The Union Hotel, one of the most recognizable landmarks in Hunterdon County opposite the Historic Courthouse on Main Street, has been in a coma for more than a dozen years since it closed in 2008.
Built in the 1870s, the hotel was a gathering place for stagecoach passengers and socialites. Its glory days faded after the 1930s trial of Bruno Hauptmann, who was found guilty of kidnapping and killing Charles Lindbergh's infant son from the aviator's home in East Amwell. Journalists from around the world camped at the hotel to cover the trial.
Flemington first sank into slumber with the decline of downtown stores as retail, like in many American towns, moved out to highways and shopping centers.
The borough sank deeper when the plug was pulled on Liberty Village, the country’s first outlet mall, and the once-prosperous Flemington Furs as shopping patterns and tastes changed. That transformed Flemington – and especially Main Street – into a sleepy shadow of its former glory.
But in less than three months, that same Main Street will be the poster child for 21st Century Hunterdon County, yet with the same charm that put it on the map nearly a century ago.
Courthouse Square, a mixed-use development anchored by the restored Union Hotel, will open this winter with luxury apartments, 100 hotel rooms and four diverse dining, drinking and entertainment venues, transforming Flemington into the bustling downtown it once was.
For nearly a dozen years, the project has been a labor of love for developer Jack Cust, who has overseen the ambitious endeavor from the beginning.
Re-imagined historic, boutique hotel with 100 rooms
Behind the Union Hotel’s original 1878 brick fac?ade will be four floors of suites, 85 new rooms, a fitness center, lobby, and 4,200 square feet of indoor and outdoor event and meeting spaces, the latter which has already attracted numerous business inquiries.
The hotel, which will open before the end of 2025, will feature nostalgic, Americana nods with original interior brick alongside contemporary, lively spaces.
“We are looking at the history to see what nostalgia is appropriate to put inside the hotel,” said Cust. “It’s a combination of taking the old Union Hotel, upgrading it and modernizing the inside, but keeping the old charm of the hotel.”
The hotel will be part of Marriott Tribute collection, which includes just 170 international, unique properties with deep community connections and vibrant, cutting-edge designs. It will be the only Marriott Tribute hotel in New Jersey.
The Union Hotel will also be the only downtown hotel in Somerset and Hunterdon counties, attracting Diamond Nation visitors, business travelers and recreational travelers alike in a market centered between Philadelphia and New York City, Cust said.
“We want to make the Union Hotel a catalyst for Hunterdon County as well as the region,” he continued. “We believe we can attract quite a few people to come here and enjoy not only the hotel but other things in Hunterdon County such as the farms and wineries.”
The public will have access to 500 parking spaces underground, on Spring Street at the former location of Flemington Furs, on Bloomfield Avenue, and in the county lot on Main Street.
Luxury apartments with nine-foot ceilings and an onsite pet spa
The Residences at Courthouse Square will have 206 luxury apartments that feature contemporary, open-concept floorplans.
Each apartment will have a washer and dryer, wide-plank flooring, central air conditioning, a personal balcony, stainless steel appliances, floor-to-ceiling windows, nine-foot ceilings, smart keyless entry systems and quartz countertops.
Residents will have access to a community gym, lounge, outdoor courtyard with fireside lounges and televisions, outdoor kitchen with a grilling station, work pods, onsite pet spa, EV charging stations, game room, dining room, and television lounge.
Rents for the studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments that range from 507 to 1,375 square feet will be $2,050 to $2,845 with $55 monthly fees.
Leasing will begin in November or December and residents will move in before the end of the year.
“We have had many applicants with interest so we are confident it will be a robust lease up,” Cust said.
The centerpiece of the development is an open public space between the hotel and residences. Cust has said this will bring a long-awaited outdoor venue for events, such as concerts, in the county seat.
"It will be the only town square walkable community in Hunterdon County," said Cust.
Four varied restaurant and bar concepts
Celebrity chef David Burke was previously tapped to run the Union Hotel’s dining and drinking venues.
The venues will now be run by Concord Hospitality, which manages 30 restaurants and bars in the U.S. and Canada, including the Rooftop at Exchange Place in Jersey City.
“David is a good friend and good guy, but we have multiple venues and David is really interested in a steakhouse,” Cust said. “We are going in a different direction with a company with more experience with multiple venues.”
Those venues will include a steakhouse and a speakeasy-style cocktail lounge which will both open before the end of 2025; and a 10,000-square-foot building with a sports bar, family gaming hall, coffee and gelato shop, and family restaurant which will open in early 2026.
They will be the only restaurants with a liquor license on Main Street.
“We will get younger people and older people, so we want to have something for everyone at different price points,” Cust said.
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Jersey Prime will be a modern steakhouse on the main level of the Union Hotel, presenting high-end cuisine among original architectural features like exposed brick and aged wood while incorporating sleek lighting, polished stone and contemporary finishes.
The custom millwork and plush velvet that harken to Flemington’s Victorian past will be lit by intimate, layered lighting from chandeliers, a corner fireplace and sconces, flanked by an open kitchen with a chef’s table and a banquette with dramatic greenery.
Upstairs from Jersey Prime will be JP’s, an intimate, speakeasy-style cocktail lounge offering craft cocktails with names that celebrate the building’s rumored Prohibition-era past like Lenore's Last Word and Penn's Remedy, all served in nitro-chilled glassware.
The concept centers around a mysterious journal discovered during renovations that allegedly belonged to Julian Penn, a bartender who operated a clandestine establishment in the hotel during the height of Prohibition in 1927.
Shops, restaurants flocking to Flemington
Fieldhouse Social will round out Courthouse Square’s dining options with casual and family-friendly elements inside the former Flemington National Bank building.
It will include an interactive gaming hall with duckpin bowling, golf simulators, darts, shuffleboard and classic arcade games, as well as a self-serve beer, wine and shots wall. It will have a polished, modern atmosphere for all ages and events, like happy hours, friend meetups and celebrations.
Fieldhouse Social will also feature a coffee and gelato shop as well as an elevated sports bar and restaurant surrounded by large televisions. It will serve chef-driven dishes and shareables.
‘A much different attitude now’
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After heated planning board meetings and lawsuits that pushed the Courthouse Square project back years, it’s tough to imagine the attitude that now permeates Flemington – that the modern development will usher the town into its long-awaited, bright future.
“It’s a much different attitude now and people are really looking forward to it,” Cust said. “Once we started building and people could see what was being developed, there was a lot of momentum and excitement and people are now understanding the vision we have.”
Since the initial vision of Courthouse Square was unveiled, businesses like upscale prix fixe restaurant-only D’Serve have opened, a concept that once would have been unthinkable in Flemington.
Doughnut shop and prix fixe eatery to open
Cafes, boutique shops including a romance-only bookstore, and other eateries have opened or are planning to open, all with the anticipation of the development’s newly-found foot traffic. Flemington’s revitalization has also included the conversion of the former Liberty Village outlet mall into residential housing.
“We are going to activate Main Street,” Cust said. “This is going to bring Flemington back to what it once was – and even better.”
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Jenna Intersimone has been a staff member at the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey since 2014, although she's a lifetime Jersey girl who considers herself an expert in everything from the Jersey Shore to the Garden State's buzzing downtowns. To get unlimited access to her stories about food, drink and fun, please subscribe or activate your digital account today. You can also follow her on Instagram at @seejennaeat and on Twitter at @JIntersimone.