New Jersey Designates Brownfield Areas

Sept. 28, 2010

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has announced the designation of Brownfield Redevelopment Areas in Monmouth, Essex and Salem counties. The effort is aimed at revitalizing more than 200 blighted properties. Municipalities with the designation are eligible for up to $5 million in assistance per year from the state's Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund. The money may be used for site investigation and cleanup. Monmouth's 3.5-acre Neptune-West Lake Avenue Area was once the core of a thriving commercial district that were abandoned or burned down during race riots of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Redevelopment plans for this area call for 202 market-rate and affordable residential units, 95,000 square feet of commercial space, 60,000 square feet of office space, a municipal park, a police substation, a learning center, and a public plaza. Essex's Orange/West Orange Central Valley Area was once a center for the hat manufacturing industry. The planned end use for this area includes 1,500 market-rate residential units and 250,000 square feet of commercial retail space. An additional component calls for 800 residential units and a public park. Salem's Salem City Industrial District Area encompasses 150 properties sprawling over 230 acres, including waterfront and upland properties along the Salem River and Fenwick Creek. The area is marked by vacant land, former bulk fuel storage facilities, and marginal or abandoned manufacturing facilities, including the former Heinz Co. site.