Newark Residents Keep Pushing Against 'Iberia' Skyscrapers In The Ironbound

NEWARK, NJ — Community advocates in Newark continue to oppose a large redevelopment project in the Ironbound section of the city.

The Newark Central Planning Board unanimously voted to approve the $800 million “Iberia II” project on a 2.5-acre lot between Market and Ferry streets in March. Plans for the site include four skyscrapers rising between 26 and 30 stories – with a total of 1,408 apartments – in addition to 18,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space and 620 parking spaces.

As per the city’s inclusionary zoning ordinance, 283 of the apartments – or at least 20 percent – must be reserved for people making below the area’s median income and be priced at below-market rates.

The complex was set to be one of the largest real estate developments that the Ironbound has seen for decades – until a lawsuit was filed to halt the project in June.

Homes For All Newark, a grassroots organization of Brick City residents, is arguing that the towers would pose a threat to the health and safety of the nearby community. Other concerns include flood risks, traffic and potential “displacement” of local residents.

Advocates are also claiming that the approval process took place “behind closed doors” with a lack of transparency. They are now seeking to pause the project until a “proper review” can take place.

The lawsuit names the Newark Central Planning Board as defendant along with Iberia II Realty Urban Renewal LLC, the entity behind the project.

Homes For All Newark said that residents have proposed more “community-centered alternatives” for the project, such as a 12-story maximum height, “at least 50 percent affordability” with more family-sized units, and a binding agreement to guarantee environmental safeguards, affordability and local hiring.

Advocates are encouraging local residents to attend a special, virtual planning board meeting scheduled for Dec. 8.

“The city has pushed this project forward behind closed doors while the cost of living in Newark has skyrocketed,” said Tanisha Garner, president of Homes for All Newark.

“Residents deserve a planning process rooted in honesty, transparency and environmental justice – not a rush to satisfy a developer’s timeline,” Garner said.

Newark resident Myles Zhang said the Ironbound’s walkable streets and family businesses make the neighborhood attractive to outside developers to build there.

“But ironically, allowing developers to build skyscrapers and parking garages on Ferry Street will destroy the very features of the Ironbound that made it so attractive to investors in the first place: the people,” Zhang added.

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