Specifically, AvalonBay will develop 400 high-end rentalapartments in four buildings as part of phase one of the project,or more than half of its 788-unit residential component. For-saleresidential development will come in later phases.

Carrying a reported price tag of $500 million, Wesmont Stationwill also include 130,000 sf of retail and office space, a publicsquare, community center, a new middle school, athletic fields andother recreational facilities, and a new commuter train station onNJ Transit's Bergen Line. The Lakewood, NJ-based Somerset hadpicked up finalsite plan approval in the summer of 2006.

"With Wesmont Station, we're looking to create an entirely newneighborhood based on smart growth principles and sustainability,"Ralph Zucker, Somerset's president, tells GlobeSt.com. "The sheerscale of it requires a team of experienced companies to achieve thegoals we've set. AvalonBay is one of the industry's mostaccomplished and well-regarded companies."