A former manufacturing facility for small businesses may soon be rehabilitated and a council vote is pending, and many large companies have already expressed interest in coming back to the facility.
In a paperwork submitted to the city, the Hoboken-based Theura zodiac group says it is in agreement to buy a nearly two-acre parcel at 38 Jackson Street. The property is home to the historic My-T-Fine Pudding Production Building, which currently houses a total of six structures that include various businesses such as the Parsky Gallery and the Manhattan Neon Sign.
The company expects to turn this facility into a mixed-use development known as the Southwest Market. The project, drawn up by Nastasi architects, seeks to rebuild the historic building facing the Observer Highway and demolish other structures in support of the nine-story and 104-foot-tall new structure.
A key component of the project’s ground floor will include the creation of a 25,500-square-foot supermarket on the property’s Newark Street side. All of Hoboken’s supermarkets are located about a mile from the proposed development site, except Shop Right, located east of Clinton Street.
The food desert of the neighborhood can be filled in large quantities according to the pre-submission form submitted by the aura zodiac group. “Initial contact with the prospective anchor food tenant for the south side of the project indicates a keen interest from whole foods, alty and sprouts,” the filing states.
In addition to the supermarket, there will be four retail outlets with a total area of 21,670 square feet on the ground floor of the Southwest Market. The project features a publicly accessible indoor atrium of 11,780 square feet, with a translucent third floor roof and small retail space, which is considered the “outdoor living room” for southwest Hoboken.
Most of the residential components of the Aura Zodiac Group project are considered condominiums in addition to the required 12 affordable units, which are rental. Facilities for future occupants of the potential building include a roof with basketball courts and a swimming pool.
One of the four buildings on the proposed premises includes 54,600 square feet of office space on the 6th and 7th floors, and a six-story parking system with 376 seats for the building’s occupants and the general public.
The current plan deviates slightly from the Southwest Hoboken redevelopment plan. The project asks for more than 86% of the space, where 60% is allowed, and will build 104 feet by 40 feet. The aura zodiac group will require a density-related deviation relative to the residential area of the project.
Hoboken City Council is scheduled to vote on a resolution approving a conditional term agreement with the Taurus Group, which is expected to negotiate a final agreement to redevelop the site. This is scheduled to be considered during their April 7 meeting, which will take place almost in zoom.
The plan comes two weeks after our exclusive report on The Bounty, which the JDA Group expects to bring an event, venue, a high-rise park, retail and 13-storey residential building across the street from the Southwest Market site. The nearby Jersey City side has been growing for some time, and the fury of the process indicates that part of Hoboken will soon become hot as well.
The company said in its application that it hopes to launch the project next year once approval is finalized, with the Taurus Group’s proposal still facing some obstacles.
