By Allison Perrine
MIDDLETOWN – What is now an overgrown, vacant lot on Leonardville Road will soon become the site of a dozen 100 percent affordable residential units for veterans, the township announced June 29.
The project is coming to the Belford section of Middletown at 37-45 Leonardville Road, across from the Carvel ice cream shop. The plan is to construct a two-story apartment complex with 12 affordable units for income-eligible veterans. It’s just one of several ongoing initiatives to help local veterans, said Mayor Tony Perry.
The property sits close to the historic Campbell’s Junction, churches, restaurants, a bank, a bus stop, convenience stores and ice cream shops, which makes it the “perfect location” for the housing, said former township committee member Tony Fiore in 2020 when the idea was introduced. “I think we get a bad rep about affordable housing. We’re not opposed to affordable housing. We’re for affordable housing, especially when it makes great sense,” he said. “New Jersey is not an easy place to afford as you age,” Fiore added, “and I think this can have a tremendous impact to keep them here.”
“We’re really excited, obviously, about the opportunity to clean up a site that has plagued Campbell’s Junction for two decades now,” Perry told The Two River Times. “Middletown committed years ago not to turn its back on those most in need and we’re putting our money where our mouth is.”
The township purchased the existing lot, previously owned by EZ Quick Food Store, Inc., for $335,000. It will be paid for through the township’s affordable housing trust fund with no borrowing, according to the township. The site currently contains an abandoned tool shop which will be demolished before construction begins. The township will partner with the Middletown Housing Authority (MHA) on the project to manage the site. The MHA currently manages hundreds of affordable housing units in town.
Cleanup of the site will start this summer with demolition of the existing structure and construction of the new complex to follow. After, individuals will be able to apply for residency. Income eligibility requirements will be determined by the state and are based on regional calculations, Perry said. It will follow the same guidelines as the other affordable housing facilities in the township.
“We hope to have people inside and we hope to be opening that facility sometime next year,” said Perry. “This is a really exciting project that is going to help, hopefully, a dozen or so of our men and women who have defended our freedoms and fought for our nation. There’s nobody more deserving than those individuals who have fought for our freedom, to have that first preferential treatment to this new facility.”
Renderings of the plan by DMR Architects, Hasbrouck Heights, have been released and are available on the township website, middletownnj.org, and are posted on a sign on the property on Leonardville Road.
While the plans have been approved by the township committee, the township and county planning boards will have courtesy reviews of the latest concepts as well because Leonardville Road is a county roadway.
Aside from the latest residential project for veterans, the township is supporting its all-volunteer Veterans Affairs Committee (VAC) and its latest programs. That includes a “Thank a Veteran” program that offers discounts to veterans shopping at Middletown businesses, as well as a “Veteran of the Year” program designed to honor local veterans who have served in the military. The VAC is also promoting awareness of the state fee exemption for local metered parking for disabled veterans and Purple Heart recipients, according to the township.
“The township committee and I are honored to support the VAC in these important initiatives,” said Perry.
Outside of the VAC, the township supports veterans with initiatives such as providing designated parking spaces at township properties, recognizing active military on the Heroes Wall in town hall and paying tribute to Middletown’s fallen heroes who died in action through the Fallen Veterans Commemorative Street Sign program.
In May, for example, the township honored Revolutionary War veterans Joseph Murray and Obadiah Stillwell, who were both killed in action. Additionally, the township installed a World War II Memorial sign at a monument at Croydon Hall in the Leonardo section of Middletown. To date, more than 50 signs have been added township-wide to pay tribute to township veterans who were killed in action from the Revolutionary War to present.
The article originally appeared in the July 8 – 14, 2021 print edition of The Two River Times.
