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Two developers presented plans for five new structures to be built on Springwood Avenue at last night’s council meeting, and the city is now working with them to create a redevelopers’ agreement.

The city selected The Michaels Organization, of Marlton, and Interfaith Neighbors, a nonprofit group that operates in Asbury Park, as developers for the plan. The Michaels Organization plans to build three structures on Springwood Avenue, while Interfaith Neighbors hopes to construct two.

Both developers will complete the work in phases, city redevelopment and planning director Donald Sammet said. He anticipates the construction will be complete in four to five years — and may begin as soon as this summer. The plans cover all of Springwood Avenue from Memorial Drive to Atkins Avenue.

Springwood Avenue was once a bustling business hub, with commercial and residential properties. The Springwood corridor fell into deep disrepair following riots in the 1970s, and much of the properties on that street are now vacant lots.

The Michaels Group is currently completing geotechnical inspections on the lots and looking for signs of soil contamination, Sammet said.

THE MICHAELS ORGANIZATION: THREE MIXED-USE STRUCTURES

The Michaels Organization hopes to develop three lots on Springwood Avenue, complete with residential and commerical units, said Gin Dawson, vice president of the Michaels Organization. The group specializes in affordable housing developments and has built more than 40,000 unites in New Jersey, California, Mississippi, Hawaii and the Virgin Islands, Dawson said.

They are partnering with RBCoe Consulting and developing plans with KNTM Architecture, Dawson said.

Architect Karen Nichols, of KNTM, presented plans [one of which, projected for the northwest corner of Springwood Avenue and Memorial Drive, is pictured above] to the city council. The group hopes to build three buildings on Springwood Avenue. The structures will be designed to “draw attention from blocks away,” Nichols said, and will leave space for restaurants, pubs and art galleries on their first floors. Plans will incorporate large, open plazas to be used for outdoor eating and events, she said.

INTERFAITH NEIGHBORS: ‘CONCEPTUAL’ ARCHITECTURE

Paul McEverly of Interfaith Neighbors presented that group’s plans for two buildings — one residential structure and one arts center with a black-box theater.

The residential project would occupy the intersection of Atkins and Springwood avenues, diagonally across the street from Interfaith Neighbors’ existing Springwood Center building.

The residential structure will include 26 affordable housing units, McEverly said. It is being designed by Shore Point Architecture’s Stephen J. Carlidge. The first floor will contain one-bedroom units, while the second and third floors will consist of two-or-three-bedroom units, McEverly said.

Amenities will be similar to those found in the houses Interfaith Neighbors builds throughout the city and sells to lower-income residents, including high-efficiency furnaces, energy-store appliances, bamboo flooring and off-street parking.

The units will be sold rather than leased, McEverly said. The development will be completed in phases depending on market absorption, he said.

A second project will be located on Memorial Drive and Springwood Avenue, and will be an “architecturally significant three-story building, not unlike in concept the Springwood Center,” McEverly said. This building will be a “destination point” for the West Side, he said.

The three-story building will be an arts-centric structure, he said, with a black-box-theatre-style performance space with a seating capacity of about 200. That building will also include gallery space, restaurant space and office space, Carlidge said.

Interfaith Neighbors has been building affordable housing units on the West Side since 1996, McEverly said, and they will continue to work with prospective buyers to teach them about home ownership as they have in the past.

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