A committee of the Arts District Advisory Board will review concept plans for projects at the Hamilton Laundry and Bell Building sites. City Engineer James Housten will present plans this week in preparation for developing cost estimates on the two projects.
Housten told Redevelopment Agency commissioners at their meeting this month that a report is expected shortly on the monitoring wells currently on the Hamilton Laundry site. Soil from some areas likely will need to be moved, he added.
Bids to demolish the home adjacent to the Hamilton Laundry site should be i
ntroduced at the January City Council meeting and approved in February, he said.
The Bell Building (photo above) might actually catch up and pass the Hamilton Laundry project depending on environmental remediation, Housten said, adding that environmental issues already taken care of at the Bell Building site.
A 1,000-seat amphitheater at the former Hamilton Laundry site is expected to break ground next year while a black box theater and performing arts space is planned for the Bell Building. The Hamilton Laundry project is among eight sites in Rahway eligible for state funding as a Brownfield Development Area.
With such much negative news in the past 2 years, it's nice to see positive changes and increased confidence in the market. Below is a recent Star Ledger article which talks about increased buyers in urban areas in NJ.http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2009/12/investors_return_to_buying_nj.html
All well and good, but the phrase "dead cat bounce" comes to mind. Speculative bubbles bounce along the bottom until the low point is identified then the cycle begins anew. Has the job market improved so much so that house-flippers can find a steady stream of buyers? Is Wall Street back to giving graduates with English Lit B.A.s from slightly above average schools six figure base and 200% bonus targets?
Do you actually think we haven't hit the lowpoint yet and things are going to get worse? I have a hard time buying that one. Things are improving but it's going to be a slow recovery, as it should be. I do agree though that house flipping, much like any investment where someone tries to turn a quick buck, is not a good idea today and probably never was. There's always bulls and bears regardless of how the market is doing but I think it's safe to say that things are turning for the better and we should all be happy about that.