HillTop Partners Urban Renewal LLC joined public officials on Tuesday to mark the opening of 280 Park Place in Irvington. — Courtesy: HillTop Partners Urban Renewal
By Joshua Burd
A development group has unveiled the first piece of a mixed-income residential project at the former site of a blighted, long-vacant hospital in Irvington.
HillTop Partners Urban Renewal LLC on Tuesday joined public officials to mark the opening of the project, 280 Park Place, which has delivered 114 mixed-income units off Chancellor Avenue. The five-story building is the township’s first major residential project in decades, following the demolition of Irvington General Hospital about two years ago.
Irvington Mayor Tony Vauss called the milestone “an exciting and significant day” for the Essex County township.
“The closure of Irvington General Hospital was devastating to our community, and this project is symbolic of Irvington’s resurgence,” Vauss said. “I am grateful to the developers for not only choosing to invest in our township but for also delivering a transformative and world class project.
“This is only the beginning for Irvington, and my administration was proud to play a role in facilitating the completion of this important redevelopment.”
HillTop Partners Urban Renewal is a joint venture of Kapwood LLC and Urban Builders Collaborative, which includes Adenah Bayoh of Adenah Bayoh and Cos., Patrick Terborg of TD+Partners and Matt Gross and Nick Lettire of Lettire Construction Corp. In unveiling the first phase of 280 Park Place, they said phase two is expected to begin in 2020.
The project was funded by Greater Newark LISC, JPMorgan Chase and with 9 percent Low-Income Housing Tax Credits awarded by the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency. It incorporates sustainable design by utilizing energy-efficient appliances and systems, with high-end finishes in each unit and amenities such as a fitness center, a fully furnished resident lounge, a courtyard, a children’s library and on-site parking.
Developers and local officials had spent years mulling the redevelopment of the hospital, which was torn down after being vacant for more than a decade. They celebrated the project on Tuesday, in a ceremony that also drew the Irvington Township Council, Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr. and state officials.
“280 Park Place marks the beginning of an ambitious development plan that will not only increase affordable and market-rate apartments,” said Lt. Governor Sheila Y. Oliver, commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs and chair of the NJHFMA board. “In place of a vacant hospital building, the new 280 Park Place will be infused with individuals and families who will become part of the community.”
