One of New Jersey’s most dilapidated strip malls will be demolished and transformed into a mixed-use project with hundreds of apartments.
Raritan Mall, a 10.88-acre property along Route 206 in Somerset County, was approved for redevelopment by the borough’s planning board Wednesday night.
The 6-2 vote ends years of stalled redevelopment efforts, including earlier plans rejected by the Raritan Borough Council. Plans for the mall site, which was built on a former landfill in a flood-prone area, have drawn continued pushback from residents over environmental risks.
The newly approved plans call for replacing the aging strip mall with a five-story, 70-foot-tall building with 276 rental apartments. The complex will include 42 affordable units and about 20,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space.
Raritan Mall redevelopment rendering
A separate one-story building that once housed a bank will remain and be converted for retail use, according to plans submitted by the applicant, Raritan Mall Urban Renewal LLC.
The affordable housing would help satisfy the borough’s obligations under a state law that requires New Jersey municipalities to collectively add or rehabilitate more than 146,000 affordable units by 2035. Under the mandate, Raritan Borough is expected to contribute 99 affordable housing units over the next decade.
Raritan Mall was once a busy shopping center with at least 15 storefronts, but the site has been largely vacant since its anchor tenant, Stop & Shop, closed in 2016. Built on a former landfill in the 1980s, the property has since fallen into disrepair, with ongoing environmental and structural issues worsened by repeated flooding.
Raritan strip mall
A preliminary 2022 redevelopment study conducted by the borough described the strip mall as abandoned and deteriorating, with vandalism, broken glass, mold, exposed nails and significant flood damage. Sidewalks are cracked, and overgrown weeds have taken over parts of the parking lot, the study said.
Efforts to revive the site have faced setbacks in recent years. In 2024, the borough council rejected a previous proposal over concerns about density, traffic and overall use.
The project’s return also follows a $100 million lawsuit filed by the property owner after that rejection, alleging a conflict of interest. The lawsuit was withdrawn in February 2025.
Drone captures severe flooding from remnants of Hurricane Ida in Somerville and Raritan
Flooding remains one of the biggest fears. The strip mall sits in a flood-prone area near the Raritan River, which supplies drinking water to millions of residents in Central Jersey through New Jersey American Water. During Hurricane Ida in 2021, much of the site, including the strip mall itself, was submerged by floodwaters.
At Wednesday’s meeting, community members again voiced concerns about this risk, especially during demolition, and the potential for contamination to spread to drinking water.
“This is a bad idea. It’s a flood area,” one resident said during the hearing.
Developers previously testified they have secured a flood hazard permit from the state Department of Environmental Protection, allowing the project to move forward.
Derek Forth, an attorney representing the applicant, also acknowledged the concerns about the site Wednesday but said the plan had already been vetted through multiple levels of review including in court.
“I understand the anxiety of the public and the board,” he said. “This is a very important site in town. It is located on a landfill in an area which has previously flooded.”
He added that the project will help the borough meet its affordable housing requirements and the plans still need additional approvals before construction begins.
“This is just the first start,” Forth said. “There’s much work done after this.”
Read the original article on NJ.com. Add NJ.com as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
