Carteret, NJ – Mayor Dan Reiman and the Borough Council welcomed Greg Matzel from Cooke Avenue Developers, L.L.C., Middlesex Freeholder Ron Rios, and Borough residents for a ceremony in which the Redevelopment Agreement was signed, allowing for the construction of the town’s long-awaited “Health and Wellness Center.”
Greg Matzel is the President of Matzel Development, a multiple award-winning builder that is responsible for many of the prominent luxury housing projects throughout New Jersey, including the 288 units hosted by Bristol Station on Carteret’s Industrial Avenue.
The redevelopment agreement was lauded for establishing a partnership between the town and Matzel that is the first of its kind, through which construction of the 36,000 square foot facility will be carried out with a not-for-profit agenda. To date, approximately $9.5 million has been raised for the state-of-the-art fitness facility through state and county grants, private endowments, and Developer Impact fees generated by local businesses and litigation settlements. Total cost for the facility has been estimated at $14 million, which the Mayor and Redevelopment Agency expect to have earmarked by the project’s completion in 2010.
“Because the value of this project to the community is unquestionable” Mayor Reiman stated, “we expect it to be close to fully funded through public and private endowments by 2009, at no cost to our taxpayers.”
The first such grant was awarded to Carteret by Middlesex County in 2006, allowing for $3 million towards the junior Olympic sized swimming pool, which will be housed in the facility’s 7,000 square foot aquatics center. The pool along with the facility’s many other amenities will be tailored to meet a wide variety of health, fitness, and recreational needs, according to Borough officials, and will allow for programs that will benefit different age groups.
Additional features include cardiovascular and weight rooms, aerobics studios, a multi-purpose sports room, physical therapy facilities, a daycare center, and a health food café.
“This has become an extremely active community which deserves suitable resources for active lifestyles.” Mayor Reiman said. “Our representatives at the County and State levels have recognized this project’s importance to the community, and has enabled us to cross the threshold into its planning stages by providing initial funding. With this unique partnership now established with Matzel Development, the ‘Carteret Community Health and Wellness Center’ will finally begin to take shape.”
“Although we specialize in the development of luxury housing,” Greg Matzel added, “we firmly believe that there are many ways for successful businesses to invest in a community. Through the years we have shared Mayor Reiman’s and the Borough Council’s vision for Carteret’s future, and have supported a number of public projects and programs that have directly improved this town. It is with a great deal of pride that we once again partnered with Carteret today, and look forward to helping improve the quality of life for area residents through the construction of the Health and Wellness Center.”
Construction of the Carteret Health and Wellness Center will begin 2009, with its completion projected for late 2010.
