The $78 million M Lofts project at 35 Spring St. in Morristown could break ground by mid-2026, featuring homes ranging from studios to three-bedroom units in a building meant to reflect the town’s architectural character while introducing a modern, loft-inspired aesthetic. — Rendering by MHS Architecture / Courtesy: SJP Properties
By Joshua Burd
Officials in Morristown have all but cleared the path for a development that would bring 150 new apartments to a long-underused site near the landmark M Station office campus.
Its developer, SJP Properties, secured a crucial planning board approval late last month for the M Lofts project at 35 Spring St., setting up a potential mid-2026 groundbreaking. That paves the way for another high-profile addition to a downtown neighborhood that’s just a quarter-mile from NJ Transit’s Morristown station, with plans calling for 120 market-rate and 30 affordable homes, as well as the donation of a neighboring building to Habitat for Humanity to create another eight units for low- and moderate-income renters.
Designed by MHS Architecture, M Lofts will be the final phase of the M Station project on Morris Street that includes two new buildings with a combined 373,000 square feet of high-end office space. The properties are home to Deloitte LLP and Sanofi’s U.S. headquarters, having opened in 2022 and 2025, respectively, under a joint venture between SJP and Scotto Properties.
“We are incredibly proud to have received approval for M Lofts, the final phase of the Spring Street Redevelopment Area, in collaboration with the Town of Morristown and our partners at Scotto Properties,” said Victor Cividini, SJP’s executive vice president of residential construction. “This project represents more than just new housing as it’s fulfilling a commitment to Morristown’s future and a reflection of our responsibility to this community.
“In addition to the 20 percent of the homes designated as affordable, our partnership with Habitat for Humanity at 12 Spring Street will create additional pathways to homeownership while directly addressing the region’s critical housing needs while creating a vibrant, inclusive neighborhood.”
SJP noted that Morristown adopted the Spring Street Redevelopment plan in 2008. The initial phases, which spanned 120,000 and 253,000 square feet across M Station East and West, showed the pent-up demand for Class A office space in the acclaimed downtown, while M Lofts is meant to help meet the need for new housing as the central business district grows.
MorristownGreen.com was the first to report on the planning board’s approval, which was secured by Frank Vitolo of Sills Cummis & Gross PC. As noted by SJP, the six-story building will have a mix of homes ranging from studios to three-bedroom units in a structure meant to reflect the town’s architectural character while introducing a modern, loft-inspired aesthetic.
The development will also promote an active, community-oriented lifestyle supported by high-quality amenities and a new park with direct access to the Whippany River, SJP said. All of which will revitalize a site that’s home to an existing electrical supply building, three abandoned wood structures and several undeveloped lots.
Aside from the building that will go to Habitat for Humanity, the joint venture is donating and allowing for the preservation of the historically significant Lot 4, the site of one of the first publicly funded schoolhouses for Black students in New Jersey, established by the Morristown School District in 1877. SJP added that the project, which is supported by a 20-year payment in lieu of taxes agreement with the town, will support the revegetation of the Whippany Riverbank to prevent erosion in heavy storms as well as creating a pocket park along the riverbank for local residents to enjoy. The building is designed to reduce stormwater leaving the property by 50, 25 and 20 percent for the two-year, 10-year and 100-year storms, respectively, accounting for rainfall projections up to the year 2100.
Melillo Bauer Carman is the landscape architect for the development. Stonefield Engineering & Design provided site/civil and traffic engineering and professional planning services for the project.
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