$350 Million Mixed-Use Project Moves Ahead with Atria, Welltower On Board

Atria Senior Living and Welltower (NYSE: WELL) are partnering to develop a senior living community as part of a $350 million mixed-use residential and retail project in New Jersey.

The 25-acre project has been dubbed W Squared and will transform the Princeton Junction train station into an all-ages residential and retail center, according to a Dec. 20 article from ROI-NJ.

Equity real estate investment trust AvalonBay (NYSE: AVB) is leading the effort, which also involves residential real estate giant Pulte Homes (NYSE: PHM).

The West Windsor planning board recently approved the final site plan, according to ROI-NJ.

Those plans call for 135 assisted living units in a community to be co-developed by Louisville, Kentucky-based operator Atria and Toledo, Ohio-based REIT Welltower. Atria is slated to operate the community upon completion.

Plans for W Squared also include a variety of retail offerings, highly amenitized housing with designs for every age group, a public promenade, and other recreation options, such as a fountain play area for children.

This is hardly the first project for Atria and Welltower — the two companies are collaborating with Related Cos. on luxury urban highrises in New York City and San Francisco, under the Coterie brand.

After site work throughout 2022, vertical construction of W Squared is anticipated for 2023, with ribbon-cuttings occurring in 2024, according to ROI-NJ.

The Princeton area recently got a new senior living option, as Maplewood Senior Living debuted in the state with a community on the campus of Penn Medicine-Princeton Health. Maplewood also is a player in the urban highrise market, having opened the Inspir building in Manhattan earlier this year.

Senior living also has been on the rise as a component of mixed-use projects in recent years. Other examples include Brightview West End in Maryland’s Rockville Town Square and Anthology Senior Living’s presence in a mixed-use development in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

Welltower has been an active player in driving this trend, which is due to several factors, including the decline of in-person retail.