U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez and other officials came to a ribbon cutting on June 5 for 40 new affordable housing units in West New York. The new building, formerly a handbag manufacturing factory, is the final phase of developer D.R. Mon Group’s Jaclyn Heights community of four buildings.
Renters have leased 60 percent of the units in the new “Jaclyn 40” building at 5817 Jefferson St. The building now joins Jaclyn 28, which has 28 rental apartments; Jaclyn 32, which has 32 rental apartments, and Jaclyn 55, which has 55 residential home units for sale. It’s located near the Bergenline Avenue light rail station.
The project is part of the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency’s (NJHMFA) CHOICE financing program for developing newly constructed and substantially rehabilitated homeownership housing in the state. Amboy Bank also provided the project a $9.8 million construction loan. The Mon Group, which has invested over $64 million in building urban housing in Hudson County, said it’s looking to invest an extra $33 million in West New York and Union City in coming years to meet demand for affordable housing in the county.
A special project
In addition to D.R. Mon Group executives, U.S. Rep Albio Sires and Weehawken Mayor Richard Turner, attended the ceremony.
The building originated as a factory owned by Jaclyn Inc., a company that provided work to Cuban immigrants in northern New Jersey during the 1960s, employing over 1,200 people daily. Today, West New York and the North Hudson community are home to a considerable Cuban population. Mon unveiled a plaque on the building during the ceremony, dedicated to those workers.
“I don’t come to ribbon cutting ceremonies that often,” said Menendez, who helped secure funding for the project. “What’s happened here at Jaclyn Heights is the type of purpose that I believe in and want to see replicated throughout our communities. It’s one of those powerful immigrant stories that now gets transformed into a new story of economic opportunity and the possibility of home ownership and great housing for individuals who may not yet be able to afford home ownership.”
Construction for the entire Jaclyn Heights project began in 2010 and finished a few weeks ago.
“I grew up in West New York, and I remember what this looked like,” said Sires, who had asked D.R Mon Group CEO Dean Mon to develop middle-class housing in the town during his stint as West New York’s mayor, after seeing Mon’s affordable housing developments in Long Branch. “This was a factory where many of the people that came from Cuba actually got their start here.”
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“We target the workforce.” – Dean Mon
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He added, “I’m here today to open this beautiful building, and see that Dean has not abandoned West New York, and continues to do great work. It really gives me great hope that there are real good developers out there. I just wish there were more proprieties that we could develop like this, because this is something that really turns the city around.”
Mon said that the factory’s owners eventually moved their business overseas around 2006, and the building housing Jaclyn 40 attracted loiterers, which upset nearby residents. “We were able to get it developed with the help of West New York,” Mon said.
He noted that the building wasn’t designed with the wealthy in mind, but more so, everyday, middle-class people.
Leases for the affordable housing project start at $1,400 for one bedrooms, $2,000 for two bedrooms, and $2,500 for three bedrooms. While these are not low rents, they’re considered middle-income for the area, which had a $63,818 mean household income in the 2010 Census.
People interested in the units can apply for units at http://mongroupnj.com/.
“We target the workforce,” said Mon. “The men and women who work. The policemen, the teachers, secretaries, that’s who we target. We don’t do luxury. No doorman, no pool on the roof, that kind of thing. Nice and simple. We have impacted the community. Just look around.”
Hannington Dia can be reached at hd@hudsonreporter.com
