Camden Waterfront

The Camden Waterfront, also known as the Central Waterfront, is a tourist and entertainment district in Camden, New Jersey, on the Delaware River south of the Ben Franklin Bridge and north of Port of Camden.

Central Waterfront
Neighborhood of Camden
Waterfront from the Delaware River (2005)
CountryUnited States
StateNew Jersey
CountyCamden
CityCamden
Area code(s)856

The district is characterized by its visitor attractions and its location offering views of the river and the Philadelphia skyline.[1] It is served by RiverLink Ferry which crosses the river to Philadelphia and the Cooper St-Rutgers, Aquarium and Entertainment Center stations of the RiverLINE light rail system. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, the neighborhood has a population of 962.[2]

Attractions

The Adventure Aquarium originally opened in 1992 as the New Jersey State Aquarium at Camden. In 2005, after extensive renovation, the aquarium was reopened under the name Adventure Aquarium.[3] The aquarium was one of the original centerpieces in Camden's plans for revitalizing their city.[4]

The BB&T Pavilion (formerly known as Susquehanna Bank Center and the Tweeter Center) is a 25,000-seat open-air concert amphitheater that was opened in 1995 and renamed after a 2008 deal in which the bank would pay $10 million over 15 years for naming rights.[5]

The USS New Jersey (BB-62)

The USS New Jersey (BB-62) was a U.S. Navy battleship that was intermittently active between the years 1943 and 1991. After its retirement, the ship was turned into the Battleship New Jersey Museum and Memorial, that opened in 2001 along the waterfront. The New Jersey saw action during World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and provided support off Lebanon in early 1983.[6]

Wiggins Park Marina and One Port Center

Other attractions at the Waterfront are the Wiggins Park Riverstage and Marina, One Port Center, Nipper Building (aka Victor Lofts), the Walt Whitman House,[7] the Walt Whitman Cultural Arts Center, the Rutgers–Camden Center For The Arts and the Camden Children's Garden.[8]

Looking south to the waterfront with Campbell's Field and Nipper Building on left and site of Liberty Property Trust project, Camden Towers, including headquarters of American Water Works

In May 2013, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority announced that it would seek developers for the site of the demolished Riverfront State Prison just north of the Central Waterfront and the Ben Franklin Bridge in Cooper Point.[9][10] In September 2013 Waterfront Renaissance Associates announced that it proposed to a develop a 2.3-million-square-foot commercial complex on 16 acres (6.5 ha) called the Riverfront World Trade Center. The project would be built in four phases, the first of which would be a promenade along the Delaware River. The plan calls for two 22-story and two 18-story buildings.[11][12][13] However, this proposal never came to pass.

In September 2016 the Philadelphia 76ers opened their practice facility and home offices on the Waterfront.[14][15][16][17][18] The new headquarters and the state-of-the-art, 120,000-square-foot practice center was made possible in part by $82 million in tax credits approved by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority.[19][20][21]

Development incentives

In October 2013, Herschend Family Entertainment announced they would add an attraction adjacent to the Adventure Aquarium, a 300 ft (91 m), 25-story observation tower ride with a moored balloon and gondola that would carry passengers above the site offering views of city, the Delaware River and the Philadelphia skyline. It was planned to open in Spring 2015.[22][23]

The state of New Jersey has offered numerous tax incentives to corporations to locate in Camden, many along the Waterfront and Port of Camden districts.[24] In November 2014, the state offered tax incentives to Lockheed Martin to relocate 250 jobs to labs at the L-3 Building and Waterfront Technology Center.[25][26] Proposals to build two towers 590 ft (180 m)[27] and 450 ft (140 m)[28] were unveiled in September 2015.[29][30][31] Other elements of the project began construction in December 2016.[32] American Water Works opened its new headquarters. A new Hilton Garden Hotel broke ground in May 2019.[33]

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See also

References
  1. Attractions Archived 2014-06-05 at the Wayback Machine, CamdenWaterfront.com. Accessed 2014-06-06
  2. "Camden Facts: Central Waterfront". Camconnect.org. Retrieved January 15, 2012.
  3. "Aquarium Accredited". Portal to gallery of photographs (6) related to the Adventure Aquarium. Courier-Post. March 31, 1999. Accessed December 25, 2009.
  4. Strauss, Robert. "Camden Still Finds Itself Treading Water", The New York Times, April 30, 2006. Accessed July 3, 2011. "Three years ago, with great fanfare, Gov. Jim McGreevey announced the transfer of development rights for those 33 acres (13 ha) to Steiner and Associates, a Cincinnati firm, along with a $3 million grant and a $15 million loan to get started on a proposed $53 million renovation of the state aquarium, the linchpin, according to Steiner's plans, of a retail/entertainment/commercial/residential development that would transform Camden. Three years later, Adventure Aquarium, as it is now called, is there, but the rest of the site is still made up of those parking lots."
  5. Staff. "Tweeter Center is being renamed, The Camden concert venue will be Susquehanna Bank Center in a $10 million deal with the Lititz, Pa., firm.", The Philadelphia Inquirer, February 5, 2008. Accessed July 3, 2011. "Tweeter Center is being renamed, The Camden concert venue will be Susquehanna Bank Center in a $10 million deal with the Lititz, Pa., firm."
  6. "Visit the Battleship New Jersey". Portal to gallery of photographs (36) related to the Battleship New Jersey. Courier-Post. Undated. Accessed December 25, 2009.
  7. "Camden's Historic Walt Whitman House". Portal to gallery of photographs (20) related to the Walt Whitman House. Courier-Post. Undated. Accessed December 25, 2009.
  8. Wes. "Philly Bricks". ilovebricks.blogspot.nl.
  9. Laday, Jason (May 29, 2013). "NJ to begin seeking redeveloper for former Camden prison". South Jersey Times. Retrieved 2014-05-28.
  10. George, Andrew (October 1, 2013). "Urban Transit subsidy failed Camden, but its successor will take hold". NJ Biz. Retrieved 2014-06-06.
  11. Kostelni, Natalie (September 9, 2013). "Project considered for former prison site in Camden". Phlladelphia Business Journal. Retrieved 2014-05-28.
  12. Terruso, Julia (September 11, 2013). "Developer wants to build a World Trade Center in Camden". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2014-06-06.
  13. Laday, Jason (September 9, 2013). "Camden World Trade Center in sites of firm targeting former Riverfront Prison plot". South Jersey Times. Retrieved 2014-05-28.
  14. "Sixers open big new practice complex in Camden". Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  15. "Philadelphia 76ers on Camden move: 'We just feel like this is home'". Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  16. "Philadelphia 76ers open training facility in Camden (PHOTOS)". Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  17. "Inside the Sixers' $82 million New Jersey facility they're basically getting for free". Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  18. "Sixers practice facility set to open on Camden Waterfront".
  19. Laday, Jason (June 10, 2014). "Philadelphia 76ers CEO: Camden practice facility will be 'biggest and best' in U.S." South Jersey Times. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
  20. Laday, Jason (June 10, 2014). "Philadelphia 76ers set to move office, practice space to Camden with $82M tax break". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
  21. Jason, mark (June 11, 2014). "Sixers to move headquarters to Camden". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
  22. Roncace, Kelly (October 31, 2013). "Observation tower in Camden promises views of city, Philadelphia skyline". South Jersey Times. Retrieved June 6, 2014.
  23. Maule, Bradley (November 6, 2013). "Camden To Finally Get Its Gondola". Retrieved June 6, 2014.
  24. "Companies get $1.3B in incentives to move to Camden".
  25. "New Jersey EDA awards 10-year, $107 million tax break to Lockheed Martin to open facilities in Camden". NJ.com.
  26. "Leasing Opportunities: Waterfront Technology Center at Camden".
  27. "LPT Camden Waterfront Tower B, Camden - SkyscraperPage.com". skyscraperpage.com. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  28. "LPT Camden Waterfront Tower A, Camden - SkyscraperPage.com". skyscraperpage.com. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  29. "Liberty Property Trust to construct $1 billion worth of real estate along Camden, N.J., waterfront - Philadelphia Business Journal". Philadelphia Business Journal. 24 September 2015. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  30. "$700M development coming to Camden". Courier-Post. 24 September 2015. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  31. "Project aims to transform Camden waterfront - and surprise skeptics". Philly.com. 25 September 2015. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  32. "New details about Camden's $1B waterfront redevelopment revealed".
  33. https://www.nj.com/business/2019/05/new-hotel-will-have-sweeping-views-of-philadelphia-skyline-oh-and-its-in-camden.html

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