Thirty-three condo owners have filed a lawsuit against Kushner Companies and other developers claiming this waterfront area was never developed as promised
NEW BRUNSWICK -- Jared Kushner, a senior adviser in Donald Trump's White House, may soon have to testify in a consumer fraud case in Middlesex County over a $600 million redevelopment project that has sat unfinished for more than a decade.
Thirty-three condo owners filed a lawsuit in Middlesex County Superior Court in 2012 claiming they purchased their "luxury condos" from Kushner Companies that advertised the Perth Amboy waterfront in 2004 as a soon-to-be sprawling, bustling waterside area, with a quick commute to New York. Sales associates pushed the properties telling potential owners they were "buying into a gold mine," according to the suit.
However, after the housing crash in the late-2000s, the promises of revitalization in that area turned to talks of revised plans with less ambition.
Now, 13 years later, the owners say the developers and other defendants haven't delivered.
Middlesex County Superior Court Judge Vincent LeBlon heard motions from lawyers on both sides Thursday after a number of closed-door meetings this week. The motions will help establish a list of defendants, exhibits and experts for the trial, which is expected to start next week. Court officials have said the trial could last at least six weeks.
The attorney for the condo owners, Patrick Whalen, argued for Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and his father Charles who started The Landings project in 2004, to testify during the trial. Jared took over the development company after his father pleaded guilty to 18 felonies in an unrelated federal case.
"I think common sense shows that they (Charles and Jared Kusher) were involved in the business making decisions," Whalen said.
LeBlon will rule whether or not attorneys can subpoena the multibillion-dollar New York-based developers in the trial.
Patrick J. Perrone, the lawyer representing the real estate development company, argued that the Kushners have no unique knowledge of the project and shouldn't be required to testify.
"We're not going to drag high-level officials into every court case when there are representatives," said Perrone, arguing there were other company employees that have the same information.
Four contractors named in the suit settled during private meetings in the court house this week. Three of the condo owners also reached a settlement with Kushner Companies for an undisclosed amount and have accepted the down-scaled development plan.
On Wednesday afternoon, LeBlon appeared in the courtroom briefly to ask the condo owners to meet privately about the pending trial.
Perth Amboy Mayor Wilda Diaz has already been subpoenaed in the case and could not comment, according to city officials. The city council denied a scaled-back plan of the Kushner company's development in 2014 to the delight of the condo owners.
At the time, Diaz said she was optimistic about finding a revised plan that could satisfy both sides.
"I'm hoping we sit down again with Kushner Companies," she said in December of 2014.
A month later, lawyers for the developer filed a lawsuit against the city, claiming local politics were "holding the waterfront hostage."
"We cannot build the buildings with original funding because they would not sell," said Perrone, citing experts who credited the housing market decline for creating an unprofitable project.
In an emailed statement, James Yolles, a spokesman for Kusher Cos., said, "Just as the economic downturn affected real estate projects across the country, it affected our initial plans for Perth Amboy. But Kushner Cos. remains fully committed to redeveloping its property in Perth Amboy."
An attorney for Perth Amboy, Richard F.X. Regan, phone-conferenced into the pretrial proceedings Thursday to clarify whether the trial subpoena was just for Diaz or for additional documents that may be held by the Perth Amboy Redevelopment Agency, which has separate representation.
Whalen presented multiple pieces of evidence showing conversations between Charles Kushner and Diaz, including a "heated" exchanged in 2011 when Kushner pulled Diaz aside to speak alone and said he was "leaving this town and never coming back."
Whalen said in court that Diaz objected to the meeting without counsel present.
The original project dates back to the early-2000s when Charles Kushner proposed a plan that promised up to 200,000-square feet of retail space, acres of parks, a marina, a hotel, a community center and gym, and 2,000 condos and townhomes across 17 buildings.
It also boasted of a high-speed ferry to New York City and jitney to Wall Street. It was unclear if the project received any incentives from the city at that time.
Only two buildings, with around 200 total units, have been built, according to the suit. The owner-occupied units in the Admiral and Bayview buildings sold for $350,000 to $450,000 between 2004 and 2008.
"Our existing plan would create a revitalized waterfront, spur investment and increase the local tax base," Yolles said. "We're hopeful the town will work with us to make that plan a reality to the benefit of all Perth Amboy residents."
Craig McCarthy may be reached at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig and on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.