The Mural apartment building’s name pays homage to the painting that adorned the exterior wall of the hardware store that stood in that spot for decades.
A grand opening ceremony was held for the structure last week and among the amenities is an interior mural in the lobby of the building created by artist Dan Fenelon, who pays tribute to the history of the surrounding Orange Valley Arts District.
Matthew Earl, chief operating officer of Reynolds Asset Management, spoke at the opening.
“It seems like only yesterday we were standing on dirt with a chain link fence around it,” Earl said, before adding it took two years to finish the product and thanking a photographer who documented the location before and during demolition of the hardware store and lumberyard. Photographs of the project adorn the walls of The Mural.
“We are happy to be steward of the past, bringing it into the future,” he said.
Reynolds broke ground for the project in May 2022, completed construction in the summer of 2023, and began leasing efforts in September. The Mural features eight studio apartments, 59 one-bedrooms, and 36 two-bedrooms.
Amenities include a covered parking garage, a rooftop lounge and grill area, a fitness facility, and a resident lounge. Orange Business Administrator Christopher Hartwyk, said the project was a good example of positive development.
“It’s a wonderful day in the City of Orange,” Hartwyk said. “I remember this was a hardware store and a lumber yard that had fallen into disrepair.’
Hartwyk said the hardware store served the area for decades but it was no longer in use and had begun to decay.
“We end up with a magnificent building in an area that needed one,” he said.
Earl introduced Fenelon to the audience, saying that his company, Reynolds Asset Management, believes in the importance of art.
“We are patrons of the arts, we are fans of art,” Earl said.”There was a mural on the hardware store for many years. We wanted to keep the mural tradition alive.”
Fenelon got the gig after submitting a proposal into a contest run by the developers.
“They wanted something that was uplifting,” said Fenelon, who is a creative place maker based at the Morris Museum in Morristown.
A creative place maker helps determine places where art can help liven up an area.
Fenelon is responsible for the murals in Spiotta Park in South Orange and at Luna Stage in West Orange. He also did the cats in the pedestrian alley off of South Orange Avenue in South Orange.
“I wanted to create something peaceful because this is a place of residence,” Fenelon said of what he created for The Mural.
Lou Reynolds, CEO of Reynolds Asset Management and project sponsor, said he was proud of the project.
“It’s shocking to look back at the photos and see the urban decay and thrilling to see what it has become,” Reynolds said.
Among the new tenants are Jared Adams and Tina Dhanua, who moved in about three months ago. Adams is a detective with the Orange Police Department and Dhanua is a court administrator.
The building’s location appealed to them as it was a short distance to work but also close to the train station and easy access into New York City via the NJ Transit station located within walking distance.
“We came and we fell in love with the place,” Adams said. “It’s setting the trend for what urban development should be and what community should be. It’s really a model.”
“We love the location,” Dhanua said. “The neighborhood feel; you still feel like you are out of the way” even though you are close to everything.
The Mural opens in arts district added by Joe Ungaro on
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