From Hospital to Home: Jersey City’s Art Deco Transformation

The Beacon Apartments have been a fixture of Jersey City for the better part of a century. However, these marvelous Art Deco buildings did not start out as apartments but were initially an extension of the Jersey City Medical Center.

Construction began on the ten-building complex in 1928. The first building—called the Orpheum—was not officially completed until 1931. Over the course of the next decade, the other nine buildings were completed, with construction officially ending in 1941.

Since then, The Beacon has taken its place as one of the most prominent landmarks in Jersey City, being distinctly recognized for its historic and ornate Art Deco architecture, even earning it a place on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

In the early 2000s, the hospital was bought by Metrovest Equities in an attempt to convert the former hospital into apartments. What resulted was one of the largest renovation projects in the history of New Jersey, costing roughly $350 million.

Today, the buildings host over 1,200 luxury residences which boast views of the Statue of Liberty and New York City.