Two decades ago, applying the term "Renaissance" to Newark might have seemed unrealistic, but today it is appropriate.
The downtown Gateway Towers are stunning examples of the state's largest office complex. Across Raymond Boulevard is the Legal Center. The PSE&G tower is being closed in by the march of new buildings up Raymond Boulevard. Newark Center incorporates both Seton Hall Law School and a commercial structure, and One Penn Center adds a stunning southern anchor to the complex. The renovation of the City's highest building, 744 Broad Street, to its old grandeur, has spurred development and renovation along Newark's major boulevard, Broad Street. Now plans are in hand to create a sport, entertainment, and retail complex to house the New Jersey Devils arena.
Around the city, rehabilitation and adaptive conversions have taken place at St. Joseph's Plaza, the old Gibraltar Building of the Prudential, and the former Two Guys Department Store. Small business establishments are refacing their facades. Newark International Airport has become the nation's fifth busiest air center.
The universities and colleges are expanding and bringing national recognition to the community, and the newly refurbished Newark Museum is proving to be a major cultural asset. In its second century of service to the city, the Newark Public Library is committed to a major expansion, highlighted by plans for a new building and greatly improved facilities.
Newark's commitment to culture and arts is reflected in the presence of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, the city's largest cultural center. This 12-acre site on the Newark riverfront offers an intimate 514-seat theater and a 2,750-seat hall, where a dazzling array of international stars as well as New Jersey's finest performers shine. New Jersey Performing Arts Center has garnered national attention, serving as a model for its programming, audience, diversity, education initiatives, and the catalytic role it has played in returning nightlife to the state's largest community.
The 6,000-seat Riverfront Stadium, opened in July 1999 at the corner of McCarter Highway and Bridge Street in downtown Newark, is another gleaming addition to the city. The $30 million state-of-the-art ballpark is home to the Newark Bears, marking the return of minor league baseball after a 50-year absence.
Other dramatic signs of Newark's renewal and growth include the return of Blue Cross/Blue Shield's corporate headquarters to the city; IDT's move to the Mutual Benefit Life building; the $75 million Joseph Minish Passaic River Waterfront Park development; and a new light rail system to connect downtown with the airport.
But unlike previous renewal eras, two new elements make this a truly great movement. First there is tremendous growth in private housing. For the first time in nearly 75 years, vast numbers of upscale private townhouses and condos are being built throughout city. The largest of these developers is K. Hovnanian.
Attractive and affordable low-rise and low-income housing has been built by such organizations as the New Community Corporation, La Casa de Don Pedro, and United Vailsburg Service Organization. The Newark Housing Authority made great strides in replacing its high-rise buildings of the 50's and 60's with more human-scale units virtually indistinguishable from market-rate "for-sale" townshouses.
Newark has come to symbolize the achievement to which other Northeast urban centers now aspire.
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