500-Unit Project Tops Out in Jersey City Innovation Hub
The buildings will serve as the residential component of a 30-acre live-work-play campus.
Scholars Village, the flagship residential project within the Jersey City innovation hub SciTech Scity, has officially topped out. The development’s two buildings, developed by Alpine Residential, are each a dozen stories in height.
Located at 225 Phillip St., Scholars Village is a mixed-use development rising just south of the Liberty Science Center. Upon opening in 2026, it will offer 500 rental residences, amenities and 4,000 square feet of supportive retail space.
The 30-acre SciTech Scity innovation campus was established through the teaming of Liberty Science Center and the City of Jersey City. SciTech Scity will connect scientists, students and tech companies in a fully integrated live-work-play environment. The full campus is set to include the Liberty Science Center High School, a STEM-focused magnet school, as well as Edge Works, an eight-story office building that will include 60,000 square feet of lab space and 40,000 square feet worth of conferencing areas.
Approvals needed
For Alpine residential, getting to this point was a climb in and of itself, one that involved quite a bit of collaboration with third parties. “First, we were awarded the project after a competitive bidding process, so we’re grateful to have been selected,” William Rosato, a managing partner, told Multi-Housing News. “We worked together with Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, the City of Jersey City and Liberty Science Center to design and entitle the development within the allowable zoning. Neighborhood meetings were also critical to get full support for the project to move forward and get to where we are today.”
Overcoming the obstacles required several steps, Rosato added. These included selecting lending partners EOS Investors and Bank OZK; the latter company provided the project with an $142.7 million construction loan back in February. For selecting the architects, the company held a design competition where Ismael Leyva Architects and GRT Architects were jointly awarded planning rights for the project. KLM Construction, Alpine’s partner for all of its Jersey City developments, served as the general contractor.
Leasing and management of the development will be directed by South Oxford Management, the affiliated management company of Alpine Residential.
Lobby base
Upon completion, Scholars Village will feature a blend of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments offering floor-to-ceiling windows and, in select homes, balconies or terraces. A lounge area, grilling stations, garden spaces and a swimming pool will be among the community’s outdoor amenities.
The Village’s indoor amenities will include a fitness center, co-working area with conference room space, demonstration kitchen, kids’ playroom, pet spa, storage, TULU lending system and on-site garage parking with EV charging stations. The development’s two residential towers will be connected by a one-story lobby base, also home to the property’s ground floor retail space.
LISTEN HERE: Mission Success: Is Multifamily and Retail a Match Made in Heaven?
Scholars Village and the surrounding SciTech Scity are part of the Bergen-Lafayette neighborhood of Jersey City, whose renaissance has been aided in part by Alpine Residential. The developer’s Bergen-Lafayette Collection features five mixed-use buildings that include almost 1,000 apartments and ground-floor retail.
Last month, a joint venture involving BXP and partners announced plans to build a 670-unit market-rate residential community featuring 350 parking spaces at 290 Coles St. in Jersey City.
