New Jersey Mixed-Use Property Recognized for Brownfield Redevelopment

Stafford Township, N.J.--Brownfield Renewal magazine recently honored the developer of Stafford Park, a mixed-use development in Stafford Township, N.J., with a Brownfield Renewal Award at the 14th National Brownfields Conference held in Philadelphia. The Stafford Park development, which was undertaken by the Walters Group, has a major multifamily component in the form of Stafford Park Apartments.

Stafford Township, N.J.–Brownfield Renewal magazine recently honored the developer of Stafford Park, a mixed-use development in Stafford Township, N.J., with a Brownfield Renewal Award at the 14th National Brownfields Conference held in Philadelphia. The Stafford Park development, which was undertaken by the Walters Group, has a major multifamily component in the form of Stafford Park Apartments.

The recognition was for successfully developing the 370-acre project on the site of a former landfill at the junction of New Jersey 72 and the Garden State Parkway, near Long Beach Island and at the edge of the New Jersey Pinelands. Winning in the environmental impact category, Stafford Park involved the management of environmental issues associated with two landfills, LEED certification for commercial and residential buildings, and the integration of sustainable energy components.

“People are beginning to understand that living in buildings built to a higher sustainability standard actually does result in savings in utility costs,” Edward Walters Jr., founder and partner of the Walters Group, tells MHN. “Besides being the right thing for the environment, building sustainably will help attract tenants.”

The apartment component of Stafford Park features 328 units, 216 of which are market-rate, while 112 are affordable. The apartments, which include one-, two- and three-bedroom units, are LEED Gold-certified, and were the first apartment property to garner that distinction in Ocean County, according to the Barnegat, N.J.-based Walters Group. The property features such amenities as a clubhouse with fitness center, community room, on-site management and maintenance, basketball court, tennis court, tot-lot and a barbeque area.

The retail component of Stafford Park also helped the property win its recognition, with the majority of corporate tenants at least attaining LEED Silver certification. The Vitamin Shoppe reached LEED Gold certification, and atop the Best Buy, PetSmart and Dicks Sporting Goods, there are solar arrays that provide 30 percent of the electrical needs of the stores.

Stafford Park is also distinctive for a solar power facility that Walters Group is building separately from the rooftop arrays, on 30 acres of capped landfill. More than 1,000 solar arrays at that facility will produce 6.5 megawatts of energy once it’s fully completed.