Sunday, February 8, 2015

New Plan for East Third/Richmond

A very interesting legal notice caught my eye Saturday morning, as I was reading my e-newspaper back-to-front (sometimes the legals are more newsworthy than the front page stories). Those who have been around a while will remember when there was a plethora of redevelopment projects on the table. This notice concerned the East Third/Richmond redevelopment site.

The notice describes a proposal for the site that includes 153 residential units in a four-story building, with 155 parking spaces, 110 of which "will be located in the basement level underneath the proposed building."

I do not recall any other application that included underground parking.

The number of parking spaces is one of the variances requested, as 306 spaces are required.

Between now and the Feb. 21 Planning Board meeting where this application is scheduled to be heard, anyone interested can look at the application, plans, etc. in the Planning Office on the second floor of City Hall. As soon as the wintry mix allows your pedestrian blogger to get around, I will take a look myself.

If you want to read the entire notice and missed its publication, you can look it up at the New Jersey Press Association's legal notices site. You have to choose "Somerset" as the county, then Courier News as the newspaper, then put in a keyword and a date range that includes Feb. 7. I just put in "Crown," for the applicant, Crown Real Estate Holdings, Inc. and it came right up when I clicked on "Go."

This site has some history, which is on the original Plainfield Plaintalker blog. A total of 352 units was once proposed, but the developer asked to be excused in 2008. In the successor blog, Plaintalker II, you can find a look back at the site.and a hope for future development. Maybe this new plan is it.

--Bernice

8 comments:

  1. Plfd is already overcrowded. Traffic jams are
    constant, very few ratables coming into the city, many industrial sites sitting idle, is that site a brownfield location? Organizing for
    Peace, Progress, and prosperity for all. Mr. X

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  2. Richmond street is in a flood zone How can they build underground. Parking?

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  3. We can not afford can not afford to have anymore apartments in this city! Our schools can handle any more students. Our sewer system will not be able to handle the increase of waste.

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  4. Will someone ask the developer if he would live in a small apartment with only one parking space and no room for company to park.why does this mayor want to turn this city to a overcrowded high crime city like Newark or Jersey City?

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    Replies
    1. FYI, the proposal will be heard by the Planning Board. The mayor is not the decider. The public can comment at the Planning Board meeting.

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  5. I do have to say the Richmond is crowded with parked cars now, so a variance is not warranted here. I live on Crescent and 3rd Place the our area is so crowded with street parking due to the big houses with several apartments and little or no off street parking. The Planning Board needs to be aware of our overcrowding on our streets with parked cars or else we'll be like any big city with people fighting over parking spaces.

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  6. And in the winter time, chairs, tables, cribs you name it to save the shoveled spaces!

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