Governor Corzine and Officials Break Ground for $150 Million Gateway Transit Village
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ – June 10, 2009 – (RealEstateRama) – Noting the significance of public-private partnerships to New Jersey’s continued economic revitalization, Governor Jon S. Corzine today joined state and local officials to break ground for New Brunswick’s $150 million Gateway Transit Village project. The mixed-use development will create an estimated 3,000 construction jobs before its completion in 2012.”The Gateway project is a testament to how state and local partnerships with the private sector can create significant investment in our cities,” Governor Corzine said. “This development is the epitome of smart growth and the future of transit operations, mixed with residential and retail space. More importantly, projects like this are vital to keeping our economy moving in the right direction and providing jobs for our hardworking residents.”
Located adjacent to the Northeast Corridor rail line and directly across the street from Rutgers University, the 630,000-square-foot building will include 245,000 square feet of residential units, 50,000 square feet of destination retail including a new Barnes & Noble university bookstore for Rutgers, a 657-space parking structure and Class A office space.
“Combining new office, retail and residential spaces with access to mass transit at the Gateway Transit Village will create an anchor for New Brunswick’s downtown, stimulating economic development and creating jobs,” said Department of Transportation Commissioner Stephen Dilts.
“This building will be a new portal into our City, greeting residents and visitors with amazing views of the historic Old Queens campus and St. Peter’s Church, laid out along a bustling pedestrian promenade linking our Downtown Train Station with College Avenue, flanked by outdoor café tables and new retail stores, and all anchored by a
Barnes and Noble Superstore/Rutgers University Bookstore,” New Brunswick Mayor James M. Cahill said.
The Gateway project will bring renewed life to an underutilized site in the heart of the city’s core with active sidewalks, new residential units and a focus of diverse activities at the entrance to Rutgers campus – serving as a “gateway” to downtown New Brunswick and Rutgers.
“At last, Rutgers will have the world class academic bookstore that it needs and deserves,” said Rutgers President Richard L. McCormick. “The Barnes & Noble bookstore will also be a gateway between Rutgers and New Brunswick, and a center for our university community and the larger communities of which we are a part.”
The bookstore will serve as a strong focal point for nearly 700,000 visitors to Rutgers each year.
“Barnes & Noble is truly thrilled to be a part of this extraordinary project,” said Max J. Roberts, Barnes & Noble College Booksellers President. “Rutgers University will be enriched by the involvement of the New Brunswick community and New Brunswick will be illuminated by the intellectual energy of Rutgers University. This is the concept behind the collegiate superstore that we are building here in New Brunswick.”
Approximately $9.1 million in Liberty Corridor funding was secured by Senator Robert Menendez for improvements to the New Brunswick Station.
The Gateway Transit Village Project is being developed by the New Brunswick Development Corporation (Devco), a tax-exempt urban real estate development company created in the mid-1970’s to initiate redevelopment projects and to serve as the vehicle for public and private investment in the City of New Brunswick.
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For More Information:
Robert Corrales
Phone: 609-777-2600
