Facing backlash from some local residents and from town leaders, the owners of 161 Maplewood Investors LLC — which seeks to build a 65-unit apartment building on Inwood Place — are pushing back, saying they are not greedy developers but concerned local residents who will be preserving the limestone facade of the Bank of America building.
The group has released an FAQ (see below) about their proposed 65-unit Maplewood Village development — which includes 13 affordable housing units — saying that the project was carefully crafted and developed with the help of town leaders, albeit behind the scenes and not in public meetings.
The project came to light recently through the local Facebook group Oh No 65 which revealed that 161 Maplewood Investors had filed a lawsuit against the town last summer seeking a builders remedy. [The Fair Share Housing Center also filed suit against the township last summer.]
The Maplewood Planning Board then discussed the project at a February 19 meeting when it voted to recommend against including 11 Inwood Place in the Movie Theater Redevelopment Area. 11 Inwood Place is a parcel owned by one of the 161 Maplewood Investors principals (local realtor Reed Kean). Kean and fellow realtor Octavio Mendes both own the Bank of America building and its parking lot.
The developers contend that town leaders agreed they would need to add 11 Inwood Place to the redevelopment plan to develop the project. When the Planning Board voted against its inclusion on Feb. 19, the Board then needed to reconvene on Feb. 26 to vote on an amended Fourth Round Housing Element and Fair Share Plan, due to losing three affordable units with the downsizing of the Inwood Place project. The Maplewood Township Committee is holding a special meeting on March 11 to complete voting on the plan and related ordinances and resolutions.
161 Maplewood Investors consists of Kean and Mendes. In a “note to the community” (see attached below), Kean, who is the twin brother of U.S. Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (NJ-7), said they are “not an outside entity driven by short-term opportunity. We are residents who have lived, worked, and volunteered in Maplewood for decades. Over the years, we have supported local events, fundraisers, and civic initiatives because we care deeply about the future of this town.”
Kean also announced that former partner and fellow realtor Mark Slade had given up his minority investment in the 161 Maplewood Ave project, having recently “made the personal decision to part ways. Moving forward, he will continue with the negotiations currently underway to rent the original portion of the bank building to a local restaurateur that wants to expand. I want to be clear that Mark remains a respected member of our broader team, and we appreciate the contributions he has made to this effort and to Maplewood over the years.”
“Affordable housing is both a constitutional responsibility and a reflection of community values,” Kean continued. “We have a strong, experienced development team that understands the town, its history, and its needs. This is not a speculative venture assembled from afar; it is a team committed to responsible development and long-term partnership with the community.”
Note: The developers report that the facade rendering used for the feature photo on this story is not up to date and does not reflect current setbacks; Village Green has asked for updated renderings and will replace the featured rendering when they are received.
Kean encouraged residents to read a press release and FAQ (see below).
Local officials have had critical words for the developers. At the Feb. 26 Planning Board meeting, Mayor Vic De Luca commented, “In my 20 years that I’ve been working on affordable housing in this town, I don’t recall any of the parties of this organization or this corporation, these developers ever coming to me and saying, ‘How can I help build affordable housing?’” De Luca continued, “This is about development and they sued us and they’re using the affordable housing mechanism as a way to build a building that I personally think is too big.”
“I would also add that if the developers are really, truly interested in affordable housing, as they claim they are, and trying to use that as a ruse here, then why not put affordable units in 11 Inwood as it is,” said Planning Board member and former Mayor Dean Dafis. “It’s already zoned as multifamily housing. I’m happy to connect you to one of my housing providers — I work for the state of New Jersey — like a veteran organization. Let’s put six veterans there. That’s affordable housing and you get credits for that too. Even more credits, right? So let’s be real about what’s going on here.”
Planning Board member John Sullivan added, “I agree with the Mayor and Mr. Dafis. … I did not come here and, when asked to serve on this board, anticipating that I was going to be threatened by developers, developers that have finally shown their face. I appreciate them being here tonight and I’m glad that they’ll be here to see my vote.”
[De Luca is currently running for reelection for his 10th term on the Maplewood Township Committee. Sullivan announced his intention to run for TC on March 9. Dafis recently announced he is not running again.]
Meanwhile, Marc Leibman of CSG Law, attorney for 161 Maplewood Investors and for 11 Inwood Place, told the Planning Board that his clients “together with Fair Share Housing are parties to a binding settlement agreement at the Township of Maplewood” and would seek to enforce it.
Leibman provided several documents to Village Green for this story:
- The Program Recommendation from Judge Mendez to Judge Russo: Leibman said that at page 29 of the PDF, it contains the terms of 161 Maplewood Investors settlement. The settlement agreement with the township and FSHC, at pages 24-25 of the PDF contains terms which are specific to the project:
- Leibman directs readers to paragraph 3 of the “Decision and Order” from Judge Russo:
- Finally, Leibman wrote that this last item is the letter Maplewood filed “after we agreed to an extension of the March 16, 2026, deadline. Because the court did not extend the time Maplewood felt ‘forced’ to take steps to protect themselves by adopting plans that violate the settlement agreement but which they hope will provide protection from the court.” De Luca also provided this letter to Village Green in February.
From 161 Maplewood Investors LLC:
Note to the Maplewood Community
As a co-founder of 161 Maplewood Investors LLC, which purchased the 161 Maplewood Avenue land for redevelopment, I want to address recent statements suggesting that our efforts in Maplewood are driven by self-interest rather than community responsibility.
Our group is not an outside entity driven by short-term opportunity. We are residents who have lived, worked, and volunteered in Maplewood for decades. Over the years, we have supported local events, fundraisers, and civic initiatives because we care deeply about the future of this town.
Our team included realtor Mark Slade who has actively served this community in multiple, impactful ways. Mark had minority investment in the 161 Maplewood Ave project and helped support the vision for redeveloping this site. Recently, Mark made the personal decision to part ways. Moving forward, he will continue with the negotiations currently underway to rent the original portion of the bank building to a local restaurateur that wants to expand. I want to be clear that Mark remains a respected member of our broader team, and we appreciate the contributions he has made to this effort and to Maplewood over the years.
Affordable housing is both a constitutional responsibility and a reflection of community values. We have a strong, experienced development team that understands the town, its history, and its needs. This is not a speculative venture assembled from afar; it is a team committed to responsible development and long-term partnership with the community.
We encourage residents to read the press release and linked FAQ below to better understand this project.
Thank you,
Reed Kean
Developers Ask Maplewood Officials to Honor Affordable Housing Settlement and Protect Taxpayer Dollars
MAPLEWOOD, NJ – March 8, 2026 — 161 Maplewood Investors LLC has been working diligently to deliver a residential project that strengthens downtown, meets state-mandated affordable housing requirements and contributes to a vibrant, inclusive future for the Village. In 2025, we filed an objection to the Township’s Housing Plan because we believed it lacked adequate affordable housing and ignored appropriate sites for inclusionary housing development. It was entered on September 30, 2025, based on the submission deadline regulated by the Fair Share Housing Center (FSHC)—unbeknownst to us, FSHC also filed an objection. Our legal challenge resulted in a settlement approved by Judge Russo in an order entered on February 17, 2026. We reached a negotiated, enforceable settlement with Maplewood Township providing for a 65-unit inclusionary development incorporating both 161 Maplewood Avenue (the former Bank building) and 11 Inwood Place. Every element of the plan (density, setbacks, step-backs, façade treatment, parking, affordable housing structure, and site configuration) was reviewed and agreed to during court-supervised negotiations. Since then, Maplewood Township has created delays and challenges, most recently pushing forward a different plan that breaks our agreement. We remained quiet while confidential negotiations happened behind the scenes, and now we believe residents must be informed. The following facts will help our community understand how their tax dollars are being used and may be affected.
Legally Binding Terms Now Being Undermined | Bank Building Now at RIsk
We believe it is imperative that Maplewood taxpayers understand that they will be liable if the Township continues to attempt to walk away from a binding court approved settlement. The Township has now initiated a separate 50-unit project on a smaller footprint that excludes 11 Inwood, despite the fact that the two parcels are legally and physically interconnected through a recorded easement. Excluding 11 Inwood undermines the feasibility of preserving the limestone Bank building and contradicts the structure of the binding settlement agreement.
The original 65-unit configuration was specifically designed to preserve the historic Bank façade, while satisfying Maplewood’s Fourth Round affordable housing obligations. A reduced 50-unit project not only deviates from the negotiated agreement but also places the preservation of the Bank building at significant risk.
Affordable Housing Is a Legal Obligation
New Jersey continues to face a severe housing shortage, with rising costs pushing seniors and young families out of their communities. Increasing housing supply—particularly in appropriate, transit-oriented downtown locations—is widely recognized as the only sustainable way to improve affordability for everyone. This project advances that goal while meeting Maplewood’s constitutional affordable housing mandate.
Avoiding or delaying compliance through litigation does not eliminate the obligation — it simply shifts costs onto taxpayers.
A Recent Example: Millburn Township
Millburn Township recently went down this same path and lost, spending tens of thousands in legal fees that could have been avoided if they followed the fair housing mandate. Maplewood’s violation of a settlement is similar to Millburn Township’s effort to resist compliance with affordable housing requirements. In August 2024, Millburn was ordered to pay $100,000+ in legal fees to Fair Share Housing and the developer. In July 2025, the Superior Court of New Jersey ordered Millburn to pay $35,140.40 in attorney’s fees (see here). Similar results have occurred in Englewood Cliffs and Wayne, which according to news reports, were ordered to pay over $1,000,000 and $141,000, respectively, on top of their own legal expenses, all to fight affordable housing development.
Maplewood residents should reasonably ask whether the Township intends to repeat a costly legal strategy that has repeatedly failed elsewhere.
Please read this FAQ to learn more facts and the benefits of this redevelopment project.
About 161 Maplewood Investors LLC
161 Maplewood Investors LLC is a group of developers based in downtown Maplewood, New Jersey, led by longtime local real estate professionals Reed Kean and Octavio Mendes. Each with more than 20 years of experience serving Maplewood and the surrounding communities, the partners have built careers helping residents buy, sell, and invest in homes and commercial properties throughout the Village. As longtime members of the Maplewood community, they formed this entity to pursue responsible redevelopment opportunities that strengthen the downtown district, support local businesses, and contribute to a vibrant, walkable Village center. Their current 161 Maplewood Ave project aims to bring new residential housing, including affordable units, while increasing foot traffic and economic vitality in Maplewood’s downtown.
Full disclosure: Mark Slade is a long-time advertiser with Village Green. He also has a 4% non-voting, non-profit-sharing ownership stake in Village Green. He has no involvement in editorial decisions.
