New style of housing for the ‘burbs

From the New York Times:

Not for Nuclear Families Only
By ANTOINETTE MARTIN

LIKE many older suburbs that grew up fast during the baby-boom years, Livingston evolved as a homogeneous place offering a lifestyle for families: a detached home with the requisite lawn and two-car garage, plus quick access to the Mall at Short Hills in Millburn.

What happens when residents who lived that lifestyle don’t want to leave, but need a different kind of housing? Those who know Livingston well say that the town is adapting to accommodate them. The process has been slow, both local builders and town officials acknowledge. But zoning changes enacted eight years ago are having their effects, and Livingston has a variety of options opening up.

One is a project by Sam Gershwin’s company, Westminster Communities, for 54 condominiums near St. Barnabas Hospital, aimed at young couples as well as empty-nesters. As Mr. Gershwin, a longtime Livingston resident, sees it: “This a desirable location that not many people want to leave. If they do, then many of them want to come back.”

Work began last summer on Mr. Gershwin’s project, Cedar Gate at Livingston, which is designed to appeal to both ends of the age spectrum at the high end of the price scale.

There is also an elegant new condominium complex called the Pointe at Livingston opening near the downtown area. Millennium Homes, the builder, says the project’s more than 300 units are selling rapidly.

In addition, the town set out four years ago to redevelop a section of its downtown, creating a new identity and focal point. Now, a “retail village” called Livingston Town Centre, with 50,000 square feet of upscale shopping space, is open at the pivotal corner of Livingston and Mount Pleasant Avenues.
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“There is a combination of things going on attracting people to the new development here,” said Michele Meade, Livingston’s township manager. “We believe there is something here to benefit everybody, from those specifically wanting to relocate from a city to a suburb, to those just wanting to live in a very vibrant community with a lot going on.”