Housing, pool, supermarket, roof deck: Hackensack Print House opens Phase 2

HACKENSACK — The second phase of the largest residential complex built during the city’s recent redevelopment boom has opened at the site of The Record's former headquarters on River Street.

The 425 units, split between two newly constructed adjacent apartment buildings encircling a large courtyard, is part of the sprawling 20-acre Print House development with a total of 696 units and roughly 40,000 square feet of retail space.

Lidl, the German grocery store chain, has signed a lease for a 20,000-square-foot store on the property and is expected to open in 2025. The grocer will join other retail tenants in the development — including a drive-thru Starbucks, a Hackensack Meridian Health medical clinic, Jersey Mike’s and Blue Foundry Bank.

The first building in the riverfront development opened in 2022 and is fully leased, said Mike Pembroke, COO for Russo Development, the developer that partnered with The Hampshire Companies on the project.

“A lot of projects have been built in Hackensack recently with a good amount of success,” he said. “We like to believe our buildings, the size of the property, and the amenity package is hard to compete with.”

The new buildings add more amenities to the development, including a riverfront pool, outdoor lounge areas, a two-story clubhouse, lounge and work-from-home spaces. The first building offers an interior courtyard, a clubhouse and a rooftop deck with views of New York City, along with a pool and sundeck, barbecues, kitchen and dining areas and a cinema wall.

The property is just across the street from the NJ Transit bus station for access to New York City. The few remaining vacant retail spaces will likely be used as restaurants, Pembroke said.

Before the site was redeveloped, the property had sat vacant since 2008 when the Borg family, the former owners of The Record newspaper, moved the paper's newsroom to its current headquarters in Woodland Park.

“I’m thrilled that Phase 2 of the Print House is proceeding as planned, as this milestone represents our ongoing commitment to continue bringing smart, sensible developments to the city of Hackensack that enhance our vibrancy and vitality,” Mayor John Labrosse said.

The final phase of the development will begin construction later this year and will give the public better access to the city's riverfront.

The plans include a winding walkway along the river with places to sit, a dog run and a small public park at the corner of River and Bridge streets.

“The city did a tremendous job identifying areas for redevelopment,” Pembroke said. “The old Bergen Record building was vacant for many years and not generating much revenue for the city. It took some time to get rolling but these projects are moving forward and revitalizing Hackensack.”