Bell Works Developer Expands With Fort Monmouth Luxury Townhomes

OCEANPORT, NJ — Ralph Zucker, the real estate developer who brought Bell Works back from the tumbleweeds and turned it into a thriving commerce hub in Holmdel, is expanding his Monmouth County footprint:

It was confirmed this week that Zucker purchased 15 acres on the sprawling Fort Monmouth property in Oceanport, on which he plans to build 144 luxury town homes.

Zucker's real estate company, Somerset Development, paid $15.3 million to buy the land from the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority (FMERA).

Patch previously reported that Zucker was keen to buy the property, but the sale officially went through on Nov. 24.

Fort Monmouth is a 1,126-acre old U.S. Army base: It was built in 1917 and primarily used in World War II. But when the war ended, the U.S. Army had decreasing use for the base and it officially closed in 2011. Ever since, acres and acres of land, plus dozens of brick Army barracks, have sat empty and abandoned in a sprawling, deserted complex that straddles the towns of Oceanport, Tinton Falls and Eatontown.

It is only in the past five years or so that Fort Monmouth started to attract the interest of developers and outside groups: In October of this year, Netflix confirmed it wants to buy 298 acres on Fort Monmouth and open a massive new film studio.

(Important to note: While Netflix has confirmed an interest in this piece of property, no sale has been finalized; the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority has an ongoing RFOTP (Request for Offers to Purchase). This is an open and competitive bidding process where any interested party may bid on the 298-acre property and proposals are not due back until January 31, 2022.)

While the Netflix news is the biggest — and will bring the most jobs to the area — another developer, RPM Development, already opened rental units at Fort Monmouth (called Liberty Walk) and converted the former officers' housing into 68 private homes for sale (called East Gate).

A private gym is now open at the fort (the Fort Athletic Club) and construction started on a microbrewery. There are also plans to re-open the old bowling alley once used by Army soldiers.

The 15 acres Somerset purchased runs along Parker Creek. As part of the terms of the sale, Zucker also agreed to build a 50-foot boardwalk waterfront walkway that will run along Fort Monmouth's northern boundary on Parker Creek. The walkway will be open to the public and for all to use.

Zucker's town homes will be located on Signal Avenue, adjacent to the ongoing Allison Hall redevelopment project.

In order to build the town homes, Somerset plans to tear down five of the old barracks (Buildings 360-365). These will be waterfront town homes and will feature two-car garages, driveways and spacious interiors. Each town home will also have a private back deck with room for grilling and socializing. Select homes along Parker Creek will feature private roof decks.

Prices for the town homes will start in the $700,000s. Somerset plans to break ground in the spring.

Two of the buildings are listed in the National Register of Historic Places, meaning they cannot be altered or torn down. Those two will be converted into 36 affordable rental units.

“With extremely high demand in the residential market, combined with the talents and planned investment by Somerset’s team, we expect this project to be a home run for Oceanport," said FMERA director Bruce Steadman.

Zucker must have a thing for abandoned old spaces: When he purchased the former Bell Labs site from Alcatel-Lucent in 2013, the building had fallen into disrepair and was so neglected that trees and vines were growing in the lobby.

Zucker said many people told him he was crazy when he announced his vision to turn the hulking metal and concrete behemoth into an office and tech hub, sort of like the Google campus of New Jersey.

Zucker proved them wrong: Today, Bell Works' 1.2 million square feet is nearly entirely leased; is home to the Holmdel library, a Montessori school, LightRiver Software fiber optics, iCIMs software and Onyx Equities, plus a farmers' market, legislative offices, JCP&L's Monmouth County headquarters, and many restaurants and shops.

"We're making Holmdel cool again!" Zucker joked in December 2018 at a lavish holiday party he threw at Bell Works.

“We are excited about Somerset’s plans,” said FMERA real estate development senior office Sarah Giberson. “This developer has already made a significant investment in Monmouth County and is known for planning and designing innovative, high-quality projects and creating attractive, livable communities.”

Related: Netflix Confirms It Wants To Open Fort Monmouth Film Studio (October 2021)

Fort Monmouth Building Boom: Townhomes, Waterfront Walkway Coming (March 2021)

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