Life Assets Development, Gonsosa and the BlueSugar Corp. are developing a 76-unit apartment complex on Springfield Avenue in Newark, known as Rise Living. — Courtesy: Life Assets Development
By Joshua Burd
Construction is underway on a long-awaited, 76-unit apartment complex in Newark whose development team includes music and film star Queen Latifah, a city native.
The entertainer was on hand Tuesday to mark the ongoing progress at 650 Springfield Ave., where site work began early this year, paving the way for the launch of preleasing in July. Known as Rise Living, the project is a joint venture involving Life Assets Development, Gonsosa and the BlueSugar Corp., seeking to bring modern but affordably priced homes to an underserved neighborhood in the city’s South Ward.
Plans also call for 1,900 square feet of ground-floor space for nonprofit organizations.
“I grew up around here playing in West Side Park, a block away,” said Latifah, according to a report Tuesday by NorthJersey.com. “My grandfather’s hardware store was blocks from here. I drove past this block. I saw what was needed on this block, houses that weren’t lived in. Some were really dilapidated, and so I thought, ‘Why not here?’ ”
Latifah, whose birth name is Dana Owens, is the co-founder of BlueSugar. Her partnership with Life Assets Development and Gonsosa is years in the making, leading to the project’s announcement more than three years ago. The development figures to transform rundown several properties along 19th Avenue, South 16th Street and South 17th Street with a complex that includes 16 units designated as affordable housing, while market-rate rents will start at $1,800.
The property is also slated to include a fitness center, a business center, charging stations for electric vehicles and ground-level parking.
“We are thrilled to have secured such an ideally located property with BlueSugar Corp, and we appreciate the confidence that The City of Newark has placed in us,” said Alberto Goncalves, CEO of Life Assets Development. “We believe Rise Living will be a complementary addition to the city’s multibillion-dollar revitalization plan, and we look forward to creating a community of value that taps into the neighborhood’s full potential.”
Newark redevelopment plan backed by Queen Latifah slated for summer groundbreaking
