Mack-Cali Unveils $75-Million Harborside Renovations

Standout features include Pulaski Skyway panorama photography displays, new indoor pedestrian routes, and refinished lounge areas with an industrial motif.

View of the lobby at Mack-Cali’s Harborside 2, Jersey City, NJ (Ben Gancsos Photography)

JERSEY CITY, NJ—Mack-Cali Realty Corporation has completed the comprehensive renovation of Harborsides building lobbies—a significant milestone in its $75-million capital transformation of the class A office and retail complex along the Jersey City waterfront.

The enhanced lobbies are highlighted by new pedestrian routes with built-in lounge areas refinished with a raw industrial aesthetic, paying homage to Harborsides industrial past. Features include dark metal finishes that directly reference the railroads, and intricately detailed wood planks that reference the shipping piers. Glass walls at the elevator banks now provide increased natural light and spectacular views of the Hudson River and New York City.

Mack-Cali has partnered with Art House Productions—the professional theater and arts space in Jersey City created in response to 9/11—on the creation of two different panorama photography displays of the Pulaski Skyway. Now hanging eight feet tall and 80 feet wide in the lobbies of Harborside 2 and Harborside 3, both panorama images were taken by Jersey City-based photographer Joe Velez, who was commissioned by Art House Productions.

“We were thrilled when Mack-Cali expressed interest in hiring a local Jersey City-based photographer for this project,” says Art House Productions executive director Meredith Burns. “We immediately thought of Joe Velez, a multidisciplinary artist—born and raised in Jersey City—who we knew would see the beauty in this structure and could capture the Pulaski from different locations that a non-local may not be privy to.”

Mack-Cali has reimagined Jersey City’s waterfront with the creation of Harborside, a one-of-a-kind cultural district that blends premier offices, luxury living, locally inspired shopping and dining, and public spaces for the community to enjoy.

By investing in office renovations, amenity upgrades, and public infrastructure improvements, and by attracting a diverse mix of upscale restaurants and retailers, Mack-Cali is continuing to transform Harborside into a true destination—one that harnesses the character of Jersey City while cultivating its own unique arts, dining, and lifestyle scene.

Against the backdrop of New York City’s skyline, Harborside is a major crossroads for transportation, including the Exchange Place PATH station, the Harborside Light Rail station, and a brand-new NY Waterway ferry terminal, allowing for unsurpassed access between Midtown and Lower Manhattan and the greater New Jersey Gold Coast.

Currently, Harborside spans 4.3 million square feet along the waterfront—with an additional 1.2 million square feet planned—including class A office and retail space in addition to Jersey City Urby, the 69-story apartment tower designed for the contemporary urban renter.