A group of local officials in New Jersey want to try something different to tackle the Garden State\u2019s growing affordability problem \u2014 housing for low and middle-income renters on land owned by the county.<\/p>\n
Hudson County Executive Craig Guy is using a small, $570,000 loan to develop plans for transforming a set of publicly owned parking lots in Jersey City into 700 new apartments, including over 200 homes that would stay affordable in perpetuity.<\/p>\n
The county will remain the landlord. Guy said his office plans to partner with private entities to manage the property after it is built.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis was a number one initiative for me when I decided to run for county executive,\u201d Guy, who assumed the role in 2024, told Gothamist.<\/p>\n
If the plan is approved by Jersey City officials, the \u201cCounty Plaza\u201d project would make Hudson County the first in the state to pursue an affordable housing project on county owned land, with a hope it can serve as a model for other parts of New Jersey.<\/p>\n
Nathaniel Styer, spokesperson for Mayor James Solomon, said Jersey City is on board with the project.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe County Plaza proposal is a rare opportunity to turn an underutilized parking lot into affordable housing, while transforming the area into a thriving, livable space,\u2019 he said. \u201cWe will ensure that Hudson County works with local leaders and members of the neighborhoods as the details of this project come together.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unlike counties, many New Jersey municipalities already own and operate affordable housing. But lawmakers have tended to eschew that model for the past half-century and have instead largely favored tax incentives for developers and voucher programs that pay private landlords.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why Hudson County\u2019s plan stands out to affordable housing advocates like Adam Gordon, executive director of Fair Share Housing Center, even if that plan is still in its early stages.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost counties own land,\u201d Gordon said. \u201cIt really has an opportunity to provide a pathway for other people to do this at the county level,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The project will require many millions of dollars in additional financing. Guy and other officials involved in the project declined to speculate how much they\u2019ll need to raise for the project. The Geraldine R. Dodge foundation provided the initial loan.<\/p>\n
\u201c$570.000 might not seem like a lot, but there’s not a lot of ways to get that in early phases of construction,\u201d said Samra Haider, president and CEO of the foundation. \u201cWe like that it’s innovative, and our goal would be, can this be replicable throughout the state? So not stopping at Hudson County.\u201d<\/p>\n
Like many states, New Jersey has a critical shortage of affordable housing. A March report from the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey and the National Low Income Housing Coalition found that the state only has 34 affordable apartments for every 100 low-income households.<\/p>\n
Under the state’s Mount Laurel doctrine, a 50-year old legal statute that requires every municipality to contribute its fair share of affordable housing, cities and towns across New Jersey are required to collectively generate tens of thousands of new units of affordable housing over the next decade.<\/p>\n