When Roselle officials cut the ribbon on a new single-family home last week, it marked more than a housing start — it signaled the potential beginning of something bigger.
The project, a conversion of a long-vacant pediatric dental office on North Wood Avenue, offers a small-scale answer to a question facing towns across New Jersey: how to repurpose empty commercial buildings amid a persistent housing shortage.
Mayor Donald Shaw has asked Meckey Estates, the developer behind the project, to work with Denise Wilkerson of the Borough of Roselle to identify additional sites for similar redevelopment.
Construction on the North Wood Avenue home was managed by OAS Home Improvement, with interior design by Nino Royalle, who is also representing the property for sale. It’s expected to be listed in the coming weeks.
Meckey Estates founder Fady Meckey said the company views the project as a starting point.
“We’re grateful for the support Roselle has shown this project,” he said. “There are more buildings like this one in the borough, and we look forward to working alongside the community to bring them back into use.”
It appears to be a good match.
Roselle, a working-class borough in Union County, has been pursuing its own downtown revitalization, including streetscape improvements along Chestnut Street.
Meckey Estates, a New Jersey real estate investment and development firm focused on distressed acquisitions and adaptive reuse across Morris, Sussex, Essex and Union counties, is poised to expand its footprint in Roselle.
Shaw has invited Meckey to speak to local youth through Roselle Men on the Move, the borough’s leadership and entrepreneurship mentorship program — an invitation the company intends to accept.
Meckey Estates acquired the property at 2209 N. Wood Avenue in October 2025 and completed the conversion this summer.
“This building was part of this block for a long time, and then it went dark,” Meckey said. “A building that sits empty stops contributing to the street it’s on. What we did here was put it back to work for this town, in a form that serves it now, as a home.”
