Orange Township Approves Transformative Project

Gateway Merchant Bank is peeling back the layers of a historic project in Essex County.

The Orange Township Planning Board approved a $350 million redevelopment of the Orange Memorial Hospital, the developer announced this week. The unanimous approval from the board paves the way for construction to begin at 188 South Essex Street later this year.

The ten-acre property is set to be the largest project in the history of Orange, according to the press release. It’s also anticipated to be one of the biggest projects in Essex County’s history.

The development will include 1,005 apartments, split between one-, two- and three-bedroom units. Up to 20 percent of the units will be designated for affordable housing and there may also be senior and student housing available.

Amenities will include a rooftop pool with cabanas and gardens, a sky lounge, fitness rooms, event spaces and parking spaces, including 200 electric vehicle charging stations. There will also be a public outdoor ice skating and roller skating rink, a plaza with an open lawn, terraced platform seating, a restaurant with outdoor seating and children’s play areas.

Additionally, there will be 70,000 square feet of retail and commercial space, about a third of which will serve as municipal office space.

“This is not just another real estate deal. As someone who lives minutes away and calls South Orange home, I understand the magnitude of this project, not only for the City of Orange but for Essex County and all of New Jersey,” Gateway co-founder Terrence Murray said in a statement.

The hospital, which included a well-renowned nursing school for the region, has been shuttered for two decades. The hospital is on the State and National Registry of Historic Places and two of its significant buildings are expected to be preserved; one will become the home of City Hall.

This is a massive development by Gateway’s standards. Since its founding in 1999, the company has invested in, developed or co-developed 2.5 million square feet of properties, including just more than 2,000 apartment units. Murray and partner Charles Frazier have been involved in more than $15 billion of real estate debt and equity transactions.