The Cooper’s Ferry Partnership held its annual meeting Thursday and touted the ongoing revitalization of the city of Camden.
Executive Director Kris Kolluri, Camden County Freeholder Jeffery Nash and Camden Mayor Frank Moran addressed attendees prior to two panels to discuss some of the ongoing efforts.
“Construction is underway on the $1 billion Liberty Trust waterfront development. For us, this is tangible proof of economic opportunity that is being created for the region and the residents of our city,” Moran said. “Almost $350 million of investment has been or is being made to improve our schools. What makes Rutgers, Rowan and Camden County College such a powerful force is that these institutions offer a world class education at affordable prices. Between the three institutions, more than $150 million in investments have been made in just the last 12 months to transform the downtown ‘eds and meds’ corridor.”
And with a growing housing stock and investment in transportation, Moran is hopeful that by being priced 20 percent lower than Philadelphia, the city can attract more workers from the city,
“We want businesses to grow so that we can create a sustainable environment. We want our businesses to proposer and make sure that our residents proposer as well,” he said.
Kolluri said, “We have been meaningful contributors and participants in Camden’s growth trajectory and we are here to support Mayor Moran, Freeholder Director Cappelli, business leaders and residents to ensure that the prosperity is inclusive.”
The combination of state, local and private investments has helped continue growth.
“The Freeholder board has committed itself to providing new and reengineered green spaces and parks throughout the city for passive and active recreation connecting new parklands to larger tracks of land in the county park system,” Nash said. “Identifying the health of any community starts with its open spaces and we will continue to allocate resources into this invaluable commodity opening up our riverbanks and ensuring families and children of the future can explore and expand their horizons in Camden’s parks.”
