First AvalonBay Units in Downtown Princeton to Be Ready in August

The new 280-unit AvalonBay development will also provide 56 new affordable housing units in Princeton.
The new 280-unit AvalonBay development will also provide 56 new affordable housing units in Princeton.

The first AvalonBay units in downtown Princeton at the site of the former hospital on Witherspoon Street are expected to be available for occupancy this coming August.

Studio apartments will rent for about $2,000 and one-bedroom apartments will rent for about $2,200, AvalonBay Vice President Ron Ladell told business leaders at the Princeton Regional Chamber of Commerce breakfast Friday morning.

Some amenities like the workout room will not be open yet when the first tenants move in, Ladell said.

The company has already received inquiries from people interested in renting units. A total of 280 units will be available for rent at AvalonBay Princeton, and 56 units will be affordable housing units. Twelve rental units are townhomes.

9 Comments

  1. The address will be “100 Albert Way”. Nice local touch there. $2,200 seems a lot for a 1-bed, but they’ll probably get away with it because there is so much unmet demand for apartments in central Princeton.

  2. So much for “middle income housing.” Isn’t that what supporters said this project would mean back when the planning board was reviewing the plans? More supply will just mean more rich people moving to Princeton. Poor people will be corraled at places like Bunn Drive and Elm Court. The middle class will be gone.

    1. It isn’t mentioned in the article above, but 20% of the units in the Avalon Bay development will be restricted to people with average or below-average incomes, and these residents will pay based only on what they can afford. This is the biggest development of affordable housing in Princeton in years. Despite that, many self-proclaimed affordable housing advocates opposed the project, or stayed silent during the planning process.

      1. They will pay based on income, but for each of these “affordables” there will be 4 more that are “market,” i.e., not very affordable based on the rates posted. Ladell noted at that meeting that the rates will rise if demand builds. At 33% of income, $2200 for a studio is $66,000/year, so income should be almost $80,000/year. Just for comparison, a grad student at Princeton can earn $30,500/year. (see https://gradschool.princeton.edu/node/1012). Another thought: Merwick/Stanworth 1 BR (not studio) starts at $1750, bigger, but not much better is price. FYI, the opposition to the project is not to affordable housing as such but to the absence of a clear plan for funding, and the accompanying absence of an estimate of infrastructure costs if the affordable housing is built at 20% affordable. The reason is that, for the expected 447 affordable units, there will be 1,788 more at “market rates” needing to be built, filled and taxed. And there is a concerted effort to build more, so as to include housing for our police, firemen, teachers, etc. at rates that will make them want to live here, a challenge in itself.

  3. This was market rate housing, not targeted to middle income particularly. It’s what people are willing to pay. This isn’t a charitable housing project – not many area. They will charge as much as they can. On the other hand, great to be getting 56 affordable units.

  4. This isn’t Plainsboro folks.

    Walking distance to parks, employers, some shopping, world-class University, and a vibrant downtown. If one can skip the automobile (instead paying for 10-12 Uber trips/month), that’s $300~$400/month saved.

    A very nice alternative.

  5. Hoping someone will answer this question with certainty for me, because I’m curious : Are 5 of the 23 apartments in the Carnavale Plaza project (now under construction on Nassau Street) designated affordable housing units (in accordance with the 20% set aside for new developments) ? Thanks!

    1. Four affordable units, according to the Planning Board’s housing draft of 11.25.15. (5 units would have been more than 20% of the final 23 apartments.)

      1. That’s 60 affordable units gained from those two projects alone… good progress & great news! Thanks so much for finding the answer!

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