The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) was signed into law by President Joe Biden on November 15, 2021, investing $1.2 trillion in America’s infrastructure. From the IIJA, New Jersey municipal, county, and state governments have the opportunity to tap into once-in-a-generation funding programs, many of which support safe and accessible transportation alternatives for walkers, bikers and rollers.
New Jersey Future Blog
Accessing New Federal Funding for Active Transportation Projects: Camden County Got a Bunch, How Can You?
Monday, September 18th, 2023Creating Safe Communities and Options for Walk-Bike-Ride Transportation in New Jersey
Tuesday, August 8th, 2023“Every decision about transportation is an opportunity to build a clean, healthy, and more prosperous future,” declared Christopher Coes, Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) as he provided prepared remarks to open the session “Delivering Walk-Bike-Ride Transportation in New Jersey” at the 2023 Planning and Redevelopment Conference co-hosted by the NJ Chapter of the American Planning Association and New Jersey Future.
Rethinking Colonial Narratives and Transforming Native Insight into Actions: Indigenous Preservation of History
Thursday, July 20th, 2023“Lenape means ‘the original human’, and that is where we need to get back to,” Chief Vincent Mann expressed, adding, “[reconnecting with the land] would provide us a way to encourage the people of tomorrow to take what we are sacrificing to create for them to further the future.” Indigenous people have a rich history of interacting in harmony with the environment.
With Recession in the Forecast, How Prepared is NJ’s Economy for Upcoming Rain?
Thursday, July 20th, 2023As the world slowly but surely emerges from the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, all of us are evaluating the new parameters of our state and national economies that have experienced stimulus spending, historic inflation, supply chain disruptions, and high interest rates all in quick succession.
Promoting Integration at the Local Level
Thursday, July 20th, 2023While New Jersey is one of the most diverse states in the nation at the macro level, at the local level it is also one of the most segregated. The state has grown more demographically diverse over the last two decades, but most of its individual towns and neighborhoods are either predominantly white or predominantly non-white, with few places occupying the “diverse” range in between.
Landmarking the Legacy of NJ Transgender Icon, Venus Pellagatii Xtravaganza
Thursday, July 20th, 2023“It is necessary to invoice Venus’s story, not only through black history, but through Latinx history and queer history. It is too important to excavate this kind of history, so what happened to Venus won’t happen again because it continues to happen.” expressed Michael Roberson, Professor, New School and Union Theological Seminary at the 2023 Planning and Redevelopment Conference hosted by the New Jersey Chapter of the American Planning Association and New Jersey Future.
Next Stop: Transit Friendly Communities and TOD Opportunities
Thursday, July 20th, 2023Transit-friendly planning is a proactive, transit-focused approach developed by NJ Transit that is applicable to any community. Transit-friendly planning and transit-oriented development (TOD) are important components of smart growth because they allow people to live, work and play without having to rely on a car.
The Changing Faces of New Jersey Developers
Tuesday, July 18th, 2023“Nationally, Black and Hispanic people are acutely underrepresented in real estate development…Black and Hispanic real estate developers represent less than 1% of their industry across the nation, even though Blacks make up 14% and Hispanics make up 18% of the total population. New Jersey’s affordable housing development space shows similar disparities.
Planning for Tomorrow, Not Today
Tuesday, July 18th, 2023“It doesn’t matter if we make every vehicle electric, and it doesn’t matter if we turn of all power plants; climate change will still get worse,” exclaimed Shawn LaTourette, the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), during the 2023 Planning and Redevelopment Conference plenary, The State of Planning and Redevelopment in New Jersey, co-sponsored by New Jersey Future and the NJ Chapter of the American Planning Association.
Hinchliffe Stadium Opens New Opportunities for Paterson while Reconnecting to its Past
Tuesday, July 18th, 2023While New York City boasts the “House that Ruth Built”, and Cooperstown and Kansas City host hall of fames, New Jersey’s role in the history of baseball, and in particular, NJ’s open exhibition of Black baseball during segregation is often overlooked. Hinchliffe Stadium was once a bustling hub for Black baseball, drawing fans from across the region to Paterson, NJ to see the best players of the day.
