________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
“ This last year we have worked on a large number of different projects , in fact , over the last two years we ’ ve had more on our books than the company has ever had before ,” Eric continues . “ Recently , we ’ ve been putting out a lot of bids , but unfortunately , since the rates really started to hike up , a lot of owners have begun to halt any new projects from going forward and there is a major slowdown occurring as we speak .”
An incubation space
Deugen Development ’ s typical workload is divided down the middle , with one half consisting of its own projects , and the other focused on facilitating the developments of others . “ Acquiring land entitlements to get projects approved in New Jersey is a bear of task ,” he says , “ it has taken me years to get some of the current jobs we ’ re working on off the ground , but it ’ s great to see them finally coming to life . 390 Central Ave in East Rutherford is an excellent example of this ; we are just starting to stand up walls now after we put in our initial offer on the property in 2019 . “ Another project is at Gates Avenue in Montclair , where we are turning an old industrial building into office and co-working space . The overall feel isn ’ t actually too dissimilar to our office in Hoboken , which is a turn of the century manufacturing building with a very industrial aesthetic . When I first saw the Montclair location , I recognized the same qualities .
“ Our building here is a community center , so it hosts office space , yoga and dance studios , an architects firm , a coffee shop , the list goes on . It ’ s a wonderfully eclectic mix that stands as an incubation space for people who are just starting out and trying to grow their businesses , which is the vision I
72