The Changing Face of Camden
The informational materials, reports, plans and other documents listed below provide detail regarding the changing face of Camden:
Downtown Camden Strategic Development Plan
The Camden Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in Cramer Hill
The Urban Land Institute Plan for Haddon Avenue’s Revitalization
Market Street Façade Renovation & Commercial Revitalization Project
Annie E. Casey Foundation Anchor Institution Project
Delaware Valley Crime Commission Project
Downtown Camden Strategic Development Plan
Completed in March 2004, this plan represents the joint efforts of the GCP, the Camden Redevelopment Agency, NJ Transit and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission. This land use plan establishes both a blueprint for the future development of the downtown and presents concrete concepts for public and private investments.
Click here to download the complete Downtown Camden Strategic Development Plan.
The Camden Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in Cramer Hill
Over the past three years, the GCP has worked with the Camden Salvation Army to prepare and submit a successful grant application for this $35 million, full-service community health and recreational facility located on Harrison Avenue in Cramer Hill. Once it is completed in 2010, the Kroc Center will provide Camden residents of all ages with recreational, health, educational, cultural, family, and spiritual programs. It will include a fitness center, aquatic center with indoor water playground, a family and social services center, teen and senior drop-in centers, an early childhood education center and much more. GCP staff and board members volunteered their services to prepare the original grant proposal. The Camden Kroc Center has received $54 million in funding (half for capital construction and half for an operating endowment). GCP staff also prepared a successful grant application to the Camden Economic Recovery Board that netted an additional $5 million for project infrastructure and capital costs.
The GCP continues to work with the Salvation Army to manage the construction process and develop a plan for integrating local organizations into the center’s programming and service offerings. The final phase of the project is underway with final design and an endowment campaign well underway.
For more information on the Camden Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in Cramer Hill please visit www.camden.alarmykroc.org.
The Urban Land Institute Plan for Haddon Avenue’s Revitalization
In 2004, the GCP organized the funding and execution of an Urban Land Institute Advisory Services Panel site visit that brought leading experts in the fields of design and development to Camden for five days to study and issue recommendations on the redevelopment of Haddon Avenue from Cooper Hospital to Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center and the Camden the city line.
The result of this visit was a detailed plan for the development of a vibrant commercial corridor, anchored on its respective ends by Cooper Hospital and Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center. With Cooper Hospital’s recent $250 million expansion, Lourdes’ $60 million expansion and continued plans for development, the extension of the CSSD to include Haddon Avenue and the efforts that are underway to develop other key parcels along Haddon Avenue, the first phases of this development plan are well underway.
The complete Urban Land Institute Plan for Haddon Avenue’s Revitalization is available here.
Market Street Façade Renovation & Commercial Revitalization Project
In an effort to support the revitalization of the Downtown Camden Market Street commercial corridor, the GCP raised funds to launch a program to partner with local property owners in developing façade designs for thirty buildings along Market Street in Camden. The GCP is also working closely with the Camden Redevelopment Agency and the city to develop a plan for Roosevelt Plaza and the surrounding properties that will deliver a world-class civic plaza and commercial development upon the demolition of the Parkade Building.
Annie E. Casey Foundation Anchor Institution Project
The GCP has secured grant funding from the Annie E. Casey Foundation to play a leading role in the strategic planning for institution-based growth in city, and the investment by anchor institutions in community development activities. The program is based on the successful University of Pennsylvania-University City model, which has revitalized traditional Philadelphia neighborhoods adjacent to the university and its hospitals.
Delaware Valley Crime Commission Project
Recognizing the importance of public safety to economic development, the GCP brought together community leaders to fund a dedicated tip line for Camden residents to call with information related to crime in the city. The tip line is now prominently displayed on most police vehicles, and this line has proved to be an invaluable asset to the Camden Police Department.
