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Equinox 360 temporarily halted
(by Sean McCarthy - September 05, 2007)
"Today's Pause. Tomorrow's Applause" is the updated tagline at MillenniumHomes.Com visitors view when they search the company’s flashy Web site for information on construction of the highly anticipated Equinox 360 luxury residential condo development near Route 3 in East Rutherford. It is work that has suddenly come to a grinding halt.
Construction progress on the 614-unit upscale complex, which is part of the Route 3 East Area Redevelopment Plan, has been "paused as we make improvements to create a better community", announces Millennium Homes, a division of BNE Associates in Livingston.
Reports are now surfacing that funds are being returned to individuals and parties who had already paid their "non-binding" security deposits on some of the planned Equinox 360 units, fueling speculation as to the future of the development.
Borough Attorney Peter Melchionne has said a letter was sent to interested persons who made non-binding reservations for the units, a letter stating something to the effect of "Due to market conditions, we withdraw our offer to sell at this time." Melchionne added he heard of this letter from a friend, whom he did not name, who had made a non-binding reservation on a unit at Equinox 360 and was refunded a deposit.
"All these grandiose plans, they're not happening," said Mayor James Cassella, whose council was party to the approval of building permits for the groundwork on Equinox 360. "I surmise that it probably has a lot to do with the feasibility of the building, being residential, at this time."
"The borough attorney has a friend who had his deposit returned. Nothing was going on at Equinox for months construction-wise. I suspected that something was up. I do know they had some type of welcoming for the people that had placed deposits there. I believe they had a lot of deposits on apartments there," he added.
With housing market conditions presently turbulent James Kirkos, chief executive officer of the Meadowlands Regional Chamber of Commerce is not surprised construction has stopped on Equinox 360 either.
"I would have paused the project also if it were mine," said Kirkos. "Market conditions in real estate have changed very quickly so it is prudent for them to assess what direction should be taken."
When Millennium Homes initially submitted its zoning application in May 2004, it was the only application to come through the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission (NJMC) for redevelopment of the site. Zoning approval was officially granted in May 2005. By July 2006, the Millennium Homes publicity machine started rolling out artist's impressions and floor plans of the luxury two 20-story residential towers, situated directly across from Giants Stadium on Route 3. One to three-bedroom units between 721 and 1,664 square feet in size, with prices ranging from $300,000 to the mid-$700,000 range, were soon on the open market. It was being touted as the first big residential development in the Meadowlands since the NJMC adopted a new master plan for conservation and "smart growth".
The NJMC, when asked if it knew "why" construction on the condominium complex has been halted, had no comment.
"The NJMC has no opinion on this matter," said spokesperson Sheri Hensley.
Equinox is expected to only encompass four acres of the 42-acre Route 3 redevelopment area. The remaining 90 percent of the site would be preserved as wetlands, or ‘open space’. Preliminary impact studies revealed the new development was expected to incur an annual $284,748 in service costs to the Borough of East Rutherford. That figure was determined on the basis of a $244 per person forecast, with approximately two individuals taking occupancy of each Equinox 360 unit. The East Rutherford school system would realize an additional 31 students at a cost of $434,000 per year.
Cassella said he has no reservations over the current halt in the project, claiming to have not been highly involved in its initial approval in the first place.
"Equinox 360 was all done though the Meadowlands Commission when it first was proposed", said Cassella "The Borough of East Rutherford never really had any say in it, other than making comments about it. Nobody was thrilled about it. The town is obligated to issue the permits, but the zoning requirements went through the Meadowlands Commission."
Now that construction on Equinox 360 has come to a standstill, questions over the future of the development are arising, and there are far more questions being posed than answers forthcoming. There was no response to numerous attempts to retrieve a comment from Millennium Homes on the present status of the development.
"I don’t think this has anything to do with East Rutherford" said Cassella when asked if he thought the East Rutherford residential market was healthy or not right now. "After all, Avalon Bay has just purchased Orchard Square for over $35 million from Millennium Homes,"
Millennium Homes also developed and built Orchard Square on Park Avenue and has sold that luxury development to Avalon Bay Communities for $35,850,000. Orchard Square has since been renamed ‘Avalon Rutherford Station’.
"The only benefit is that the developer does not expend construction dollars before they can sell units, which limits their financial exposure," said Kirkos. "As soon as people can determine the whole effect of the sub prime mess, then decisions can be made about when and how to proceed with a large project such as this. I believe it is better for everyone to see the project start and be completed, rather than start and have mid-construction delays."
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