Photo by Ryoji Iwata on Unsplash (left); Redevelopment sites near East Orange City Hall Plaza (top center); M Station, Morristown, New Jersey (top right); The Rail @ Red Bank, Red Bank, New Jersey (bottom right).
NJ TOD News
Asbury Park: Affordable Housing Could Be Required of 20% of New Homes Outside Waterfront
Austin Bogues, Asbury Park Press, April 1, 2020
The Asbury Park City Council is considering several progressive affordable housing mandates designed to increase the stock of affordable housing in areas beyond the city’s waterfront development area. As more properties along the shore approach the million-dollar price mark, city officials seek ways to combat housing displacement brought about by increases in luxury development. The current draft of the ordinance mandates 20 percent affordability on new multi-family development. The council is working with community-led organizations to fine-tune details of the ordinance.
Colliers: Morristown’s Downtown Primed for Continued Growth
Linda Lindner, NJBIZ, April 1, 2020
According to Colliers, the international commercial real estate services organization, Morristown’s redevelopment renaissance continues as commercial and multi-family projects transform the area, bolstering the town’s retail and nightlife scene. Office construction is also gaining traction near the Morristown Green, an historical park located in the center of Morristown. The arrival of big-name tenants brings promise to Morristown’s downtown as accounting and advisory giant Deloitte relocates its Parsippany office to M Station, a sustainably designed, transit-oriented mixed-use retail and office space.
Jersey City Rental Next to Liberty State Park Opens, Units from $1,910/month
Devin Gannon, 6SQFT, March 30, 2020
In Jersey City, Ironstate Development Company and Brookfield and Landmark Development have completed work on 295J, a luxury rental building. The project is sited near the Liberty State Park stop on the NJ TRANSIT Hudson-Bergen Light Rail and a Citi Bike station. 295J comprises 309 units; monthly rents start at $1,910. Occupancy is expected to start in April 2020.
JLL Capital Markets Arranges $17.5 Million Loan for Luxury Apartment Development in Red Bank, New Jersey
Multifamily Biz, March 30, 2020
JLL Capital Markets has secured financing for a development in Monmouth County via a contract worth $17.5M. The Rail @ Red Bank is a 57-unit mixed-use apartment project with over 6,500 square feet of retail space. The property is located adjacent to the NJ TRANSIT Red Bank Station and near bus services and a ferry terminal. According to Denholtz Properties, construction is expected to be complete by the end of the year.
Redevelopment Projects Could Come Near East Orange’s City Hall Plaza
Jared Kofsky, Jersey Digs, March 25, 2020
In Essex County, the City of East Orange has issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ), an open invitation to developers interested in redeveloping four key areas near the city’s City Hall Plaza. All four sites are proximate to NJ TRANSIT East Orange Station. Municipal officials are hopeful that partnerships with developers will lead to more high-density mixed-use development near the city’s Main Street. The RFQ states that more than $1 billion in development, including the $400 million Crossings at Brick Church Station project, is currently under construction or proposed within the city.
Regional and National TOD News
Thinking about a ‘granny unit’? Here’s why SLO County homeowners are building ADUs
Nick Wilson, The Tribune, April 1, 2020
Residents of San Luis Obispo, California are building secondary homes—commonly referred to as accessory dwelling units (ADU) or “granny units”— on their properties to help increase the housing supply and to offset housing costs. Targeted renters include local college students and other millennial renters, seniors looking to downsize, and caretakers. Building costs for an ADU can range from $85,000 to as much as $350,000 and construction can take from nine months to three years.
Portage Predicts Continued Downtown Growth
Doug Ross, NWI Times, March 29, 2020
Residents and city planners of Portage, Indiana foresee continued growth and urban development in the next few decades. With the city’s downtown as an anchor for cultural and social activity and commercial investment, Portage city officials envision a walkable, bikeable, thriving community with more public transportation, and vibrant parks and public spaces. Both Mayor Sue Lynch and City Planning and Development Director AJ Monroe have expressed excitement over the downtown’s economic potential but have yet to specify the timeline for updating the city’s comprehensive plan.
California saw dense housing near transit as its future. What now?
Debra Kahn, Politico, March 27, 2020
With more than 30 bills pushing for increased multi-family housing and transit-oriented development, members of the California legislature have been seeking ways to help add more than 3.5 million new housing units by 2025. Even before the coronavirus pandemic, tensions over up-zoning and fear of the gentrification that could follow has kept the body in gridlock over ways to increase the state’s housing supply. Now, San Francisco Democratic Senator Scott Wiener expects that anti-housing activists and NIMBY advocates will “abuse the coronavirus pandemic for other political goals” and find urban density a threat to the public health.
Density Is Normally Good for Us. That Will Be True After Coronavirus, Too
Emily Badger, New York Times, March 24, 2020
In the thick of the pandemic, with teleworking and social distancing in vogue, it is easy to blame urban density as the cause for disease and calamity. Author Emily Badger argues that the perks of urban density still far outweigh the unfortunate consequences. Urban density encourages transit, affordable housing, walkable and bikeable streets; it supports public hospitals and stronger public services, and provides an alternative to sedentary, car-dependent sprawl. Additionally, according to NYU historian, Jacob Reemes, dense social networks boost community resilience at a time of urban disaster.
International TOD News
AUSTRALIA — Are resilient, self-sufficient communities the answer to global pandemics?
Branko Miletic, Architecture and Design, March 30, 2020
As the coronavirus pandemic limits travel, gatherings, and most normal daily activities, Mike Day, Australian urban planner and designer, argues that the crisis will encourage leaders and developers to build more healthy, self-sufficient, and compact urban environments. He argues that isolation and loneliness brought about by the current lockdown only highlights the need for mixed-use, connected, and “livable” neighborhoods where people can easily walk, cycle, and run around. More compact development also makes it easier for residents to access spaces and services that meet their daily needs.
COVID-19 Could Affect Cities for Years. Here Are 4 Ways They’re Coping Now
Schuyler Null and Hillary Smith, World Resources Institute, March 20, 2020
Cities all over the world have begun work to combat the spread of the coronavirus, using four strategies to cope with the changes: restrictions against non-essential work and activity; the sanitization and fortification of public transit systems; the creation of alternative public transportation; and increased publication of important data and information. This article draws examples from China, Italy, America, Korea, Hong Kong, and Rwanda of how cities are coping in the age of COVID-related crisis.