The maker of the iconic Mars and Wrigley brands is officially moving its U.S. headquarters to Newark, where it will anchor a soon-to-redeveloped piece of the city’s downtown.
Government & Public Policy
From zoning disputes to the federal tax code, public policy affects the commercial real estate sector far more than you may realize. For industry leaders, government and politics demand constant attention.
Public incentives: Building on the success of Grow New Jersey, ERG
Even the staunchest supporters of the state’s incentive programs believe it’s time for a change — but they stop well short of those who call for outright eliminating the powerful economic development tools. To that end, the Smart Growth Economic Development Coalition has proposed a series of amendments to incentives such as the Grow New Jersey tax credit and the Economic Redevelopment and Growth grant. The group cited the need to right-size the offering to reflect changes in the market and to help a broader swath of businesses, while also adding flexibility to the program and rebalancing its policy objectives.
Local land use: Creating predictability, uniformity
Rather than try to replace the Municipal Land Use Law or strip local governments of the ability to control zoning in their town, the Smart Growth Economic Development Coalition has outlined what it says are reasonable, practical changes to help streamline development, create more certainty and encourage new business growth in the state. Those changes include steps such as standardizing non-residential site improvement requirements, creating more consistency across the entitlement process and softening the approval process for projects that will help create affordable housing.
Making land: Addressing the supply problem
The Smart Growth Economic Development Coalition has developed a plan for what it describes as “making land” in the heart of northern New Jersey. That means everything from repurposing government-owned facilities in prime locations to having the state take a lead role in acquiring, assembling and cleaning up individual parcels in order to create large development sites near the port.
All hands on deck: How Newark’s bid for Amazon HQ2 rallied landlords, city officials
While there are still months to go before Amazon reveals it selection for its HQ2 project, making the pitch has rallied developers and public-sector leaders in Newark in a way that the city hasn’t seen in recent memory. That show of unity was only amplified on Oct. 16, when Gov. Chris Christie announced that the state would officially support the city’s bid, even as several other cities in New Jersey jockeyed for the project.
