Sean Ryan is associate editor of Real Estate New Jersey

HELMETTA, NJ-The Helmetta Borough Council has chosen Kaplan Cos. to convert the old, 32-acre Helme tobacco and snuff mill here to the Village of Helmetta. The $70-million project will demolish the existing brick buildings on the property, vacant since 1993.

Fourdevelopers were in the running for the property, including the Highland Park-based Kaplan and the Bridgewater-based Helmetta Lenape LLC, an affiliate of property owner Pizzo & Pizzo. Millennium Homes of Livingston and the Kalian Co. of Red Bank were the other two developers.

Plans call for 233 units of owner-occupied, age-restricted housing. Both three-story buildings and 2,500-sf townhouses are scheduled. The condos will be marketed starting in the mid-$200,000 range and townhouses starting in the low $300,000s. Approximately 13,000 sf of ground-floor retail is planned. A 3,000-sf community center, along with tennis and basketball courts, will be open to all borough residents. A private community center for Village residents only will also be constructed.