With the Trenton Town Center, proposed development around the Sovereign Bank Arena, and a redevelopment area around the Trenton Train Station, the city has several projects on the drawing boards, all in various planning stages.
City officials - including current council members and the administration - should strive to expedite these building projects through the planning stages so they can come to fruition as soon as possible.
As many Trenton neighborhoods continue to struggle with poverty and urban decay, these kinds of projects could bring much-needed jobs, capital, and people with disposable income into the city.
While Trenton Makes officials certainly aren't believers in Reaganomics, it does seem that in the case of post-industrial Northeastern cities, redevelopment and new construction of infrastructure does seem to help in addressing the uniquely urban problems currently facing Trenton.
This is not to say the projects should be hastily planned without the input of local stakeholders, like the ill-fated Leewood project that promised to bulldoze hundreds of homes in South Trenton.
These projects should be carefully planned with full assistance from the Trenton government, but should also be subjected to a minimal amount of bureacratic red tape.
With proper planning keeping Trenton residential interests in mind, the city should welcome these projects with open arms, bringing jobs and money into the city that could help Trentonians out of the poverty found in some Trenton neighborhoods.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Redevelopment could save Trenton
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
No matter how much redevelopment comes to Trenton and no matter how many high paying jobs move in to the city, the povery stricken single mother of 4-5 children will probably not be better off rhan she is now.There are more decent paying jobs in the Trenton area than in most of the affluent suburbs.Trenton also has a great transportation system that beats any of the suburbs hands down. The problem in Trenton is not the availabilty of local employment (the average commute to work in NJ is over 1 hour)it is rather, that most of the poor are not qulified for decent jobs they lack education and the basic skill todays bussiness enviornment requires.Developers and businesses can not succeed if they are forced to accomodate those who are not qulified.
No matter how much redevelopment comes to Trenton and no matter how many high paying jobs move in to the city, the povery stricken single mother of 4-5 children will probably not be better off rhan she is now.There are more decent paying jobs in the Trenton area than in most of the affluent suburbs.Trenton also has a great transportation system that beats any of the suburbs hands down. The problem in Trenton is not the availabilty of local employment (the average commute to work in NJ is over 1 hour)it is rather, that most of the poor are not qulified for decent jobs they lack education and the basic skill todays bussiness enviornment requires.Developers and businesses can not succeed if they are forced to accomodate those who are not qulified.
Investintrenton,
Your comment is untrue. There are plenty of qualified, highly skilled people residing in Trenton, including some that would like to eliminate their existing hourlong commute. You are repeating a stereotype, not facts, when you talk about the residents and even moreso when you talk about the types of jobs that are available in Trenton which is why were are looking to get some of the entry-level, less skilled jobs that are plentiful in the suburbs (retail immediately comes to mind) into Trenton. And while Trenton does have great transportation, it seems to be used extensively for those that live in Trenton to get to the suburban jobs. Ever see the lines at the bus stops at Nassau Park on Route 1 or Quakerbridge Mall? Those aren't all shoppers, those are folks that went to the mall to work, not play.
Post a Comment