Rowan University has plans for a $690 million expansion that will include hundreds of homes, a manufacturing innovation center and a wellness village with medical offices.
Rowan officials unveiled the West Campus Project on Monday, sharing an overview of the plan to develop 220 acres the university owns at the intersection of Routes 55 and 322 in Gloucester County. The land sits within a larger 600-acre tract covering portions of Harrison Township and Glassboro, and is about 1 1/2 miles west of Rowan's main campus in Glassboro.
"What we are proposing is transformational in scope and impact," Rowan University President Ali A. Houshmand said in a statement. "It is a bold vision for the region, well beyond the 220 acres of our project, something that will spur growth throughout the county and South Jersey."
The project will be developed in multiple phases as part of a push to grow the public university's national profile, officials said. Rowan's enrollment of 24,500 students has more than doubled from 11,300 in 2010, and the university hopes to boost enrollment to 38,500 students by 2033.
The Wellness Village, planned on the south side of Route 322, will be built in a partnership with Inspira Health that adds to the health system's existing campus. The university described the project as an intergenerational district that will offer residents access to on-site health care and recreational facilities.
The housing portion of the village will include 250 market-rate rental units, 410 single-family homes and townhomes for purchase, and a 340-unit retirement community. Of the single-family homes and townhomes, 20% will qualify as state affordable housing. The retirement community also will have 96 units intended for adults 55 and older. Fairmount Properties will be the master developer and United Methodist Communities will oversee senior living for the public-private project.
The commercial piece of the village calls for a 40,000-square-foot Wellness Institute that will offer residents education, fitness, culinary and arts programs, Rowan officials said. There also will be a new Inspira medical office and administrative building, a 160-room hotel and conference center, and a retail center at the northern end of the village. The south side will have a forest preserve.
On the north side of Route 322, the university plans to add several buildings to the 350,000-square-foot South Jersey Technology Park. Rowan opened the Samuel H. Jones Innovation Center in 2008, creating a business incubator with research labs and offices, but has not significantly advanced the development of the West Campus property in the years since then.
The first of the new buildings planned at the technology park will be the Rowan University Center for Manufacturing Innovation. The facility will bring together Rowan's engineering research institutes and private companies to create a jobs pipeline for future graduates. Areas of focus include advanced manufacturing, transportation engineering, artificial intelligence and virtual reality.
"This research hub will serve as a launchpad for novel ideas, where students learn by doing, faculty push the boundaries of discovery and industry partners help turn research into solutions that shape the future of manufacturing," Rowan University Chancellor Tony Lowman said in a statement.
Parts of the West Campus Project will be developed in Glassboro and neighboring Harrison Township. Rowan officials said they will meet with the planning boards and councils of both municipalities before a series of community town halls take place starting this spring. The university seeks to get project approvals and break ground within the next year.
Rowan expects the West Campus development to create more than 5,000 jobs in South Jersey over the coming decade, including at least 900 permanent jobs. The university also estimates the expansion will generate about $14.3 million in annual tax revenue.
Have any thoughts?
Share your reaction or leave a quick response — we’d love to hear what you think!
-
0
-
0
-
0
-
0
-
0
-
0