When these condos went up on the Paulus Hook waterfront 12 years ago, their low-rise elegance caught the eye. Lal Vaghji got in on the ground floor. He owns a software development consulting company in Jersey City at Exchange Place, so you couldn’t beat the convenience. “It was a brand new building near the marina only five minutes from work,” Vaghji says. “It was simple to say, ‘Yeah, let’s do it.’”
He‘s a transplant from Stamford, Connecticut, who chose downtown Jersey City because many of his clients were in Midtown Manhattan, so it was nearby and a less expensive alternative. He and his wife Janice will be raising their twins in their sleek condo overlooking Liberty Harbor and Liberty Landing marinas.
By new-construction standards, the unit was old, so Vaghji hired Jersey City architect Lycel Villanueva to make some upgrades, which she did with the help of structural engineer Rich Christie.
She and her team extended the loft over the dining area and opened the kitchen, adding a peninsula with a waterfall drop counter, which serves as a dining table.
When you first enter the unit, the enormous three-quarter views of the canal and two busy marinas are breathtaking.
The feeling of the space is contemporary, minimalist, and airy. Vaghji collects art, and the pure white walls are tailor-made for showcasing colorful artworks and Indian carpets. “The white background brings out the vibrant colors,” he says, “and gives the impression of brightness and light.”
Vaghji travels frequently on business and picks up pieces in, among other places, Argentina, Bali, Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, and India, which is his home country. A recent acquisition is a very unusual standing Buddha statue from Bali. “It reflects the peace and tranquility and purity of the environment,” Vaghji says. “It’s different from the traditional China chubby guy with a big belly. LED lighting gives a peaceful feel in the evening when the sun goes down.” Villanueva created three niches in which to display his sculptures.
Vaghji also favors glass tabletops and handrails because they add to the impression of openness that he’s striving for. Villanueva supported the glass handrails with a system of stainless steel cables suspended vertically between the floor and the ceiling.
All the furniture is white. “People can also be very comfortable sitting on the floor with pillows for chitchat,” Vaghji says.
The three-level unit has two bedrooms, each with an ensuite bathroom, as well as a large bathroom on the second floor next to the living room. White stone was used for the floor of this bathroom, and the flooring in the main spaces was used for the finish on the walls.
The loft space upstairs is used as a family room and for entertaining.
The Paulus Hook neighborhood lends itself to entertaining clients in the evening. “You can grab a drink and dinner on short notice,” Vaghji says. He frequents Amelia’s, Komegashi, and the White Star. It’s also an easy walk to some of his favorite Italian, Korean, and Vietnamese restaurants on Newark Avenue.
Vaghji loves the many transportation options close by. Right next door is the yellow water taxi, which docks at the end of Warren Street. It hops across to Liberty State Park before heading over to the World Financial Center. Three light rail stations and the Exchange Street PATH station are also within walking distance.
Vaghji says of his beautifully renovated home, “With the location on the waterfront, it could potentially grow in value.”
CHARLES & CO.
Talk about hot off the press! When I caught up with Keren Vered, she and her husband and kids had been living in their new home for only a couple of days.
Theirs is an increasingly familiar story that reflects well on our town. Keren’s husband, Liran Nehushtan, works in Midtown, and Keren works in Tribeca. They were living in Tribeca, too, and then: “We wanted more space and something accessible to downtown New York,” Keren says. “We could do that from downtown Jersey City. I felt connected to the moms’ network in Tribeca, and I wanted to be as close to that as possible. I could just jump on the ferry and see everyone. It felt nice to me.”
Their first Jersey City home was at Warren and York, where they stayed for a year. The biggest surprise for Keren was the easy transition from Tribeca to JC. “I became immersed in the Jersey City community, and that was a pleasant surprise,” she says.
By now, they had a newborn in addition to their toddler. “The moms group here is really great,” she says. “There’s a fantastic network of great women.”
Keren plans to tap into that demographic with a mobile application she’s developed for families and mothers to network with each other and the community. “Think Facebook profile meets online messaging, specific to Jersey City,” she says. The app will be ready in 2016, with a blog to launch earlier.
The couple thought that they would be making frequent forays back to the city for date nights. “But we found that our friends from the city would come out here,” she says. “We were not trying to do the hard sell. The city sells itself.”
The move to Charles & Co. was to give them even more space. When they were at Warren and York, she says, “We had two full bedrooms and a washer/dryer, and all of a sudden we grew out of it.”
In the new place on the third floor of Silverman’s brand-new rental property they have three bedrooms and “multiple walk-in closets.” Like a true New Yorker, Keren waxes awestruck over the closet space and jokes that these closets are bigger than their bedrooms in New York. “You can’t put a price tag on that,” she says.
The floor plan features an open kitchen, dining room, and living room, two bathrooms, and “amazing light,” helped by the fact that it’s a corner space, looking out on both Montgomery and Grove streets.
The unit has many of the amenities typical of new construction, such as hardwood floors and quartz countertops. “It’s pretty modern and pretty simple,” Keren says. “Very clean and contemporary.” They do have artwork on the walls. “I don’t like clutter,” she says. “It’s a beautiful apartment that speaks for itself.”
Keren also loves the extra space in Jersey City itself. “In Manhattan we were inundated with kids, elbow to elbow,” she says. “Now you walk down the street and people say hello. There’s more space to breathe and relax here.” She loves the fact that there’s room for her toddler to push her doll’s stroller down the sidewalk.
When the building is complete, there will be public spaces for the tenants, including a playroom, gym, roof deck, and workspace for freelancers.
The family enjoys nights out at Razza, Carrino Provisions, and Satis Bistro. “It feels like home,” Keren says. “We’re really focused on being involved in the community.”—Kate Rounds