The Michaels Organization Kicks Off $145M New Jersey Project
The four-phase redevelopment will eventually provide 425 mixed-income units.
Image by ErikaWittlieb via Pixabay.com
A joint venture including the HUD, the Housing Authority of the City of Camden, the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency and The Michaels Organization has broken ground on Cramer Hill Family, the first phase of the $145 million redevelopment of Camden, N.J.’s oldest public housing community, Ablett Village. The project is slated to have four phases in total. Cramer Hill Family is expected to deliver by March 2023.
Last spring, HUD gave the city of Camden a $35 million Choice Neighborhoods Implementation grant to redevelop the Ablett Village community and the surrounding neighborhood, focusing on expanding access to jobs as well as economic opportunities. NJHMFA also provided $13.9 million through LIHTC in tax credit equity. TD Bank provided a $17 million construction loan, Berkadia a $6 million permanent loan, while HUD provided an additional $1.5 million.
Cramer Hill Family is planned to have 75 new townhome-style affordable homes spread across three sites in East Camden. The next three phases of the project will add 350 homes, for a total of 425 mixed-income, energy-efficient homes to replace the current 306 units. The second phase, which will feature age-restricted homes for those 55 and above and will be located off-site, is expected to begin in September of this year. The development will also feature an on-site health clinic operated by Virtua Health and the Rutgers-Camden School of Nursing, as well as a community garden, playgrounds and upgrades to the infrastructure.
A long-standing partnership
The Michaels Organization has partnered with the city of Camden and HACC to redevelop seven housing communities in the past decade, making the redevelopment of Ablett Village the venture’s eighth, said Nick Cangelosi, vice president of The Michaels Organization, in prepared remarks.
Active in other markets as well, The Michaels Organization secured a $17.6 Freddie Mac Targeted Affordable Housing loan for the redevelopment of the 559-unit Belmont Hight Estates I and II in Tampa, Fla.
