‘Something Special': Project Breaks Ground at Long-Abandoned Historic NJ Mansion

The Krueger-Scott Mansion, a massive building rich in history sits atop a small hill on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard near Newark's busy downtown area, will finally get a makeover after sitting vacant for decades.

Thursday marked the groundbreaking of the redevelopment of the historic landmark that will turn the mansion into an innovative vehicle toward economic and urban development.

Rev. Louise Scott-Rountree grew up inside the majestic castle-like, Late Victorian style building for 22 years.

Scott-Rountree, the Mayoral Aide for Clergy Affairs, said "there was always something going on" inside the building -- from a dentist office to a beauty shop to, even, a school.

Scott-Rountree's mother was a successful self-made entrepreneur from South Carolina who previously owned the estate.

According to the organization Preservation New Jersey, the mansion was built between 1887 and 1889 by Gottfried Krueger, a German immigrant turned wealthy beer baron, becoming the largest home in Newark. It then became a Masonic temple and was later owned by Scott-Rountree's mother, according to Preservation New Jersey. During the 1960s urban renewal, the Krueger-Scott Mansion narrowly escaped demolition numerous times. In 1982, the city acquired the home and the property has remained vacant. However, after years of disrepair and decay, Scott-Rountree's is now witnessing the rebirth of the iconic Krueger-Scott mansion.

"It's gonna have life -- making and creating entrepreneurs," Scott-Rountree said.

The mansion is being transformed into an affordable housing and commercial space with apartments and offices available by the end of next year.

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Newark Mayor Ras Baraka has been pushing to create a home-business community.

Baraka said the home-business model is "this idea of empowering local people to live in the spaces that they work in, to develop entrepreneurs from the ground up, to create business space for them."

The breathtaking 40-room mansion was built in the late 19th century -- a long-neglected remnant of the city’s powerful industrial era.

"Newark is up-and-coming. They're leaving that image of the 90s where it was one of the most dangerous cities in the country, they are leaving that in the past," Newark resident Kaomi Frager said.

Neighbors want to see residents involved in the development project.

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"We need more black businesses and more of the community based in this area," resident Deana Kennon said.

The project is made possible by a $30 million investment partnership from private firms, the City of Newark and the State of New Jersey.

"It’s just not a regular development. Something special is happening here and by the grace of God allowed us all to be involved in it," Baraka said.