What's Happening in Newark, NJ…

The ground has been broken on a redevelopment of the 12-acre campus of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) in Newark.

Banner printing is often used at such sites to inform the community of such significant developments.

The project is expected to cost $385 million and will offer 350 new apartments with restaurants and shops. It is planned that 20 percent of the housing will be affordable to residents’ making 60 percent of the median income in the area.

Turner is the construction management company that is building the residential and retail aspects of the project while the Cooperman Family Arts Education and Community Center, which will cover 58,000 square feet, will be bult by Structure Tone. Executive vice president of real estate and capital projects for NJPAC, Tim Lizura, said that both firms are committed to working with businesses based in Newark, local trades, and residents of Newark in constructing these facilities.

Financing for the project is being made possible by $30 million from private philanthropic donors of NJPAC in addition to grants from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development and Essex County. TD Bank purchased $24 million in new markets tax credits, which is an incentive for community development, and $50 million in tax-exempt bonds.

The project will have an extension of Mulberry Street that is friendly to pedestrians. A completion date of 2027 is expected for the project.