(First published in The Star-Ledger and NJ.com)
By: Samra Haider, Zoe Baldwin and Adam Gordon
In one of America’s most expensive housing markets, more than 10 acres of publicly owned land in the heart of Jersey City are currently devoted to surface parking lots.
At a time when housing costs are forcing working families out of the communities they helped build, we should be asking a simple question: Is that really the best use of scarce public land?
Hudson County Executive Craig Guy has put forward a bold alternative. The Hudson County Affordable Housing Initiative would transform underutilized county-owned land into more than 1,500 new homes across four sites in Jersey City, including hundreds of permanently affordable homes for working families.
Because the county already owns the land, these projects can move forward without the delays and costs that often accompany private development, where assembling sites can take years before construction even begins.
Turning parking lots into housing
Among these projects is something especially ambitious: a first-of-its-kind mixed-income housing development surrounding County Plaza, a county office complex now encircled by sprawling parking lots.
Instead of acres of asphalt that worsen flooding and intensify summer heat, the county proposes building a vibrant new neighborhood with homes, green space, shops, restaurants and a supermarket — a place where working families, seniors and longtime residents can afford to stay in the community they call home.
The county has committed to building the project with 100% union labor, ensuring the economic benefits of this investment are shared by workers as well as future residents.
The stakes could not be higher. Despite years of new construction, we’re still making up for decades of under building.
The Regional Plan Association estimates Jersey City could face a housing shortage of as many as 36,500 homes by 2032. Housing production alone, however, is not enough if ordinary families are priced out of the communities where jobs, transit and opportunity exist.
That is what makes Hudson County’s proposal so promising.
The County Plaza project would create more than 700 new homes, including more than 200 affordable homes. At least 30% of the homes would be permanently reserved for families across a range of incomes, including 20% affordable homes for lower-income households — including some of the county’s lowest-income families — and 10% homes for middle-income residents.
This is not housing segregated by income or hidden away from opportunity. The county’s vision is for a mixed-income neighborhood where affordable homes exist alongside market-rate homes and where all residents share access to the same amenities, parks and quality of life.
This approach is sometimes called “social housing” — publicly owned mixed-income housing designed to remain affordable over the long term. While the term may sound unfamiliar in the United States, the model itself has a long and proven track record.
One of the best examples can be found in Montgomery County, Maryland, which has developed and preserved mixed-income housing that serves residents across a range of incomes while generating revenue to support future housing investments.
For more than a century, cities such as Vienna, Singapore and Amsterdam have demonstrated how publicly owned housing can create beautiful, economically integrated communities that remain affordable over the long term.
Hudson County now has the opportunity to build on these successful models and adapt them for New Jersey.
A model for New Jersey
Hudson County’s proposal recognizes a simple truth: Government can do more than regulate housing or subsidize private development. When public land is available, government can help build the kinds of communities people actually need — permanently affordable, economically diverse and designed for long-term public benefit.
That is why the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation has invested more than half a million dollars to support the project’s early planning phase, helping Hudson County move from vision to implementation.
Like any ambitious housing effort, this project will require additional public support, financing and political will to succeed. But bold ideas require bold backing.
Just as importantly, Hudson County’s effort could offer a model for the rest of New Jersey. Across our state, local governments own parking lots, vacant parcels, aging office properties and other underutilized land near jobs and transit.
In the midst of a housing affordability crisis, we should be asking how these public assets can help meet public needs.
No single project will solve New Jersey’s housing shortage. But leadership means pursuing solutions that match the scale of the challenge.
Hudson County is showing what serious public leadership on housing can look like. It deserves the support of local leaders, state policymakers and anyone who believes New Jersey families deserve a fair shot at remaining in the communities they love.
Samra Haider is president and CEO of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation.
Adam Gordon is the executive director at the Fair Share Housing Center.
Zoe Baldwin is the vice president of state programs at the Regional Plan Association.
Samra Haider
Samra Haider is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, where she leads the organization’s mission to close New Jersey’s racial…