Six-Story, 200-Unit Apartment Building May Come To MetroPark Station

WOODBRIDGE, NJ — The Woodbridge development boom continues with two new proposed apartment buildings:

First, this proposal is currently before the Woodbridge Planning Board to build a six-story apartment building just down the street from the MetroPark train station.

Woodmont Properties, a well-known New Jersey real estate developer based in Fairfield, seeks to build a six-story residential building with 200 apartment units at 186 Wood Avenue south, across the street from the existing APA Hotel.

The apartment complex would come with an attached parking garage with 511 parking spaces, plus a 505-space surface parking lot, for a total of 1,000+ new parking spaces.

The developer is Woodmont Metropark Residential Urban Renewal, LLC, a division of Woodmont Properties.

That's not all: Another division of Woodmont, Woodmont Senior Living LLC, seeks to build a seven-story senior living building and a two-story parking garage also in that area, reports MyCentralJersey.

Neither project has been approved by the Woodbridge Planning Board; they will be asked to vote on it at their meeting next Wednesday, Oct. 12. You can read the first proposal here. After the Planning Board approves or denies an application, it is then sent to the Woodbridge Council for a vote and public comment period.

Woodbridge residents should expect to see a lot of development in the next few years next to MetroPark, which is a stop for both Amtrak and NJ Transit trains. The Amtrak Acela stops at MetroPark.

These two new apartment proposals are entirely unrelated to this plan from NJ Transit to develop a 12-acre plot of land NJ Transit owns right next to the MetroPark train station. This is the area that currently houses the MetroPark outdoor parking lot, and two very large covered parking garages.

In 2020, NJ Transit put out a public bid for proposals, and developers could submit their proposals here: https://www.njtransitdevelopme...

In the summer of 2021, four developers were chosen as finalists to build multi-story apartments and ground-floor retail at the MetroPark train station. As of October 2022, NJ Transit has not yet announced which final developer will get the contract to build on that land.

NJ Transit said it envisions transforming the site into a mixed-used residential/commerce development "that creates a new community of place," all centered around the MetroPark station.

"This development will create brand-new housing that is connected to New York City and other key economic centers in our area," previously said Gov. Phil Murphy, who backs the MetroPark development at the NJ Transit property.

Woodbridge Mayor John McCormac also previously said the town "has seen proposals" from the four developers and that whatever will be built there will be built with Woodbridge's input and approval. However, how much say Woodbridge has is limited, as NJ Transit owns the land.

Prior: NJ Transit Wants To Build At Metropark Station; Developer Sought (Oct. 30, 2020)

4 Developers Are Finalists For MetroPark Development Plan (June 15, 2021)