University Place, the transformative revitalization and expansion of the West Campus of New Jersey City University (NJCU) continued to make substantial progress this week with the raising of the ‘University Place’ entrance to the neighborhood from West Side Avenue at University Place Boulevard.
The $400 million public-private partnership redevelopment project, spearheaded under the leadership of NJCU President Sue Henderson, will revitalize the city’s West Side and transform the institution’s West Campus into a modern urban village that will include student and residential housing, retail, restaurants, green public spaces and a pedestrian-friendly layout to aesthetically and economically revitalize the region while adding employment opportunities. The project aims to create a unique sense of place between NJCU’s main campus and the adjacent neighborhood.
Additionally, University Place will be home to a contemporary academic and performance space which will serve as the new home to the internationally known Joffrey Ballet School. A state of the art community Caroline & Frank Guarini, Sr. Performing Arts Center will become the first of its kind in Hudson County.
The Guarini Performing Arts Center will be a world-class, 25,437 square-foot theatrical showplace comprising: a 492-seat theatre, complete with orchestra pit and fly stage, a 100-seat recital hall, two large dance studios for both rehearsal and performances with exterior glass walls looking out to a large public plaza, performers’ dressing rooms, scenery fabrication shop and storage, grand lobby and special event space. The recital hall will be namedthe Robert M. Kaye Recital Hall.
In 2016, the West Campus Village Residence Hall opened at University Place — doubling the institution’s capacity to house residential students — and on September 20, 2017 University Place held a groundbreaking ceremony for the second of five mixed-use residential buildings. In 2018, RIVET opened. This building features modern market-rate apartments and 10,000 square feet of retail space.
The University Place Redevelopment Project Is a ‘Game Changer’ for NJCU Students and Jersey City’s West Side Community.
View the photo gallery to see images of the raising of the ‘University Place’ entrance. (Photo Credit: Paul Gargulio, Director of Digital Media Production).