Hackensack-based developer Enburg Development, the firm behind The Brick of Hackensack, recently secured site plan approval for a new mid-rise apartment building next to the city’s bus terminal. The city planning board voted to approve a plan for The Sapphire, a seven-story apartment building that includes 100 rentals, office space, a restaurant pad, and retail space at the vacant parcels at 132-148 Main Street.
Meeting documents from the planning board’s April 9 meeting state that Enburg Development, through the limited-liability company The Sapphire Urban Renewal, intends to develop 28 studios, 64 one-bedrooms, and eight two-bedroom units, in addition to 204 parking spaces. The planning board also approved a plan calling for approximately 5,600 square feet of ground-floor retail space, two restaurant pads, and 7,800 square feet of rooftop office space, but carried the application to June 11.
The architectural plans for the project, made public by the city planning board, reveal that resident amenities will include a golf simulator, bowling alley, fitness center, and movie theater.
While Enburg secured approvals from the city planning board, the development group could face challenges as Hackensack residents prepare to elect a new city council, which could reshape the city’s approach to granting tax incentives for new developments like The Sapphire.
“The city is pleased that this void in downtown is finally being developed,” said Albert Dib, the city’s director of economic development and redevelopment. “Businesses who invest here and residents who move in here look to see that the job does not go unfinished, so to have a vacancy like this, for as long as it has been there, sends the wrong message. To have this finally addressed is important and welcomed.”
A NorthJersey.com report noted the current iteration reflects significant scaling down from Enburg’s initial proposal of a 17-story tower with 253 rentals. Regardless of these changes, the project stands to benefit from ongoing development along Main Street and its proximity to restaurants, bars, and mass transit.
Jersey Digs reported in January that county officials are moving forward with plans to redevelop the Hackensack Bus Terminal into a 15-story tower featuring apartments, commercial space, and county government offices. That project, which requires no city planning board approvals, will also redevelop the adjacent parcel where the Bergen County probation center once stood.
Enburg Development opened the 378-unit Brick apartment building next to the Sapphire site in early 2022. That project at 150 Main Street includes a gym, yoga studio, luxury lap pool, and sundeck. Russo Development, one of the firms behind the redevelopment of the former Bergen Record headquarters, recently opened the second phase of its 696-unit Print House luxury apartment complex located two blocks from The Sapphire site.
The site plan approval granted by the planning board is a significant step toward the redevelopment of a prominent site that has sat idle for many years. The addition of office and rooftop restaurant space also has the potential to boost daytime activity along Main Street and offer a new amenity for all residents in the city.
