Developer Proposes $32M Mixed-Use Project

HOWELL, NJ-Local officials are considering a proposal to build a $32 million mixed-use complex that would be anchored by a 173-room Holiday Inn and 58,000 sf of retail space. The 25-acre site is at the intersection of Route 9 and I-195 in this Monmouth County township.

The site is currently under contract for sale, with its private owners the Solondz family, preparing to sell it to the developer of the proposed project, Herman Vorhand of Lakewood. The sale price is in the $3-million range, according to Constantine Vasilis, vice president of Jack Krupnick & Associates Inc., based here, who brokered the transaction.

No definite timetable for the project has been released, pending various approvals and permits that need to be obtained. According to Vasilis, once all that's been accomplished, the project is expected to take about 18 months to construct. Local officials estimate that the project will generate in excess of $750,000 in taxes annually.

Vorhand's project is also getting a boost from local officials. The township council has introduced an ordinance that would permit a greater height for hotels than is currently allowed under zoning regulations. The ordinance, as written, would bump the maximum heights up to six stories and 70 feet. The ordinance proposal also calls for a lot area of a minimum of three acres for the hotel itself, and at least 10 parking spaces for every 1,000 sf of conference and meeting space within the property.

The council has set a date for next week for a final vote on the proposal. The site does have some issues, including that approximately 10 acres of it is wetlands that can't be utilized, according the Vasilis. Besides being unbuildable, the wetlands portion also blocks traffic access on one of the site's borders. Attorney Barry Lefkowitz, representing Vorhand, says he's in discussions with the New Jersey DOT to remedy and access questions.