The Hampshire Cos. welcomed its project team and local officials on March 22 for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Max on Morris, a new 85-unit luxury apartment building in Morristown. — Photos by Aaron Houston/Courtesy: Hampshire
By Joshua Burd
The Hampshire Cos. has unveiled a new 85-unit luxury apartment building in Morristown, with a design that caters to remote workers and more than a dozen homes reserved for residents with special needs.
The developer on Wednesday welcomed its project team and local officials to mark the completion of what’s known as Max on Morris, at 175 Morris St., where residents are seconds from Interstate 287 and less than a quarter-mile from the Morristown train station. The property, which has redeveloped the former site of an oil depot and landscaping yard, is also minutes from the community’s popular downtown and from Hampshire’s longtime headquarters.
“We’re really proud of what we’ve been able to do here at this particular project,” said James E. Hanson II, Hampshire’s CEO and president, noting that the family-owned firm recently celebrated 100 years in business. He added: “Next year will be 30 years that The Hampshire Cos. came and established offices here in Morristown, so it’s been a long time and we’re proud of being a central part of both New Jersey as well as Morristown.”
Hanson thanked public officials including Mayor Timothy Dougherty and the town council, while also highlighting the team behind a project that is especially focused on flexibility and remote work. He pointed to features such as a co-working lounge with private meeting rooms, work pods and videoconferencing, along with moveable walls and Murphy Beds in select units.
Other amenities at Max on Morris, designed by MVMK Architecture, include a sleek entertainment lounge and a breakroom with a banquette, an outdoor courtyard with grilling stations, bike storage and 14 electric vehicle charging stations.
SLIDESHOW: Max on Morris
“We’re trying to really focus on what people are looking for now and in the future, and not what they looked to in the past,” said John Durso, head of development for Hampshire. Ironically, he said, the project’s focus on co-working and remote work predates the pandemic, but the firm leaned into the concept as it refined the design over several years.
“Everybody has some component of live-work in the current environment,” he added. “We didn’t want it to be an afterthought, so people really have the flexibility.”
Notably, Max on Morris includes four units reserved for lower-income renters and another 14 for residents with special needs. That makes the building “one of a kind for our community,” Dougherty said during Wednesday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony, praising Hampshire for agreeing to include supportive housing.
“Hampshire sets the standards for a lot of things,” Dougherty said. “They’re an incredible company, but what they’ve now done is they’ve set the standard for special needs in our community. And I am truly grateful to be partnered with the Hanson family and the Hampshire group.”
He also said the new apartment building, which “took many meetings and many different renditions” to come to fruition, has “injected life into this area of our community.”
A debt placement team with JLL announced last spring that it sourced a $28.48 million construction loan for the project on Hampshire’s behalf. The development, which has a 25-year payment in lieu of taxes agreement with the municipality, also has 610 square feet of ground-level retail space that Hampshire will market to a café operator.
Hampshire lands $29 million construction loan for 85-unit Morristown rental project, JLL says
