 stories -- 55 stories of residential units sitting on a 7-story base consisting of parking and 150,000 square feet of retail, city officials said. The number of stories for the south tower would be in the "low 40s," the officials said.

Overall, the project could contain as many as 1,500 residential units, officials said.
The city is still in talks to try to relocate a McDonald's, a dentist's office, and a card store located at 15-16 Journal Square.

By the end of the year, the entire 1.5 acre site will be leveled so the expected two-year construction period can begin, officials said.

[MCA™]

From the JJ:


Plan for Square towers revised
Wednesday, August 08, 2007

The twin-tower development proposed for Jersey City's Journal Square is changing shape.

Originally proposed as two towers of more-or-less equal size, the latest design for of the mixed-use development to be built on the block adjacent to the Journal Square Transportation Center calls for a south tower between 35 and 40 stories and a north tower stretching 55 to 65 stories, according to the developer.

The City Council is scheduled to introduce the change at its meeting scheduled for 10 a.m. today at the Mary McLeod Bethune Center, 140 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.

"Both towers have been designed to maximize views and unit layout," said Liz Opacity, spokeswoman for MEPT Journal Square Urban Renewal, LLC, the developer. "And the height difference is for aesthetics when you are looking at the towers."

Lowell Harwood, managing partner of Jersey City-based Harwood Properties - a partner in the limited liability company formed to undertake the development - said Monday the design change was made at the request of his development partner, Washington D.C.-based Multi-Employer Property Trust (MEPT), a national real estate equity fund.

MEPT referred all questions to Opacity.

Even though there is no change in the 1.2 million gross square footage of the development, Planning Director Bob Cotter said the design change would likely add more units to the projects, a number originally pegged at 1,034.

But, Opacity said, the developers are "still assessing the market and working on architectural drawings to determine the number and layout of units."

The $400 million development, to include multiple levels of parking and retail, is still considered a rental project, Opacity said, but "the feasibility of the condominiums will continue to be explored."

Jersey City Redevelopment Agency Executive Director Robert Antonicello predicted existing structures on the entire block would be leveled by the end of the year so construction can begin.

McDonald's, at 15-16 Journal Square, still hasn't relocated.

KEN THORBOURNE

[PhillyGirl]

And you have to admit, from the outside the Beacon looks like Arkham Asylum.

I dunno, if I get committed (which is not an entirely remote possibility) I'd be pretty psyched for those views!

[bdlaw]

you say that as if it's a bad thing?

I prefer Wayne Manor.

http://www.thewaynemanor.com/aboutus.html

[Mr_Grieves]

1 bedrooms in the new bldg. across from Rite Aid are going for about $1500 - the one I looked at was completely ordinary.  And there are virtually no amenities there.  And parking costs an arm and a leg.

When I read how much a one bedroom was going for, I nearly snarfed my coffee.  But, NON is right.  The Square has so much potential because of how completely derelict it's been for a while now.  If Harwood succeeds in building both these towers with all of the necessary amenities to make the  former citizens of Newport comfy, than I think  in time, those prices will seem within reason.  Right now however,that vision is  a little clouded by having to walk by the half a dozen vagrants who hang out by the handicap ramp and throw up by the dunkin donut's dumpster.

[NON]

Not knocking the hill, the view, or the heights in the slightest.  I was referring to Cyclo's pointE that it looks like Grove PointE's brother and sister.  I was envisioning a shining Grove PointE upon the hill.

oh, i think cyclo was referencing the state apartments in JSQ, which do have a grove pointEy "bricktorian" flair to them. at least they can use the excuse that they had to work in a pretty defined plot.

i think the JSQ towers as rendered below look pretty cool myself.

And you have to admit, from the outside the Beacon looks like Arkham Asylum.

you say that as if it's a bad thing?

[bdlaw]

Not knocking the hill, the view, or the heights in the slightest.  I was referring to Cyclo's pointE that it looks like Grove PointE's brother and sister.  I was envisioning a shining Grove PointE upon the hill.

And you have to admit, from the outside the Beacon looks like Arkham Asylum.

[NON]

I dunno.  At least Grove PointE isn't on top of the hill for all to see...

what is your thing against hills - first The Beacon, now these buildings in JSQ? The views from up on the hill are pretty damn spectacular (park your car on the top of the JSQ garage roofdeck for an idea of how cool the views from these building will be).

were you dropped from atop a hill at some small age? left on the side of a mountain like an unwanted spartan female infant?

[bdlaw]

I dunno.  At least Grove PointE isn't on top of the hill for all to see...

[worm]

When I read how much a one bedroom was going for, I nearly snarfed my coffee.  But, NON is right.  The Square has so much potential because of how completely derelict it's been for a while now.  If Harwood succeeds in building both these towers with all of the necessary amenities to make the  former citizens of Newport comfy, than I think  in time, those prices will seem within reason.  Right now however,that vision is  a little clouded by having to walk by the half a dozen vagrants who hang out by the handicap ramp and throw up by the dunkin donut's dumpster.

[cyclotronic]

Looking at the home page of that site, they mention that the State Square rental building is "almost fully tenanted".  Anyone know if this is true?  I'd heard they were having trouble filling it (excluding the low-income units which went quickly of course.)  The building is kind of ugly -- it's sort of like a twin to Groove Pointe -- but it could have been much, much worse.

But this is The New Journal Square™.

[NON]

Is there any word on when this would actually be up, and habitable?

Not looking to move there, I just question the 1 bedroom for 2 big ones a month.  Then again, proximity to PATH.  But still.  2,000?  For a one bedroom?  In JSQ?

I had previously heard expected completion sometime in 2010, but i can't find where i got that from.

$2,000/month for a 1-bedroom is a lot for JSQ in 2007, but if they succeed at pulling in Newport-style renters, who basically leave their shoeboxes exclusively to go to the PATH and into New York, it's a legitimate alternative. And given that 1BR's in Newport currently go for way more than $2K/month, i can only imagine what they'll be up to when these two buildings in JSQ open.

[MCA™]

But this is The New Journal Square™.

[bdlaw]

Is there any word on when this would actually be up, and habitable?

Not looking to move there, I just question the 1 bedroom for 2 big ones a month.  Then again, proximity to PATH.  But still.  2,000?  For a one bedroom?  In JSQ?

[NON]

Harwood Closes on Journal Square Parcel

May 21, 2007
Written by Timothy A. Gilday

Planned Residential Towers Moving Forward in Jersey City Redevelopment Area

Harwood Properties LLC has closed on its $28 million acquisition of a 1.5-acre parcel in the Journal Square Redevelopment Area of Jersey City, NJ, for the development of two residential towers containing 1,000 units.

Harwood is planning the project in cooperation with the Journal Square Redevelopment Agency. The site, adjacent to the Journal Square Transportation Center, is currently used for parking lots.

The towers will both total around 50 stories and could cost $350 million to construct, according to local reports. Included in the project would be a ground-floor retail center, a rooftop fitness center, and 675 parking spaces on five floors. Typical one-bedroom units are expected to rent for around $2,000 per month.

Harold Sutton, owner of Centurion Realty LLC, and William "Skip" Dolan of Dolan Commercial Real Estate Services Inc. worked with Harwood Properties' Lowell and Scott Harwood to bring the redevelopment to fruition. "I'm looking forward to starting this project as soon as possible. It's time to bring back the excitement to the Square," said Lowell Harwood.

Since 1936, the Harwood family has operated a business empire in Jersey City that includes part ownership of the State Square apartment complex and numerous New York City properties. Lowell Harwood runs the business along with his son and daughter, Craig and Leslie Harwood, and his nephews, Brett and Scott Harwood.


http://www.costar.com/News/Article.aspx?id=7D477A2DC42E20F418612D6660F9693E

thanks to costar realty news and GrovePath for this article.

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