GATEWAY A STUDY TO DETERMINE THE NEED FOR REDEVELOPMENT DIVISION OF PLANNING GATEWAY A Study To Determine The Need For Redevelopment Honorable Gwendolyn A. Faison, Mayor Prepared for: City of Camden Planning Board Rodney Sadler, Chairman Prepared By: Bureau of Redevelopment Planning Camden Department of Development and Planning Charles E. Lyons, Jr., Chief of Planning Arijit De, Director Josh Warner, Planning & GIS Specialist Ryan Conklin, Planning & GIS Intern Camden Division of Planning Edward C. Williams, AICP, Director Central Gateway LLC – Land Use research assistance DECEMBER, 2005 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS APPENDIX A: CITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION 26 APPENDIX B: PROPERTY PROFILE 29 INTRODUCTION STUDY AUTHORIZATION 4 SCOPE OF STUDY 5 REPORT SECTIONS 5 MAPS STUDY AREA CHARACTERISTICS STUDY AREA LOCATION 6 Study Area Location 6 TAX BLOCK AND LOTS 7 Tax Blocks and Lots 10 ZONING 11 Zoning 11 LAND USE 15 Land Use 15 PROPERTY VACANCY 16 ENVIRONMENTAL SITES 17 Vacancy 16 PROPERTY CONDITIONS 19 Environmental Sites 18 BUILDING HEIGHTS 21 Building Conditions 20 PROPERTY OWNERSHIP 22 Building Heights 21 Property Ownership 22 STATUTORY CRITERIA 23 Determination of Redevelopment Need 26 DETERMINATION FINDINGS 25 CONCLUSION 26 3 INTRODUCTION STUDY AUTHORIZATION On June 26, 2003, the Municipal Council of the City of Camden passed Resolution MC-03: 360, authorizing the City of Camden Planning Board to conduct an investigation to determine whether or not the Gateway Study Area is in need of redevelopment, and subsequent redevelopment plan. This report will provide data necessary for the Planning Board to render a determination as to whether the area does or does not require redevelopment pursuant to conditions of the study area and criteria identified in the New Jersey Local Redevelopment and Housing Law (40A: 12A-1, et seq.). The Camden Division of Planning has prepared this Study To Determine The Need For Redevelopment for the Gateway area. Geographic Information Specialist staff of the Camden Redevelopment Agency assisted the Division of Planning in preparing this study, by conducting a field investigation of land uses and property conditions within the Gateway Study Area, and preparing associated databases and maps. Property ownership information, tax maps, and zoning information were obtained Former Sears store, now offices, on Admiral Wilson Boulevard from City of Camden. 4 SCOPE OF STUDY REPORT SECTIONS This Determination of Need Study is designed to explore the need as well as This report contains three sections. The first describes the Gateway study area and opportunities to revitalize Gateway through redevelopment projects, and involves examines its existing zoning, land uses, vacancy, environmental sites, building several steps: heights, property conditions, and ownership. The second section describes criteria • Conduct an inventory of the Gateway Study Area’s property and physical used in making a determination of need for redevelopment. The third provides characteristics findings, by applying the criteria to the observed and analyzed characteristics and conditions; and offers recommendations to the Camden Planning Board, relative to • Show to what extent such characteristics and conditions meet criteria to determining the redevelopment needs of the area. determine the need for redevelopment, as outlined in State statute The New Jersey Redevelopment statute does not require that all property in the • Propose findings and recommendations relevant to the determination of the study area be in need of redevelopment; but rather that a majority or generality of need for redevelopment of the study area properties meet the criteria for determination. As a result, the area may include individual parcels that do not reflect any of the eligibility criteria listed in the statute. 5 STUDY AREA CHARACTERISTICS AREA LOCATION The Gateway Study Area, U.S. census tract #6002, is located in central Camden along the Cooper River separating central and south Camden from the east section of the city. This area is bounded by the Federal Street on the north; Atlantic Avenue on the south; Interstate 676 on the west; and the Cooper River, Walnut Street, and Haddon Avenue on the east. The Gateway Study Area study area, which measures approximately 135 acres or 0.2 square miles in size, is characterized by concentrations of housing, industries and institutions, including Campbell Soup corporate headquarters, Haddon Avenue, Kaighn Avenue and Mt. Ephraim Avenue commercial corridors, Camden Housing Authority Headquarters, City of Camden Department of Public Works, Old Camden cemetery and several churches. 6 TAX BLOCK AND LOTS 367 1, 6 The Gateway Study Area’s 83 tax blocks contain 1,554 properties (tax lots). A 373 124 reoccurring problem with all recent Camden redevelopment studies is that the most 375 1 current official tax maps (1995) often do not reflect lot consolidations and/or 377 29 subdivisions identified in the 2005 Camden Tax Assessor’s list of parcels. This report 378 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, attempts to reconcile such differences as best we can, relying upon the Assessor’s 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49 list as the basis for identifying the study area’s tax blocks and lots. Nonetheless, Tax 384 1, 66 Block and Lot numbers for those properties studied in this report include: 385 1, 13 387 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 42 BLOCK LOT 393 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 358 64 26, 130 360 51 394 1 362 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13’ 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 395 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 43 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34 396 83.01, 85 363 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 398 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 113, 117, 118, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 119, 120, 125, 134 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78 399 46, 47, 48, 54, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 65, 73, 108, 109, 113 364 2, 3 400 79, 85, 92, 93, 102 365 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 405 1, 2, 9 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 406 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 53, 55, 62, 63, 64, 66, 67, 69, 70, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 71, 72, 73, 75, 93 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 74, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 89, 97, 99, 101, 407 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 83, 92, 94, 95 102, 103, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 408 76, 77, 78, 79, 82 127 366 2, 5, 8, 73, 75 7 409 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 1305 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 93, 96 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 410 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 112, 113 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 1306 54, 60, 61, 62, 64, 66, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 90 81, 82, 83, 84 411 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 1307 2, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 54 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 79, 83 1308 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 53 412 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 1309 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 29, 30, 31, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 115, 116 61, 62, 63, 64, 65 1310 4, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31, 34, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 413 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 23, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 48 45, 46, 47, 48, 49 1311 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 26, 414 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 24, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 69 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 1312 35, 36, 37, 38, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68 1261 1, 2, 4, 8, 10 1313 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 91, 92, 93, 96, 97, 99, 100, 101, 104, 106, 107, 108, 1263 1, 2, 3 109, 110, 114 1302 1, 50 1314 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 1303 91, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 33, 34, 35, 36, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114 46, 47, 49, 51, 52, 53 1304 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 1315 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90 23, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 95, 97, 98, 99, 100, 101 8 1316 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, 1330 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18,