Ralph Zucker
June 5, 2020 — People
President of Somerset Development
Ralph Zucker is President of Somerset Development, one of the New York Metropolitan region’s foremost pioneers of New Urbanism and Traditional Neighborhood Design development. Throughout his career, Zucker has worked hands-on in every facet of the building and development process, and has demonstrated a commitment to working with municipalities to create innovative communities based on the principles of New Urbanism.
Zucker and the Somerset team are perhaps best known for spearheading Bell Works, the two-million-square-foot redevelopment of the former Bell Labs property in Holmdel, N.J., where he is transforming the iconic Saarinen-designed research facility into a “metroburb,” a term that Somerset coined to describe the suburban building’s revival into a blossoming, downtown-style ecosystem of technology, traditional office, retail, dining and hospitality. Recently, the Somerset team embarked on its second metroburb redevelopment, Bell Works Chicagoland, at the site of a former AT&T campus in Hoffman Estates, IL.
Under Zucker’s leadership, Somerset and its projects have earned numerous industry awards and recognition for their contributions to furthering responsible development practices, including the New Jersey Future Smart Growth Award for Wesmont Station, Somerset’s 70-acre transit-oriented, mixed-use redevelopment located in Wood-Ridge, N.J., where Somerset partnered with NJ TRANSIT to build a brand new train station that provides access to Manhattan.