HILLSDALE, N.J.—A three-minute video, “Patterson Street 2025”—highlighting progress on a 256-unit luxury apartment complex that will include a 5,000-square-foot community center and park—goes live on the borough website Friday, June 13, Mayor Michael Sheinfield tells Pascack Press.
The redevelopment project, approved several years ago, aims to revitalize a mostly industrial and commercial neighborhood just a stone’s throw from the borough’s downtown. The complex is being constructed on the site of a former waste transfer station, which was sold to a developer following adoption of the borough’s redevelopment plan.
In the video, Sheinfield interviews Aytan Gabai, an on-site manager with RNE Real Estate Group, who oversees marketing and sales at the new complex. Gabai explains that the development will offer luxury apartments with ground-level retail opportunities open to residents. He said half the apartments will be one-bedroom, one-bath units (along with some studios), while the other half will be two-bedroom, two-bath.
“Our goal is to open next summer. Summer of ’26,” Gabai tells Sheinfield in the video.
This marks the third in a series of video updates produced by Sheinfield, after installments on Centennial Field improvements and Department of Public Works concerns about flooding. Sheinfield has said he hopes the series will enhance mayor/council transparency by keeping residents informed on major local projects.
The video includes footage of the buildings’ exteriors, a preview of the under-construction community center, and a typical one-bedroom unit. Sheinfield said the community center will be open to the public once the complex opens, with its own dedicated entrance for ease of access. Both he and Gabai noted that the center includes a bathroom, a warming kitchen, two classrooms, and a workroom in the rear.
Gabai added that once heavy construction concludes, the contractor will mill and pave the surrounding roads. He also said most apartments will have 9-foot ceilings, with several designed in a townhouse style.
At an April council meeting, Borough Administrator Mike Ghassali reported that the community center’s 5,000 square feet of space will include a large room divisible into two smaller rooms for conferences, along with an office, storage space, a warming kitchen, and a room that can accommodate 50–75 people.
“I was in there. It is a very large space. We’re going to be in good shape with that,” Sheinfield said at the time.
Councilor John Ruocco added that during large events, the developer had promised to make additional parking spaces available in the adjacent parking deck—something Ghassali confirmed remains in place.
Ghassali also said the main room is expected to include a large-screen TV and may be used for community activities such as card games.