Federal Street BDA

The Federal Street sites were former industrial sites in Camden, NJ situated between the Cooper River and the railways active during the 1800s. The late 1800s and early 1900s brought great growth for this area, with these sites home to a coal/lumber yard, an incinerator, a petroleum distributor, and chemical and soap manufacturers. By the 1960s, Camden had experienced economic decline, and a significant number of manufacturing facilities had moved out of the city. The Federal Street corridor is now characterized by vacant former manufacturing facilities.

In alignment with the vision of the City of Camden and the neighborhood plan, the CRA wishes to build upon the momentum from recreational and housing redevelopment in the neighboring Cramer Hill BDA to support the community’s vision for revitalization and the development of living wage employment opportunities in the Federal Street BDA – as well as the goals of removing contamination from this flood-prone area and addressing blight.

The nine targeted sites in the BDA have been vacant and unused for decades due to known or suspected contamination in the area. Their environmental assessment and remediation will prepare them for commercial and light manufacturing use, leading to jobs and greater economic prosperity for residents of the surrounding residential areas. Recently, a manufacturing facility and a warehouse were developed within the BDA and have provided new job opportunities to residents; however, the anticipated cleanup costs of the nine remaining sites by far exceed the market value of these properties and are a serious impediment to their redevelopment. The establishment of a BDA makes available additional state funding resources and support for remediation.

Some of these sites could be consolidated for development, and the CRA has undertaken an areawide, coordinated approach to addressing these brownfields. The CRA applied for and received BDA designation in 2025 from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP). Additional funding through the BDA program will leverage prior and future federal, state, and county sources to ensure successful redevelopment of the nine sites. Additional incentives to developers are available through the BDA’s designations within an Urban Enterprise Zone, Opportunity Zone, Federal Empowerment Zone and Renewal Community, and New Jersey Redevelopment Eligible Zone and a Smart Growth Area. Developers may also be eligible for New Market Tax Credits and Neighborhood Revitalization Tax Credits.
 

The steering committee consists of representatives from nonprofits, the local and federal government, neighboring property owners, local employers, prospective developers for the site, and a neighboring community development corporation: