NEWARK -- They are apartments equipped with stainless steel appliances, hardwood floors, a fitness center, and a doorman - and they are in the middle of Newark's Central Ward.

24 Jones, the mixed-use development next to the game-changing ShopRite that opened on Springfield Avenue in Newark last fall, has officially started renting market-rate apartments. When the supermarket opened in an area that had once been deemed a "food desert" for its lack of access to quality food stores, city officials lauded it as a neighborhood revitalizer. Eight months later, the developer behind 24 Jones says it is continuing the mission.

"We really see this as the kind of mixed use development that could and should be done around the country," said Richard Tucker, the CEO of the company behind the complex, Tucker Development.

"It brings vitality to the area. ...There are so many good things happening in this city. This is just a continuation of that."

The complex includes 152 studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartment units, a fitness center, and a parking lot.

The Springfield Avenue Place development also includes retail components, which should be open by this fall, and will include a McDonald's, Taco Bell, Huddle House, Sarku Japanese, H&R Block, Roberto's Pizza, Angel Nails and Venus Beauty Supply.

Though some of the retail buildings in the complex are not yet finished, Jeffrey Glenner, Tucker's Vice President of Development, said there is not much work left to do before the entire development is complete.

"We're in the final build out...(retail) tenants are coming in," he said. The group is also in talks with several other companies who have yet to officially sign on, he said.

Starting apartment rents in the complex range from $1,400 to $2,400 a month, Glenner said. The units, Tucker said, are being targeted to Newark college students and recent graduates, as well as other residents.

According to a spokeswoman for the city's Department of Economic and Housing Development, the anticipated tax revenue from the development is not known. But, in a statement from the department, she said the city is "excited to partner" with Tucker.

"While ShopRite serves as a major anchor on Springfield Avenue, we welcome all residential and commercial improvements. We are committed to the betterment of all of Newark," she said in the statement.

Jessica Mazzola may be reached at

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