EDA Board Action Encourages Investment In Cities Across New Jersey

TRENTON, NJ  – April 15, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — The Board of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA) today took action on several projects that would help to further boost the momentum of redevelopment  in New Jersey cities.

“The assistance approved at today’s meeting illustrates the breadth of programs EDA offers to support the revitalization of our cities,” said EDA CEO Melissa Orsen.   “From small business loans to tax credits, this assistance is helping to breathe new life into our cities by generating new employment opportunities and growing the local tax base.”

In Newark, residential Economic Redevelopment and Growth (ERG) grants were approved for two projects that will improve and add to existing housing options in the city.  Carrino Plaza Apartments, LLC was approved to support the development of a 60-unit residential building on Broadway that will also include retail and a community room for tenants. Lincoln Towers Urban Renewal, L.P. expects to renovate a property on Court Street into a residential complex featuring 208 one-bedroom units. Also in Newark, Community Asset Preservation Corporation (CAPC) was approved for an EDA loan to help the non-profit organization purchase the Halsey Street building it had previously leased.

An EDA loan was approved for Cooperative Business Assistance Corporation (CBAC), a Camden-based microlender that provides financial and technical assistance to businesses in New Jersey’s six southern counties.  In the past five years, CBAC has made 382 loans which have created and retained more than 2,750 jobs; 61-percent of these loans have gone to support minority-owned businesses. The Camden Coalition of Healthcare Providers (CCHP), a non-profit dedicated to improving the quality and accessibility of healthcare in Camden, was approved for a Business Lease Incentive Grant to support its continued operations in the City.

Also in Camden, Volunteers of America Delaware Valley, Inc. (VOADV) was approved for tax credits under the Grow New Jersey Assistance program to encourage the not-for-profit human service organization to consolidate administrative offices into one facility in Camden rather than a location in Pennsylvania. VOADV would expand its presence in Camden, bringing 65 new jobs to the City.

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co., the oldest and largest privately held bank in the United States, is exploring the possibility of maintaining and expanding its current Jersey City location or relocating to existing facilities in New York, Boston, or Poland.  If the New Jersey location is chosen, the company would create over 100 new jobs and retain 435 jobs.  New York Life is also considering an expansion of its operations in New Jersey, which would involve the creation of 300 new jobs in Jersey City, as well as the retention of 325 employees that are at risk of being relocated to a New York location.

Grow NJ tax credits were also approved to encourage LMT Mercer Group to construct a 90,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Trenton to accommodate its growth.  The company, which manufactures accessories for the fence, deck and railing industries, would create 60 new jobs and retain 88 New Jersey jobs that are at risk of being relocated to a manufacturing facility in Ohio.

Applications submitted to the legislatively-created Grow NJ and ERG programs are evaluated to determine eligibility as defined within the New Jersey Economic Opportunity Act.  As performance-based programs, approved projects must first generate new tax revenue, complete capital investments, and/or hire or retain employees to receive the approved benefits.  In addition to satisfying statutorily-established job and capital investment requirements, applications undergo a material factor review to verify that the tax credits are material to the project advancing in New Jersey.  Applications are also subject to a net benefit analysis to verify that the anticipated revenue resulting from the proposed project will be greater than the incentive amount.

The EDA is part of the State’s results-driven Partnership for Action, the hub for all economic development activity in New Jersey. The Partnership is comprised of four interconnected and highly focused organizational elements: Choose New Jersey, the Business Action Center, the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education and the EDA.

To learn more about opportunities for business growth throughout New Jersey, visit the state’s business portal at www.NewJerseyBusiness.gov.