There's so much construction on Hoboken's West End, if residents aren't careful they could step on a loose nail. In the past three years, the former industrial area against the cliffs has seen an explosion of upscale residential housing.

Price has something to do with it. Homes in the back end of town can cost 30% to 40% less than near Hoboken's waterfront and Washington St. retail hub.

"We were getting unprecedented prices at $1,100 per square foot for the W. Hoboken, which had waterfront views and incredible hotel amenities," says Jackie Urgo, president of Marketing Directors, Inc., the sales and marketing team charged with selling new-construction condominiums throughout Hoboken. "The West Side is more of a value proposition where developers don't need to overdo amenities. You can get new construction at the very high end for $500 per square foot."

The arrival of the Light Rail, the eerily quiet, efficient transportation system that takes locals from neighboring towns to the ferries and PATH train, helped propel this quiet manufacturing zone into an affordable (for some) and vibrant neighborhood.

Last Saturday, the streets were filled with signs for open houses, real estate agents running around showing young couples empty homes, and the sounds of construction work on new condominiums. Old retailers such as tailors, pizzerias and upholstery shops have new neighbors such as a Shop Rite and hair salons. There were as many baby carriages as in Park Slope.

The Light Rail, directly in front of Metro Stop

"The West End has the biggest mix of new and old Hoboken and the biggest mix of lower income and higher [income] people," says Hoboken's Fourth Ward City Councilman Michael Russo, 32, whose father was Hoboken's mayor. "We also have the least amount of open space. We're trying to fix that."

Only a square mile with a population of around 40,000, Hoboken is small enough to walk anywhere. Some 52% of the population falls into the 25- to 49-year-old demographic. The West Side, long home to Hoboken's working-class Italian population, has a mixture of rowhouses, three-family brick homes, the occasional four-story townhouse and developments of all sizes.

Metro Stop, by Metro Homes, is a green building at Ninth and Jackson Sts., directly in front of the Light Rail and the vegetation-covered cliffs of Hoboken. One-bedrooms with 786 square feet in the 113-unit, 10-story building start at $400,000; two-bedroom/two-baths start at $600,000.

"Public transportation is literally just outside your door," says Dean Geibel, Metro Stop's managing partner and an early developer of Hoboken's West End. "But it also has an Amelia's Bistro, outdoor space on the roof, a public park at street level and views of Manhattan from the top floors."

Some buyers at Metro Stop already lived in the neighborhood. Ed Gutkowski bought a two-bedroom/two-bath in the building after living on Ninth and Madison Sts. for five years. He sold his home in just three weeks for a few thousand dollars below asking price.

"The area has an arts center, a lot of small and good restaurants, and it's not on top or near the loud bar scene," says Gutkowski. "At Metro Stop, I'll have a health club and restaurant in the building. On some days, I can stay right there."

On Jackson St. between Fifth and Sixth Streets, TreeTop Development has two buildings directly across the street from one of Hoboken's attractive public housing complexes. Three years ago, in a move seen by some as an effort to make the West Side more appealing, the city put new roofs on the public housing.

An Adam's Square interior

TreeTop's buildings have large windows, large apartments and take a high-design approach. Ariel Square, a 21-unit building, has 730-square-foot one-bedrooms starting at $370,000. The Emsee, just down the street, has 1,100-square-foot two-bedrooms starting at $495,000.

"Hoboken's West Side offers great value for big apartments right now," says TreeTop's Adam Mermelstein. "By bringing good design to the neighborhood, we hope to improve it even more."

While locals welcome newcomers to the area, they remember a time when jobs were as abundant as new apartment buildings are now.

"Used to be you could lose a job at one factory and walk down the street and find work at another," says James Ladsen, recalling when Maxwell House, Tootsie Roll and Bethlehem Steel had all had warehouses in the neighborhood.

"A lot of people who couldn't afford to live here have left," says Ladsen.

However, Biggies Clam House still serves fresh shucked clams after 62 years in business. Fiore's Deli has been selling award-winning mozzarella since 1913. The noon church bells add a melody to quiet streets, and it's not uncommon to see an older gent in a black beret wave hello to a group of teenagers bouncing a basketball.

Another bonus, Hoboken's West End has one of the tristate area's finest local arts centers. Built in a former Levelor Blinds factory on Monroe St., the Monroe Center for the Arts fills its floors with artist studios that include a puppet manufacturer, a children's dance and a jewelry designer. Not surprisingly, artists inside are politically conscious and opinionated.

"City's are interesting because of diversity," says Christine Andersen, a flower arranger who shares her cinnamon-scented studio with a photographer. But "every square foot shouldn't be developed into residential housing," she adds. "We need parks here badly. The city has dropped the ball on that countless times."

The ground floor of the arts center recently attracted upscale retail. The Cheese Store is owned by Chung Park, a former manager at Murray's Cheese Shop in Greenwich Village.

Between the cliffs and crowded Washington St., Adam's Square is the conversion of a 1919 school building into upscale apartments. Developer Mitchell Rechler of R-Squared (his partner is his cousin Gregg) saw one-bedrooms fly off the available list. Two- bedrooms are priced from $565,000. It's another sign that newcomers are coming to the area in droves.

"Hoboken has become a bedroom community where a lot of people just come to sleep," says Freddy Frazier, who ran for city council. "There's still no place I'd rather live, but I miss walking down the street and knowing everyone."