Another potential feature of the development would be a new hotel property, Walsh says.

"Newark probably has the most amount of hotel rooms being built in New Jersey right now," he says. "There is a Courtyard Marriott that was opened up a few years ago, there is the Indigo Hotel, which is 170 keys, that has opened on Broad Street by Intercontinental Hotels, the Berger Organization is under construction right now for the TRYP by Wyndham Hotel, so there would probably be a smaller boutique hotel on the site as well."

There is significant interest in the property, and Walsh expects to have a buyer "within the next couple of months."

"We have a lot of groups looking at this," he says. "There are not only Newark-based investors and regional developers, but we have developers from all over the East Coast looking at it, and we even have investors who are funded by foreign equity looking. The Ironbound is definitely the most desirable location in Newark to build residential."

The property for the project is owned by the families that own a popular Ironbound restaurant, Iberia Peninsular.

"Iberia's partners have owned the restaurant since the 1970s or early 1980s," says Giantomasi. "They made a decision that it was time to liquidate. They will still have their big restaurant, Iberia Peninsular, that's not part of this package."

Positioned between the bustling Ferry and Market Streets, Iberia Ironbound is poised to emerge as a landmark, mixed-use destination in Newark's central business district. Only about 1,000 feet from Newark Penn Station, New Jersey's largest transportation center, the development will harness the energy of Newark's downtown, which includes a wide array of arts, entertainment, culture, and international businesses.

Iberia Ironbound also is likely to leverage the abundant demand for rental housing and retail options in the immediate vicinity. More than 52,000 residents currently reside within a one-mile radius of the site, approximately 80 percent of which are renters.

Iberia Ironbound's location is also an ideal setting for alternate uses including high-grade office buildings, according to Walsh. The site is also fit for student housing, as Newark is home to one of the largest academic populations in the region, including Rutgers University, The New Jersey Institute of Technology, The University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, and Essex County College.

Correction, 12/16/2015: Because of an editing error, an earlier version of this story incorrectly rendered the name of a hotel as the Wyndham Tripp Hotel. It is the TRYP by Wyndham.