With Plainfield equally divided between homeowners and renters and with Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs backing more rental development for the city, residents may well wonder what will happen to Plainfield if troubled Connolly Properties goes bust.
Under the glare of public scrutiny over living conditions in its hundreds of units throughout the city, with vacancies increasing, and facing numerous citations in housing court, Connolly Properties is also the subject of persistent rumors that the property management firm is in severe financial distress and possibly facing bankruptcy.
Whether or not that turns out to be the case, the Robinson-Briggs administration would be wise to have a 'plan B' in place (assuming the recently announced and much-touted inspections task force is 'plan A').
In Elizabeth, where the once highly desirable Oakwood Plaza has long been plagued by drugs and violence (see most recent story here), Mayor Chris Bollwege is said to have found a new owner that will redevelop the troubled rental complex, at the same time reducing its density.
Is there someone to step into the breech in Plainfield if Connolly defaults on its mortgages?
Mayor Robinson-Briggs may want to consider making a phone call to Tim Fournier.
Tim is familiar with Plainfield, already has a large property investment here, and could possibly be of great assistance.
Who is Tim Fournier?
He is the president and CEO of Conifer Realty, formerly American Home Properties, which owns and manages Leland Gardens which, with hundreds of units, is Plainfield's largest rental complex.
Leland Gardens, satellite view.
Leland Gardens, map view.
Tucked away out of sight in a large complex behind the tidy cape cods which face East Front Street and Leland Avenue, Fournier oversaw the investment of millions of dollars in upgrading the complex when AHP bought it a decade ago -- including new roofs, windows and doors, and renovated kitchens and bathrooms throughout. One of the conditions of the takeover/makeover was the provision of a new, state-of-the art community center for residents, which includes lounge areas, a meeting room and laundry facilities.
The city was to repave the two city streets that bisect the development, Leland Court and Cole Place. That has never happened, even though the two streets are arguably in the worst condition of any in the entire city.
Besides investing in and maintaining its buildings, Conifer manages the properties with a keen eye to the well-being and safety of all the residents.
In contrast to other large rental properties, you will find no news stories of drug busts or gunplay here.
With a history of providing affordable housing -- including partnering with nonprofits to do so (see a story about its latest project in South Jersey here) -- Conifer is well-positioned to turn a Connolly failure into a win-win situation for Plainfield.
That is, if anyone thinks to approach them.
That would be planning ahead, wouldn't it?
- Website: "Conifer Living" | "Leland Gardens"
- Inquirer: "Evesham nonprofit finds strength in partnering"
- WABC: "Boy grazed by bullet in Elizabeth" -- Article and video.
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7 comments:
Dan, Good suggestion!
As a resident in one of Connolly's buildings, I don't see him going bankrupt, though he would deserve it. Recently, he allowed communication towers to be installed on the roof of 606 Crescent Avenue. According to the installer, Connolly get $3000 per month, per tower. Nice, considering the roof leaks and was repaired by illegal workers who actually made it worse in some instances. Mayor Robinson-Briggs should look at all of her options, but she has shown she does not do that well. I hope she wises up and becomes a good mayor for a change.
I would love to see Connolly lose some, if not all of his buildings, since he has proven to be someone who cares only for the money he collects and not the people who live in his slums. People say, "So move out." Yes, move out and leave Plainfield, since he owns so many buildings. I've lived here over 25 years and I don't want a slum lord forcing me to leave my home town.
To 7:42 AM --
I am sorry for your problems with Connolly at 606. I had a church friend who lived there many years until she passed away 10 years ago. She would be mortified at what's happened since. The building is very like the one I lived in in Brooklyn before moving here 25 years ago. It is well-built and needs minimum maintenance to keep it in prime shape for a long time.
Shame things have been let go.
While practically anyone could run the properties better than Connoly, be carefull what you wish for. Conifer/ Home Properties certainly is in line with an actual, real company experienced with multifamily communities; but they only bought Leland Gardens to settle a discrimination lawsuit at another property. It looks like they are doing a great job with the property. Why in the world would Plfd agree to pave privately owned roadways when the public roads in the city are in such disrepair?? They also own 2 properties in Piscataway and have been improving the properties since they bought them as well.
To 8:23 AM --
Did you note I wrote 'city streets'?
They are not private roadways, and if you look closely, Cole Place leads to another city street, Deborah Court. Lot of folks don't even know it exists.
Since you're batting .50 at best, I'm wondering about the accuracy of the 'discrimination' assertion.
Dan,
My comment was that one would not expect a street with that configuration through an apartment complex to be a city street. They are usually owned and maintained by the property owner.
The discrimination suit against Home Props can be looked up if you want to do your homework. I am looking for it now. Will forward the info when I locate it. Im sure you can find it in the Ledger and the CN archives. Purchsing a property in an urban area surch as Plfd was a condition of the settlement. And here is an interesting tidbit. The property is not even listed on the Home Props web site. The 2 Piscataway properties are listed. Hmmmm. Is Conifer a new entity that now owns the property?
I said I would find it and I did.
I also replied to your doubting comment and it has not been posted yet. An oversight im sure.
I have to back the suit up to the original owners, not Home Props as listed. Wrong dates. This is the information as quoted in the New York Times.
Discrimination Settlement
By TERRY PRISTIN
Published: Thursday, June 19, 1997
A real estate management company agreed yesterday to pay $950,000 in fines and damages to settle a discrimination complaint filed by the United States Justice Department.
The company, Chandler Associates, was accused of discriminating against black people who sought apartments at Pleasant View Gardens in Piscataway and were falsely told that no vacancies existed. The settlement contained no admission of wrongdoing, but the company agreed to finance a $550,000 project to promote fair housing.
An oddity at the time since the community had people of all backgrounds living there. But it was the people that Home Properties bought from, no Home Properties themselves. Conifer more recently aquired the affordable housing aspects of Home Properties, inluding our own Leland Gardens.
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