Lord & Taylor Redevelopment Plan To Be Presented At Westfield Meeting

WESTFIELD, NJ — The controversial Lord & Taylor redevelopment site is back on this week's Westfield Town Council agenda.

According to an update from Mayor Shelley Brindle, Streetworks Development will present their development proposal for the Lord & Taylor site, as well as the north and south side train station parking lots, at the Town Council meeting on Tuesday.

Westfield's Town Council, except for Councilman Mark LoGrippo, approved a scattered site redevelopment plan in Nov. of 2020, which included revitalizing the vacant Lord & Taylor properties, the South Avenue train station parking lot and several other municipal parking lots.

"This potentially historic public/private partnership is the culmination of over three years of collaboration, guided not only by our top flight team of redevelopment professionals, but more importantly, by various community groups and the public input from the Master Plan Re-examination," Brindle said in her update.

The Lord & Taylor property is owned by Hudson's Bay Company. Streetworks Development, an arm of Hudson's Bay, is working with the town on redeveloping this area.

LoGrippo recently wrote on Facebook that Streetworks was "designated the sole redeveloper [...] without a public, transparent, and open request for proposals process." He further said that Streetworks was given a "no-bid contract."

According to LoGrippo, the redevelopment plan includes two 110,000 square foot office buildings at the South Avenue train station along with parking and possible apartments. In addition, he said the plan involves apartments with a parking facility at the North Avenue municipal lot, commercial, retail and apartments at the Lord & Taylor site and green space at the South and North Avenue train station.

Brindle previously accused LoGrippo of "prematurely" releasing information about the development and said it was subject to change.

Read more: Westfield Councilman Leaks Plans For Lord & Taylor Redevelopment

No matter how residents feel about the proposal, LoGrippo is encouraging all residents to attend the meeting on Tuesday at 8 p.m.

Brindle said the while initial presentation is explicitly for the governing body, it will kick off a town-wide community engagement process led by Streetworks.

You can also watch the meeting live on Westfield's Facebook page.

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