Storage Near Manhattan at New Public Storage Jersey City
Mar 31, 2023 / Alyssa Duranty
Living, and storing, in Jersey City is one way to be close to the action in Manhattan but keep costs down. With this in mind, Public Storage just opened a massive new location in town, for new movers and everyone else who may not have enough room for the things they love, no matter which side of the Hudson River they call home.
Public Storage has transformed the interior of a 100-year-old cold-storage structure into one of the biggest, modern self-storage facilities in the country, owned by the largest storage company. The grand opening this week of the Public Storage at 133 2nd Street, Jersey City, NJ 07302 will offer 290 new spaces right away on the first floor. Later this year, the rest of the roughly 4,000 storage units near Manhattan will open for business.
Having more space in town will help residents in a community that has grown by nearly 7 percent over the last five years, according to the U.S. Census. The evidence of this influx in the Powerhouse Arts District surrounds the Public Storage building in the form of cranes and new glass condos growing towards the sky.
It is just three blocks from the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway and near the Grove Street PATH stop.
“It’s a tremendous amount of square footage in an area of tremendous growth,”; said Tim Stanley, a senior vice president in the company’s real estate group.
Historic Building Transformed into Modern Jersey City Storage
The company’s success opening its largest property ever just three years ago on the other side of Manhattan, at Public Storage 385 Gerard Avenue, Bronx, NY, highlighted a need for even more self storage in the larger New York Metropolitan area. Like Jersey City, the Bronx had also grown by about 7 percent over the last five years, according to the U.S. Census.
So Public Storage’s real estate team started looking for a good location to build. And they found just what they were looking for in this area of historic brick loft buildings and shiny new skyscrapers.
The seven-story, block-long structure had been empty since Cityside Archives moved after Superstorm Sandy in 2012. Before that, the building housed the Merchants Refrigeration Company, once the largest commercial cold-storage space under one roof in the world, according to a 1914 article in Refrigerating World.
Public Storage gave the handsome building a major face lift during a two-year transformation that includes climate control and a selection of small to extra-large unit sizes. And wouldn’t you know that a little splash of Public Storage orange really suits Jersey City.
Public Storage is proud to keep the storage legacy of this building alive within these thick, concrete walls, now subdivided for self-storage consumers.
“It’s a challenging project, but it’s a great project,”; said Frank Caccuro, Public Storage’s east coast director of construction development.
Cheap New York Metro Area Storage
Public Storage has got a lot to offer, for folks looking to stash stuff near home in Jersey City and for savvy Manhattan residents eager for a less expensive storage space that’s just a quick public transit ride away.
“We’re really proud of who we’ve hired and trained and are eager to show the world what a great job we’re prepared to do,”; said Public Storage Regional Manager Jim Shinnick.
Jersey City, and its need for storage, has grown in part because the community is only a five-minute train ride or quick ferry trip from the jobs and the excitement of Manhattan. The rent is also lower for apartments, and storage.
The median price for a home increased nearly 125 percent over the last decade (but is still about $160,000 cheaper than NYC homes), according to City-Data.com.
Perhaps that’s why most residents rent, according to data from the U.S. Census.
Many Manhattan residents may even be coming here for the views, new restaurants and stunning shopping centers that are a stone’s throw from our new facility.
“Jersey City is very residential, but the vibe is more New York than New Jersey,”; said Rasha Hussein who works in the new building. “It’s such a pretty view (from the roof). We’re surrounded by a lot of tall buildings, but you can still see the Hudson and Manhattan.”;
Condo and other high-rise construction has been a consistent, common sight for Jersey City native Emily Ponce who also works at the new location. And it appears new housing in Jersey City will continue to be built as long as Manhattan rents keep climbing.
“More people are coming, and it’s becoming more fast-paced,”; Ponce said.
Maria Vaca, the facility’s new property manager and an Air Force veteran, will also be moving her family from Queens to live onsite in Jersey City.
“It’s definitely going to be different,”; she said.
Thankfully for Vaca and others moving to Jersey City, Public Storage’s nearly 235,000 rentable square feet on First Street will help them store the stuff they love, but can’t fit into their new digs.
