One of New Jersey's largest industries is Pharmaceuticals, and thats been the case since the late 1800s. Johnson & Johnson was founded in New Brunswick in 1886, and afterwards several large pharma companies worked to establish a presence to compete with them. By the 1920s Hoffman LaRoche had outgrown their New York offices and began building a massive complex in Nutley. After World War II, they ended up moving most of their operations from Switzerland to New Jersey. Establishing several satalite campuses to support their mission.
The company purchased a seven acre parcel on the Verona Montclair border in 1954 to open a new 50,000 square foot diagnostics center. Feitlowitz & Kosten and Robert Silverman were the architects hired for the redesign, while Eastman Construction Company handled the physical work.
Just a few decades later the company built a huge campus in Branchburg to relocate some of their operations. The Verona location was targeted for relocation in the 1990's, and instead of trying to sell the property it was donated to an organization that operated a school for autistic kids.
The neighborhood vehemently opposed the idea of the school at the time, going so far as to hire lawyers and sue to block them from opening. Their efforts were unsuccessful, and the school opened in 1999.
My first experience with the school came in the mid 2000s. Back then "finding spots" referred to looking for local places to rip up on my skateboard. I only attempted to make my way behind the building once. An administrator showed up to kick me out faster than I had ever been booted before.
In 2016 the school rebranded as the Academy 360 Lower School.
News first broke of a plans for a high density housing development on the site in 2018. Residents were once again outraged, fighting every step of the way to ensure their quiet neighborhood wouldnt be disturbed again.
Unfortunately for the neighbors plans were approved in 2022. The development was given a PILOT agreement, which stands for payment in lieu of taxes. These agreements grant multi million and billion dollar real estate companies decades long tax abatements for their hugely profitable developments in exchange for a one time payment. While such a program could make sense for some municipalities, they had been being abused in Verona for years. The council continued to give sweetheart deals to developers while the average taxpayer in town saw staggering raises in their tax bills.
The school moved to their new location on July 31st, 2026. I didn't even realize it was empty until J drove by and saw the temporary fencing around the property. The next day I grabbed my gear and headed to the school.
The first door I walked up to was propped open. Demolition prep had already begun, but I was glad the building was mostly intact while I went from room to room.
Since it wasn't built as a school the gym was shoehorned into a space off the lobby. There wasnt a proper auditorium or pool.
A few weeks later I drove by again and saw heavy machinery had begun tearing down the school. While I'm glad the students have a new space in Livingston its frustrating to see a perfectly functional building torn down. Hopefully at some point in the future this type of waste will be prohibitively expensive.
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