There are plenty of parallels between the decline of the suburban office building and that of the legacy shopping mall, but the latter feels much more personal. I’m sure many of you would agree, especially in New Jersey, so you’ll find no lack of interest in the growing number of developers seeking to reinvent these once-proud retail hubs.
One such project is underway in East Brunswick, where Edgewood Properties and Paramount Realty have unveiled plans to repurpose the downtrodden Brunswick Square Mall into a mixed-use lifestyle center. That follows the joint venture’s purchase of the local landmark in late 2023, which led to some two years of planning and essential community engagement on how to revive the 775,000-square-foot property on Route 18. The developers, both with ties to the area, are now advancing a project that will include not just retail, but a complementary mix of heath care, fitness and lifestyle uses that will position the site for future generations.
“We understand that, for many of the people who live in East Brunswick, this wasn’t just the mall — it was part of their routine, their memories, their community, so we don’t take it lightly,” said Maurice Zekaria, Paramount’s CEO and president. “And change isn’t easy for some people, so our responsibility is to make sure that what we replace it with adds even more value to the community, more activity, more choices — a place where they can come back again and again.
“So we spent a lot of time listening over the last few years while we were preparing for this and working with our architects, and we’re excited about what we’re about to embark on.”
Our April issue also takes you inside The Journal, the $1 billion residential project in Jersey City that’s more than a decade in the making. Its developer, Kushner, officially unveiled the two-tower, 1,723-unit property in March in a ceremony that highlighted not only its completion, but its extraordinary leasing momentum. The project was already 50 percent rented as of March 16, just over six months after the first tower hit the market. That’s no surprise for a complex that’s directly south of the Journal Square PATH station and has the feel of a high-end hotel, providing condo-level finishes, sweeping views and an exhaustive set of amenities behind its gleaming glass exterior.
A key player in The Journal is longtime land use attorney Gene Paolino. As you’ll read in a related story, the project’s completion was especially meaningful for the senior partner with Genova Burns, who spent nearly 20 years working on the property as counsel to Kushner and to prior developers whose plans never came to fruition. And, as a Jersey City native, he’s been personally invested in the city’s growth during a legal career that spans some four decades, as he’ll continue to be as he and his clients contend with new leadership in City Hall.
You can find those stories and more in the latest issue of Real Estate NJ, which we’re happy to bring you as the spring season heats up (hopefully) on multiple fronts — from the event circuit to the pace of industry news. We’ll be there to cover it all in print and online. Until then, thanks for reading. Enjoy the issue!
Joshua Burd
Editor
