At the Little Falls Planning Board meeting on October 1, one 860-square-foot apartment nearly sank the whole plan for the old PNC Bank at 89 Main Street. The board told the applicant that township rules require at least 1,000 square feet for a two-bedroom unit. Bill Rebelo plans to run a dog grooming business on the ground floor, and he explained why the second bedroom mattered. In the end the developer made the smaller apartment a one-bedroom, and the board approved the project unanimously, TAPinto reported.
That debate over one apartment points to something larger. Each of the four business plans the board approved this fall reuses an existing building. Two of them, on Main Street and East Main Street, work by putting more than one use under the same roof.
Why a Bank Building Needs an Apartment Upstairs
The building at 89 Main Street sits at the corner of Stevens Avenue and dates to 1921. Under the approved plan, from applicant Leveraged Investments NJ, LLC, the ground floor becomes commercial space and the second floor holds two apartments. The ground-floor tenants named so far are a dog grooming and daycare business, an eyelash studio, and a coffee shop and deli. One more commercial space has no tenant yet.
Rebelo told the board that the cost of renovating the building made the extra bedroom financially important. TAPinto quoted him:
"This is a huge expense to us, so one-bedroom is not going to bring in what a two-bedroom will."
The project's planner, Barbara Elen, tied it to the township's Master Plan goal of "having the residential units support the commercial units on the bottom and helping with the commerce in the area."
Rebelo said his business will focus mostly on grooming with some daycare, because "we have a need in the area." Dogs will not board overnight. He expects to be open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the other tenants are expected to keep similar hours. The plan also calls for cleaning the limestone facade and replacing the windows while keeping the building's historic look, so the corner should look much the same once the work is done. TAPinto's report gave no construction start or opening date.
The Same Math on East Main Street
A few blocks away, the board approved a smaller version of the same idea at 200 East Main Street. Vanessa Vargas has run her salon, V'Va for Your Life, at that address and has worked in the hair industry for 30 years. She told the board she wants to scale back the salon and make better use of the building, TAPinto reported on September 16.
Under the approved plan, the salon moves to the lower level and a four-station tattoo studio takes over the first floor. Her nephew hopes to run the studio as he builds a career in realism tattooing. The building's residential apartment stays, so the property goes from two uses to three.
Both the bank and the salon building pair street-level businesses with an apartment.
Paterson Avenue Gets a Workshop You Can't Shop In
On August 6, the Planning Board approved 356 Art Gang LLC's plan for 175 Paterson Avenue, across the street from the Little Falls Recreation Center. The board's August 6 minutes record that the building has been empty since 2021 and sits in the Industrial zone, which doesn't allow a workshop without a use variance.
The plan calls for 35 artist workstations, with roughly 10 to 15 artists on site on a given day doing ceramics, woodworking, painting and fine art. The group's representative testified that its artists have worked together for more than 20 years. Nothing will be sold on site, and finished pieces will go to galleries. Visible changes are limited to new lighting, new parking-lot striping, a slatted fence around the dumpster and at least four shade trees. The plan includes no artwork on the outside of the building. The applicant described it as a 24-7 operation, with artists generally there during normal business hours.
The board approved a parking variance for 45 spaces where 86 are required. The applicant's architect called the project "a far less intense use for this site," and no members of the public spoke when the hearing opened for comment. The applicant's attorney noted the building had been vacant for five years.
Route 46 Gets a Morning Café in an Old Furniture Store
Vavela Café is a single business taking over an existing building. The Planning Board unanimously approved it in August for 1230 US Route 46, the former Wayne Dinette furniture store, TAPinto reported. The approved hours are 7 a.m. to noon, seven days a week.
With the café closing at noon and the 89 Main Street tenants expected to keep roughly 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. hours, the retail approvals so far lean toward daytime hours.
As of this week, the Vavela locations page still lists Little Falls as "Coming Soon" and gives no opening date.
| Address | What it was | What the Planning Board approved | Where it stands |
|---|---|---|---|
| 89 Main Street | PNC Bank, built 1921 | Dog grooming and daycare, eyelash studio, coffee shop and deli, one open retail space, two apartments | Approved Oct. 1; no construction timeline announced |
| 200 East Main Street | V'Va for Your Life salon with apartment | Salon moves downstairs, four-station tattoo studio on first floor, apartment stays | Approved; reported Sept. 16 |
| 175 Paterson Avenue | Industrial building, empty since 2021 | 35-station professional artists' workspace, no on-site sales | Approved Aug. 6 |
| 1230 US Route 46 | Wayne Dinette furniture store | Vavela Café, 7 a.m. to noon daily | Approved in August; listed as "Coming Soon" |
The New Place You Can Already Eat At
Of the new arrivals reported since August, Fournos Greek Café & Eatery is the one that is already open. It is at 208 Newark Pompton Turnpike and held its grand opening on August 13. Mayor James Damiano and the Township Council led the ribbon-cutting, TAPinto reported.
The owners are Yiannis and Tina Papatherapontos of North Caldwell. The café promotes "tradition in every dish" and "a passion for Mediterranean flavors." Fr. Peter Souritzidis of Saint George Greek Orthodox Church in Clifton gave a blessing at the opening.
The Main Street, East Main Street, Paterson Avenue and Route 46 projects all still have renovations ahead before they open. Until then, Fournos is the new name you can actually visit.
This Saturday at Memorial Park
On Halloween itself, the township's Trucks & Treats runs Saturday, October 31, from 4 to 8 p.m. at Memorial Park, also called Wilmore Road Park, on Wilmore Road. The township event calendar lists it as a special event.
December follows shortly after. Last year, the Recreation Department held its Christmas Tree Lighting and Holiday Marketplace at Memorial Park on December 5, with artisan vendors and food trucks, TAPinto reported. The township also held a Holiday Trolley Ride, Light Up Little Falls and a Menorah Lighting in mid-December 2025. The November and December 2026 pages of the township calendar don't list this year's dates yet, so check back there before planning around them.
If you own an older Little Falls building and are wondering whether a second tenant or an upstairs apartment could change what it's worth, I'm glad to go through the numbers with you, without any pressure. The Main Street and East Main Street plans both turned on that question. Joseph D Charles Jr works with owners of mixed-use, multi-family and hard-to-position properties across the Passaic Valley. Let's Connect.
