Long Branch's lower Broadway finally getting 299 apartments, grocery after 30-year wait

LONG BRANCH - The two barren city blocks on historic lower Broadway won't be barren much longer, as Kushner Cos. has broken ground on its transformative project to deliver 299 high-end apartments, a Superfresh grocery market and a café to the neighborhood.

A sizable crowd of investors, project professionals, Kushner leadership and local officials were there to witness the proverbial shovel toss of dirt kicking off the construction. All told, Kushner Cos. is investing $130 million in the development of these blocks.

While the groundbreaking was quick and to the point, it took the city nearly 30 years to reach this milestone. The blocks were comprised of 50 properties with buildings dating back well over 100 years. In 1996, the city declared the neighborhood a redevelopment zone and then headed on the arduous task of getting it developed.

"When people ask me what projects I enjoy working on, it's always those that make a significant impact on a community and a neighborhood. This long-neglected and under-utilized property will finally be redeveloped for its highest and best use," said Michael Sommer, Kushner's chief development officer.

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In its heyday, lower Broadway was an active section of commerce with theaters and small businesses. With the growth of commercial development on Routes 35 and 36, the neighborhood hit an economic downturn as people spent their dollars elsewhere. The city's beachfront also fell on hard times following the 1987 fire that burned down the amusement pier. While subsequent developers raced to the beachfront, lower Broadway, the essential gateway to the beach, continued to decay.

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Two developers had eyed lower Broadway before Kushner Cos. A team of local city realtors and business owners created the Broadway Arts Center, and took a stab at the project. However, the group defaulted on its bank loans.

Long Branch Partners then acquired the properties in 2014. After a squabble in court with the city over back taxes and property rights, the partners were able to clear the landscape of the many derelict buildings in preparation for a $200 million redevelopment plan before beginning negotiations with Kushner in 2018 to sell the properties.

That sale took four years to complete, interrupted by the COVID pandemic, and litigation over the sale contract which was settled amicably in court. In 2022, Kushner completed the purchase of the properties and associated liquor licenses for $21.6 million. Last year, its Broadway plans received final city approval.

Kushner Cos. has been involved in the redevelopment of Long Branch almost since the beginning. While the company did not originally win the centerpiece at the beachfront, Pier Village, it did purchase the property in 2014 and then completed phase three of Pier Village, which combines the Wave Resort, ground-floor retail and luxury condominiums.

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Nicole Kushner Meyer, president of Kushner Cos., spoke about her family's deep roots in the city at the ceremonial groundbreaking, which stems back to her grandparents who immigrated to America following World War II. Her father, Charles Kushner, founded the company in 1985 and lives at the Long Branch beachfront today.

"When my immigrant grandparents were not working on the weekends, they would often bring their four children to the beach in Long Branch to splash around in the ocean. The beach is where the family built their most cherished memories. Over time, Long Branch has become our home," Meyer said.

Meyer said the city has been lacking a vibrant downtown and that Wednesday's groundbreaking was "the beginning of something new and beautiful for lower Broadway."

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Lower Broadway plan

The mixed-use residential project will span from Second Avenue to Liberty Street, which is a roughly 10-acre swath of city blocks.

On the north side of Broadway, Kushner will build a 20,000-square foot grocery store that has already been leased to SuperFresh. The rest of the north side of Broadway will have 136-unit, market rate, mixed-use apartment building with 2,345 square feet of ground floor retail space.

On the south side of Broadway, Kushner will build a 163-unit apartment building with market-rate units and 30 units of affordable housing. The building will also be mixed use and will include a 1,950-square-foot corner café at the intersection of Broadway and Second Avenue.

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The apartments will be one, two and three bedrooms and have a club room, lobby lounge, fitness center, pool, lawn area and rooftop amenities. The development will have 558 parking spaces. Sixty-four spaces will be on-street parking stalls on Broadway and North Second Avenue. The remaining 494 parking spots will be behind the two apartment buildings and grocery store.

"This project, as it gets going, is going to play an incredible role in Long Branch. The properties all across here, their values are going to go up because of this," said state Sen. Vin Gopal, D-Monmouth, who spoke last at the groundbreaking.

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The year should be a busy one for Kushner, as the company will simultaneously be working on the redevelopment of Monmouth Mall in nearby Eatontown with 1,000 apartments and looking to break ground on a new residential community in Colts Neck. Kushner CEO Laurent Morali said all told they'll be adding 1,700 apartments to Monmouth County between the three locations.

"That says a lot about our attachment to the area and what we believe of the area, which we think is an area of tremendous growth potential," Morali said.

When Jersey Shore native Dan Radel is not reporting the news, you can find him in a college classroom where he is a history professor. Reach him @danielradelapp; 732-643-4072; dradel@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Long Branch lower Broadway construction starts on apartments, grocery