Demolition of the athletic bubbles at the former Center Circle on Main Street is under way as part of site preparation for a 219-unit rental apartment development.

Deputy Executive Director of the Redevelopment Agency and City Administrator Cherron Rountree provided an update to commissioners during last night’s Redevelopment Agency meeting, which lasted about seven minutes. Developers had a pre-construction meeting with the engineering department last month and building permit review is ongoing, she said.

The former indoor sports complex sold in November for $5.285 million but had been on the market for several years. The Redevelopment Agency had been presented with slightly different proposals over the years, some as far back as almost five years ago. Early concepts for the site included one that had upward of 250 units spread across three buildings while another concept proposed 250 units within one building.

The Planning Board ultimately approved an application in January 2017 for a five-story, 219-unit project with ground-floor parking on the 3.5-acre site. About 117 units, roughly half, would be one-bedrooms, along with 77 two-bedrooms, and 25 studios. In addition to 197 ground-floor parking spaces, there would be 78 surface parking spaces available along an access drive along the building’s southern side. The existing 183-space parking lot would be to 206 by relocating the Wall of Honor located in front of the library.

City Council in February approved a 30-year Payment In Lieu Of Taxes (PILOT) for the project that would make annual payments of about $500,000 in the first year and as much as $1 million in the final years. As a sports complex, property at 1255 Main St. (Block 305, Lot 5.02) was assessed for $1.2 million, generating property taxes of about $81,200.

The redeveloper, 1255 Main Street Urban Renewal, LLC, is an equal partnership between AST Development of Lavallette and Sterling/Rahway II, LLC, an entity created by Livingston-based Sterling Properties.

Construction is anticipated to begin by May and is expected to last more than two years, with completion slated for November 2020, according to the PILOT application.