March 27, 2018: NJNext.com, a new New Jersey-based and focused digital publication, is working to connect NJ arts and cultural institutions, businesses, events — and downtown districts — to state-wide and regional audiences.
Dec. 8, 2017: For decades, New Jersey has experienced notable success with redeveloping many of its distressed areas by affording municipalities the ability to offer tax incentives (i.e., PILOTs) to redevelopers. These incentives encourage redevelopers to accept the substantial risks and additional costs that come with most projects.
Downtowns across New Jersey are facing a unique set of challenges. While many towns are seeing a rise in the number of people who want to live in a walkable, mixed-use town center, they are also facing the challenges of keeping their downtowns vibrant and full of retail tenants when New Jerseyans increasingly do most of their shopping on laptops and not in stores.
Have you noticed that just about everyone is talking about downtowns these days? They’re finally cool again! Young people want to live in downtowns; older people want to live in downtowns. Changing national demographics are fueling mixed-use and mixed-income growth.
Everyone in municipal circles is talking about affordable housing. More than 325 New Jersey municipalities have entered the judicial affordable housing process established by the Supreme Court in In Re Adoption of NJAC 5:97 (Mt. Laurel IV). The goal of these actions is to reach a judicial determination of each town’s affordable housing obligation.
