Great Falls Neighborhood Plan-2022-2032 (Full Report-148 pages)

Our Stakeholders

SPECIAL THANKS to everyone who participated in our stakeholder meetings leading to the creation of this plan, especially residents. Your input has been essential to the making of the Great Falls Neighborhood Plan!

Consultants

Jason Rowe

Diane Sterner

New Jersey Community Capital Education

Gilman Choudhury

Martín Dominguez

Lorennys Garcia

Jennifer Guizar

Michael Hill

Enrique Noguera

Dr. Curtis Palmore

Erica Plaza

Mohammed Uddin

Local Businesses

Jeff Abrams

Mery K. Aguilar

Manoucheka JeanBaptiste

Allyson Burzinski

Migdalia Campos

Carmen D. Carroll

Jorge Cortez

Kenny Disla

Jose A. Estrella

Yan Carlos Filpo

Elio Gencarelli

Jolanda Gonzalez

Josephine Grambone

Aracely Gutierrez

Victor Hernandez

Claudia Herrera Bernal

Eliot Jeri

Juan E. Lopez

Marco Marure

George McLoof

Victor M. Morales

Diana Navarro

Juan Carlos Nova

Leomar Paulino

Lilliam Rodriguez

Victor D. Ruiz

Antonio Sanchez

Lawrence C. Stabile

Khoder Itani

Maria Sudario

Abbas Uddin

Olga Vargas

Carlos Vera

Matilde Vera

Miguel Victoria Government

Gianfranco Archimede

Michael Lysicatos

Michael Powell

William Rodriguez

Neighborhood Residents

Mufti Ahmed

Cortea Akens

Nazma Begum

Alma Begum

Coral Colon

Lizbeth Contreras

Carolyn Cruz

Raquel De la Cruz

KaShena Fabor

Sonji Lopez

Maria Sanchez

Charletta Maye

Jessenia Medina

Duran Norma

Daniel ‘DJ’ Osorio

Kenya Percival

Myriam Quiroz

Beatriz Renjifo

Jessica Schutte

Hannah Tannin

Gladys Urena

Aida Vasquez

Janet Velazquez

NJCDC

Mike Cassidy

Michael De Blasio

David Gelman

Eddie Gonzalez

Robert Guarasci

Tamara Lugo

Lety Reyes

Tiffany Shepherd

Cristina Tone

Valerie Trawinski

Non-Profit

Darren Boch

Jennifer Brady

Marie Caliendo

Carolyn McCombs

Kenneth M. Morris, Jr.

Heather Thompson

Martin Vergara

Jim Walsh

Leonard Zax

January, 202

Dear Friend of NJCDC:

NJCDC’s new Great Falls Neighborhood Plan is the result of approximately 18 months of work with localresidents who live in one of the most diverse anddynamic neighborhoods anywhere in our state. The plan is one that is resident-driven, and the six overarching goals that the plan articulates are entirely reflective of the priorities of local residents. While we may have had to develop our plan overa virtual platform due to the ongoingpandemic, the final product flowsfrom dozens of topic-drivenconversations with residents, focus groups with community stakeholders, and surveys.

Paterson, founded by AlexanderHamilton in 1792 as our country’s first planned industrialcity, is acit y on the rebound. Once a leadingcenter of commerce and industry, Paterson today faces many of the same challenges common throughout urban centers in our state andnation. But thereis significant hope and opportunity in front of us. Our population is growing,as documentedbythe latest census, and our city is home to a wide diversityof residents hailing from countriesas differentasPeruand Bangladesh. The Great Falls Neighborhood, which is the focus of this plan, is just as diverse and--with the Great Falls of the Passaic River andthe surrounding nationalparkatits epicenter--is an attractive andexciting place to work, visit, and call home.

We invite you to delve into this plan and learn about the Great FallsNeighborhood, and the goals, strategies, and activities that the communityhas establishedas our priorities for the next decade.I believe that these goals while ambitious areentirely attainable as NJCDC continues to facilitate board community and stakeholder participation to reach our objectives

I would like to thank everyone who participated in this process, most notablylocal residents who dedicated considerable time and effort to make this plan possible. After reviewing it, I hope you agree that the Great Falls Neighborhood is as unique and promising a place as we believeitis and while we have work to do to make it better we areall readyand excitedat the task before us.

Sincerely,

Robert Guarasci Chief Executive Officer

The Great Falls of the Passaic River

Executive Summary

About Paterson

The Great Falls Neighborhood of Paterson, New Jersey is a community of 13,423 people who reside in the blocks to the east and the west of the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park. The neighborhood has a rich history: It was a planned industrial city, envisioned by the first U.S. Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton. During the 19th and early 20th century, its manufacturing mills were powered by water diverted from the Passaic River above the Falls and running through its raceway system – an engineering marvel in its time. The neighborhood was the home to waves of immigrants who labored in the mills, and who stood up, through labor organizing and strikes, to demand respect and their fair share of the abundance they helped produce.

Today, the people and families who make up the neighborhood are diverse – 59% Hispanic, 17% Asian, and 14% African American – and young, with more than one in four residents under the age

of 18, and with roughly as many residents under the age of five as residents age 65 and older. Nearly half of the population is foreign born, coming from countries like Bangladesh, Dominican Republic, and Peru. Half of the population speaks Spanish in their household, and one in five residents speaks Bangladeshi.

Despite high rates of employment, the neighborhood is poor, with a 30% poverty rate and a median annual household income of between $35,000 and $40,000. 84% of households rent their homes, and, despite nearly 20% of households receiving some form of housing subsidy, residents face issues related to housing quality and affordability.

Notwithstanding these challenges, the neighborhood community today, like its predecessors, has fought its way forward – building community, advocating for itself, and creating opportunities for improvement.

City of Paterson, New Jersey

Map of the Great Falls Neighborhood

Geography

The Great Falls Neighborhood is a one-square mile area located in the central-western section of Paterson, NJ. The neighborhood straddles both sides of the Passaic River, with the Great Falls National Historic Park functioning as the neighborhood’s center. In addition to the National Historic Park, the neighborhood includes the western edge of downtown Paterson, the Great Falls Historic District, with its historic mill buildings and raceway infrastructure, S.U.M. Island, and a number of commercial and residential areas.

Irregular in shape, Union Avenue serves as the neighborhood’s northwestern border and West Broadway serves as its northeastern border. The neighborhood’s eastern edge continues south down Main Street until reaching Grand Street, at which point the boundary continues further East until arriving at the railroad tracks and continuing southward. Interstate 80 serves as the neighborhood’s southern border east of the Passaic River until New Street. The riverfront itself serves as the southern border for the neighborhood’s western half.

Neighborhood Boundary

Executive Summary

About NJCDC

For over 25 years, residents have had a stalwart partner in these efforts in New Jersey Community Development Corporation (NJCDC), a local non-profit organization focused on the neighborhood that serves 4,000 children and families each day through a variety of programs and services. Throughout its history, NJCDC has worked with community residents and stakeholders to develop housing, community facilities, parks, schools, workforce programs, and – most importantly –community leaders.

In 2008, NJCDC convened a resident-driven neighborhood planning process to develop the neighborhood’s first neighborhood plan. Over the past fifteen years, NJCDC and residents have made significant progress implementing this neighborhood plan, building over 200 units of housing; hosting numerous block parties and community events; beautifying the neighborhood with murals and gardens; improving parks and building playgrounds; launching a “Neighborhood Help Center” for educational and know-your-rights training; and enhancing leadership-development efforts.

A Community-Driven Plan

In 2020, NJCDC launched a new communitydriven neighborhood planning process to develop a renewed set of strategies and activities and build on the foundation that had already been set. Key to this foundation were the community leaders who NJCDC had developed and who formed the backbone of this planning effort.

Over the course of 18 months in 2020 and 2021, in the midst of the COVID pandemic, community leaders met together to discuss priorities and key issues, and to develop proposed strategies and activities to advance the neighborhood. They also incorporated other stakeholders into the process –local business owners, public officials, non-profits serving the community – to obtain their unique insight. Supported by NJCDC, residents also surveyed a representative sample of neighborhood households and the property conditions of every single parcel in the neighborhood. All told, over six hundred neighborhood residents participated in this planning process, which included seventeen community meetings and stakeholder focus groups.

Time of Opportunity

This neighborhood plan arrives at a particularly opportune time for the Great Falls Neighborhood. The neighborhood is riding a wave of hundreds of millions of dollars in private and public investment. This investment is further enhancing an already asset-rich environment. There is political will across levels of government to support the neighborhood’s improvement, and strong community leadership, honed through over a decade of neighborhood revitalization work and an intensive, community-driven planning process. With its track record of getting things done, NJCDC has shown its capacity and effectiveness as a lead organization in these revitalization efforts, and has formed a budding partnership with St. Joseph’s Health that promises to improve the health of the community in more ways than one.

Executive Summary

Great Falls Neighborhood Snapshot

Language Other Than English Spoken At Home

of Total Population (Spanish: 49.1%; “Indo-European” [Bangladeshi]: 23.1%)

(Source: 2015-2019 US Census American Community Survey Five-Year Estimates)

Summary of Goals and Strategies

Goal 1. Empowered Community

Strategy 1.1 Conduct Effective and Empowering Community Organizing

Community organizing is essential to creating a truly empowered community. This strategy looks to create a broader, more focused and structured community organizing program, that will be integrated into all of NJCDC’s activities.

Strategy 1.2 Support Resident-Led Community Initiatives

An empowered community is able to take direct initiative to improve the neighborhood through organizing projects and other community-improvement efforts. This strategy supports residents in carrying out these types of projects and efforts, including trash clean ups, beautification projects that plant trees or apply fresh paint to eyesores, or resident-organized block parties that bring neighbors together.

Strategy 1.3 Continue and Enhance the Neighborhood Help Center as a Community Hub

This strategy expands the reach and impact of the Neighborhood Help Center. The Center will extend its hours and open satellite sites. The Center will also increase its service offerings to place greater focus on community organizing and immigrant integration as well as financial literacy and budgeting.

Strategy 1.4: Improve Public Safety

Great Falls residents identify public safety as an especially salient community issue. Starting from the goal and value of an empowered community, this strategy will prepare neighborhood residents to address public safety issues, by working directly with the police, City officials, and other residents employing a diverse set of tactics.

Goal 2. Neighborhood Revitalization

Strategy 2.1: Support Local Businesses and Commercial Corridors

The Great Falls Neighborhood has a number of retail and restaurant corridors that serve the community by providing residents with groceries, personal services, and other consumer needs. This strategy will help strengthen local businesses both individually and collectively, by connecting businesses to resources and capital, enhancing the look and feel of retail districts, and joint marketing efforts to attract visitors.

Strategy 2.2: Promote Tourism Opportunities Created by the National Park to Spur Economic Development and Revitalization

The Great Falls National Historical Park is a tremendous neighborhood asset that brings visitors from around the country into the Great Falls Neighborhood on an almost daily basis. However, the neighborhood is not yet fully capturing the potential economic benefit of the National Park. This strategy seeks to better position the neighborhood to realize these economic benefits while also enhancing the options and experience of visitors to the National Park.

Strategy 2.3 Improve Parks and Recreational Assets

There are a number of other parks and recreational assets in the neighborhood that suffer from underutilization and are in significant need of improvement. This strategy looks to improve quality of life for neighborhood residents and give them more opportunities for living healthy lifestyles by making these improvements and upgrades to the neighborhood’s parks and green spaces so that they are inclusive, healthy places.

Strategy 2.4 Help Residents Access and Create Good Jobs

Despite working consistently, Great Falls residents generally earn relatively low wages. Helping residents access higher wage jobs has major potential to transform the neighborhood. This strategy seeks to achieve this through education and training, partnerships with employers, and labor rights organizing.

Strategy 2.5 Facilitate Large-Scale, Strategic Economic Development Projects at Key Neighborhood Sites

With the neighborhood attracting tremendous levels of investment and development, community leaders have an important role to play in helping to define and facilitate future large-scale economic development projects in the neighborhood. This strategy aims first to cultivate and maintain a policy and planning environment that promotes positive, equitable redevelopment.

Strategy 2.6: Implement and Improve Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety Infrastructure

Given its density, the Great Falls Neighborhood has great potential to be a walkable, bikeable neighborhood. Unfortunately, the neighborhood currently lacks critical pedestrian and cycling safety infrastructure to fully achieve this potential. This strategy looks to change that.

NJCDC CEO Bob Guarasci with our charter school students

Executive Summary

Goal 3. Education and Youth Development

Strategy 3.1: Expand the Full-Service Community School Model

The Full-Service Community School Model has proven hugely successful in supporting students and their families through extended school day hours, social and health services, family strengthening activities, and educational and personal development programs. This strategy seeks to expand the full-service community school model to all of the neighborhood’s K-12 schools, and expand the offerings of current programs

Strategy 3.2: Host a Broad Array of Education and Youth Development Programs

Over the past decade, NJCDC has cultivated a core set of youth development programs. Despite the impact of these efforts, neighborhood youth still face obstacles to achieving their full potential, often struggling with issues related to poverty, parental immigration status, mental and emotional health, limited adult mentors who have completed college, and other factors. This strategy seeks to continue and enhance these educational and youth development efforts to support neighborhood youth from early childhood through college and career readiness.

Goal 4. Quality, Affordable Housing

Strategy 4.1: Develop Quality, Affordable Housing within the Neighborhood Housing affordability is a major issue for Great Falls Residents. This strategy seeks to develop a diverse mix of quality, affordable housing to meet the needs of the neighborhood.

Strategy 4.2: Tenant Rights Education, Assistance, and Advocacy

The vast majority (84%) of neighborhood households rent their homes. Great Falls renters experience a number of challenges, from affordability to issues related to quality, health and safety, maintenance, and habitability. To confront these challenges, this strategy will provide tenant rights education; support tenant rights cases; and advocate for enactment and enforcement of City policies that better protect tenants.

Strategy 4.3: Promote Homeownership

Recognizing the importance of homeownership, this strategy seeks to maintain and increase the homeownership rate in the community, with a particular emphasis on helping existing neighborhood families prepare for and achieve homeownership.

Executive Summary

Goal 5. Vibrant Arts, Culture, and Recreation

Strategy 5.1: Elevate the Arts as a Major Driver of Neighborhood Revitalization

The arts have significant potential to support the revitalization of the Great Falls Neighborhood given the neighborhood’s physical, natural, cultural, and human assets. However, for the arts to achieve their full potential as a driver of the revitalization of the Great Falls Neighborhood, they need to be further elevated within the community and aligned with other key factors impacting neighborhood life.

Strategy 5.2: Curate the Neighborhood with Arts and Cultural Works and Events

This strategy seeks the production, display, and performance of works of arts and culture throughout the neighborhood. It also looks to share and celebrate the neighborhood’s cultural and ethnic

diversity through ethnic heritage festivals and parades. These efforts will beautify the neighborhood, inspire community pride, and build unity.

Strategy 5.3: Develop and Open the Paterson Youth Arts Center

NJCDC is in the initial phases of an adaptive reuse project to transform the historic First Presbyterian Church into the Paterson Youth Arts Center. This strategy seeks to achieve this asset’s full potential, by completing the construction of the Paterson Youth Arts Center and activating it with programming.

Strategy 5.4: Continue and Expand Existing Arts Programming

This strategy seeks to expand our arts programming as a means of engaging more local residents, providing creative programming for neighborhood youth, and showcasing the rich array of talent that exists in Paterson.

NJCDC’s 25th Anniversary Concert at the Great Falls

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Strategy 5.5: Enhance Recreational Opportunities in Neighborhood Parks and Beyond

Parks feel safer and more enjoyable when they are actively used by community members. They also are spaces where community members can gather together, engage in healthy physical activity, and improve their mental health through exposure to fresh air, sunlight, and nature. In order to bring more people to the parks in the Great Falls Neighborhood and encourage their productive use, this strategy proposes holding a wide range of programs in the parks.

Goal 6. Promote Health and Wellbeing

Strategy 6.1 Promote Access to Health Services

Building a strong and resilient community requires ensuring that residents have access to health care services. This strategy will expand residents’ access to existing health care services and

Future Barclay Street Healthy Homes Project

address the gaps and barriers that exist within the current health care service infrastructure.

GREAT

Strategy 6.2 Support Healthy Lifestyles

Health is about more than just accessing health care services; it is about living a healthy lifestyle. Through education and programing, this strategy will support community residents and families in

living heathier lifestyles, thus building a stronger and more resilient community in the Great Falls Neighborhood.

Alexander Hamilton statue in Great Falls Overlook Park

Why Now?

Why Now?

The Unique Present Opportunity

The present and near future represent a particularly opportune time for the revitalization of the Great Falls Neighborhood. This opportunity is driven by the following factors:

✦ Extensive recent and planned private and public investment;

✦ The neighborhood’s tremendous natural, physical, institutional, and cultural assets;

✦ Political will across levels of government;

✦ Community-member leadership;

✦ The organizational capacity of NJCDC as the lead revitalization organization; and

✦ A growing partnership with St. Joseph’s Health.

Future Alexander Hamilton Visitor Center in Great Falls Overlook Park

Recent and Planned Investment

Private Investment

In 2021, the restoration and redevelopment of historic Hinchcliffe Stadium and the surrounding area broke ground. Developers BAW Development and RPM Development Group have attracted over $100 million in private investment to the project. The project will restore the stadium for use for events and high-school athletics, build a 75-unit, LEED Platinum, affordable senior housing complex, and create a 12,000-square-foot restaurant and event space. The event space will pay homage to the history and impact of both the Stadium and Negro League Baseball.

Also in 2021, local developer Winn Development broke ground on a $26 million project on the site of the historic Argus Mill building. The project will revitalize the historic mill building to create six affordable two-bedroom apartments; construct a new four-story apartment building nearby for 68 low- to moderate-income households; build a new parking deck in coordination with the Paterson Parking Authority; and create community programming space.

Lastly, 24-1/2 Van Houten Street is in the early stages of a $50 million adaptive reuse project to produce a mix of 60-100 residential units, amenities, office space, retail areas, and outdoor public space.

Public Investment

The National Park Service is currently moving forward on the development of two major projects at the Great Falls National Historical Park: a new Visitors Center, and the Quarry Lawn – a new recreation area and river walk on the historic former site of the Quarry and Allied Textile Printing Company. Additionally, the National Park Service recently committed $775,000 in funding to restore the neighborhood’s historic raceway system and the gatehouse building where water was directed into the raceway canals.

On transportation, Passaic County is currently making $5.2 million in improvements to Wayne Avenue Bridge. The Paterson Parking Authority is developing a much-needed new visitors parking deck near the Great Falls, which will greatly improve the parking situation for visitors to the Park. Additionally, the New Jersey Department of Transportation, North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority recently awarded the City and County a $850,000 grant to improve pedestrian infrastructure around the Great Falls National Historic Park.

The City of Paterson is continuing construction on a $1.3 million total renovation and redesign of Lou Costello Park. In 2021, the NJ School Development Authority completed the $113 million construction of the new Joseph A. Taub Middle School, which opened in September 2021 to approximately 1,100 students. Lastly, the Paterson Museum was recently awarded funds from the Passaic County Historic Trust Grant Program, a partnership re-grant program between the New Jersey Historic Trust and the County of Passaic, to improve its facilities.

Additionally, public funds from New Jersey DCA’s NRTC program and other sources are supporting two current development projects being undertaken by NJCDC: the adaptive reuse of 50 Spruce Street and the transformation of the First Presbyterian Church of Paterson into the Paterson Youth Performing Arts Center.

Argus Mill Development

Why Now?

Neighborhood Assets

The Great Falls Neighborhood is an asset-rich community. Its numerous natural, physical, institutional, and cultural assets enhance its potential for revitalization and provide leverage points for neighborhood revitalization strategies. These key assets include:

Great Falls National Historical Park

Not many urban neighborhoods can boast that they have a 35-acre National Parks Service asset in their center. Officially designated as a National Historical Park just ten years ago, the Park includes the Falls itself; its surrounding overlook parks, bridges, and amphitheater; its “Valley of the Rocks” hiking trail; its raceway canals – a National Historic Mechanical and Civil Engineering Landmark – and industrial ruins that will become the Quarry Lawn.

Hinchliffe Stadium

An art-deco stadium built in 1932, and famed for hosting negro league baseball games—including— the league’s 1933 national championship Hinchliffe stadium is undergoing a full restoration. Soon it will return to hosting athletic and entertainment events of every kind – including, potentially, special Major League Baseball events like the “Field of Dreams Game.”

Neighborhood Schools

The Great Falls Neighborhood is home to twelve K-12 Schools collectively enrolling nearly 8,100 students. These include Paterson’s main public high school – John F. Kennedy -- as well as the newly constructed Joseph A. Taub Middle School. A number of charter schools have settled in the neighborhood’s historic former mill district, finding the space need for their facilities.

Future Expansion of the Great Falls Youth Center

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

These schools represent hubs of social capital opportune for leveraging to support service, leadership development, and community organizing programs for both students and families. To this end, NJCDC supports the operation of four schools as “full-service community schools.” Full-service community schools feature extended school day hours, social and health services, family strengthening activities, and educational and personal development programs.

Community Facilities

In addition to schools, the neighborhood has a number of community facilities that provide places

Neighborhood Assets Map

for residents to gather, meet, and receive information and services. This includes two facilities developed by NJCDC: The former Rogers Locomotive facility at 32 Spruce Street, which includes the Neighborhood Help Center and a large community meeting space; and the Great Falls Education and Training Center at 52 Front St., which, located next to John F. Kennedy High School, is the site of NJCDC’s youth center programming. This plan calls for further investment and expansion in such facilities in Strategy 5.3 to Develop the Paterson Youth Arts Center, and Strategy 3.2 which calls for an expansion of the Education and Training Center.

Why Now?

Cultural Diversity

The Great Falls Neighborhood is culturally diverse. On its east side, its Peruvian population has developed Market Street into “Peru Square,” a district of over forty Peruvian restaurants, bakeries, and groceries. On the west side of the neighborhood, a section of Union Avenue is known as “Bangladesh Boulevard” due to its shops and restaurants reflecting the neighborhood’s Bangladeshi community, which is its single largest immigrant nationality.

The neighborhood also has sizable Dominican, Puerto Rican, and Mexican populations, whose heritage is reflected and celebrated through parades, restaurants, businesses, place of worship, public art, and civic organizations. The neighborhood even continues reflecting the cultural imprint of its former inhabitants, such as through the numerous public sculptures of Italian-American artist Gaetano Federici. This cultural diversity forms the basis for the potential success of numerous plan strategies, including Strategy 5.2: Curate the Neighborhood with Arts and Cultural Works and Events, and Strategy 2.1: Support Local Businesses and Commercial Corridors.

Other Parks

While the National Historical Park takes center stage, the neighborhood also has a number of other parks, playgrounds, and green spaces. Westside Park consists of 26.6 acres sitting along the Passaic River waterfront. While in need of a significant redesign, the park nonetheless possesses tremendous potential. On the neighborhood’s east side, Lou Costello Park is in the final stages of a $1.3 million renovation that includes a new playground with features for children with autism, as well as improvements to the park’s lighting and landscaping. Separate from the park, Lou Costello Pool is a great community asset providing both fun and relief from the heat on warm summer days.

The neighborhood also has a great potential new park in the yet to be realized Vista Park. Purchased in 2016 through the New Jersey Green Acres Program, the undeveloped 8.4-acre tract sits on a cliff overlooking the Passaic River and “Valley of the Rocks” area of the National Park. This plan looks to finally turn Vista Park from a promising concept into a real park.

Political Will Across Levels of Government

The past and current successes in the Great Falls Neighborhood are the fruit of collaboration across all levels of government—federal, state, county, and city. This has been achieved in no small part through NJCDC’s ability to build constructive relationships with government officials and demonstrate acumen in navigating often tempestuous political currents to get things done in the neighborhood. NJCDC has fostered strong relationships with the Mayor’s Office and its inhabitants over the years, with members of the State legislative delegation, with the Paterson City Council, and with various department of city government.  NJCDC has proudly hosted our federal legislators—Congressman Bill Pascrell, and Senators Cory Booker and Bob Menendez, as

well as Governors McGreevey, Corzine, Christie, and Murphy.

NJCDC also has strong relationships with Passaic County Government, including numerous County Commissioners. NJCDC also works regularly and closely with the National Parks Service and Great Falls National Historical Park Superintendent Darren Boch, and his entire team. As NJCDC’s community organizing capacity advances through its implementation of the strategies in Goal 1 of this neighborhood plan, so should its capacity to engage in effective issues advocacy to support community needs and priorities.

Secretary of Interior Salazar signs documents establishing the Great Falls National Historical Park in 2011

Why Now?

Community Leadership and Social Capital

The last decade of neighborhood revitalization work in the Great Falls Neighborhood, and the 18-month community driven planning process for this neighborhood plan, have developed strong community leaders who are ready to play a critical role in driving forward the neighborhood’s future. Whether through participating in NJCDC’s Community Advisory Board, Youth Council, or another initiative, resident leaders are well practiced in caring about their community and taking action to improve it.

By forming the backbone of the neighborhood planning process and spending 18 months discussing community issues and strategies, these leaders feel a strong sense of ownership over this neighborhood plan. They are ready to continue taking action to improve the community, whether through community projects, volunteerism, or community

Organizational Capacity

Over the last thirteen years and longer, NJCDC has demonstrated its capacity to lead the revitalization effort in the Great Falls Neighborhood. The organization has built specific internal capacities in real estate development, community outreach and leadership development, K through 8 education, youth development programming, and social service provision. Moreover, it has proven adept at building political support for neighborhood initiatives – working with officials across local, county, state, and federal government – and acting as an effective booster in promoting the neighborhood, with its most visible success in advocacy being the Paterson Great Falls being formally designated as a National Historical Park in 2011.

NJCDC has been one of the most effective operators in the NJ Neighborhood Revitalization Tax Credit (NRTC) Program. Over the last twelve years, NJCDC has received eleven NRTC project grants totaling over $10 million in funding. These NRTC project grants have funded the development

organizing and advocacy.

The neighborhood also has huge untapped potential pockets of social capital. The largest of these pockets is parents of students in the neighborhood’s schools, who share common interests and have tremendous potential to be organized and recruited into community-improvement efforts and advocacy. Other social capital hubs include neighborhood houses of worship, ethnic associations, and residents not directly participating in NJCDC’s core services and programs.

These community building and leadership efforts will continue to grow, as they are codified in this neighborhood plan’s first two strategies: Strategy 1.1: Conduct Effective and Empowering Community Organizing, and Strategy 1.2: Support Resident-Led Community Initiatives.

of a number of real estate projects, such as: Park Corner Plaza, Rogers Meeting Center, Michael’s Energy Factory preschool, and the Great Falls Youth Center. Additionally, NRTC funds have supported NJCDC programs like the Paterson Youth Corps, Youth Build, and the Neighborhood Help Center.

NJCDC has also successfully advanced community projects outside of the NRTC program. One such success is the founding the Community Charter School of Paterson in 2008, which has since grown to serve students in grades K through 8 in two schools, employing over 170 individuals while maintaining an annual budget of $18M.

NJCDC is led by its founding President and CEO, and has built an experienced, talented, and dedicated staff with the right mix of professional and personal attributes to serve the community. Many of NJCDC’s key staff have strong connections to the community, and, quite literally, speak its language.

Partnership with St. Joseph’s Health

Throughout its years of work in the Great Falls Neighborhood, NJCDC has developed a growing awareness of the importance of the social determinants of health and the connection between health and almost every aspect of neighborhood life. This awareness greatly influenced this current neighborhood plan.

As this awareness grew, NJCDC developed a collaborative partnership with St. Joseph’s Health, which operates Paterson’s major medical center located less than a mile outside of the Great Falls Neighborhood. This partnership seeks to effectively deliver community health services; provide education, programs, and projects that address social determinants of health; and

promote healthy housing.

The first major public expression of this collaborative partnership is a development project directly adjacent to the boundary of the Great Falls Neighborhood. NJCDC and St Joseph’s are developing a vacant parcel to create 56 affordable housing units and community space for onsite health and case management services as well as health and wellness workshops and programs. This partnership will be carried over to and further cultivated in the Great Falls Neighborhood through the implementation of this neighborhood plan, where it will improve the community’s health and the plan’s potential for success.

Announcement of Healthy Homes Initiative with St. Joseph’s Health & NJCDC

Neighborhood Description

Our Neighborhood in Detail

Geography of the Great Falls Neighborhood

The Great Falls Neighborhood is a one-square mile area located in the central-western section of Paterson, NJ. The neighborhood straddles both sides of the Passaic River, with the Great Falls National Historic Park functioning as the neighborhood’s center. In addition to the National Historic Park, the neighborhood includes the western edge of downtown Paterson, the Great Falls Historic District, with its historic mill buildings and raceway infrastructure, S.U.M. Island, and a number of commercial and residential areas.

Irregular in shape, Union Avenue serves as the neighborhood’s northwestern border and West Broadway serves as its northeastern border. The neighborhood’s eastern edge continues south down Main Street until reaching Grand Street, at which point the boundary continues further East until arriving at the railroad tracks and continuing southward. Interstate 80 serves as the neighborhood’s southern border east of the Passaic River until New Street. The riverfront itself serves as the southern border for the neighborhood’s western half.

Neighborhood Boundary

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Great Falls Neighborhood Snapshot

Neighborhood Description

The Census

The Great Falls Neighborhood includes the entirety of US Census Tracts 1818 and 1820, as well as portions of the following seven other Census Tracts:

✦ Census Tract 1801

✦ Census Tract 1802.02

✦ Census Tract 1803

✦ Census Tract 2642

✦ Census Tract 1831

✦ Census Tract 1822

✦ Census Tract 1832

The neighborhood boundaries are unchanged from boundaries most recently used by New Jersey Community Development Corporation to define its NRTC focus area.

2010 US Census Tracts

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

The neighborhood contains the entirety of eight US Census Block Groups:

✦ Census Tract 1818, Block Group 1;

✦ Census Tract 1818, Block Group 2;

✦ Census Tract 1818, Block Group 3;

✦ Census Tract 1820, Block Group 1;

It also contains the majority of:

✦ Census Tract 2642, Block Group 3;

✦ Census Tract 1819, Block Group 1; and

✦ Census Tract 1802.02, Block Group 2;

✦ Census Tract 1802.02, Block Group 3;

✦ Census Tract 1802.02, Block Group 5; and

✦ Census Tract 1801, Block Group 3.

✦ Census Tract 1822, Block Group 2.

2010 US Census Block Groups

Neighborhood Description

People

Population

The Great Falls Neighborhood is home to 13,423 people, who reside in 3,526 households.1 The average household size is 3.4 people, with 38.5% of households including four or more residents, and 6% consisting of 7 or more residents. 45% of neighborhood households include children among their residents. Among households with children, roughly half (52.9%) are married-couple households, with households headed by a single female representing 34.4% and households headed by a

single male representing the remaining 12.7%.

In addition to the residents living in Census-designated “households”, just over 7% of the neighborhood population, or 1,059 people, live in “group quarters.” The largest group quarters site in the neighborhood is the Passaic County Jail. Other group quarters locations in the neighborhood are Eva’s Village homeless shelter and residential drug treatment facility.

1 Unless otherwise noted, all data in this section is from the 2015-2019 US Census American Community Survey Five-Year Estimates (ACS). In most cases, the geography analyzed consists of the following eleven 2010 US Census Block Groups

• Census Tract 1818, Block Group 1

• Census Tract 1818, Block Group 2

• Census Tract 1818, Block Group 3

• Census Tract 1802.02, Block Group 2

• Census Tract 1802.02, Block Group 3

• Census Tract 1802.02, Block Group 5

• Census Tract 1820, Block Group 1

• Census Tract 1822, Block Group 2

• Census Tract 1801, Block Group 3

• Census Tract 1819, Block Group 1

• Census Tract 2642, Block Group 3

On occasions when the relevant ACS data is only available at the Census-Tract-level, the geography analyzed consists of the following four US Census Tracts that fall entirely or mostly within the Great Falls Neighborhood:

• Census Tract 1802.02

• Census Tract 1818

• Census Tract 1820

• Census Tract 1822

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

The neighborhood population has declined over 11 percent since 2000, and 8.8% since 2010. However, over half of this decline seems to be driven by

Age

More than one out of every four neighborhood residents is a child (younger than 18 years old), while seniors (age 65 and older) comprise roughly one out of every ten neighborhood residents.

decreases in the size of the inmate population held at the County Jail, as opposed to a decrease in nonincarcerated neighborhood residents.

The current child population in the neighborhood skews younger, with zero to four-year olds making up 34% of the child population and nearly 10% of the neighborhood population.

More than one out of every four neighborhood residents is a child

Neighborhood Description

Race and Ethnicity

The Great Falls Neighborhood is a diverse, though majority-Hispanic neighborhood. Hispanics comprise 59.9% of the neighborhood population, while Asians account for 16.8% and African Americans account for 13.9%.

Over the last twenty years, Asians have experienced a 153% growth in their share of the neighborhood population. Hispanics have seen their share remain relatively constant at around 60% during that same time period. Meanwhile, the African-American share of the neighborhood population has declined by almost 20%.

People of Bangladeshi descent make up the vast majority (nearly 70%) of the neighborhood’s Asian population. The neighborhood’s Hispanic population is more diverse, with sizeable Dominican, Puerto Rican, Mexican, and Peruvian populations, along with people of other Latin American and Caribbean nationalities.

Students at NJCDC Block Party

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Our Neighborhood’s Bangladeshi population has Grown 153% since the year 2000

Bengali Monument constructed by NJCDC in Westside Park

Neighborhood Description

Foreign-Born Population

A significant share (44.7%) of neighborhood residents are foreign born. Among the neighborhood’s foreign born, people born in Bangladesh make up the largest cohort at 38.4% of the foreign-born population, followed by those from the Dominican Republic who account for 27.9% of the neighborhood’s foreign born.

Just over a third of foreign-born residents (35.7%) entered the US since 2009. A similar percentage (36.9%) have been in the US since before 2000. 43.7% of the neighborhood’s foreign-born residents are naturalized United States Citizens.

Year of Entry to US % of Foreign Born Population

Entered 2010 or later 35.7%

Entered 2000 to 2009 27.4%

Entered 1990 to 1999: 22.9%

Entered before 1990: 14.0%

45% of neighborhood residents are foreign born

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Language

Nearly half of the neighborhood population speaks Spanish at home, while about a quarter each speak either English only or an “Indo-European Language,” which we can infer is most likely Bangladeshi.

Over a third of the neighborhood population age five and older (38.2%) have limited English proficiency. Of those individuals, 68.4% speak Spanish, while 30.8% speak “Indo-European Language”/ Bangladeshi.

Neighborhood Description

Education

The Great Falls Neighborhood population has relatively low current levels of educational attainment, lagging behind the City as a whole, the County, and the State. Among neighborhood residents age 25 and older, 30.7% of the population have not earned a High School Diploma, while only 11% have a bachelors degree or higher.

Among Great Falls residents age 16 to 19, 10.3% are not enrolled in school despite not having yet graduated high school or earned a GED. This rate is significantly higher than the respective rates for the City, County, and State.

30% of neighborhood residents Do Not Have a High School Diploma

of 16 to 19 year olds who both are not enrolled in school, and have not earned a high school diploma or GED

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Income

The Great Falls Neighborhood is generally a poor and low-income neighborhood. The median household income is between $35,000 and $39,999, and three out of every ten residents lives

in poverty. The neighborhood’s median household income trails, and the poverty rate exceeds those of the City of Paterson, Passaic County, and State of New Jersey.

Within the neighborhood, 40.9% of households receive cash public assistance or SNAP benefits

Neighborhood Description

Low and Moderate Income Households

State guidelines for neighborhood revitalization funds require that at least 50% of households in an eligible neighborhood earn less the 80% of area median income, and that at least 25% of households in the neighborhood earn less than 50% of area median income. The household income profile of the Great Falls Neighborhood easily meets these income requirements according to two measures of area median income: the FY 2019 HUD Family Median Income estimate for the BergenPassaic, NJ HUD Metro Fair Market Rent Area, and the Median Household Income for Passaic County, NJ as determined by the 2019 ACS.(See chart on right on page 19)

Positive Income Trends

However, in recent years there have been signs of economic improvement in the incomes of neighborhood households. Between the 2013 and 2019 ACS estimates, the neighborhood median household income increased by at least 16%, from between $25,000 and $29,999 to between $35,000 to $39,999. During that same period, the neighborhood poverty rate has declined from 42.8% to 30.8%.

42% of Neighborhood Residents Live in Poverty

Rental Housing

The majority (84%) of neighborhood households rent their homes in the neighborhood. Nearly one-in-five (19.5%) neighborhood households receives some form of rental housing subsidy. The neighborhood has 137 subsidized housing units at 14 Van Houten Street. Hamilton Square at 20 Mill Street has 68 subsidized units. The Paterson Housing Authority operates one 96-unit public housing site in the Great Falls Neighborhood—the Dr. Andrew McBride Residence at 22-26 Ellison Street. Through the HUD Multifamily Program, an additional 286 units effectively operate as public housing at two privately owned neighborhood sites: Martin de Porres Village at 1 Green St. and the Essex and Phoenix Mills on Van Houten and Mill Streets. Moreover, another 265 units across six neighborhood sites are restricted as affordable units for low-income tenants through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program.

Despite the significant proportion of residents receiving rental housing subsidy, housing affordability remains a problem in the Great Falls, with over a third of both renters and homeowners spending more than 50% of their income on housing costs. Experts generally define housing as “affordable” if housing costs are no greater than 30% of a household’s income. As such, a household earning the neighborhood median household income of around $35,000 should spend no more than $10,500 a year or $875 a month on housing costs for its housing unit to be affordable. However, the median monthly rent in the neighborhood is between $1,000-$1,300. Only 33.5% on neighbor-

hood units are less than $1,000 a month, and less than half of those are larger than a one-bedroom unit.

This scarcity of affordable, larger sized units is a problem given that the average neighborhood household size is 3.4 people. In the neighborhood, over 1,350 households – representing 38.5% of total neighborhood households — consist of four or more residents.

Neighborhood Description

In almost every Block Group in the neighborhood, a household making the neighborhood median household income would not be able to afford the median rent without spending more than 30% of their income on housing costs. Some parts of the neighborhood do appear to have somewhat

more affordable rents. However, the rents in these parts may be skewed by the presence of significant subsidized housing complexes, and may not reflect the reality of the private rental market.

Homeownership

In the Great Falls Neighborhood, 16% of households are homeowners. The neighborhood homeownership rate has declined over 20% since the year 2000, when it was 20.7%, with most of that decline occurring since 2010. The neighborhood’s decline in homeownership is similar to that experienced by the City of Paterson as a whole, which has seen its homeownership rate decline 17% over the same period, from 31.5% in 2000 to 26.1% in 2019.

Despite this neighborhood-wide decline in homeownership, the homeownership rate has actually increased significantly in most of the western section of the neighborhood over the last five years. This location has the highest percentage of single and two-family structures in the neighborhood.

Homeownership Rate has Declined Over 20% Since the Year 2000

Neighborhood Description

Percentage Decline in Homeownership Between 2010 and 2019

Given the diversity of residential structures in the Great Falls Neighborhood, focusing on singleand two-family structures provides an important interpretive lens for understanding homeownership in the neighborhood. Such one- and two-family structures represent the optimal properties for homeownership, especially in low-income communities where other ownership models, like condos or cooperatives, have historically not worked out well.

Applying this lens, 76% of single-family residential structures in the Great Falls Neighborhood are owner-occupied, as are 63% of two-family residential structures.

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Home Sale Market

Owner-occupants have purchased the majority of single- and two-family homes in the neighborhood sold within the last five years. During this period owner-occupants have purchased 68.7% of the single-family homes, and 55.6% of the twofamily homes. However, these percentages of owner-occupant home purchasers are slightly lower than the overall percentage of owner-occupant owners for each type of property in neighborhood.

The persistence of such a difference could serve to further undermine the neighborhood’s homeownership rate.

The average sale price increased significantly for each type of property over the same period. For both types of properties, there was a sharp spike in the average sale price in 2020 likely due to temporary, COVID-induced market conditions.

Only 16% of households are homeowners

Neighborhood Description

Property taxes are a factor that, as noted by many resident homeowners, has a significant impact on housing affordability. The average annual property taxes on a single- or two-family Class 2 residential property in the neighborhood is $8,050. Therefore, a family purchasing a home at the five-year average single-family sale price of $160,653 with a thirty-year fixed-rate mortgage at a prime rate and a five percent down payment would expect property taxes to constitute approximately 45% of its monthly housing costs. For families able to muster

more than a five percent down payment, property taxes would constitute an even greater share of their monthly housing payment.

Based on the observed costs, purchase of an average single-family home in the neighborhood under typical conditions would be affordable only to households with an annual income of at least $59,000 – 148% of the neighborhood’s median household income of approximately $40,000 a year.

Class 2 Residential Property Sales, 2016-2020

Neighborhood Description

Employment

Most Great Falls workers are employed by a private company. Just over 5% are public employees employed by some branch of government. Nearly 5% of Great Falls workers are self-employed, though not in an incorporated business.

5,164 Great Falls residents are in the labor force, accounting for 51.8% of the neighborhood population age 16 and older, with 4,958 neighborhood residents actively employed. The neighborhood’s ACS Civilian Unemployment Rate (which is distinct from the more commonly cited Bureau of Labor Statistics unemployment rate) was 4.0% in 2019. The neighborhood’s prime age (age 24 to 54) employment-population ratio is 67.0%.

The significant majority (70.6%) of Great Falls workers age 20 and older are employed full-time, year-round. The median annual wages earned by workers in each of the neighborhood’s block groups ranges between $20,590 and $41,297.

37% of Working Residents work in Manufacturing or retail

Manufacturing is the top industry in which Great Falls workers are employed, with over one out of every five workers from the neighborhood employed in the industry. The next largest industries are Retail Trade (15.9% of workers) and Transportation and Warehousing (9.6% of workers).

Manufacturing is The Top Sector of Employment

A relatively low share of Great Falls residents work in the Health Care; Education Services; and Public Administration industries. These three industries are important to the job base within the City of Paterson, collectively comprising over 50% of all of the jobs located within the City.

Health Care and Educational Services are also important within the broader labor market comprised of the nearly 1 million total jobs located in Passaic, Bergen, and Essex Counties. Retail Trade and Manufacturing – top industries for Great Falls resident-workers – are also among the top industries in employment share in the Passaic-Bergen-Essex labor market. However, while Retail Trade saw a modest increase of 2.8% in its share of jobs in the tri-county market between 2010 and 2018, Manufacturing saw a 9.6% decline in its relative share of jobs.

This employment decline in manufacturing has significant implications for the Great Falls neighborhood, as over 20% of Great Falls workers are employed in the manufacturing sector. A multifaceted response would include pathways into good jobs in the education sector and the growing health care sec-

11.6%

9.3%

8.4%

39.6%

Neighborhood Description

tor, which present opportunity due to these sector’s prominent roles in both the Paterson and regional labor market. A response would also seek ways to improve the quality of jobs in growing industries like accommodation and food services, retail, and

warehousing, as wages and job benefits in these industries are, on average, generally lower than those in the manufacturing sector.

Commute

Just over one third (36.1%) of Great Falls resident workers work within the City of Paterson. The majority of workers (53.4%) commute to work alone in a personal vehicle. 16.8% of workers take public transportation to work.

16.8% of workers take public transportation to work

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Health

22.1% of Great Falls Neighborhood residents lack health insurance, including 5.2% of those under age 19. The majority of residents who are insured are covered by Medicaid or another meanstested public insurance coverage.

Great Falls residents experience higher than average levels of physical inactivity, obesity, and diabetes.

Neighborhood Description

Fertility

In 2019. 6.4% of women in the neighborhood age 15 to 50 had a live birth within the previous 12 months. Of these women, none were younger than age 20, and 76.5% were married. Over half (54.5%) of these women who gave birth live in poverty, and nearly two-thirds (64.6%) are foreign born.

Life Expectancy

Residents of the Great Falls Neighborhood have a shorter life expectancy compared to residents of other nearby areas of Passaic County.

Life Expectancy of Ages 45 to 54

Place

Land Use

The Great Falls Neighborhood includes a number of legal land use and zoning designations. The neighborhood section that includes both the Great Falls National Historical Park and the historic mill district to the east of the river is specially designated as the Great Falls Historic District. The neighborhood blocks to the south of West Broadway to the west of the river are included in the First Ward Redevelopment Area. The northern section of Main Street is designated as a downtown business district, while the southern portion of Main Street, as well as Union and Totowa Avenues are

City of Paterson

Zoning Map

zoned for community-oriented commercial. The neighborhood also includes residential and industrial zoning.

The Great Falls Historic District Guidelines establishes design standards that “safeguard the heritage and history of the City of Paterson by preserving the cultural, social, economic, and architectural elements of this historic area of the City; to maintain and develop an appropriate and harmonious setting for the architecturally and historically significant buildings, structures and places in the City.

Neighborhood Description

Land Use Districts

The Historic District also overlaps with the Great Falls Redevelopment Area. The Great Falls Redevelopment Area Plan, adopted in 2017, establishes six distinct land-use districts within the Redevelopment Area – promoting a variety of uses, from adaptive reuse, to medium-and high-density development, to senior housing.

A small section of the Great Falls Neighborhood including Hinchcliffe Stadium and the surrounding areas is covered by the First Ward Redevelop -

ment Area Plan. The Plan designates most of this section as being in the “National Park Gateway District,” which “permits a range of uses as the area provides a transition between the National Park and the commercial areas on West Broadway. The area is intended to feed into the National Park, and provide uses complementary to the Park.” The area covering Hinchcliffe Stadium and Public School 5 is designated as a “Public Use District.”

With the National Historical Park, Westside

Land Use Districts

Park, and many schools, over one third (36%) of the acreage in the neighborhood is used for public purposes. School uses occupy almost 10% of the neighborhood’s acreage. Low-density residential uses are on 22.9% of the neighborhood’s acreage, while commercial and industrial uses together occupy 25% of the neighborhood’s acreage.

Neighborhood Description

Vacant Lots comprise 5% of overall neighborhood acreage

Park Use

The Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park is the center of the Great Falls Neighborhood. Occupying 35 acres in the neighborhood, the park contains the 77-foot-high waterfall and numerous historical and ecological assets. Among the National Park’s amenities are numerous observation points, including the footbridge over the Passaic River, hiking trails, an amphitheater, a statue of Alexander Hamilton surveying the Falls, and the historic S.U.M. Gatehouse building. Formally established as a national park in 2011, the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park recently celebrated its tenth anniversary.

The National Park Service is currently moving forward on the development of two major projects at the Great Falls National Historical Park: a new

Parks in the Great Falls Neighborhood

$27 million Visitors Center, and the Quarry Lawn recreation area. The Alexander Hamilton Visitors Center will be built upon a former steam plant, and, seeking to set the standard for national park visitors centers, will tell the story of the people, industry, and culture of Paterson in a modern and engaging way. The Quarry Lawn will consist of a new recreation area and river walk on the historic former site of the Mount Morris quarry and Allied Textile Printing Company. The Quarry Lawn will creatively incorporate the ruins of the structures previously occupying the site in a way that will simultaneously honor, restore, and preserve aspects of the historic remnants on the property while making the site safe and accessible for new passive uses, events, and programs.

Neighborhood Description

The National Park Service also has plans to restore the historic raceway canals and S.U.M Gatehouse building in the Park. The Paterson Parking Authority is developing a much-needed new visitors parking deck near the Great Falls, which will greatly improve the parking situation for visitors to the Park.

Among the other parks in the neighborhood are: Westside Park, Upper Raceway Park-Lou Costello Pool, and Lou Costello Park – Federici Park.

Westside Park is the largest city park in the neighborhood at 26.6 acres. Situated on the banks of the Passaic River and abutting John F. Kennedy High School, Westside Park includes two baseball fields, tennis and basketball courts, two playgrounds, and an asphalt-paved rink. It also includes a picnic pavilion, a war memorial, the historic Van Houten House, and two foot bridges –one, which crosses the Molly Ann Brook that runs

through the park, and another which crosses the Passaic River.

Unfortunately, due to a number of factors – including damage suffered from recent hurricanes, vandalism, and a lack of dedicated resources for repair and maintenance – Westside Park, as a whole, is presently in significant disrepair and requires a total rehabilitation.

In 2017, NJCDC – with funding from the County of Passaic—commissioned a Master Plan outlining a $10 million framework to revitalize and dramatically improve the Park. More recently, there has been some discussion of transferring ownership and management of Westside Park to Passaic County, which, as part of the County park system, would be in a stronger position to garner resources leading to overall rehabilitation and ongoing, regular maintenance

Lou Costello Pool

Upper Raceway Park and Lou Costello Pool occupy sites used as part of Paterson’s innovative raceway system developed to power its industrial mills. The site’s main attraction is a public pool open during the summer. Other amenities include a hiking trail and a playground.

Lou Costello Park and Federici Park are situated between Cianci and Ellison Streets in the neighborhood’s east side, a few blocks away from the Great Falls. Lou Costello Park is currently in the middle of a $1.3 million renovation that includes a new playground with features for children with autism, as well as improvements to the park’s lighting and landscaping. Federici Park is designed around a large bronze statue of Christopher Columbus created by the park’s namesake, sculptor Gaetano Federici.

Vista Park: In addition to these current neighborhood parks, in 2016 the New Jersey Green Acres Program purchased an undeveloped 8.4 acre tract on a cliff overlooking the Passaic River and the Great Falls National Historical Park, between Totowa Avenue and Ryle Road. The purchase was made with the intention of converting the tract, in

partnership with the City and the National Park Service, into a new park – Vista Park. In 2018, a Master Plan was created for the new Vista Park, laying out a vision for future park design, including enabling public access to the park’s views and connecting the park to the community and the National Park. The Vista Park project has stalled since then, but the redevelopment of adjacent Hinchcliffe Stadium is a catalyst to get it back on track.

There are also playgrounds at five neighborhood schools that are accessible to the public outside of school hours: School 2, School 3, School 5, Community Charter School of Paterson, and the Paterson Family Center. Many of these playgrounds have been built or refurbished by NJCDC over the last decade. Another unique public space in the neighborhood is the Dublin Spring Water Boy Plaza between Oliver and Marshall Streets. The plaza contains another bronze statue by Gaetano Federici, and sits near the site of an old natural spring frequently utilized by the neighborhood’s Irish immigrant community in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Westside Park

Upper Raceway Park

Neighborhood Description

Lou Costello Memorial Park Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

School #7 Playground

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Educational Use

The Great Falls Neighborhood is home to twelve K-12 schools collectively enrolling nearly 8,100 students.

As a former Abbot District, the Paterson Public Schools provide free pre-school to children aged 3-5 in the City. There are seven pre-school sites in the Great Falls Neighborhood. None of the sites are operated directly by the Paterson Public Schools, but instead by private operators.

Schools in the Great Falls Neighborhood

Garret Morgan Academy, International High School, Paterson School of Arts and Science, Dawn Treader Christian School, the two campuses of the Community Charter School of Paterson, Michael’s Energy Factory, and the Paterson Family Center are all located in the historic corridor along Spruce and Grand Streets, giving that area a campus-like feel.

Neighborhood Description

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Commercial Use

Great Falls Neighborhood is the location of diverse commercial land uses. On the Northeastern border of the neighborhood, Main Street is a bustling retail strip across from the Center City Mall, hosting a variety of stores, including a number of discount variety retailers, and stores selling jewelry, clothing, shoes, furniture, and electronics.

Market Street is known as “Peru Square,” given its role as the commercial and physical hub of the Peruvian diaspora in Paterson. The area contains numerous of Peruvian restaurants, bakeries, and groceries, as well as a number of salons and other retail.

On the west side of the neighborhood, Totowa and Union Avenues contain a number of community-oriented retail sites mixed in with residential uses. These community-oriented retail sites include a number of corner groceries, salons and barber shops, restaurants, and a hardware store. One two-block section of Union Avenue, from Sheridan to Wayne Avenue, has been formally designated by the City as “Bangladeshi Boulevard” due to the high volume of Bangladeshi-owned businesses in the area.

Neighborhood Description

Urban Enterprise Zones

All of the retail and commercial areas in the Great Falls Neighborhood are in Urban Enterprise Zones, which entitles businesses in those areas to charge reduced sales taxes to customers and provides other financial benefits. The entirety

of the neighborhood east of the Passaic River is designated as an Urban Enterprise Zone, as are Union Avenue, Totowa Avenue, Wayne Avenue, East Broadway, and the area around Hinchcliffe Stadium.

Urban Enterprise Zones

Opportunity Zones

Two Census Tracts in the Great Falls Neighborhood – Tract 1818 and Tract 2642 – are designated Opportunity Zones. These Opportunity Zones offer tax incentives to investors to invest in afford-

able housing and economic development projects; they cover approximately 30% of the total area in the neighborhood,

Opportunity Enterprise Zones

Neighborhood Description

Residential Use

The Great Falls Neighborhood has a diverse housing stock of 3,911 total housing units. The majority of the neighborhood’s housing units are either in two-family homes (33.6%) or small apartment buildings with between 3 and 15 units (43.1%). Only 8.8% of neighborhood housing units are single-family homes.

However, when looking at residential structures, as opposed to units, the parcel survey found that single-family homes comprise nearly 30% of all residential structures, with one-to-four-unit homes collectively constituting 92% of the residential structures in the neighborhood.

The distribution of these different unit-size residential structures throughout the neighborhood is not uniform. Rather, one- and two-unit properties

are disproportionately located in the western part of the neighborhood, especially between Totowa and Union Avenues. There also is a pocket of such properties in the eastern half of the neighborhood around Marshall and Mill Streets.

Age of Housing Stock

Much of the neighborhood housing stock is old in age, with 43% of neighborhood housing units built prior to 1940. However, the neighborhood has seen more recent residential development, with nearly 17% of units having been constructed since 1980.

76% of neighborhood Housing are MultiFamily Units

Residential Properties by Number of Units

Neighborhood Description

Historic Assets

Paterson is often called the “Birthplace of the American Industrial Revolution,” as it was America’s first planned industrial city, harnessing the power of the Great Falls to animate industrial production. The first steps toward actualizing Paterson’s manufacturing potential were taken by Alexander Hamilton, the first US Treasury Secretary, and the “Society for Establishing Useful Manufactures” (S.U.M.) that he co-founded in 1791.

A network of “raceways” was built to direct water from the Passaic River to power the area manufacturing facilities, in one of the most innovative engineering feats of the time. The area immediately to the east of the Passaic River served by the raceways, became populated with red brick “mill” buildings, manufacturing all host of industrial goods, such as textiles, paper, rope, locomotives, and firearms.

While little manufacturing continues in the neighborhood, the raceways and mill buildings remain as historic assets and artifacts of the City’s industrial heyday. Many of the surviving mill buildings have been converted into modern uses, like residences, schools, community facilities, and offices. The Paterson Museum occupies the former Thomas Rogers Locomotive Erecting Shop building.

The raceways and historic mill buildings are all located within the City’s Great Falls Historic District. The area has also been designated a National Historic Landmark District. Additionally, the neighborhood’s raceway system has been designated as a National Historic Mechanical and Civil Engineering Landmark.

Key Sites in the Neighborhood

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Hinchliffe Stadium

The Great Falls National Historic Landmark District also includes Hinchliffe Stadium, a large, art deco-style horseshoe-shaped athletic stadium constructed in 1932 beside a cliff on the western bank of the Passaic River overlooking the Great Falls. Throughout its early years, Hinchliffe Stadium hosted Negro League baseball. It was the site of the 1933 Colored Championship of the Nation series, and the home field for the New York Black Yankees, New York Cubans, and Newark Eagles. It was the first home ballpark in which Patersonian and Hall of Famer Larry Doby played professional baseball. In 1947, Doby would become the first African American to break the color barrier in the American League, and the first player to move from the Negro Leagues to Major League Baseball.

In addition to baseball, Hinchliffe Stadium hosted every type of sports and entertainment event –including football, soccer, boxing, rock concerts, rodeos, and even auto racing. In the 1960s, owner-

ship of the stadium was assumed by the Paterson Public Schools, and the stadium was frequently used for high school athletics and other school events. In the late 1990s, the Stadium began to fall into disrepair, and the Public Schools ceased hosting events there.

In 2013, the Stadium was designated as a National Historic Landmark, and in 2014 was incorporated into the Great Falls National Historic Landmark District. In 2020, the City of Paterson and private developers kicked off a major restoration of the Stadium to restore it to public use and its original glory. The restoration is part of a larger, $100M development project, that will also build a six-story, LEED Platinum, 75-unit affordable senior housing complex from the ground up, and create a 12,000-square-foot restaurant and event space that will educate visitors about the history of Hinchliffe Stadium and Negro League Baseball.

Neighborhood Description

Physical Conditions of Property

In the summer of 2021, a survey team made up of neighborhood youth surveyed every one of the nearly 2,000 parcels in the neighborhood. The surveyors evaluated the current use of the property, condition of structures, maintenance and cleanliness of parcels, whether residential structures were unoccupied, and the presence of street trees.

According to the survey, only 2.1% of all neighborhood structures are in poor condition. Moreover, when looking at only residential structures, just 15 structures, representing 1.2% of all residential structures, are in poor condition. Owneroccupied residential structures were more likely to be in good condition than non-owner-occupied

residential structures.

The survey also found that nearly one-in-five neighborhood parcels, regardless of use, are poorly maintained or generally unkempt, with nuisance conditions like litter or severe overgrowth of vegetation frequently present.

The number and proportion of street trees in the neighborhood is very low. Surveyors identified 101 parcels with a street tree located between the sidewalk and the curb, meaning that street trees were present on only about 5% of total neighborhood parcels.

Condition of Residential Properties

Neighborhood Description

Property

Parcels without a Structure

Of the 1,940 parcels in the neighborhood, 263 parcels, representing 13.5% of them, did not contain a permanent physical structure. More than half of these structureless parcels are used as parking lot, and a quarter of them are merely vacant.

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Flood Resilience

Despite its riverside location, the Great Falls Neighborhood is largely resilient to flooding. Most of the few small sections of the neighborhood that are in FEMA-designated high-flood risk areas are located within the National Historical Park and

other undeveloped green spaces. The only exceptions are the residential areas in the neighborhood’s far west side that are close to the Molly Ann Brook running between Sherwood and Richmond Avenues.

FEMA High and Moderate Flood Risk Areas

Other Relevant Plans

Other Relevant Plans

Context

Since 2008, NJCDC has adopted a place-based approach to its work, focusing on the Great Falls Neighborhood of Paterson. As an initial step in this place-based approach, in 2008 NJCDC convened residents and partners to create a community-driven neighborhood plan for the Great Falls Neighborhood, titled “Greater Spruce Street Neighborhood Plan.” The Greater Spruce Street Neighborhood Plan formed the basis of NJCDC’s work in the neighborhood for the following twelve years.

The Greater Spruce Street Neighborhood Plan was supported by planning and implementa-

tion funding from the then-Wachovia, and later Wells Fargo Regional Foundation. The Plan was also approved by the NJ Department of Community Affairs to allow NJCDC to participate in the Neighborhood Revitalization Tax Credit (NRTC) program as the lead organization for the Great Falls Neighborhood. NJCDC has proven to be one of the most successful participants in the NRTC program, receiving eleven NRTC project grants, totaling over $10 million in funding, which have supported neighborhood projects and programs over the last twelve years.

Greater Spruce Street Neighborhood Plan

The 2008 Greater Spruce Street Neighborhood Plan consisted of thirty recommended strategies covering seven areas of focus: 1. Empowered Community; 2. Lifelong Learning; 3. Housing Opportunities; 4. Restored Productivity; 5. Engaging Parks and Play Spaces; 6. Balanced Streets; and 7. Strengthened Identity and Heightened Awareness.

Despite challenges, including the slow and prolonged recovery from the 2008 recession and financial crisis, and political instability in Paterson

stemming from the then-mayor’s forced resignation in 2017 due to an indictment and guilty plea on corruption charges, NJCDC and its community leaders and partners have either completed or made significant progress on all of the strategies in the Greater Spruce Street Plan.

This success, outlined below, forms the foundation for the strategies developed for this new neighborhood plan and their subsequent implementation.

Progress on the Greater Spruce Street Neighborhood Plan Strategies

2008 Strategy

2022 Strategy Update

1.1 Ensure that local services serve the local community Created the Neighborhood Help Center

Expanded services and provided them in a community-focused way

1.2 Continue to expand youth activities

Established the Great Falls Youth Corps

Constructed and opened the Great Falls Youth Center

Acquired and began design work for the establishments of the Paterson Youth Arts Center

1.3 Make Greater Spruce Street a safer, friendlier neighborhood

Supported resident leadership development and resident driven community improvement efforts

Progress on the Greater Spruce Street Neighborhood Plan Strategies

2008 Strategy

2.1 Support the improvement of existing educational facilities and leverage education-based revitalization efforts for the benefit of the whole community

2.2 Establish new (non-traditional) education programs and facilities targeted to serve a diverse population and to develop specialized workforce skills

2.3 Make public realm improvements, and establish programs to ensure safe and convenient access to education facilities

3.1 Set clear expectations for equitable growth

2022 Strategy Update

Facilitated construction of a new middle school for the Community Charter School of Paterson

Acquired an existing preschool building located in our neighborhood, preventing 250 children and their parents from being displaced by the insolvent owner’s bankruptcy proceeding. Transformed School No. 5 into a full-service community school.

Operated the Great Falls YouthBuild Program to give students construction training and experience

Created the Great Falls Youth Center and equipped it to provide workforce training focused on traditional STEAM careers and non-traditional careers in the music industry.

Worked with public safety officials and other stakeholders to establish safe routes to school

Advocated for and constructed affordable housing, including: Park Corner, with 11 residential units for low-income and verylow-income households; Congdon Mills, with 66 units for lowand moderate-income households; Spruce Terrace Apartments, with 8 units for individuals with histories of chronic homelessness and mental illness; and Elm Street Apartments, creating 20 units for previously homeless youth and grandparents raising grandchildren.

Additional affordable housing is currently under development.

3.2 Expand existing housing services

Significantly expanded our Housing First rental assistance program and successfully housed more than 80 chronically homeless individuals with permanent disabilities

Offer a variety of tenant rights and other housing-related services at the Neighborhood Help Center

3.3 Design and develop to offer more housing choices in Greater Spruce Street

Completed a variety of affordable housing projects, including: Park Corner, with 11 residential units for low-income and verylow-income households; Congdon Mills, with 66 units for lowand moderate-income households; Spruce Terrace Apartments, with 8 units for individuals with histories of chronic homelessness and mental illness; and Elm Street Apartments, creating 20 units for previously homeless youth and grandparents raising grandchildren.

Additional affordable housing is currently under development.

Other Relevant Plans

Progress on the Greater Spruce Street Neighborhood Plan Strategies 2008 Strategy 2022 Strategy Update

4.1 Leverage investments and improvements in Great Falls National Park to benefit the greater community and local economy

4.2 Encourage local hiring and job creation through redevelopment activity

Renovated and repurposed the historic Rogers Locomotive Storage Building as a community meeting center. It is now used for workshops, conferences, and events by the community at large.

Created Junior YouthBuild to give local high school students needed access to summer employment opportunities.

4.3 Develop Paterson’s arts and cultural potential Supported the Great Falls Arts + Revitalization Planning Process

4.4 Celebrate Paterson’s identity as a multicultural global city

4.5 Make the Greater Spruce Street neighborhood Paterson’s green industry incubator

4.6 Accommodate the potential tourism industry

4.7 Encourage commercial development in the Greater Spruce Street neighborhood

5.1 Make the future Great Falls National Park the threshold to New Jersey’s natural assets, and extend connections into the community

5.2 Restore Hinchliffe Stadium

Completed several murals in the Great Falls Neighborhood

Hosted and supported a number of community events and celebrations, including an annual neighborhood block party and Great Falls Festival.

Integrated LEED design and energy efficiency techniques to renovate the Rogers Meeting Center, Spruce Terrace Apartments and Elm Street Apartments

Advocated for improvements to the National Historic Park and surrounding area to make it more attractive to visitors, including the new Visitors Center and new parking garage.

Developed prime retail space in the Park Corner mixed used development project.

Advocated for continued investment in the National Historic Park and its assets, including the construction of a new visitors center, the restoration of Quarry Lawn, and the acquisition of the Vista Park site

Supported the process that led to the restoration of Hinchcliffe Stadium, and the redevelopment of the surrounding area, which is currently under construction

5.3 Create better play spaces for youth of all ages

Built 12 playgrounds and 5 community gardens at or near Paterson schools

Currently revitalizing Lou Costello Park to include a playground with special features for children with autism

5.4 Create productive community green spaces

Redeveloped an overgrown vacant parcel into William Carlos Williams Community Park

Completed a master plan for West Side Park

Organized volunteer clean ups and maintenance at Hinchliffe Stadium and neighborhood parks

Progress on the Greater Spruce Street Neighborhood Plan Strategies

2008 Strategy

6.1 Strengthen enforcement and obedience of traffic laws, parking regulations, and pedestrian conduct rules

6.2 Improve walkability in the Greater Spruce Street neighborhood

6.3 Increase awareness and use of local/intracity public transportation options

6.4 Address the neighborhood’s existing public parking shortage and inefficient parking requirements

6.5 Improve traffic management on overburdened streets

6.6 Make Paterson bike-friendly

2022 Strategy Update

Advocated for the improvement of existing sidewalks and transit infrastructure and the adoption of a complete street approach to new projects

Successfully advocated for pedestrian safety improvements to the Spruce Street Bridge

Supported the development of a new parking deck near the National Historic Park

7.1 Use signage to market hidden assets and local destinations

7.2 Improve Gateways to Paterson and the Greater Spruce Street neighborhood

7.3 Creatively infuse the public realm with information about Paterson’s unique past and living history

Participated in a County-commissioned traffic circulation study

Advocated for repairs to roads and sidewalks and the adoption of a complete street approach to new projects

Successfully advocated for pedestrian and cyclist safety improvements to the Spruce Street Bridge

Improved the signage and installed public art around the neighborhood gateway from Route 19

Developed “Mill Mile” walking tour of Greater Spruce Street’s historic mill buildings and raceways

Created Great Falls Youth Corps (GFYC) to give students a chance to steward the Great Falls National Park, organizing community park clean-ups and beautification projects, offering guided tours, and learning more about careers in the National Park Service

Commissioned a number of murals commemorating the neighborhood’s history

7.4 Establish a cleaner, greener public realm, a greener identity, and a more positive public image

Organized and facilitated a city-wide celebration to commemorate the 225th anniversary of Paterson’s founding.

Created the Great Falls Street Team to help clean city streets and beautify its green spaces.

Other Relevant Plans

Other Official Plans

There are a number of official public plans that govern the Great Falls Neighborhood or sections thereof.

Great Falls Redevelopment Area Plan

In 2017, the City of Paterson adopted the Great Falls Redevelopment Area Plan. The Redevelopment Area covered by the Redevelopment Plan consists of 13 city blocks falling within the Great Falls Neighborhood, along the eastern edge of the National Historical Park and the Passaic River.

The Redevelopment Plan presented the following goals and established land use standards consistent with them:

• Revitalize the historic mills district of the City

• Create connections between the Redevelopment Area and the Great Falls National Historical Park

• Promote the preservation of historical structures through their adaptive reuse and encourage historically inspired infill development.

• Support local artists through opportunities designed to promote their ability to work and live in the Area.

• Promote mixed-use development

• Foster the development of pedestrian-oriented infrastructure and streetscapes that create a safe community

• Provide district standards that support the purposes and establishment of the Great Falls National Historical Park.

• Promote energy efficiency and sustainable design.

• Provide quality housing options to attract new residents to the Area

• Coordinate with other planning efforts at the National, State, and County level to promote the National Historical Park.

The strategies proposed by this Neighborhood

Plan are consistent and do not in any way conflict with these goals of the Redevelopment Area Plan. In fact, a number of Neighborhood Plan strategies align closely with the Redevelopment Plan goals, among them: Strategy 2.2: Promote Tourism Opportunities Created by the National Park to Spur Economic Development and Revitalization; Strategy 2.5 Facilitate Large-Scale, Strategic Economic Development Projects at Key Neighborhood Sites ; Strategy 2.6: Implement and Improve Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety Infrastructure; and Strategy 5.1: Elevate the Arts as a Major Driver of Neighborhood Revitalization.

First Ward Redevelopment Area Plan

The City of Paterson adopted the First Ward Redevelopment Area Plan in 2017. Only a small portion of this redevelopment area falls within the Great Falls Neighborhood; that portion includes Hinchliffe Stadium, School 5, and Vista Park.

The goals of the First Ward Redevelopment Area Plan impacting the part of the Redevelopment Area within the Great Falls Neighborhood are entirely consistent with the strategies presented in this Neighborhood Plan. The relevant goals from the First Ward Redevelopment Area Plan are:

• Establish a greenbelt along the Passaic River

• Facilitate connections to the National Park

• Promote the restoration of Hinchliffe Stadium

• Provide additional community facilities

Paterson Master Plan

The City of Paterson’s Master Plan was adopted in March 2014. The plan lays out a series of goals in ten key areas of focus: Land Use; Housing; Economic Development; Community Facilities; Circulation; Historic Preservation; Open Space and Recreation; Urban Design; Utilities; and Sustainability and Conservation.

All of the strategies proposed in this Neighborhood Plan are consistent, and not in conflict with, the goals of the Master Plan. In fact, a number of Neighborhood Plan strategies align closely with specific Master Plan Goals, among them: (Please see the following page for Master Plan Comparison table)

City of Paterson Parks and Open Space Vision 2021

Concurrent with the planning process for the Great Falls Neighborhood Plan, the City of Paterson, through a grant from the National Recreation and Parks Foundation, developed a Parks and Open Space Vision Plan. NJCDC played a significant role in the planning process.

The Plan begins with the observation that, among the country’s 100 most populous cities, Paterson ranks 99th with respect to the amount of parkland per 1,000 residents. Noting that the City has little vacant land for establishing new parks, the plan asserts that “improving the existing park system must be the #1 priority.”

The Vision Plan’s proposed strategies focus on both Westside Park and Vista Park, and support actions corresponding to the strategies called for in the Neighborhood Plan. Regarding Westside Park, the Vision Plan’s proposal is to “implement NJCDC’s Master Plan, released in 2017.” On Vista Park, the Vision Plan proposes that “to help assure Vista Park’s successful adoption by its neighbors, priority should be given to ample programming by the City’s Recreation Department and local nonprofits, and the development of strong physical corridors and paths to the park from the Northside and Totowa neighborhoods.

Other Relevant Plans

Plan Comparison Table

City of Paterson’s Master Plan NJCDC’s Neighborhood Plan

Land Use Goals:

5. To improve the viability of the City’s neighborhood commercial corridors

9. To develop targeted opportunity sites that will serve as catalysts and symbols of the revitalization of the City

Housing Goals:

1. To provide for a variety of housing types that will attract and retain a mix of residents from various socio-economic backgrounds

2. To increase the supply of affordable housing

4. To stabilize and improve existing residential neighborhoods

5. To address issues related to a high cost of living from an inflated rental housing market

Transportation Goals:

4. To ensure that circulation is viewed through a ‘complete streets’ mindset, to accommodate multiple modes of travel within the street ROW

5. To provide convenient linkages between destination spaces in the City

Strategy 2.1: Support Local Businesses and Commercial Corridors

Strategy 2.5: Facilitate Large-Scale, Strategic conomic Development Projects at Key Neighborhood Sites

Strategy 4.1: Develop Quality, Affordable Housing within the Neighborhood; Strategy 4.3: Promote Homeownership

Strategy 4.1: Develop Quality, Affordable Housing within the Neighborhood

Strategy 4.3: Promote Homeownership; Strategy 1.2: Support Resident-Led Community Initiatives; Strategy 1.4: Improve Public Safety

Strategy 4.2: Tenant Rights Education, Assistance, and Advocacy

Strategy 2.6: Implement and Improve Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety Infrastructure

Strategy 2.2: Promote Tourism Opportunities Created by the National Park to Spur Economic Development and Revitalization; Strategy 2.6: Implement and Improve Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety Infrastructure

6. To upgrade the City’s transportation infrastructure Strategy 2.6: Implement and Improve Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety Infrastructure

GREAT

Plan Comparison Table (Continued)

City of Paterson’s Master Plan

Economic Development Goals:

1. To retain and support existing industries and businesses

3. To capitalize on the recently designated Great Falls as a National Park

Historic Preservation Goals:

3. To work with the National Park Service to implement the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park Plans

5. To capitalize on opportunities for historic tourism in the downtown, Great Falls, and other areas

6. To work with the Paterson Museum and other groups to promote historic and cultural education

Recreation/Open Space Goals:

1. To provide increased access to open space for City residents

2. To upgrade and improve existing parks and recreation Centers

3. To provide more opportunities for active and passive recreation throughout the City

NJCDC’s Neighborhood Plan

Strategy 2.1: Support Local Businesses and Commercial Corridors

Strategy 2.2: Promote Tourism Opportunities

Created by the National Park to Spur Economic Development and Revitalization

Strategy 2.2: Promote Tourism Opportunities Created by the National Park to Spur Economic Development and Revitalization; Strategy 2.3 Improve Parks and Recreational Assets

Strategy 2.2: Promote Tourism Opportunities

Created by the National Park to Spur Economic Development and Revitalization; Strategy 2.1: Support Local Businesses and Commercial Corridors

Strategy 5.1: Elevate the Arts as a Major Driver of Neighborhood Revitalization; Strategy 5.2: Curate the Neighborhood with Arts and Cultural Works and Events

Strategy 2.3: Improve Parks and Recreational Assets; Strategy 6.2: Support Healthy Lifestyles

Strategy 2.3: Improve Parks and Recreational Assets

Strategy 5.5: Enhance Recreational Opportunities in Neighborhood Parks and Beyond

Planning Process

The Planning Process

Community-Driven Planning

The Great Falls Neighborhood Plan was completed through a community-driven participatory planning process, using a multitude of methods to achieve meaningful community input.

Household Survey

In 2019, as a preliminary step in the neighborhood planning process, NJCDC conducted a doorto-door survey to a random sample of neighborhood households. This survey, administered in both English and Spanish, garnered 338 responses. The survey questions came from the NeighborWorks Success Measures survey, and were chosen in collaboration with the then-Wells Fargo Regional Foundation.

The survey provided a high-quality, generally representative look at neighborhood household’s overall satisfaction with the neighborhood, level of participation in community activities, views on the neighborhood’s most salient strengths and issues, and perceptions about where the neighborhood

is heading. These survey responses informed the entirety of the planning process that followed, and were especially influential in determining the proposed plan strategies.

Steering Committee

In May 2020, NJCDC began the neighborhood planning process in earnest. As a first step, it assembled a Steering Committee of resident leaders and other community stakeholders to help structure and define the planning process. The Steering Committee met three times in the early months of the planning process. Steering committee members were drawn from community leaders, community institutions, and important business sectors.

In mid-Fall 2020 it was decided that the steering committee work should integrate into the parallel community meeting process rather than maintaining the committee as its own separate body.

March 24, 2021 Community Meeting

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Community Meetings

The core of the neighborhood planning process was a series of monthly community meetings open to any residents or stakeholders wishing to participate. Each community meeting covered a different topic relevant to neighborhood life and the neighborhood plan, with agendas and activities de-

Summary of Community Meetings

signed to facilitate resident discussion and interaction. Due to the pandemic, community meetings were held via Zoom videoconferencing. Nonetheless, the community meetings averaged between 25 to 30 total participants each time.

Homeownership, Rental Housing; Tenant Rights 11/18/20

Culture, Adaptive Reuse of Historic Sites

The April 28, 2021 community meeting

The Planning Process

Stakeholder Group Meetings

NJCDC also convened special neighborhood plan discussion meetings with key stakeholder groups.

The April 28, 2021 meeting with public officials saw the participation of a number of top officials from all levels of government.

April 27, 2021 meeting with non-profit stakeholders

Participating Government Officials

Name Title Affiliation

Andre Sayegh Mayor City of Paterson

Michael Powell Director of Economic Development City of Paterson

Lilisa Mimms Council Vice President City of Paterson

Corey Fleming Director Paterson Public Library

Irma Gorham Executive Director Paterson Housing Authority

Michael Lysicatos Director of Planning Passaic County

T.J. Best Commissioner Passaic County

Steve Rose President Passaic County Community College

Susana Peron Deputy Superintendent Paterson Public Schools

Darren Boch Superintendent Great Falls National Historical Park

Online Survey

In April and May 2021, NJCDC launched a bilingual, online survey to allow an even broader number of neighborhood residents and stakeholders with an opportunity to provide input into the planning process. The online survey garnered 402 responses. In this survey, respondents were able to rank a number of proposed strategies and ac-

tivities according to how effective it was likely to be. While this survey did not come from a random sample, and thus cannot be considered representative of the community as a whole, it nonetheless provided helpful feedback as this plan’s proposed strategies and activities were being developed.

Parcel-Level Property Conditions Survey

In April and May 2021, a team of young adults from the neighborhood surveyed each of the 1,981 parcels that comprise the Great Falls Neighborhood. The survey evaluated the current occupancy, use, and condition of each property and was combined with data from the County Tax Board to provide a detailed picture of the status of properties in the Great Falls Neighborhood. The property conditions survey findings were incorporated into the

Original Land Parcel Map from 1899

analysis of the neighborhood, influenced the plan strategies. Among the survey’s key finding were that abandoned properties do not constitute a significant problem in the Great Falls Neighborhood, and that owner-occupied residential properties are generally in better condition, with respect to appearance and maintenance, than investor-owned ones.

Paterson Youth Council student in front of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian

Our Goals

Our Goals

The Goals of Our Strategies and Activities

Our Plan’s Vision

Residents of the Great Falls Neighborhood are committed to building a community where people want to live and residents band together to create change and solve problems and all resident thrive economically. Our neighborhood will prosper with more parks and recreational facilities, additional affordable housing, and schools that serve as community hubs. We will promote arts and culture, diversity and inclusion, and healthy approaches to

life. Our business districts will flourish and will attract residents and visitors alike, our youth will have ample opportunities to prepare for college and careers, and our streets will be clean and safe. We will embrace this common vision in order to unify all residents as we feel empowered to continuously shape the future of the neighborhood..

Great Falls Neighborhood Map

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Our Six Main Goals

To achieve this vision, we have six broad goals for the neighborhood. We will achieve and advance:

1. An Empowered Community

2. Neighborhood Revitalization

3. Education and Youth Development

4. Quality Affordable Housing

5. Vibrant Arts, Culture and Recreation

6. Promote Health and Wellbeing

Our Goals

Goal 1: Empowered Community

Strategy 1.1: Conduct effective and empowering community organizing

Community organizing is essential to creating a truly empowered community, as it allows community members to have a meaningful voice on the issues impacting the neighborhood, and, by enabling them to work together in a coordinated fashion, it ensures that they have the actual power to see those issues addressed.

This strategy looks to build upon NJCDC’s existing community organizing work in the Great Falls Neighborhood to create a broader, more focused and structured community organizing program. This organizing program will include the engagement of community organizers and the use of resident-leader “Neighborhood Captains.” It will develop neighborhood leaders and provide them opportunities to develop civic and community organizing skills. The community organizing effort will create venues for meaningful resident participation in the Great Falls Neighborhood initiative, including the formation of ad-hoc resident-led committees focused on advancing key neighborhood issues as they arise. To the extent possible, orga-

nizing will be done multilingually, to meaningfully incorporate into the effort the 38% of residents with limited English proficiency, of whom approximately 70% speak Spanish and the remainder speak Bangladeshi.

Because empowerment is at the heart of all of NJCDC’s work in the Great Falls Neighborhood, community organizing will be integrated into all of NJCDC’s activities, especially its Neighborhood Help Center and its Full-Service Community Schools initiative. Given NJCDC’s embrace of education and youth voice within the neighborhood, the community organizing initiative will actively engage students and parents to advocate for schoolrelated improvements. To the extent possible, this organizing effort will support the development of a city-wide civic organizing framework, recognizing that many issues affecting the Great Falls neighborhood touch other Paterson communities as well—and vice versa. Amplifying the impact of Great Falls resident leaders through support on shared issues from residents of other parts of Paterson has the potential to achieve larger scale results while benefitting city residents as a whole.

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Activities:

1. Hire community organizer(s)

2. Select, train and deploy Neighborhood Captains

3. Provide resident leaders with community-organizing and civic-engagement training

4. Facilitate community meetings and other forums to foster community organizing and resident participation

5. Integrate the organizing team with NJCDC’s Neighborhood Help Center, Paterson Youth Council and Full-Service Community Schools efforts

6. Facilitate creation of a citywide civic association or framework to address city-wide issues

7. Relaunch Community Advisory Board and attract new members that represent community residents, youth, businesses, and other stakeholders

Strategy 1.2: Support resident led community initiatives

An empowered community will also be able to take direct initiative to improve the neighborhood through organizing projects and other communityimprovement efforts. This strategy supports neighborhood residents in initiating and carrying out these types of projects and efforts, including trash clean ups, beautification projects that plant trees or apply fresh paint to eyesores, or resident-organized block parties that bring neighbors together. This Strategy is closely connected to Strategy 1.1. as it is both a predecessor to and a product of community organizing.

In the 2019 household survey, NJCDC found a strong feeling efficacy in the community: 73% of respondents agreed with the statement, “If something is wrong in my neighborhood, I know that the people who live here will try to fix it.” When asked “How much of a positive difference do you feel that you, yourself, can make in your community,” 17% of respondents responded, “a great deal,” while another 62% said “a fair amount.” However, the survey also found that there was room to grow the

level of community participation in the neighborhood. Only 15% of respondents had participated in a community association or local advocacy group, and 20% had volunteered in some capacity to improve the community. The survey also found that the level of community participation was lower for Hispanic neighborhood residents relative to nonHispanic ones.

To increase participation and empower residents to make an impact in their community, NJCDC will support resident-led initiatives by encouraging community members to identify and organize such projects, providing the supplies and refreshments needed for successful events, and offering small grants that neighborhood residents can apply for to fund community-based projects.

Activities:

1. Encourage and support community-led volunteer events like clean-ups and beautification projects

2. Work with residents to organize and host Block Parties

3. Create a Neighborhood Activities Fund

4. Create a community-led podcast studio and associated programming

Our Goals

Strategy 1.3: Continue and enhance the Neighborhood Help Center as a community hub

NJCDC’s Neighborhood Help Center serves as a community hub for education, empowerment, and support services. Open every day, the Neighborhood Help Center offers resources and information on relevant issues including housing, immigration, job readiness, educational opportunities, financial literacy, and more.

In a bilingual online survey conducted in Spring 2021 as part of the planning process, resident respondents reaffirmed the importance of the services that the Neighborhood Help Center provides, listing among the strategies and activities “most likely to succeed:” Offer career, personal finance, and other services to neighborhood residents; Support residents in obtaining GED, Associates Degree, technical school credential, or Bachelors Degree; and Job training programs focused on key industries.

This strategy expands the reach and impact of the Neighborhood Help Center. The Center will extend its hours, and will open satellite sites at key neighborhood locations to provide all Great Falls residents convenient access to its services. The

Center will also increase its service offerings to place greater focus on community organizing and immigrant integration as well as financial literacy and budgeting. Responding to the fact that 44% of the neighborhood population is foreign born, the Center’s immigrant integration initiatives will include know your rights training, immigration legal services programs, English language instruction, and citizenship preparation courses.

Activities:

1. Create new agency-wide Volunteer Coordinator

2. Relaunch and expand the offerings of the Neighborhood Help Center

3. Create satellite Neighborhood Help Center sites in one or more other locations

4. Conduct annual surveys to determine program areas that community residents would like to learn more about and skills/knowledge they can share with others

5. Develop new or enhance existing programmatic offerings to include community organizing, immigrant integration, financial literacy, and other program areas as identified by the community

Strategy 1.4: Improve Public Safety

From the household survey to the community meetings held during the planning process, Great Falls residents identified public safety as an especially salient community issue. In the household survey, 37% of respondents ranked safety in the neighborhood as “poor” or “very poor,” compared to 22% that ranked it as “good” or “very good.” While 80% of respondents said that they feel at least “somewhat safe” walking around the neighborhood during the day, only 56% said that they feel at least “somewhat safe” walking around at night.

These public safety issues impact the neighborhood economy. On the household survey, “crime and other safety issues” was the second most common reason given by respondents as to why they would not consider purchasing a home in the neighborhood. During the planning process, local business owners also often referenced public safety as a negative factor impacting their business.

Starting from the goal and value of empowered community, this strategy will empower neighbor-

hood residents to address public safety issues, by working directly with the police, City officials, and other residents employing a diverse set of tactics.

Activities:

1. Organize regular discussion and collaboration between community leaders and the Paterson Police Department to discuss public safety issues and strategies in the Great Falls Neighborhood

2. Advocate for crime prevention techniques such as improved lighting, cameras, targeted landscaping and other physical improvements to address neighborhood crime hotspots

3. Address nuisance issues that negatively impact quality of life and may contribute to criminal activity, such as illegal dumping, littering, panhandling and vagrancy

4. Support community efforts to increase interactions with the police department so as to preserve public trust in and build a constructive working relationship with the police

Spruce Street

Our Goals

Goal 2: Neighborhood Revitalization

Strategy 2.1: Support Local Businesses and Commercial Corridors

The Great Falls Neighborhood has a number of retail and restaurant corridors that serve the community by providing residents with groceries, personal services, and other consumer needs. Within the neighborhood one can find food from a diversity of ethnic cuisines, from Dominican to Peruvian, Mexican to Asian.

This strategy will help strengthen local businesses both individually and collectively. NJCDC will build relationships with local business owners and connect them to resources enabling them to access

capital and businesses management knowledge to be able to grow and improve their enterprises. Where possible, NJCDC will seek funding for businesses to upgrade their exterior visual appearance with new facades, signage, awnings, lighting, and other improvements that make their businesses and the retail district itself more attractive.

This strategy will also look to improve the look and feel of the retail districts through streetscape improvements, common branding, banners, wayfinding signage, and public art. Special attention will be given to the pedestrian corridors between the National Park and the nearby restaurant areas. NJCDC will also bring businesses together to engage in joint district marketing efforts, organize events that attract visitors, like cultural events and food tours, and potentially form a formal business associations or Special Improvement District. Lastly, NJCDC will encourage complementary new businesses filling commercial vacancies, especially coffee shops, small venues for jazz and other entertainment, and other businesses benefiting the community.

Activities

1. Conduct regular outreach and communication with neighborhood businesses

2. Provide referrals to local business owners that connect them to sources of capital and business management education

3. Assist in identifying business incentive grants, and storefront and façade improvement grant programs

4. Support installation of streetscape improvements, common branding, banners, wayfinding signage, street trees and public art

5. Engage in joint district marketing, events, and other collaborative efforts

6. Explore the possibility of forming a formal business association or Special Improvement District

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Strategy 2.2: Promote tourism opportunities created by the National Park to spur local economic development and revitalization

This neighborhood is unique among neighborhoods in New Jersey in that it is home to a national park—one for which NJCDC spent many years advocating. The Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park (“National Park”) is a tremendous neighborhood asset that brings visitors from around the country into the Great Falls Neighborhood on an almost daily basis. The Park and its immediately adjacent areas are slated to see a tremendous amount of upcoming investment.

However, the neighborhood is not yet fully capturing the potential economic benefit of the National Park. This strategy seeks to better position the neighborhood to realize these economic benefits while also enhancing the options and experience of visitors to the National Park. The goal is both to attract more visitors to the National Park, and have visitors extend their visits to explore and spend money in the neighborhood.

The Strategy starts with working with the City and other partners to raise awareness to Park visitors about all that the neighborhood has to offer. It calls for linking existing restaurant districts to the

National Park through wayfinding signage and improvements to the pedestrian experience to allow for enjoyable, safe walking throughout the neighborhood. It also includes marketing activities, inspired by the successful “Great Falls, Great Food, Great Stories” pilot run by NJCDC and the National Parks Service in 2015 in 2016. It also calls for attracting café and quick food services closer to the park, likely in the form of food carts or trucks. The strategy also calls for the further development of tourism and visitor support infrastructure such as a hotel, youth hostel, and conference center. Lastly, this strategy supports efforts to provide easy parking near the National Park to enable visitors to explore the rest of the park and the neighborhood easily on foot.

Activities

1. Link existing restaurant districts to the National Park, through wayfinding, marketing, and pedestrian improvements

2. Work with the National Park to create food kiosk areas

3. Implement Great Falls Initiative to build a parking deck within the National Park to allow for efficient parking for park visitors to then explore the area on foot

4. Promote creation of additional café and res-

Our Goals

taurant spaces close to the park

5. Support development of a hotel, a youth hostel, and a conference center in the neighborhood

6. Support physical revitalization and regular maintenance of National Park assets including the raceway and other key attractions

7. Develop marketing material, such as a directory and map of featured businesses and attractions, aimed at marketing what the district has to offer to visitors to the National Park

8. Organize walking tours and other events aimed at attracting and engaging visitors to the National Park

9. Update “Mill Mile” app that educates visitors about the area in collaboration with the Hamilton Partnership for Paterson.

Strategy 2.3: Improve parks and recreational assets

There has been significant recent and planned investment in the development and revitalization of neighborhood parks. Lou Costello Park is currently getting a complete facelift, an effort catalyzed by NJCDC. The Hamilton Partnership for Paterson is planning a new Visitors Center and the National Park is about to begin work on a new open space area called the Quarry Lawn. Additionally, over the last several years, NJCDC has constructed nine new, high-quality playgrounds at or near neighborhood schools.

However, there are a number of other parks and recreational assets in the neighborhood that suffer from underutilization and are in significant need of improvement. The most prominent of these is Westside Park, the largest city park in the neigh-

LOU COSTELLO MEMORIAL PARK REHABILITATION

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

borhood, which is in significant disrepair and requires a total rehabilitation. Over the years, the Park has suffered damage from Hurricane Irene, Superstorm Sandy, vandalism, and a lack of dedicated resources for repair and maintenance. In 2017, NJCDC – with funding from the County of Passaic—commissioned a study outlining a $10 million framework to dramatically improve the Park. More recently, there has been some discussion of transferring ownership and management of Westside Park to Passaic County, which, as part of the County park system, would be in a stronger position to garner resources leading to overall rehabilitation and ongoing, regular maintenance.

tage Trails that run through the neighborhood. Pennington Park, while just outside the neighborhood’s boundaries, is also used by neighborhood residents and requires improvement. These parks and green spaces are important and scarce public assets in a city that is second only to New York City as the most densely populated city in the nation (with populations over 100,000). Moreover, with Great Falls residents experiencing higher than average incidence of chronic physical inactivity, obesity, and diabetes, better parks represent a vehicle for promoting health equity. This strategy looks to improve quality of life for neighborhood residents and give them more opportunities for living healthy lifestyles by making these improvements and upgrades to the neighborhood’s parks and green spaces so that they are inclusive, healthy places.

Activities:

1. Expand NJCDC’s Street Team program to increase its impact and visibility at parks and recreational assets

2. Advocate for, and explore options, to rehabilitate and maintain Westside Park as a highquality, community-focused park

3. Support development of Vistas Park into a high-quality neighborhood park

The future Vistas Park is another neighborhood green space that requires attention. In 2016, the New Jersey Green Acres Program purchased the undeveloped 8.4-acre tract which sits on a cliff overlooking the Passaic River and “Valley of the Rocks” area of the National Park. In 2018, a Master Plan was created for the new “Vistas Park,” laying out a vision for future park design, including enabling public access to the park’s views and connecting the park to the community and the National Park. The Vistas Park project has stalled since then, but the redevelopment of adjacent Hinchcliffe Stadium is a catalyst to get it back on track.

Other parks and recreational assets that require attention and improvements are Lou Costello Pool, Upper Raceway Park, and the County Heri-

4. Create new greenspace, amenities, and site improvements at Lou Costello Pool, Upper Raceway Park, and local Heritage Trails

5. Ensure continuous waterfront trail access by connecting the existing trail to the Northside neighborhood and to Garret Mountain

6. Explore and capitalize on opportunities to create or improve other recreational assets or green spaces in or surrounding the neighborhood, such as Pennington Park

7. Work with the City, Paterson school district, and its developer to ensure community access to the restored Hinchcliffe Stadium for events and youth sports activities

Our Goals

Strategy 2.4: Help Residents Access and Create Good Jobs

Families in the Great Falls Neighborhood are generally “working families.” The neighborhood has a high prime-age workforce participation rate of 67%, and a low ACS Civilian Unemployment Rate. The significant majority (70.6%) of Great Falls workers age 20 and older are employed fulltime, year-round.

Nonetheless, despite working consistently, Great Falls residents generally earn relatively low wages. The median annual wages earned by workers in each of the neighborhood’s census block groups ranges between $20,590 and $41,297, compared to $45,500 for the whole State of New Jersey. Therefore, helping residents access higher wage jobs has major potential to transform the neighborhood.

Part of the challenge is education. Three in ten neighborhood residents age 25 and older have less than a high school education, and only 9.7% of neighborhood residents have a bachelor’s degree. While promoting college attendance is a major priority for NJCDC, there are residents, both young and old, for whom a four-year college degree is not the right path. This strategy looks to provide these residents with the education and training needed to get into and excel in high quality careers.

This strategy also looks to build relationships with key local employers to create employment pathways and opportunities for Great Falls residents. For example, a quarter of all the total jobs in the City of Paterson are in the Health Care and Social Assistance industry, which is anchored by St. Joseph’s University Medical Center. However, only 7.5% of workers in the neighborhood are employed in this industry. One does not need a medical or nursing degree to find a good, stable, and often unionized job in the health care industry, and NJCDC will work with St. Joseph’s to create employment pathways for neighborhood residents. Additionally, the Educational Services and Public Administration industries collectively account for another 23% of the jobs in Paterson. However, less than 5.6% of Great Falls workers are employed in

these sectors – representing another potential opportunity to create employment pathways to good jobs.

Unfortunately, labor exploitation is also a factor contributing to the low wages and bad jobs experienced by many neighborhood residents. 44.7% of the neighborhood population are immigrants, and

38.2% of the population age five and older has limited English proficiency, making them extra vulnerable to exploitation. NJCDC will address this factor by engaging in community education on labor and employment rights.

Activities:

1. Continue and expand NJCDC’s existing summer youth employment program

2. Create access to job training programs focused on opportunities for advancement within industries with strong career tracks, such as health care, education, clean energy jobs and the building trades

3. Develop partnerships with PSE&G, Servants’ Heart, and other entities to help develop jobs and job training opportunities

4. Offer ESL and GED Classes through the Neighborhood Help Center

5. Build relationships with key local employers to create career opportunities and pathways for neighborhood residents

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Strategy 2.5: Facilitate large-scale strategic economic development projects at key neighborhood sites

Due in part to the neighborhood revitalization work of NJCDC and its partners, the Great Falls Neighborhood is currently experiencing a high level of public and private investment. The County is improving the Spruce Street Bridge, the Hamilton Partnership is developing the Visitors Center, the National Park Service is creating the Quarry Lawn area of the park, the Paterson Parking Authority will build a new parking deck near the Falls, and the City is rehabilitating Lou Costello Park. NJCDC is facilitating the development of the Great Falls Youth Arts Center and participating in the adaptive reuse of 50 Spruce Street with support from the NRTC program and other sources. With respect to private investment, the restoration of and redevelopment around historic Hinchcliffe Stadium recently began, and a new 60-unit apartment building on the site of a public parking lot on Van Houten Street will shortly begin.

As this investment and development continues forward, community leaders, with NJCDC as their vehicle, have an important role to play in helping to define and facilitate future large-scale economic

development projects in the Great Falls Neighborhood. In playing this role, community leaders will continue the forward momentum and help direct it to opportunities that benefit the whole community by preserving the neighborhood’s historic legacy while creating the proverbial rising tide to lift all boats.

This strategy aims first to cultivate and maintain a policy and planning environment that promotes positive, equitable redevelopment. It will allow NJCDC to operate flexibly and effectively to define and facilitate quality redevelopment opportunities, by helping to define the concept, identify supportive developers, support financing and subsidy for projects and lend public support through the various project approval phases.

Activities:

1. Develop massing vision for redevelopment of neighborhood at key sites

2. Review city ordinances to advocate for needed changes that will promote positive development, such as zoning changes allowing for higher density infill development and policies that incentivize the production of affordable housing

National Park Area Map

Our Goals

3. Carry out Great Falls Historic District ERG project with partners

4. Support rehabilitation of the Paterson Museum and the future development of the surface parking lot across from the Museum on Market Street

5. Work with the school district on a plan to repurpose School 14 and other obsolete school buildings for positive community uses

6. Support additional development, and streetscape and branding improvements to enhance the educational campus feel of the Spruce Street area.

Strategy 2.6: Implement and Improve Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety Infrastructure

Given its density, the Great Falls Neighborhood has great potential to be a walkable, bikeable neighborhood. Many parts of the neighborhood claim near perfect scores on the DCA’s “Walkability Index,” and the neighborhood is well covered with respect to public transportation. Unfortunately, the neighborhood currently lacks critical pedestrian and cycling safety infrastructure to fully achieve this potential. A 2016 Great Falls Circula-

tion Study commissioned by Passaic County found inadequate pedestrian crossings at eleven of the neighborhood’s highest-volume intersections, and the complete absence of any bicycling infrastructure.

This strategy seeks to implement a “complete streets” approach, adopted by Passaic County in the Transportation Element of its 2012 Master Plan, to the neighborhood, so that the roads are designed for the needs of all users, including pedestrians and cyclists. Among suggested improvements are enhanced pedestrian crossings at high traffic intersections, traffic-calming measures on key streets to slow down vehicular traffic, and the implementation of bike lanes and other bicycle infrastructure.

This strategy also includes advocating for better maintenance of existing roads, crosswalks and sidewalks, which also has an impact on how safe they are for pedestrians and cyclists. As noted in the Circulation Study, “pavement conditions on some roadways in the study area are in poor condition, creating a difficult surface for bicycling.” In the household survey, 32% of survey respondents rated the “physical condition of streets, sidewalks” as “poor” or “very poor,” with another 46% rating them as only “fair.”

Rendering of the future Wayne Avenue Bridge

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Improving pedestrian and cyclist safety promises many benefits to the neighborhood. For resident quality of life, these improvements will make getting around easier and less stressful, especially for the nearly half of neighborhood households that do not own a motor vehicle, and will provide more opportunities for healthy physical activity. With so many schools in the neighborhood, these improvements will eliminate potential hazards felt by the hundreds of students who take to neighborhood streets to commute to and from school each weekday. These improvements will enhance enjoyment and economic opportunity stemming from the National Park and County Heritage Trails, and create a safer, more enjoyable way for Park visitors to access and patronize local restaurants and businesses.

Activities:

1. Support pedestrian and cyclist safety infrastructure and improvements throughout the neighborhood

2. Support traffic calming measures on streets with high rates of speeding and accidents

3. Advocate that all future road construction projects in the neighborhood adopt a complete streets approach

4. Repair and reopen the Westside Park Footbridge to facilitate pedestrian movement across the Passaic River

5. Advocate for repairs to and better maintenance of neighborhood roads, sidewalks and crosswalks

6. Enhance the pedestrian infrastructure and pedestrian realm on the County’s Heritage Trail routes in the neighborhood

7. Ensure safe and effective pedestrian and bicycle connections to the National Park, Morris Canal, Heritage Trails, and public transportation hubs

8. Enhance neighborhood bus stops with attractive shade, weather protection, and seating elements

Overhead shot of area surrounding the Great Falls.

Our Goals

Goal 3. Education and Youth Development

Education and youth development are critical elements of NJCDC’s overall mission. As an organization, NJCDC serves 4,000 children and families each day, primarily in the areas of education and youth development. This includes the charter school founded by NJCDC, the Community Charter School of Paterson, our Paterson Family Center preschool, and Garrett Morgan Academy, a STEM-focused high school operated in partnership with the Paterson school district. In addition, NJCDC operates a myriad of youth development programs, including after-school programs, Teen Centers, youth leadership initiatives such as the Paterson Youth Council, and others.

Ensuring opportunity for the neighborhood’s youngest residents--through expanded programming, additional resources to help young people succeed, and ensuring youth voice—is important to NJCDC and to the future of the neighborhood. Accordingly, there are a number of strategies that we intend to employ in this vital area.

Strategy 3.1: Expand the Full-Service Community School Model

Since it was first implemented in the neighborhood a decade ago, the Full-Service Community School Model has proven hugely successful in supporting students and their families through ex-

tended school day hours, social and health services, family strengthening activities, and educational and personal development programs. This strategy seeks to expand the full-service community school model to all of the neighborhood’s K-12 schools. It will also expand program offerings, with particular attention on efforts that facilitate other Plan priorities, such as community organizing and tenant rights education.

Activities:

1. Implement the full-service community school model at all neighborhood schools, with emphasis on the Joseph Taub School, School No. 3, and School No. 19

2. Expand program offerings at full-service community schools to add advocacy component for youth to participate in addressing neighborhood needs

3. Support the use of new technologies in schools and students’ homes to enhance student learning potential

4. Introduce student and family mental health strategies to address growing need

5. Expand formal mentoring programming

6. Expand community service and service learning elements

7. Expand weekend and summertime offerings

Strategy 3.2: Host a broad array of education and youth development programs

Over the past decade, NJCDC has cultivated a core set of youth development programs, including our AmeriCorps program, the Paterson Youth Council, the Compete for Life after school program, the Great Falls Teen Center, and the Great Falls Youth Center. These programs have had a tremendous impact in helping neighborhood youth finish high school, go on to college, learn about career opportunities, add their voice to civic discourse, and have a safe place to be during nonschool hours.

Despite the impact of these efforts, there is still work to be done. Neighborhood youth still face obstacles to achieving their full potential, often struggling with issues related to poverty, parental immigration status, mental and emotional health,

limited adult mentors who have completed college, and other factors. One in ten neighborhood youth age 16 to 19 are neither enrolled in high school nor have earned a diploma or a GED – a rate that is more than double that of the City of Paterson’s as a whole, and quintuple that of the State of New Jersey.

It is not just older youth that need attention. With children under the age of 5 constituting almost 10% of the neighborhood’s population, there is a need for high quality educational and early care services that span a child’s development from preschool forward.

This strategy seeks to continue and enhance these educational and youth development efforts to support neighborhood youth from early childhood through college and career readiness. It intends to continue to offer programming currently in place— strengthening it where possible—and adding new

Paterson Youth Council visits Washington, D.C.

Our Goals

programming to provide safe spaces for youth offering programming that provides a window to allow youth to see all of life’s offerings and helps them to navigate challenges to reach their fullest potential.

This strategy also focuses on the expansion of our Great Falls Youth Center into a comprehensive youth center with enhanced offerings especially in the area of college readiness and success, and the potential for our new Paterson Youth Arts Center, which will have a youth performing arts venue, a STEM lab, and a makerspace.

Activities:

1. Maintain pipeline of education and youth development programming to support young people in their early childhood years through college and career readiness

2. Expand Great Falls Youth Center with new addition and expanded offerings

3. Create new College Central wing of Great Falls Youth Center to better help youth apply

for and succeed in college

4. Develop First Presbyterian Church into Paterson Youth Arts Center, with a performing arts venue, STEM lab, and makerspace

5. Develop new initiative to link youth with senior citizens to reduce social isolation

6. Provide support to home-based child care providers in the neighborhood

7. Support expansion plans of Community Charter School of Paterson

8. Identify and assist homebased childcare providers

9. Re-purpose the Boiler Building at Congdon Mills into as an additional site for youth and community programming

10. Organize a neighborhood-wide parents advocacy committee/support group, to support students and families, advocate with the school district on their behalf, and guide future programming

Future Great Falls Youth Center Expansion

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Goal 4. Quality, Affordable Housing

Strategy 4.1: Develop quality, affordable housing within the neighborhood

Housing affordability is a major issue for Great Falls Residents. Over a third of both renters and homeowners spend more than 50% of their income on housing costs. A household earning the neighborhood median household income of around $35,000 should spend no more than 30%, or $875 a month in rent for its apartment to be affordable. However, the median monthly rent in the neighborhood is between $1,000-$1,300. Only 33.5% of neighborhood units cost less than $1,000 a month, and less than half of those have more than one-bedroom.

Given the age of neighborhood homes, with 43.1% of housing units constructed before 1940, the quality of neighborhood rental housing is also a concern. Beyond merely the need for routine maintenance to keep units habitable, there are concerns about the health impact of these homes on their residents, given that 73.6% were constructed before 1970, when lead paint was commonly used, and that nearly 10% of residents are children under 5.

The Great Falls Neighborhood’s housing stock includes a diverse set of building types – from duplexes to small apartments to single family homes, and even former industrial buildings that have been adaptively reused. Throughout its work in the Great Falls Neighborhood, NJCDC has shown strong capacity to develop quality, affordable housing. This strategy supports NJCDC in continuing this work. Future brick and mortar development should comprise a mix of both rental and homeownership, with for sale homes targeted to the areas of the neighborhood with the greatest supply of one and two-family homes and current higher levels of homeownership. In addition to direct development by NJCDC, this strategy also seeks to create a policy environment that incentivizes the development of quality affordable housing by other parties.

Activities:

1. Develop a diverse mix of quality, affordable rental and homeownership housing opportunities to meet the needs of the neighborhood’s different resident populations through infill development and the rehabilitation of older buildings

2. Work with the City to implement Paterson’s abandoned properties ordinance and tools to acquire properties for homeownership and incentivize the return of units to productive use

3. Advocate for zoning and other policy changes to more easily facilitate infill housing development, and to ensure that larger future developments include a reasonable percentage of affordable units

4. Facilitate larger housing projects that serve the community, as per Strategy 2.5, by helping to define the concept, identifying supportive developers, supporting financing and subsidy for projects and lending public support through the various project approval phases

NJCDC’s Spruce Terrace Apartments

Our Goals

Strategy 4.2: Tenant rights education, assistance, and advocacy

The vast majority (84%) of neighborhood households rent their homes. Great Falls renters experience a number of challenges, from affordability (a household making the neighborhood’s median income would be hard pressed to find a rental unit costing less than 30% of its income) to issues related to quality, health and safety, maintenance, and habitability.

Much of the support offered by the NJCDC Neighborhood Help Center has focused on tenant issues. This strategy will enhance the work of the Neighborhood Help Center in supporting tenants through community education, support on individuals’ cases, and advocacy for City policies that better protect the rights of tenants. It will also support a partnership with St. Joseph’s University Medical Center to provide healthy homes programming to ensure that neighborhood homes do not adversely impact the health of their occupants.

Activities:

1. Provide tenant rights education through programing and outreach conducted through the Neighborhood Help Center

2. Facilitate tenant case support through referrals to help neighborhood residents address issues with their landlords for substandard conditions, failure to make repairs, stolen security deposits or unlawful evictions

3. Engage in community organizing and advocacy for the enactment and enforcement of City policies that better protect the rights of neighborhood tenants

4. Develop healthy homes programming provided in conjunction with St. Joseph’s University Medical Center

NJCDC’s Park Corner Apartments

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Strategy 4.3: Promote Homeownership

The homeownership rate in the Great Falls Neighborhood has fallen by over 20% since the year 2000, when it was 20.7%, to its current rate of 16% of households. While this follows a similar trend within the City of Paterson, it is nonetheless a concern, as, historically, homeownership has provided many middle class families stability and an opportunity to build wealth. Additionally, the parcel survey found that, on average, owner-occupied residential properties are better maintained than investor-owned residential properties.

Despite the overall decrease in homeownership rate, 76% of single-family structures, and 63% of two-family structures in the Great Falls Neighborhood are owner occupied, meaning that there is a strong homeowner presence in the types of residential structures best suited for homeownership. Unfortunately, the neighborhood has a limited supply of single-family homes, which constitute only 8.8% of neighborhood housing units.

There are also signs of persistent demand for homeownership in the neighborhood; slightly more than half (54.3%) of all sales of residential properties with four or fewer units between 2010 and 2020 have been purchased by owner occupants. A number of Census Block Groups on the west side of the neighborhood, where there is the greatest presence of single- and two-family homes, have seen significant recent increases in the number of homeowners.

Recognizing these dynamics, NJCDC seeks to maintain and increase the homeownership rate in the community, with a particular emphasis on pre-

paring existing neighborhood families prepare for and achieve homeownership. It will do so through a comprehensive approach. First, NJCDC will support residents in preparing for homeownership by encouraging them to build their savings, demystifying the homebuyer process, and providing prehomeownership counseling. Additionally, NJCDC will build relationships and incentives with local realtors to maintain and increase, to the extent possible, the owner occupancy rate of the neighborhood’s single- and two-family housing stock. Lastly, NJCDC will look to rehabilitate and construct homeownership opportunities in the areas of the neighborhood with a prevalence of single and two-family properties.

Activities:

1. Facilitate homeownership education programs and workshops with financial partners through the Neighborhood Help Center

2. Develop partnerships with certified homeownership counselling agencies to identify individuals qualified to purchase homes in the neighborhood

3. Create incentives to help neighborhood families save for homeownership, such as an Individual Development Account (IDA) program or down payment matching grants.

4. Explore membership in NeighborWorks as a means of harnessing resources

5. Build relationships with local realtors to help market available homes to qualified neighborhood first-time homebuyers, and create incentives for realtors to prioritize owner-occupant buyers

6. Directly promote homeownership by building or rehabilitating single- and two-family homes in targeted areas for homeownership

7. Develop systems to open opportunities for firsttime homeowners to successfully purchase and manage two-family homes, including providing support to owner-occupants in managing a rental unit in their duplex homes, and supporting intergenerational co-ownership and occupancy of a duplex property

Our Goals

Goal

5. Vibrant Arts, Culture, and Recreation

Strategy 5.1: Elevate the arts as a major driver of neighborhood revitalization

As noted in the 2011 Paterson Great Falls Arts and Revitalization Plan, the arts have significant potential to support the revitalization of the Great Falls Neighborhood given the neighborhood’s physical, natural, cultural, and human assets. The neighborhood boasts a natural wonder in the Great Falls, and the physical remnants of the industrial era it helped foster. The neighborhood population is diverse and brings together dynamic cultures from across the globe. Tourism is an important local industry, although it is only achieving a fraction of its total potential. Moreover, the neighborhood is supported by strong institutions like NJCDC, the National Park Service, the Hamilton Partnership, and the City.

However, for the arts to fully achieve their? potential as a driver of the revitalization of the Great Falls Neighborhood, they need to be further elevated within the community and aligned with other key factors impacting neighborhood life. The 2011 Arts and Revitalization Plan calls for the aligning of arts with public policy and civic engagement, and connecting the arts with business and community life. It also calls for establishing a communityled Arts Commission to coordinate the promotion and integration of the arts.

This strategy seeks to achieve this elevation and integration. It will create a neighborhood arts organization that works to cultivate a community and policy environment in which the arts can flourish.

Activities:

1. Organize a neighborhood arts organization, composed of diverse stakeholders including artists, community leaders, youth, and public officials to assess and coordinate the integration of the arts into the Great Falls neighborhood revitalization initiative through a “creative placemaking” approach.

2. Initiate a planning process to revisit and update the 2011 Arts and Revitalization Plan and advance its implementation

3. Develop model city ordinance and advocate its passage to facilitate the production of outdoor murals and other public arts installations

4. Explore the establishment of an arts district within the Great Falls Historic District with zoning that enables live/work artist studios, gallery and exhibition space, performance and rehearsal space, and the preservation of historic buildings

5. Cultivate an arts community through events, networking, and the development of economic opportunities for working artists

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Strategy 5.2: Curate the neighborhood with arts and cultural works and events

This strategy seeks the production, display, and performance of works of arts and culture throughout the neighborhood. This includes the production and installation of more murals and other public art works. It also includes the restoration of a regular “art walk” event, and a neighborhood concert series held at the Great Falls Amphitheater. This strategy also looks to share and celebrate the neighborhood’s cultural and ethnic diversity through ethnic heritage festivals and parades.

These activities build on past successes, including a history of commissioning and producing murals throughout the neighborhood – most recently a series of murals on the façade of 59 Spruce Street. In carrying out the activities of this strategy, NJCDC and its partners will beautify the neighborhood and inspire a sense of shared community pride. They will also build unity, as neighborhood

residents work together on common projects, realize shared values, and learn more about the cultures of others. These works of art will also further benefit and drive forward the overall revitalization of the neighborhood.

Activities:

1. Produce new murals and public arts installations in the neighborhood

2. Host an annual concert series at the Great Falls Amphitheater

3. Collaborate with other neighborhood groups to bring back the Paterson Art Walk with a focus in the Great Falls Neighborhood

4. Celebrate ethnic heritage festivals and parades, incorporating the National Park and other neighborhood sites as key gathering places

5. Work with neighborhood and citywide partners to develop a Great Falls Music Festival

Mural Project Commissioned by NJCDC

Our Goals

Strategy 5.3: Develop and Open the Paterson Youth Arts Center

NJCDC is in the initial phases of an adaptive reuse project to transform the historic First Presbyterian Church into the Paterson Youth Arts Center. Located in the Great Falls Neighborhood close to downtown Paterson, this project will preserve the historic architecture of the church, while converting the sanctuary into an auditorium and performing arts hall. In other spaces on the site, NJCDC will create a STEAM discovery and activity space and a makerspace lab. When complete, the project will have preserved an important historic building, and have created a new neighborhood asset.

For this asset to achieve its full potential, the Paterson Youth Arts Center needs to be activated, providing neighborhood youth with opportunities for personal, artistic, and educational development through impactful programming, and providing the public with enjoyable theatrical, musical, and artistic performances.

This strategy seeks to achieve this asset’s full potential, by completing the construction of the Paterson Youth Arts Center and activating it with programming.

Activities:

1. Rehabilitate First Presbyterian Church of Paterson to serve as the Paterson Youth Arts Center

2. Transform the church sanctuary into a performing arts venue for use by NJCDC, partnering organizations, local groups, and schools

3. Secure funding to support ongoing operations and programming

4. Develop a calendar of events and programs

5. Locate NJCDC’s existing Youth Arts Program at this site

NJCDC’s Future Youth Performing Arts Center

GREAT FALLS NEIGHBORHOOD

Proposed Strategies and Activities – 2022

Strategy 5.4: Continue and Expand Existing Arts Programming

NJCDC has, for many years, offered arts programming in a variety of ways. This includes a youth arts program and summer arts camp, participation in collaborative efforts such as the Paterson ArtWalk, and creating indoor and outdoor murals. NJCDC would like to expand our arts programming as a means of engaging more local residents, providing creative programming for neighborhood youth, and to showcase the rich array of talent that exists in Paterson.

Activities

1. Hire a full-time Arts Director

2. Operationalize music studio at Great Falls Youth Center

3. Create new podcast studio at Great Falls Youth Center

4. Continue and expand the Paterson Youth Arts Program

5. Continue Paterson Music Project at CCSP

6. Great Falls Music Festival

er cooperates, they are great locations for cultural activities and community programs. Parks are also important venues for exercise and physical activity, which improves both physical and mental health, and is important given that almost 40% of adult neighborhood residents report having no physical activity outside of work.

In order to bring more people to the parks in the Great Falls Neighborhood and encourage their productive use, this strategy proposes holding a wide range of programs in the parks. These programs can include youth and adult athletics, group fitness classes, communal hikes and walking clubs, nature and environmental programs, social events like community picnics, and musical, dance, and theatrical performances.

To further encourage park usage, community residents will also work with park operating entities to streamline the process for community members and local organizations to obtain permits to use park facilities for resident-organized initiatives and events like athletic tournaments and birthday parties.

Activities:

1. Sponsor recreational activities for youth and adults that help them stay active and have fun, such as sports clinics, tournaments, walking groups, or group fitness classes

2. Plan and implement family-friendly programming at Lou Costello Park

3. Partner with stakeholders to create a new Paterson soccer league

Strategy 5.5: Enhance Recreational Opportunities in Neighborhood Parks and Beyond

Parks feel safer and more enjoyable when they are actively used by community members. They also are spaces where community members can gather together, engage in healthy physical activity, and improve their mental health through exposure to fresh air, sunlight, and nature. When the weath-

4. Work to improve the park use permitting process to enable residents and community groups to more easily host events and programs in neighborhood parks

5. Utilize the soon-to-be restored Hinchcliffe Stadium for neighborhood recreational activities, and maximize community access to this important neighborhood asset

6. Carry out marketing campaign to encourage young residents’ participation in the City of Paterson’s recreational offerings

Our Goals

Goal

6. Promote Health and Wellbeing

Strategy 6.1: Promote Access to Health Services

In addition to a healthy environment, building a strong and resilient community in the Great Falls Neighborhood requires ensuring that residents have access to health care services, both for preventative care and when they need it for illness or injury. Health care services go beyond those focused on physical health, to also include behavioral and mental health, dental health, and addiction recovery services.

Unfortunately, 22.1% of the Great Falls Neighborhood population lacks health insurance, significantly reducing their access to health care. Residents’ access to health care and improving health outcomes are further inhibited by challenges with other social determinants of health, like economic and housing insecurity and physical conditions that limit opportunities for exercise and physical activity. Health care access is also practically limited by language barriers – 38.2% of the population age five and older has limited English proficiency – which are particularly acute with respect to accessing behavioral health services.

Fortunately, a number of health care providers service the Great Falls Neighborhood. The most prominent is St. Joseph’s University Medical Center, whose main facility is just outside of the boundaries of the neighborhood. St. Joeseph’s also serves as the community mental health provider for Paterson, and its outpatient clinic is also close by, as is the Paterson Community Health Center,

which treats individuals regardless of ability to pay. Even so, there is still more work to be done, both with respect to expanding residents’ access to existing health care services and addressing the gaps and barriers that exist within the current health care service infrastructure. This strategy aims to achieve this through the following activities.

Activities:

1. Create a Community Health Coordinator position at NJCDC to drive forward neighborhoodbased health efforts

2. Partner with area institutions such as St. Joseph’s Health, Hackensack Meridian Medical School, and others to connect residents with services

3. Work with neighborhood residents to ensure they are signed up for health insurance

4. Implement activities that promote the prevention of COVID-19 through vaccination and other means

5. Increase the availability of counseling and behavioral health services, ensuring that they are provided in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner

6. Work with healthcare entities to locate an urgent care center within the neighborhood and link residents to center-based primary care physicians

7. Link neighborhood residents with resources to prevent and/or treat substance abuse disorders

8. Support a “Housing First” approach to addressing the homeless population in the neighborhood as a first step toward addressing behavioral health or addiction issues experienced by this population

9. Research and promote and where possible implement strategies for reducing vagrancy and panhandling in the neighborhood

Strategy 6.2: Support Healthy Lifestyles

Health is about more than just accessing health care services; it is about living a healthy lifestyle. Therefore, building a stronger and more resilient community in the Great Falls Neighborhood means encouraging and supporting residents in living healthier lifestyles.

A first step to achieving this is empowering residents with education and information about healthy choices. Another component is programming supporting healthy activity and nutrition. Currently, almost 40% of adult residents report having no physical activity outside of work. Given the Neighborhood’s higher than average incidence of obesity and diabetes, improving nutritional habits is another opportunity to strengthen the community. Integration into community life is another aspect of a healthy lifestyle, as people need to feel both safe and connected to others to achieve their full potential.

Through education and programing, this strategy will support community residents and families in living heathier lifestyles.

Activities

1. Educate residents about the social determinants of health framework

2. Conduct an annual community health survey and develop programming or partner to address the most critical health needs of the community

3. Promote maternal health and wellbeing through initiatives such as Parent Academy

4. Through Neighborhood Help Center, develop calendar of workshops focused on healthrelated topics including, nutrition, mental health, and fitness

5. Create fitness related clubs and activities

6. Create a new community garden for use by neighborhood residents and students

7. Work with the City to plant and replace street trees when necessary to maintain a healthy tree canopy, which in turn will improve air quality and reduce the heat island effect

8. Address social isolation among senior citizens by creating social and support groups and organizing recreational and social activities

9. Address violence prevention as a means of promoting community health

Future Barclay Street Healthy Homes Project

Implementation

Experience and Stability

This neighborhood plan was developed with implementation in mind. This effort builds on the experience and lessons learned by NJCDC and the leaders in the Great Falls Neighborhood. When NJCDC convened the community in 2008 to develop the Greater Spruce Street Neighborhood Plan, it was just beginning its organizational focus on place-based work. After thirteen years of implementing the Neighborhood Plan on-the-ground in the community, while securing funding to do so from the NRTC program, the Regional Foundation, and other public and private sources, NJCDC has a sound acumen related to which strategies are likely to be most impactful and implementable. NJCDC has also developed strong and broad internal capacities to implement the neighborhood plan’s complex strategies.

The organization is financially mature and stable with an annual budget of over $12 million and a staff of over 150. With strong administrative and financial management systems, NJCDC has never run a deficit or received a negative OMB Circular A-133 audit finding throughout its 28-year history. NJCDC has been able to attract funding, grants, and capital from a diverse set of public and private sources.

During the fiscal year that closed on June 30, 2021, NJCDC’s public and private funding sources included the following:

• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

• County of Passaic

• City of Paterson

• U.S. Department of Education

• U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service

• Corporation for National and Community Service

• NJ Department of Human Services

• NJ Department of Children and Families

• NJ Department of State

• NJ Department of Community Affairs

• Paterson Public Schools

• Nicholson Foundation

• Wells Fargo Regional Foundation

• Daleo Family

• PSE&G

• Bank of America

• PNC Bank

• TD Bank

• M&T Bank

NJCDC also has experience and stability in key leadership staff roles. Key staff include:

• Robert Guarasci, President and CEO, who has led NJCDC through its 28-year history, and provides vision and general oversight to all of neighborhood revitalization efforts. He possesses nearly 35 years of experience in community development and human services work;

• David Gelman, Chief Program Officer, who oversees the programs and activities offered at the Great Falls Education and Training Center, and possess 15 years of relevant experience in community programming;

• Michael Cassidy, Director of Real Estate, who is a professional engineer and a professional planner, and has over 20 years of development experience; and

• Eddie Gonzalez, Director of Community Outreach, who oversees the Neighborhood Help Center and all community organizing efforts in the neighborhood and has over 10 years of community outreach experience.

NJCDC has a strong track record with respect to construction and real estate development. NJCDC has built or is building more than 200 units of affordable housing, three schools, a youth center, a community center, and 15 different parks and playgrounds.

Opportunity Factors Guide Implementation

The opportunity factors identified in this plan’s previous “Why Now?” section will also play a major role in guiding and determining the success of the plan’s implementation. Aside from NJCDC’s organizational capacity and experience, these factors are:

• Extensive recent and planned private and public investment;

• The neighborhood’s tremendous natural, physical, institutional, and cultural assets;

• Political will across levels of government;

• Community-member leadership; and

• A growing partnership with St. Joseph’s Health

This plan will be implemented in ways that maximize the potential of these opportunities. NJCDC and community members hope to energize the wave of investment in the neighborhood to achieve the plans proposed activities and ensure that the benefits of this investment reach the whole community. They hope to leverage the neighborhood’s assets strategically – starting with the National Park, whose benefits to the community are just beginning to be realized.

They also hope to further enhance existing assets, so that they yield further social dividends. The redesign of Westside Park and the realization of Vista Park are the two enhancements that seem to have the greatest potential. However, better leveraging of the neighborhood’s cultural assets, through the realization of the Paterson Youth Arts Center and the achievement of the other strategies under Goal 5 of this plan, also has significant potential.

NJCDC and community leaders will build on the constructive relationships they’ve developed with government officials and St. Joseph’s Health to advance the revitalization of the neighborhood. All of these partners were integrated into the neighborhood planning process, thus imbuing a sense of co-ownership over this neighborhood plan and sharing in its vision.

Lastly, NJCDC will be intentional about achieving every implementation step in a way that cultivated community leadership and meaningful resident participation. This way, NJCDC will achieve the plan’s first goal – which underlies and animates all of the others – Empowered Community.

Social Determinants of Health and Inclusive Healthy Places

Along with much of the community development sector, over the last several years NJCDC developed a growing awareness of the importance of the social determinants of health and the connection between health and almost every aspect of neighborhood life. This awareness influenced the development of the neighborhood plan, and will also influence its implementation. In evaluating the success of its revitalization efforts, NJCDC will not be looking at only outputs—like housing units constructed or economic indicators like people living in poverty. It will also judge success by looking at community health indicators, like those examined earlier in this plan. Some such indicators are:

• health insurance coverage;

• prevalence of chronic conditions;

• obesity rate;

• reported level of physical activity; and

• life expectancy, both at birth and remaining life expectancy at specific ages.

Inclusive Healthy Place Framework

2018 through a collaboration between the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Gehl Institute – the non-profit arm of the Copenhagen, Denmarkbased international design firm by the same name.

The Framework focuses on four guiding principles for putting the Framework into practice:2

1. Context: “[C]ultivating knowledge of the existing conditions, assets, and lived experiences that relate to health equity;

2. Process: “Support inclusion in the processes that shape public space by promoting civic trust, participation, and social capital;”

3. Design and Program: “Design and program public space for health equity by improving quality, enhancing access and safety, and inviting diversity;” and

4. Sustain: “Foster social resilience and capacity of local communities to engage with changes in place over time by promoting representation, agency, and stability.”

NJCDC incorporated the Context and Process principles into this neighborhood plan. It conducted detailed analysis of the demographic, housing, economic, and health conditions in the community that set the current neighborhood context. It also led a community-driven neighborhood planning process that provided opportunities for community members to meaningfully define and drive plan strategies and priorities. The plan’s proposed strategies and activities also took into strong consideration the Framework’s guiding principles 3 and 4, Design and Program; and Sustain.

NJCDC also incorporated elements of the Inclusive Healthy Places Framework into its recent redesign of Lou Costello Park. NJCDC held community input sessions regarding the park design, and, in an effort to enhance inclusivity, is developing a playground in the park designed to include and enhance the play experience of children on the autism spectrum who have specific sensory needs. NJCDC is also making plans on how to sustain 2 Gehl

During the neighborhood planning process, NJCDC and project partners had the opportunity to learn about the “Inclusive Healthy Places Framework,” a practical guide for conceptualizing, designing, building, activating, and sustaining public spaces that advance community health and are inclusive of everyone, especially individuals and communities that may have been historically marginalized. The Framework was developed in

Social Determinants of Health

the park through active programing and efforts to cultivate community-member ownership over the space.

As NJCDC implements the strategies and activities of this neighborhood plan, it should continue to apply and be guided by the Inclusive Healthy Places Framework. The Framework has the poten-

tial to be particularly helpful as NJCDC and community members tackle Westside and Vista Parks, expand the Great Falls Youth Center, improve pedestrian and cyclist safety infrastructure, and advance the design, construction, and programing of the Paterson Youth Arts Center.

Implementation Tables

Goal 1: Empowered Community Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 1.1: Conduct Effective and Empowering Community Organizing

Strategy 1.2: Support Resident-Led Community Initiatives

Goal 1: Empowered Community Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 1.3: Continue and Enhance the Neighborhood Help Center as a Community Hub

Relaunch and expand the offerings of the Neighborhood Help Center

Conduct annual surveys to determine program areas that community residents would like

Develop new or enhance existing programmatic offerings to include areas as identified by the community

Strategy 1.4: Improve Public Safety

Organize regular discussion and collaboration between community leaders and the Paterson Police Department

Advocate for crime prevention techniques at neighborhood crime hotspots

Address nuisance issues that negatively impact quality of life and may contribute to criminal activity

Support community efforts to preserve public trust in and build a constructive working relationship with the police

CDBG, Other Public, Other Private

Goal 2: Neighborhood Revitalization Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 2.1: Support Local Businesses and Commercial Corridors

Conduct regular outreach and communication with neighborhood businesses

Provide referrals to local business owners that connect them to resources

Regional

dation, Other Private

Regional Foundation, Other Private

and other collaborative

As

allocated by City and County

Goal 2: Neighborhood Revitalization Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 2.2: Promote Tourism Opportunities Created by the National Park to Spur Economic Development and Revitalization

Link existing restaurant districts to the National Park, through wayfinding, marketing, and pedestrian improvements

Work with the National Park to create food kiosk

Collaborate with other groups to build a parking deck within the National Park

Promote creation of additional café and restaurant spaces close to the park

Support planning efforts for the development of a hotel, a youth hostel, and a conference center in the neighborhood

Support physical revitalization and regular maintenance of National Park assets including the raceway and other key attractions

Develop marketing material aimed at marketing what the district has to offer to visitors to the National Park

Organize walking tours and other events aimed at attracting and engaging visitors to the National Park

Update “Mill Mile” app that educates visitors about the area

incorporated into other

Goal 2: Neighborhood Revitalization Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 2.3: Improve Parks and Recreational Assets

Expand NJCDC’s Street Team program to increase its impact and visibility at parks and recreational assets

Advocate for, and explore options, to rehabilitate and maintain Westside Park as a high-quality, community-focused park

Support development of Vista Park into a high-quality neighborhood park

Create new greenspace, amenities, and site improvements at Lou Costello Pool, Upper Raceway Park, and local Heritage Trails

Ensure continuous waterfront trail access by connecting the existing trail to the Northside neighborhood and to Garret Mountain

Explore and capitalize on opportunities to create or improve other recreational assets or green spaces in or surrounding the neighborhood, such as Pennington Park

Work with the City, Paterson school district, and its developer to ensure community access to the restored Hinchcliffe Stadium for events and youth sports activities

$10,000

NRTC, Regional Foundation, NPS, City Stipends

participants

$10 Million

County, City, Other Public, CDBG, NRTC, RWJF, Other Private

Design and development/ restoration costs

NJCDC to advocate for project and support its fundraising

$2.5- $5Million

County, City, Other Public, CDBG, NRTC, RWJF, Other Private Design and development costs

$2 Million City

NJCDC to advocate for project and support its fundraising NPS and City to develop park

$5 Million

County, City, Other Public, CDBG, NRTC, RWJF, Other Private Design and development costs

$5 Thousand NRTC Staff time

NJCDC to advocate for project and support its fundraising

City to manage restoration of Pennington Park

NJCDC to work with developer and school district Medium

Goal 2: Neighborhood Revitalization Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 2.4: Help Residents Access and Create Good Jobs

and expand

existing summer youth employment program

Create access to job training programs focused on opportunities for advancement within industries with strong career tracks

Servants’

ties

One-Stop, DOL, Other Public, Other Private Training

Strategy 2.5: Facilitate Large-Scale, Strategic Economic Development Projects at Key Neighborhood Sites

additional development, and streetscape and branding improvements to enhance the educational campus feel of the Spruce Street area.

Goal 2: Neighborhood Revitalization Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 2.6: Implement and Improve Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety Infrastructure

Support pedestrian and cyclist safety infrastructure and improvements throughout the neighborhood $3 Million Passaic County, City, NJDOT, USDOT, NJTPA, NHTSA

Support traffic calming measures on streets with high rates of speeding and accidents

Advocate that all future road construction projects in

Pedestrian and cyclist safety infrastructure

Traffic safety infrastructure improvements

NJCDC will advocate for and support these efforts

or County will implement depending on jurisdiction

NJCDC will advocate for and support these efforts

or County will implement depending on jurisdiction

Advocate for repairs to and better maintenance of neighborhood roads, sidewalks and

Pedestrian and cyclist safety infrastructure and improvements

NJCDC will advocate for and support these efforts County will implement depending on jurisdiction

Ensure safe and effective pedestrian and bicycle connections to the National Park, Morris Canal, Heritage Trails, and public transportation hubs

depending on jurisdiction

Goal 3: Education and Youth Development Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 3.1: Expand the Full-Service Community School Model

program offerings at full-service community schools to add advocacy component

Support the use of new technologies in schools and students’ homes to enhance student learning potential

Introduce student and family mental health strategies to address growing need

Goal 3: Education and Youth Development Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 3.2: Host a Broad Array of Education and Youth Development Programs

Maintain pipeline of education and youth development programming to support young people

Create new College Central wing of Great Falls Youth Center to better help youth apply for and succeed in college

Goal 4: Quality Affordable Housing Implementation Table for Proposed

Strategy 4.1: Develop Quality, Affordable Housing within the Neighborhood

Develop a diverse mix of quality, affordable rental and homeownership housing opportunities to meet the needs of the neighborhood’s different resident populations through infill development and the rehabilitation of older buildings

$150,000 to $300,000 per unit.

NRTC, HOME, FHLB, NJHMFA, LIHTC, NHTF, NJAHTF, NJHT (if historic property), Other Private

Acquisition

NJCDC will act as lead developer, or partner with other developer partners, like CAPC, DEVCO, as appropriate

Work with the City to implement Paterson’s abandoned properties ordinance and tools

Advocate for zoning and other policy changes to more easily facilitate infill housing development, and to ensure that larger future developments include a reasonable percentage of affordable units

Facilitate larger housing projects that serve the community, as per Strategy 2.5

No direct cost

Regional Foundation, NRTC, City, Other Private

Research, advocacy, and legal, engineering, and professional fees

NJCDC will support through research, legal support, and advocacy. City will directly implement.

No direct costs, but various indirect costs associated with Strategies 1.1, 2.2 and 2.5

Strategy 4.2: Tenant Rights Education, Assistance, and Advocacy

Provide tenant rights education through programing and outreach conducted through the Neighborhood Help Center

Facilitate tenant case support through referrals to help neighborhood residents address issues

Engage in community organizing and advocacy for the enactment and enforcement of City policies that better protect the rights of neighborhood tenants

provided in conjunction with St. Joseph’s University Medical Center

Goal 4: Quality Affordable Housing Implementation

Strategy 4.3: Promote Homeownership

Facilitate homeownership education programs and workshops with financial partners through the Neighborhood Help Center

Develop partnerships with certified homeownership counselling agencies to identify individuals qualified to purchase homes in the neighborhood

Create incentives to help neighborhood families save for homeownership, such as an Individual Development Account (IDA) program or down payment matching grants.

Explore membership in NeighborWorks as a means of harnessing resources for homeownership

Build relationships with local relators to help market available homes to qualified neighborhood first-time homebuyers, and create incentives for realtors to prioritize owner-occupant buyers

Directly promote homeownership by building or rehabilitating single- and two-family homes in targeted areas for homeownership

Develop support services to open opportunities for first-time homeowners to successfully purchase and manage two-family homes

Goal 5: Vibrant Arts, Culture and Recreation

Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 5.1: Elevate the Arts as a Major Driver of Neighborhood Revitalization

Organize a neighborhood arts organization, composed of diverse stakeholders

Initiate a planning process to revisit and update the 2011 Arts and Revitalization Plan and advance implementation

Develop model city ordinance and advocate its passage to facilitate the production of outdoor murals and other public arts installations

Costs incorporated into Strategies 1.1 and 5.4

$25,000

Costs incorporated into other activities

Explore the establishment of an arts district within the Great Falls Historic District TBD

Cultivate an arts community through events, networking, and the development of economic opportunities for working artists

Costs incorporated into Strategies 1.1 and 5.4

Convening stakeholders, Planning costs

NRTC, NJHT, Other Public, Other Private Planning Costs

NJCDC to collaborate with stakeholders from the arts community Medium

NJCDC collaborate with stakeholders from the arts community Short

NJCDC to lead, collaborating closely with stakeholders from the arts community Medium

NJCDC to work with City to advocate for this Long

NJCDC to collaborate with stakeholders from the arts community Medium

Strategy 5.2: Curate the Neighborhood with Arts and Cultural Works and Events

Produce new murals and public arts installations in the neighborhood

Host an annual concert series at the Great Falls Amphitheater

Collaborate with other neighborhood groups to bring back the Paterson Art Walk with a focus in the Great Falls Neighborhood

Celebrate ethnic heritage festivals and parades, incorporating the National Park and other neighborhood sites as key gathering places

Work with neighborhood and citywide partners to develop a Great Falls Music Festival

or art

$25,000/year

Regional Foundation, NRTC, County, Dodge, Other Private

Regional Foundation, NRTC, County, City, NPS, Dodge, Other Private

Regional Foundation, NRTC, County, City, NPS, Dodge, Other Private

Production of murals and other works of art

Event Costs: Planning, Production, and Promotion

Event Costs: Planning, Production, and Promotion

NJCDC to lead, working closely with stakeholders and City as appropriate

NJCDC to collaborate with NPS and other stakeholders Medium

NJCDC to work closely with stakeholders from the arts community and the City Medium

$10,000/year

$25,000/year for arts and cultural events in the neighborhood

Regional Foundation, NRTC, County, City, NPS, Dodge, Other Private

Event Costs: Planning, Production, and Promotion

NJCDC to work closely with stakeholders from the heritage communities, the City, and the NPS Short

Regional Foundation, NRTC, County, City, NPS, Dodge, Other Private

Event Costs: Planning, Production, and Promotion

NJCDC to initiate, working closely with stakeholders from the arts community, the City, and the NPS

Long

Goal 5: Vibrant Arts, Culture and Recreation Implementation

Strategy 5.3: Develop and Open the Paterson Youth Arts Center

Rehabilitate First Presbyterian Church of Paterson to serve as the Paterson Youth Arts Center

Transform the church sanctuary into a performing arts venue for use by NJCDC, partnering organizations, local groups, and schools

incorporated into Strategy 3.2

incorporated into Strategy 3.2

Foundation, NRTC, NEA, NJDCF, NJDOE, County, City, Dodge, Other Private

NRTC, NEA, NJDCF, NJDOE, County, City, Dodge, Other Private

Strategy 5.4: Continue and Expand Existing Arts Programming

Goal 5: Vibrant Arts, Culture and Recreation Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 5.5: Enhance Recreational Opportunities in Neighborhood Parks and Beyond Activities

Sponsor recreational activities for youth and adults that help them stay active and have fun

Plan and implement family-friendly programming at Lou Costello Park

Partner with stakeholders to create a new Paterson soccer league

Work to improve the park use permitting process to enable residents and community groups to more easily host events and programs in neighborhood parks

Utilize the soon-to-be restored Hinchcliffe Stadium for neighborhood recreational activities, and maximize community access to this important neighborhood asset

$25,000/year for recreational programming

Regional Foundation, NRTC, City, CDBG, DCF, St. Josephs, Other Private Program costs NJCDC in collaboration with the City Medium

$5,000/year NRTC, Other Private Program costs

$50,000/year

Regional Foundation, NRTC, City, CDBG, , Other Private Program costs

NJCDC in collaboration with the City Medium

NJCDC in collaboration with the City Medium

No direct cost

No direct costs

Carry out marketing campaign to encourage young residents’ participation in the City of Paterson’s recreational offerings $2,000/year

NJCDC to advocate to City. City to implement recommendations. Short

NJCDC to advocate with community partners Medium

NJCDC to work with City Medium

Goal 6: Promote Health and Wellbeing Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 6.1: Promote Access to Health Services

Create a Community Health Coordinator position at NJCDC to drive forward neighborhood-based health efforts

Partner with area institutions such as St. Joseph’s Health, Hackensack Meridian Medical School, and others to connect residents with services

Work with neighborhood residents to ensure they are signed up for health insurance

Implement activities that promote the prevention of COVID-19 through vaccination and other means

Increase the availability of counseling and behavioral health services, ensuring that they are provided in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner

Work with healthcare entities to locate an urgent care center within the neighborhood and link residents to center-based primary care physicians

TBD

Link neighborhood residents with resources to prevent and/or treat substance abuse disorders Incorporated into other activities

Support a “Housing First” approach to addressing the homeless population in the neighborhood as a first step toward addressing behavioral health or addiction issues experienced by this population

Research and promote and where possible implement strategies for reducing vagrancy and panhandling in the neighborhood

Foundation, NRTC, St Josephs, RWJF, Other Private

employ

NJCDC to closely collaborate with health partner institutions, St. Joseph’s Health, Hackensack Meridian Medical School, and others

NJCDC to closely collaborate with insurers like Horizon Blue Cross

NJCDC to closely collaborate with health partner institutions, St. Joseph’s Health, Hackensack Meridian Medical School, and others

NJCDC to closely collaborate with health partner institutions, St. Joseph’s Health, Hackensack Meridian Medical School, and others

NJCDC to seek provider organization

NJCDC to closely collaborate with health partner institutions, St. Joseph’s Health, Hackensack Meridian Medical School, and others

Medium

Short

TBD

Costs incorporated into strategies 1.1 and 1.4

NJCDC to advocate for this approach to City and other stakeholders Long

NJCDC to implement

Goal 6: Promote Health and Wellbeing Implementation Table for Proposed Activities, Budget, and Timeline

Strategy 6.2: Support Healthy Lifestyles

Educate residents about the social determinants of health framework

Conduct an annual community health survey and develop programming or partner to address the most critical health needs of the community

Promote maternal health and wellbeing through initiatives such as Parent Academy

Through Neighborhood Help Center, develop calendar of workshops focused on health-related topics

Create fitness related clubs and activities

Create a new community garden for use by neighborhood residents and students

$10,000/year Enterprise Foundation Indirect staffing, program materials Short

$2,000/year Enterprise Foundation Surveyor stipends, program supplies

NJCDC to collaborate with St. Josephs and health partners in implementing Short

Costs incorporated into Strategy 6.1 and Strategy 1.3

Costs incorporated into Strategy 1.3

Costs incorporated into Strategy 5.5

$15,000/initial investment

$3,000/year operating costs

NRTC, CDBG, Other Public, Other Private

Construction initial garden infrastructure; annual maintenance and operation of garden

NJCDC to collaborate with St. Josephs and health partners in implementing Short

NJCDC to collaborate with St. Josephs and health partners in implementing Short

NJCDC to implement Short

Work with the City to plant and replace street trees when necessary to maintain a healthy tree canopy

Address social isolation among senior citizens by creating social and support groups and organizing recreational and social activities

Address violence prevention as a means of promoting community health

$25,000/year

CDBG, City, Other Public, Other Private

NJCDC to implement Medium

Costs incorporated into Strategy 5.5

Costs incorporated into Strategies 1.1, 1.2, and 1.4

Purchase of trees from nursery and labor related to planting

City to implement NJCDC to advocate and assist with implementation Medium

NJCDC to Implement Short

NJCDC to implement Medium

NJCDC’s Board of Trustees

Donald F. Buckley, Chair TD Bank

Anthony Coscia, Vice Chair

Windels Marx

David Berninger, Treasurer

ICBC

Carline Morrison, Secretary BD

Eric Daleo Gateway Development Commission

Nita Das S&P Global Etta Denk Bank of America

Robert Garrison Laborers’ International Union

Robert Guarasci, Ex-Officio NJCDC Founder & CEO

Victor J. Herlinsky, Jr. Sills Cummis

William Pascrell, III Princeton Public Affairs Group

Kenyatta Stewart, Esq. City of Newark

Martin Vergara II

Morgan Stanley