BRP, Pennrose JV to Begin 1st Phase of Jersey City Redevelopment

Bayfront redevelopment project. Image courtesy of Dattner Architects/Synoesis

Decades after residents and faith leaders in Jersey City, N.J., fought for cleanup of a contaminated site along the Hackensack River, the first phase of an 8,000-unit mixed-income housing project is moving forward on 16 acres of the 100-acre property where nationally recognized affordable housing developers will build nearly 1,100 residences.

An agreement for the first phase of the long-awaited Bayfront project was announced Tuesday by Mayor Steven Fulop, the Jersey City Redevelopment Agency and Department of Housing, Economic Development and Commerce. At the next JCRA meeting, the city will formally designate the developers, Bayfront Development Partners LLC—a joint venture of Pennrose LLC and Omni America LLC—and BRP Development Group, to implement phase one. The first phase is expected to be approved next week and the city expects to break ground on infrastructure work in the fall. When completed, the Bayfront project will be the largest mixed-income housing development in the tri-state region.

Jersey City bought the Route 440 property on the city’s west side from Honeywell Corp. in 2016 for $100 million. The two developers will pay a total of $26 million to develop phase one, which will have multifamily buildings constructed on four parcels. There will be a total of 35 percent affordable and workforce housing. BRP will build 552 units on their two lots, of which 193 will be affordable units. Pennrose/Omni will build 540 units with 189 of them affordable. The units at the Pennrose/Omni site will be up to 60 percent Average Median Income (AMI) and the BRP development will be a blend of 28 units at 30 percent AMI, 28 units at 40 percent AMI, 28 units at 60 percent AMI, 28 units at 80 percent AMI and 53 units at 120 percent AMI.

Councilman-at-Large Daniel Rivera, JCRA chairman, noted in prepared remarks that the development plan has been a thoughtful, collaborative effort. He said they made sure to choose the right partners for the project so that it would bring significant housing opportunities to those who need it most.

Eugene Schneur, Omni managing director, said in a prepared statement Bayfront would be a transformational project that will be a catalyst for future public-private partnerships in Jersey City. He added the redevelopment will transform underutilized land into a vibrant neighborhood.

The Bayfront project will also create opportunities for local workers and businesses and ensure that minority- and women-owned businesses are able to participate. BRP, led by Co-Founder & Managing Partner Meredith Marshall, is 100 percent minority-owned with a proven track record, including within New Jersey and nearby New York City.