EJ "Dinosaur Building" Apartment Plan Scrapped in Johnson City

A project that would have created dozens of apartments in a former Johnson City factory building has been abandoned.

Syracuse developer Matthew Paulus had been planning to redevelop an old Endicott Johnson Shoe Company building at 19 Avenue B, just south of the recently-opened Victory Lofts apartment complex.

But Johnson City Mayor Martin Meaney said the developer "backed away from that project." He said Paulus concluded he couldn't move forward with it under current conditions, including high interest rates.

The Victory Lofts apartment complex is across Helen Drive from the old Endicott Johnson "Box Toe" factory building. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

Meaney said the decision by Paulus allowed government funding that had been earmarked for the project to be freed up for other possible uses.

Johnson City recently issued a new request for proposals for the Avenue B property. The west side of the building is decorated with a massive black-and-white "T Rex" dinosaur mural.

A glimpse of the basement of the old Endicott Johnson Box Toe Factory building on December 4, 2023. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

In 2020, the village board agreed to sell the site to Paulus Development for $100,000. The sale was never finalized.

Paulus last November told WNBF News he had "a great mixed-use project planned for that site." During a Binghamton Now interview, he said the company had "solidified the majority" of its plans for the property.

Paulus did not respond to an email request this week seeking comment on the decision to scrap the project.

Workers outside a former EJ factory at Avenue B and Helen Drive in November 2021. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.