Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Touting 'Collingswood's exceptional lifestyle attributes,' developer Brad Ingerman hosted a formal launch reception for the property that was attended by local and state leaders.
It’s a far cry from his current headquarters near the “prominent Cherry Hill location of The Inn of the Dove,” said real estate developer Brad Ingerman, but when it’s completed—sometime in the next year or so—the new digs in Collingswood should do just fine. The President and CEO of the Ingerman Group, which is handling the final two phases of the LumberYard redevelopment, told a crowd of media and supporters Wednesday afternoon that the project will be the 86th the company has undertaken, and promised it will be “as good if not better than anything we’ve done to date.” Ingerman spoke of his desire to be “contributing to the vibrancy of this little town.” He invoked “the pride of Collingswood” as a key determinant in the success of The …
Friday, February 15, 2013
As construction crews broke through the vacant properties on the land that will house the Ingerman-built apartment building, business owners on Powell Lane watched with interest.
Although he knew the work was imminent, Verde Salon owner Kevin Gatto was taken aback when the kick-off to Phase III of the LumberYard construction began. At least he had a front-row seat to the show. "I had no idea it was happening today," Gatto said. "I don’t know if they just jumped on the fact that it was nice weather today. I’ve been so focused that I really wasn’t paying much attention. "We looked up and we saw the backhoe start to knock it down, and we all stopped and started staring at it," he said. As the first blows were struck Thursday, Gatto and his staff all stopped working and watched, together with customers. An odd catharsis came over him. "We all wanted to see if we could pay ten bucks and take a turn at [smashing] it to …
Monday, January 7, 2013
Approval of the site plan for the property at the December borough Planning Board meeting cleared the way for construction to begin as early as this month.
With the borough Planning Board having approved its site plan Dec. 10, the Ingerman Group expects to close on the back building of the LumberYard property, and could begin construction there later this month. Collingswood Mayor James Maley said that once the deal is completed, build-out of the existing 34 units could be completed within four to five months. They could be up for lease in the summer of 2013, although possibly not all at once, he said. Work on the new, five-story apartment building that is now a vacant lot (see images above) would take a little longer. Additional state and county permitting processes are expected to put closing on that property at anywhere from April to June 2013, with an expected 12 to 14 months of …
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Updates on the LumberYard and Route 130 projects, the Knight Park Art Contest and why Commissioner Mike Hall thinks a polka-dot dress isn't outlandish enough for him to don.
As Collingswood hosted its quarterly town forum to a tiny crowd in the Scottish Rite ballroom Wednesday night, Mayor James Maley reflected on what difference a year makes. Twelve months ago to the day, the borough hosted another townwide meeting, he reflected, where the headlines of the day were related to the surprising news that Moody’s Investors Service had junked its credit rating. "Not that I remember," he joked. The nowhere-near-capacity crowd certainly got its money's worth at the free event, however, with unimpeded access to pick the brains of its leaders about anything and everything going on in town. Here are the highlights. What’s up with the LumberYard? A declaratory judgment hearing on the petition question is scheduled for …
Friday, August 31, 2012
By seeking a preventive adjudication, borough leaders are hoping to knock down talk of a ballot initiative.
Even as the Collingswood Planning Board approved revised ordinances governing the completion of the LumberYard this week, the borough is taking additional steps to close off any lingering opposition. Collingswood issued a statement that it would seek “a declaratory judgment from the New Jersey Superior Court" on the legality of a petition submitted by residents regarding the final phase of the LumberYard redevelopment project. The move could take the air out of a citizen-led petition delivered to the municipal government earlier this month that called for putting the redevelopment plan and 25-year PILOT grant issued to its developer, Ingerman Group, up for a referendum. “There’s 13,962 people in this town,” said Collingswood resident …
Thursday, July 26, 2012
As residents air concerns about the build-out for 90 minutes, the mayor defends the project prior to a unanimous vote.
Familiar concerns were echoed among the 60 or so residents who turned out at the Wednesday night special meeting of the Collingswood borough commissioners to discuss the next phase of the LumberYard project. They wondered aloud whether the project would unsustainably spike parking demands, introduce an undesirable element by inviting more apartment renters to town or create an eyesore that would dominate the downtown skyline. After all the talk was through, however, the borough leadership approved the pair of ordinances on its docket. One greenlit the build-out of the five-story, mixed-use residential/commercial construction, and another gave its builders, the Ingerman Group, a 25-year PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) deal. At the outset …
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Collingswood Community Center
30 W Collings Ave, Collingswood, NJ
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Friday, July 6, 2012
Commissioners also tabled a pair of ordinances related to the LumberYard project until a special session can be convened July 25.
At their monthly meeting Monday, borough commissioners offered early drafts of ordinances that would address outdoor pet-keeping issues, establish a new family practice in town, and set limits on how long people can keep dumpsters and storage containers on their properties. The commissioners also tabled a pair of measures—one forming a tax-relief PILOT program for the Ingerman Group, the developer attached to complete the LumberYard project, and another addressing certain engineering and design aspects of the project—as a result of conflicting document drafts at its June planning board meeting. To address those matters, commissioners will hold a special meeting at 7 p.m. July 25 following the special planning board meeting July 16. Yet the…
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Heights of Collingswood
700 W Browning Rd, Oaklyn, NJ
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Tuesday, June 5, 2012
In addition to a discussion of the LumberYard, the borough commissioners meeting had a wedding and an elementary school student who needed the mayor's signature for a scavenger hunt item.
The usual running conversation about the LumberYard project was really diverted only twice at the borough commissioners meeting Monday night: once to discuss the façade collapse of the old bank on Haddon Avenue, and once more to table the resolution regarding the use of outdoor fire pits. In addition, Mayor James Maley was called upon to officiate the wedding of Jason and Robin Klawitter, whose daughter Isabella stole the show with her spring dress (and ring pop accessory). He also lent his signature to Mark Newbie School fourth-grader Lillian Medina, who was tasked to get it as part of a scavenger hunt. The LumberYard lurches forward Maley confirmed that the borough completed its bank loan for the purchase of 13 remaining condominium …
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Collingswood Community Center
30 W Collings Ave, Collingswood, NJ
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Thursday, May 31, 2012
The rating is 10 on the investor service scale of 21. With that position secured, Mayor James Maley says, the borough will close its deal with Ingerman builders Monday.
Moody's Investor Service has restored Collingswood bond ratings to investment-grade status, the borough reports, a move that will help with the next phase of the LumberYard construction project. Although an official announcement from Moody's was unavailable at press time, Kyle Fitzpatrick, a client service representative for the agency, confirmed that the ratings upgrade would be published to the company website by the end of the day. "I’m happy that they did it, but it’s important to note that we haven’t changed one thing from what we announced we were doing last August, when this happened," Collingswood Mayor James Maley told Patch. "All we did was follow through on our plan, and in that time period, Moody’s changed their conclusion," he…
Will McGowan
2:14 pm on Thursday, February 21, 2013
As a bit of a critic on the direction of the Lumberyard I am hoping for all they promise. It at least "sounds like" they are committed to make this work and I think that 3 bedroom units are definitely part of that answer. Wishing them the best of luck and hoping looking forward to good things. more ›