Del Sano Breaks Ground on Two MF Projects in Less Than a Week

By Anuradha Kher, Online News Editor

Union, N.J. –Del-Sano Contracting Corp. has started construction on two major projects in the past week: Kershaw Commons, located in Freehold, N.J., and The Village at St. Peter’s located in Pleasantville, N.J. and no it hasn’t been easy to get financing. Angelo Del Russo, CEO and founder of Del-Sano Contracting Corp., tells MHN, “It was much more because of the relationships we have formed with the developers of each of these projects and also demand for each is very high.”

Del-Sano Contracting Corp. broke ground on Kershaw Commons in Freehold, an apartment project supported by the special needs housing trust fund of N.J. and specifically designed for those afflicted with multiple sclerosis (MS). The 31-unit affordable residential rental project will be located on Gully Road, behind Applewood Estates and is expected to be completed by fall of 2011. It has been named for the late Ray Kershaw, a longtime Township Committee member and former Mayor of Freehold Township. Mr. Kershaw dedicated countless hours of his time and energy to creating specialty housing for the MS community.  It is the only housing designed specifically for those with MS in the Eastern U.S.

Larry and Ken Regan of Regan Development Corp., established a collaboration between the Centra State Medical Center’s Multiple Sclerosis Wellness Center, Mike Elkow of the Multiple Sclerosis Society, the Township of Freehold, County of Monmouth, the NJHMFA, NJDCA and TD Bank, as well as Raymond James Tax Credit Funds.

“We recognize many individuals’ desire for self reliance; therefore each apartment unit must promote independence,” said says Del Russo. “The units will be fitted to accommodate those with MS, especially as their disease progresses. We trust that this will make the nursing home option less likely for many of the Kershaw Commons residents in the future. We take pride in the confidence placed in us to construct a building promoting achievable comforts within the physical limits of those who will live here.”

The two-story frame building will include 31 apartment units with full fire protection. The development will be Energy Star Certified and include the Green Source requirements established by the NJHMFA. Every unit will have a fully accessible auto entrance door, remote operated when needed. The common areas open to tenants will include a wellness room, community room and multi-purpose room for their social or personal benefit.

All units are handicap accessible with special considerations for motorized chairs, lower window settings, tilt mirrors, and special vanities for knee access. It is the design team’s intention to include features that would simplify and provide fewer encumbrances for the typical daily routine of the MS occupant.

Residents will have a full kitchen with cabinet height and counter layout specifically planned for their use and comfort. The bathrooms will have roll in showers and linen/medicine closets with roll out low height shelving.  Bedrooms will contain enhanced wood blocking in the walls to support stationary mobility equipment and additional duplex electrical outlets at bedside.

The fully developed site will have a path for walking and motorized chair use. The spacious grounds will feature landscaping, storm water retention foliage and parking for 42 cars. There will be a sitting patio and a circular drive that allows access directly in front of the entry lobby. The residents will have an area for a raised garden for those with a green thumb. To the rear of the building there is specific access for emergency utility vehicles and fire trucks.

Del-Sano Contracting Corp. also broke ground on The Village at St. Peter’s, a six-story affordable senior housing complex for those 62 and older. It will be built at the former site of St. Peter’s Catholic Church Convent, located at 21 West Blackhorse Pike. That road access serves as the gateway into the Pleasantville downtown business district.

The Village at St. Peter’s will include 73 one-bedroom units, a two-bedroom manager’s unit, a multipurpose community space, dual elevator entrance vestibule (which may be entered from the Black Horse Pike or the driveway) and parking area off Decatur Avenue. Each one-bedroom apartment is 540 square feet and includes a kitchen, living room, bedroom and walk-in closet. The residential facility will have the Energy Star label of approval as well as handicap adaptable and accessible units.

The building is expected to be ready for occupancy in the fall of 2011.