NJ TRANSIT CONTINUES TO ADVANCE “LAND PLAN” AND GOVERNOR’S HOUSING STRATEGY WITH TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT

Progress Made On Three Projects to Create New Homes, Support Station Area Communities in Jersey City, Bound Brook, and Morristown

NJ TRANSIT is advancing three transit-oriented development (TOD) projects in Jersey City, Bound Brook, and Morristown. This announcement represents immediate action to further Governor Mikie Sherrill’s Housing Strategy and NJ TRANSIT’s LAND Plan. When complete, the projects are projected to deliver more than 1,000 new homes, including hundreds of affordable and workforce homes. The projects also represent a reinvestment in New Jersey’s infrastructure while simultaneously driving new revenue to NJ TRANSIT and municipal project partners.

“You can’t make New Jersey more affordable without making housing more affordable. That’s why the Housing Strategy I released in September calls for putting State-owned property to work and building more homes near transit,” said Governor Mikie Sherrill. “These projects in Jersey City, Bound Brook, and Morristown advance that commitment, creating more housing choices near jobs and revitalizing our downtowns. Working with NJ TRANSIT and our local partners, we’re building communities where young people can put down roots, families can grow, and seniors can afford to stay.”

These three transit-oriented development projects demonstrate immediate action on Governor Sherrill’s housing strategy. The Housing Governing Council featured Liberty State Park Light Rail Park-And-Ride as a cornerstone of its state-owned property redevelopment strategy. The redevelopments in Bound Brook and Morristown demonstrate the increasing momentum for state and municipal partnership around smart growth.

“Transit-oriented development is critical to creating walkable, livable, and vibrant communities in New Jersey while at the same time providing a meaningful source of non-farebox revenue to NJ TRANSIT,” said NJ TRANSIT President & CEO Kris Kolluri. “We are also pleased to be able to support Governor Sherrill’s Housing Strategy as we continue to advance our TOD program across the state.”

Liberty State Park Light Rail Park-and-Ride

NJ TRANSIT actively seeks to develop its real estate where feasible, consistent with Governor Sherrill’s Housing Strategy and the LAND Plan. Today, the agency issued a Request for Qualifications/Proposals from developers interested in developing approximately 11 acres of NJ TRANSIT-owned land adjacent to the Liberty State Park Light Rail station in Jersey City across Communipaw Avenue. As announced at the Governor’s Conference on Housing and Economic Development, adaptive reuse of underutilized state land is a central tenet of the overall Housing Strategy. Fulfilling that mandate, this site is considered the future centerpiece of a new transit village.

“Jersey City has an important role to play in advancing the broader housing goals of the state of New Jersey, and we welcome opportunities to work with NJ TRANSIT to ensure that projects like the Liberty State Park HBLR lot contribute to the future of our city and state,” said Jersey City Mayor James Solomon. “As we move forward, we remain committed to pursuing development that expands access to affordable housing, supports our residents, and creates lasting benefits for our communities. We look forward to continuing our partnership with NJ TRANSIT to help deliver housing opportunities that work for Jersey City residents.”

The project, advanced in collaboration with Jersey City and the local community, is envisioned as a mixed-use, mixed-income development, creating a vibrant station area with retail, public spaces, and rental apartment homes with at least 20% designated affordable housing and 10% workforce housing. The project is expected to maximize access to the light rail station, providing exceptional facilities ensuring safe, convenient access for all, including commuter parking and integration with the City’s sidewalk and bicycle network. Offering materials are available at njtransitdevelopment.com, and responses to the RFQ/P are due by 4 p.m. EST on January 21, 2027.

Bound Brook

As part of its Unsolicited Request for Development (URD) program, where the agency enters strategic partnerships to realize compelling initiatives it could not otherwise advance independently, NJ TRANSIT expects its development partner, Capodagli Property Company, to begin construction next year on property assembled by the parties called The Meridia Downtown Project at NJ TRANSIT’s Bound Brook Station on the Raritan Valley Line. The mixed-use project will feature 218 apartments, a common amenity space sitting atop 3,600 square-feet of ground floor retail space, and a structured parking facility to support station area infill development and Bound Brook’s central business district.

“Six years after the tragic fire that devastated our borough, it's exciting to finally have this project moving forward,” said Bound Brook Mayor Dominic Longo. “It will go a long way to solving our parking issue as well as bring additional residents to help with our downtown revitalization."

Morristown

Last month, also as part of its growing URD program, NJ TRANSIT and V Fee Lafayette Realty, LLC executed an exclusive negotiation agreement (ENA) to develop two parcels of land adjacent to the Morristown train station. The parties will now collaborate with the Town of Morristown to finalize the development program, which will potentially include Class A office space, multi-family residential, ground floor retail, parking and supporting uses. The ENA allows pre-development planning, community engagement and necessary due diligence to proceed.

“For too long, Morristown’s landmark train station was a park-and-ride island, not a center of activity. That’s finally changing,” said Morristown Mayor Tim Dougherty. “Roughly $250 million in transit-oriented development is now underway. We appreciate NJ TRANSIT’s work freeing up excess property for reinvestment, and we see real opportunity ahead to partner on the stewardship and beautification the station area deserves. Morristown is helping turn this cut-through into a vibrant neighborhood, and we welcome NJ TRANSIT alongside us.”

“As a development company, you go into a transaction with a public agency expecting a long, uncertain process. NJ TRANSIT’s team was professional, responsive, and focused on getting to yes, while being clear about what they needed to protect for railroad operations. That combination is what makes real estate deals possible. Our company has made a long-term commitment to the blocks around the Morristown station, and bringing NJ TRANSIT’s land into that effort lets us plan for the area as a whole. We appreciate NJ TRANSIT recognizing the value of putting excess land back to work - not just for the financial benefits, but also for creating a more beautiful, functional neighborhood. We look forward to working with NJ TRANSIT and the Town of Morristown as we shape the next chapter for Morristown Station,” said Tom Maoli, Member, V Fee Lafayette Realty LLC.

These projects demonstrate early action on the Governor’s Housing Strategy and NJ TRANSIT’s -  LAND Plan: Leveraging Assets for Non-farebox Dollars The Governor announced her housing strategy in Atlantic City in September 2026. The Strategy was the result of Executive Order 17, which launched the Sherrill administration’s effort to accelerate housing production and increase access to existing affordable housing. In five months, the Administration doubled its assessment of the number of homes that could be built on state property from 20,000 to 40,000+ homes. In addition to building specifically on state land, New Jersey’s housing strategy calls for smart growth near transit, jobs, schools, and opportunity, as well as the redevelopment of vacant office buildings, and aging strip malls. It also focuses on preserving existing affordable homes, revitalizing downtowns, expanding pathways to homeownership, narrowing racial wealth gaps, and protecting open space and the environment.

To learn more about Governor Sherrill’s Housing Strategy, click here.

The LAND Plan is NJ TRANSIT’s roadmap to raise as much as $1.9 billion in non-farebox revenue for the agency, up to $14 billion for the State of New Jersey, and up to $1.6 billion in municipal revenues over the next 30 years by leveraging portions of its 8,000-acre real estate portfolio. The plan highlights how NJ TRANSIT, working with the Legislature, state agencies and local host communities, can activate underutilized assets to deliver housing, jobs and recurring non-farebox revenue, while improving customer experience and reliability. The LAND Plan is designed to strengthen communities around NJ TRANSIT’s stations while improving service for customers. The LAND Plan offered an initial blueprint for Governor Sherrill’s broader state property initiatives.

To learn more about NJ TRANSIT’s TOD program, click here.

About NJ TRANSIT

NJ TRANSIT is the nation's largest statewide public transportation system providing more than 925,000 weekday trips on 264 bus routes, three light rail lines, 12 commuter rail lines and through Access Link paratransit service. It is the third largest transit system in the country with 165 rail stations, 62 light rail stations and more than 19,000 bus stops linking major points in New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia.