Weehawken officials cut a ceremonial ribbon to officially open a 183-unit luxury condominium complex that is expected to bring in significant revenue for the town and equalize taxes for residents.
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The developer, LandSea Homes, which builds similar types of condominium units in Europe and Asia, said yesterday that 59 units have already been purchased.
According to a press release, starting prices for a collection of one-, two- and three-bedroom homes, as well as a limited offering of duplex Penthouses, will be $800,000 to more than $4 million.
Before the ribbon cutting ceremony, Mayor Richard Turner spoke before a large gathering of elected officials, LandSea Home officials and IBI Group personnel, the building’s designer.
He noted the importance of LandSea Homes making Weehawken the home for its first building in the Northeast.
“Whole generations don’t remember that 40, 50 years ago this whole area was an industrial site of shipyards and railroads that all went bankrupt. For 25 years, the property was desolate and closed, and the property tax burden shifted from the waterfront to the Upland, and it shifted fairly rapidly. Obviously, that has a dramatic effect on the homeowners in Upper Weehawken,” said Turner.
“So, as all this development takes place the tax burden now not only shifts down here, evens out, but it brings amenities [such as parkland, open space, walkways] to our residents that isn’t available in the Upland.”
Gabe Pasquale, senior vice president of sales and marketing for LandSea Homes, explained the company’s reasoning for selecting Weehawken.
“We carefully selected this location when LandSea Homes chose to footprint themselves in the Northeast, and the location was chosen for a variety of reasons. But first and foremost, it was because of what we saw in the public-private partnership that took place here through the redevelopment and development of Port Imperial.”
We asked Mayor Turner on camera the significance of this type of luxury development for Weehawken.
“There are several aspects. One, all the developers down here contribute to our open space. We have walkways, parks, playgrounds and a 17-acre recreation complex,” Turner said.
“In addition, it brings in significant revenue to the town, and helps offset the tax burden for the entire community. Our town just went through a major tax revaluation, and if it wasn’t for the waterfront development, it would have been traumatic for a lot of people.”
We followed up to ask if additional luxury development will be coming to Weehawken.
“We have a very good mix on the waterfront. We have rentals that are equal to the Upland. Some of the home sales in some of the other condominium buildings are equal to the Upland. So it’s starting to average out,” the mayor explained.
“Now, this new building is more expensive, but by having a variety of rentals and sales, we’re starting to blend in fairly well together. As the values go up in the Upland, it starts to blend in.”
