Tags: nonprofits | economic impact
Tags: nonprofits | economic impact
July 17, 2009
Last Friday, July 10, the Economy League staff took a field trip to Camden to see the progress made on major economic development projects. Camden was once prosperous with RCA, New York Shipbuilding, and the Campbell Soup company employing thousands in manufacturing positions. But by the late 20th Century, Camden lost jobs and residents as highways cut past the city and industry decline spurred urban decay. Five years ago the State of New Jersey invested $175 million in Camden's revitalization. Now, many are working to redevelop the city and change the negative perceptions.
After watching the Riversharks win at Campbell's
Field, we were led on a tour of the city by: 
Did you know that many of Camden's waterfront attractions were built through Cooper's Ferry Development Association? Over the past 22 years, CFDA has coordinated more than half a billion dollars of private and public investment for projects including Susquehanna Bank Center, the Adventure Aquarium, L-3 Communications, the RiverLink Ferry, One Port Center, Camden Children's Garden, the Battleship New Jersey and The Victor Lofts.
To date, these projects contribute nearly $4 million in annual taxes to the city, which represents 18% of the city's overall tax collections, while generating more than 1,500 jobs. This is especially important for Camden's progress since the city has historically had revenue limitation of the economically struggling population and abundance of tax-exempt organizations. The city has a population of around 80,000 residents in 9 square miles and the major employers are government, health care, and higher education institutions.
Attracting new business to Camden is the job of Greg Gamble. In addition to his role as director of economic development, he is the CEO of the Camden Business Incubator, which assists entrepreneurs with low-cost office and conference space and technical support services. The Incubator is supported through a partnership of Rutgers University, the Delaware River Port Authority, NJ Commission on Science and Technology, the NJ Economic Development Authority, and the US Department of Commerce.
Cooper University Hospital is the largest private
employer in the City of Camden. As an
anchor institution in the Cooper Plaza/Lanning Square neighborhood, the
hospital has partnered with the St. Joseph's Carpenter Society and the New
Jersey Housing Mortgage Finance Agency to rehabilitate historic homes on Benson
Street and encourage Cooper employees to become first-time homebuyers. Cooper
provided $20,000 to help the first four employees and families with down
payments and closing costs on newly rehabbed homes in 2006. In 2007, Cooper
turned over ownership of seven historic row homes to St. Joseph's for
residential rehabilitation, with Cooper contributing $200,000 in housing value.
Cooper has also led a project to design three city parks in the Cooper Plaza
neighborhood and beautify the neighborhood streetscape. And Camden County is improving
lighting, installing brick sidewalks and granite curbs, and planting trees in
the area of the hospital and the historic neighborhood.
The Greater Camden Partnership has raised funds to revitalize the Downtown Camden Market Street commercial corridor and to launch a program to partner with local property owners in developing façade designs for 30 buildings along Market Street. GCP has worked with the Camden Salvation Army for a $35 million community health and recreational facility located on Harrison Avenue in Cramer Hill, to be finished in 2010. The Kroc Center will include a fitness center, aquatic center with indoor water playground, a family and social services center, teen and senior drop-in centers, and an early childhood education center.
Did you know that because portions of Camden are part of an Urban Enterprise Zone, shoppers can take advantage of a reduced 3% sales tax rate? In the next 8 years, more residents and visitors will be able to take advantage of this as another $500 million of new, mostly private investment will occur with the development of a "town center" consisting of 500,000SF of office space, 1,500 residential units, and 100,000 square feet of retail, dining and entertainment, and a hotel conference center.
The baseball game and the tour of Camden were great ways to see all of the improvements and hard work of residents and professionals who want to see the city survive and thrive once again. The next time you're crossing the Ben Franklin Bridge, consider a spin beyond the tourist attractions.
-- Stephanie Odell, Graduate Research Intern
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