Highland Park Residents for Community Development

12/12/2025

We are working to reactivate ourselves after a year of dormancy! Do you care about community-centered redevelopment? Do you want to work with others to try keep abreast of the various redevelopment projects moving slowly (and then quite suddenly)? Reach out to us via Messenger and/or at [email protected].

We are currently brainstorming questions related to the South Third Public Plaza and Tract C in preparation for the community meeting on December 15th from 6:30 - 8:30 PM at 221 South 5th Ave.

07/15/2024

Are you interested in Highland Park redevelopment plans? Preliminary investigations to include potential use of powers of eminent domain and a new Upper Raritan Ave Redevelopment plan are on the agenda for this Tuesday's council meeting.

Resolutions 7-24-180 and 7-24-181 call for preliminary investigations to use condemnation powers including eminent domain on the Sunoco Station and adjacent lots, as well as Classic Cleaners. Ordinance No. 24-2089 and Resolution 7-24-196 pertain to a new Upper Raritan Redevelopment Plan.

The Mayor and Council, acting as the Redevelopment Entity, will be voting to initiate these investigation and review processes on July 16, 2024 at 7:00 PM. You can attend the meeting in person at Borough Hall (221 S 5th Ave) or join via Zoom. Agenda and Zoom link can be found at https://www.hpboro.com/Home/Components/Calendar/Event/5537/19.

06/07/2024

Missed the meeting? View the recording of the Tract C Redevelopment Community Meeting on Wednesday, June 5th at https://youtu.be/ViTL3xyIMNE.

We’d love to know what you think! If you attended the meeting (or watched the recording), take our very brief survey just below. This will help us know how to focus our energy as a resident-led group. https://forms.gle/Y5gc5WTwn1eWfKJL7

Highland Park Residents for Community Development (HPRCD) is a resident-led group advocating for more transparency in the process of redevelopment within Highland Park. We are not affiliated with the Borough of Highland Park. Please let us know what you are thinking after attending (or watching the....

06/04/2024

Do you care about redevelopment in Highland Park?

Come learn and ask questions at the "Tract C Redevelopment Community Meeting" on Wednesday, June 5th at 7:00 PM at the Highland Park High School Cafeteria.

This public meeting is hosted by the Highland Park Borough Redevelopment Entity.

10/07/2023

We love our public art! Shout out to all of the artists who have contributed to the amazing public art we have in Highland Park.

A community-centered vision of redevelopment views public art as an important expression of our Highland Park community and is committed to preserving and expanding it.

Music Credits: Head and the Heart, See You Through My Eyes

09/18/2023

📣 Public Meeting Announcement! 📣

We encourage all Highland Park residents who want answers to our five questions (https://bit.ly/HPRCD5Questions) to attend the Council Meeting this Tuesday, September 19th at 7:00 PM.

Please share this post and encourage other Highland Park residents to attend!

Last week, the Redevelopment Entity and Planning Board meeting were both CANCELLED. It is unclear whether the next Redevelopment Entity meeting scheduled for October 17th will take place.

You can attend in person at 221 South 5th Avenue or via Zoom at the link found at: https://www.hpboro.com/Home/Components/Calendar/Event/4476/19?curm=9&cury=2023

If you would be willing to ask a question (one of the five or another one of your own), please send us a message or email us at [email protected] so that we can coordinate.

09/14/2023

We’ve got five questions for the Mayor and Council. To get answers, sign our Open Letter and share with others!

Question 5: Will you commit to exceeding the state and local minimums of owned or leased affordable housing units and require that any developer and/or lender waive and renounce their protections per ​​N.J.S.A. 2A:42-84.1 et seq, so that they must abide by our local rent control ordinance?

Add your name to the Open Letter with all five questions here: https://bit.ly/HPRCD5Questions

You can find the Open Letter with signatures here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RP7-JT3IDnxWSmqGOLXsDntFucNezfySxb6H_X9oY5I/view

09/14/2023

What do you consider affordable rent for a 2-bedroom unit in Highland Park?

How much would a household need to make annually to afford a two-bedroom unit at The Frederick, our most recent redevelopment project by developer Garden Homes? Garden Homes is also the conditional developer for Tract C.

How does that compare to the median household income of Highland Park?

Resources/Sources:

https://www.gardencommunities.com/Properties/NJ/Middlesex/The-Frederick-New-Construction.aspx

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/highlandparkboroughnewjersey

https://www.hpboro.com/government/redevelopment/downtown-redevelopment-planning-effort #:~:text=Tract%20C%3A%20On%20August%202,Council%20on%20February%2021%2C%202023

09/13/2023

📣 Public Meeting Announcement! 📣 CANCELLED: Planning Board Meeting on September 14th, 7:30 - 8:30 PM

You can watch the last Planning Board meeting on June 8, 2023 at https://youtu.be/1Xbb7hbevLk?si=z9JKlAuNe1K9MU-U

We hope that the Mayor and Council provide ongoing opportunities for Highland Park residents to learn about the various aspects of the redevelopment process in order to ask questions and keep lines of communication open.

Please see the Borough of Highland Park's calendar for up-to-date information about public meetings: https://www.hpboro.com/i-want-to/advanced-components/basic-pages/calendar-month-view

09/12/2023

We’ve got five questions for the Mayor and Council.

Question 4: What specific resident benefits and amenities will the Redevelopment Entity require the developer to provide for our community (e.g. town infrastructure, improvements, and upgrades)?

Sign our Open Letter with all five questions here and share with others! https://bit.ly/HPRCD5Questions

You can find the Open Letter with signatures here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RP7-JT3IDnxWSmqGOLXsDntFucNezfySxb6H_X9oY5I/view