Mandelbaum, right, with Pike County Commissioners Matthew Osterberg, left,
and Rich Caridi
WESTFALL TWP PA – Warwick developer Jonah Mandelbaum told local residents, officials and at least one future tenant that he was happy to break ground on Friday for his first project outside of New York State.
The 93-unit senior apartment complex will go up in Westfall Township, Pennsylvania, near the Interstate 84 Matamoras interchange, less than a mile from Port Jervis.
Mandelbaum promised as much local contracting and hiring as he can do, on both sides of the Delaware. He emphasized that will be an enduring benefit that will go well beyond construction, which is expected to take about a year.
“It’s the ancillary stuff that comes afterwards, forever, that creates the jobs; not just the construction, it’s afterwards,” Mandelbaum said
Doing something outside of New York didn’t mean escaping the usual long list of local compliances that had to be met. The $10 million project was first conceived two years ago, but Mandelbaum said Westfall officials made the process as painless as possible.
“It wasn’t an easy task. We went in and talked to them and whatever we needed, you, the town, I can’t thank you enough.”
Among those on hand for the groundbreaking were township officials, all three Pike County commissioners and several state lawmakers.
How the complex will look when completed late next year
