The Michaels Organization and Jersey City Housing Authority Break Ground on First Phase of Montgomery Gardens Family Apartments

JERSEY CITY, N.J., September 22, 2017 (Newswire.com) - City, state, and federal officials joined executives from The Michaels Organization and the Jersey City Housing Authority for a groundbreaking ceremony marking the start of Montgomery Gardens Family Apartments Phase 1, the next development in a planned multi-phase revitalization of the McGinley Square-Montgomery Street Corridor.

"This project is another example of how this administration is working to keep Jersey City affordable, having built more affordable housing in four years than the prior administration built in ten," said Mayor Fulop. "This site will transform outdated, obsolete public housing to a mixed-income community with priority given to former Montgomery Gardens residents. It will truly be a community space, with social services and resources provided on site."

We are grateful to once again be partnering with the Jersey City Housing Authority to bring beautiful, high-quality affordable housing to families of all income level.

Gary Buechler, President, Michaels Development

Montgomery Gardens Phase 1 will feature 126 apartment homes in four low-rise buildings being built on the former site of Towers 3,5, and 6 of the Montgomery Gardens public housing complex. The obsolete public housing towers were imploded in 2016 to make way for the redevelopment.

“We are grateful to once again be partnering with the Jersey City Housing Authority to bring beautiful, high-quality affordable housing to families of all income levels,” said Gary Buechler, President of The Michaels Development Company.

Apartments will be available in one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom layouts, all with ample living space and energy-efficient appliances and heating and cooling systems.

Of the 126 units, 26 will be public housing, with first priority given to former Montgomery Gardens residents; 95 will be available to families earning between 30 to 60 percent of the area’s median income, and five will be available at market-rate rents. Seven units will be set aside for those formerly homeless.

“The commencement of construction for the first family phase of the former Montgomery Garden’s site represents some of the finest planning and implementation of the vision conceived by the City and the Housing Authority, and supported by HUD,” said JCHA Executive Director Marvin L. Walton. “Montgomery Family Phase I incorporates multiple levels of income into a welcoming setting that alleviates concentrations of poverty and creates not just a revitalized neighborhood, but a real community in the heart of the City.”

Several officials from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) joined in the celebration, including the newly appointed Regional Administrator for the N.Y. & N.J regions, Lynne Patton.

“While today represents a collaborative effort on the part of multiple agencies and community leaders, Montgomery Gardens is a quintessential example of the potential of HUD programs when utilized to their full capability. Built upon the foundation of a HUD Choice Neighborhoods Grant, the Jersey City Housing Authority--under the direction of HUD’s own Maria Maio-Messano — was able to transform this section of Jersey City into a promising neighborhood that will be an asset to the community,” Patton said.

Patton noted that HUD will subsidize 78 residential units at Montgomery Gardens Family Apartment through its Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program and Superstorm Sandy CDBG-DR funding. “HUD is also providing funds to the Department of Community Affairs to ensure this exciting rebirth of the former Montgomery Gardens site,” she said.

Montgomery Gardens Family Phase I is located in a mixed-use area of residential and commercial properties with numerous schools, parks, restaurants, and churches nearby and easy access to the Medical Center as well as the New Jersey Turnpike and PATH rail system. Residents will have access to on-site amenities that include 2500 square feet of community space, with a computer learning center, a warming kitchen, offices, and a fitness facility.

Montgomery Gardens Family Phase I follows the grand reopening of Catherine Todd Senior Living Center in June. The seniors' high-rise community was renovated inside and out by the JCHA and The Michaels Organization.

Financing for the $45.1 million Montgomery Gardens Family community includes $17.1 million in private equity raised through the sale of Federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits, which were allocated by the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency and syndicated by Riverside Capital. NJHMFA also provided $23.5 million in construction and permanent financing through its Conduit Bond program, and $13.9 million in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Funds. The development also benefited from $1.6 million in Affordable Housing Trust Funds from the Federal Home Loan Bank.

Interstate Realty Management will serve as the property manager for Montgomery Gardens Family, ensuring that the community remains a long-term asset to the neighborhood. Social Services will be provided by Interstate’s strategic partner, the non-profit organization Better Tomorrows. The development team also includes WRT Design as the project’s architect and Prestige Building Company, which is the general contractor. Paulus, Sokolowski and Sartor, LLC is the civil engineer and the environmental engineer is PT Consultants.

About The Michaels Organization: Michaels Development Company, Interstate Realty Management, Prestige Building Company, and Riverside Capital are all independent operating companies of The Michaels Organization, a national leader in residential real estate. Serving more than 130,000 residents in 380 communities across 35 states, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands, The Michaels Organization offers full-service capabilities in development, finance, property management, construction, and tax credit syndication. 

About The Jersey City Housing Authority: The Jersey City Housing Authority is New Jersey’s second-largest public housing authority, serving approximately 6,500 low-income households and over 18,000 residents, including seniors and those with disabilities. The JCHA has been lauded as a champion of quality life enhancements, crime reduction initiatives, energy efficiency and green building practices, policies promoting Section 3 hiring, and an impeccable track record of revitalizing distressed public housing. In addition, for the last nine consecutive years, the Section 8/Housing Choice Vouchers program has been designated as a “High Performer” in accordance with HUD’s standards.A leader in the provision of low-income housing and services, the JCHA’s sterling history of revitalizing distressed neighborhoods has included the receipt of three federal HOPE VI Revitalization Grants, which have transformed blighted barracks-style and high-rise “vertical concentrations of poverty” at Curries Woods, Lafayette Gardens, and A. Harry Moore Apartments into energy-efficient, privately managed, architecturally distinguished mixed-income communities that provide social and supportive services, attracting low, moderate and market-rate residents. Through HOPE VI, the JCHA has created over 1,040 new mixed-income rental units. Additionally, the JCHA has successfully utilized Sandy CDBG-FRM funding to replace Booker T. Washington’s antiquated heat and hot water systems, and to soon install an emergency generator and roof replacement at Thomas J. Stewart Apartments.

Source: The Michaels Organization

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