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Offices, Authorities, Boards & Agencies
CoBRA
City of Burlington Redevelopment Agency

OFFICE ADDRESS:
Carriage House
PO Box 1602
12 Smith's Lane
Burlington NJ 08016

MAP: Carriage House Location
TEL: 609-386-3993
FAX: 609-386-5110
CELL:
E-MAIL:

OFFICE HOURS:
Hours by appointment only

PUBLIC MEETINGS:
beginning 7:30pm
3rd Monday of each month
Daniel Keegan Center
522 Wood Street
Burlington NJ 08016
See MAP: Keegan Center Location

Location, Carriage Hs., Smith’s Ln.

Location, Keegan Ctr., Wood St.

City of Burlington
Redevelopment Agency
(CoBRA)

OTHER OFFICES, AUTHORITIES, BOARDS & AGENCIES
Board of Island Managers
Burlington Housing Authority
Tax Assessor

ON THIS PAGE:
Agency Directory
CoBRA’s Mission
Summary of Plan
Plan Objectives
Recent Results

CoBRA’s Mission  |  top of page

“To serve as a catalyst and partner for the improvement of residential, social and economic life within the Redevelopment Area”.

The City of Burlington Redevelopment Agency (CoBRA) was created in 1995 from the Burlington Housing Development Corporation (BHDC). BHDC since 1969 was a non-profit organization to “provide relocation assistance to persons displaced as a result of urban renewal”. Functions of the BHCD included rehabilitation, redevelopment and construction of homes for low and moderate-income persons. The BHDC’s 1991 Emergency Home Improvement Loan program is still utilized by area residents.

CoBRA consists of seven Commissioners appointed by Burlington City’s Common Council. Of these seven, two Agency members are drawn from Common Council to serve one-year terms. The remaining five members serve 5 year terms. CoBRA also retains an Executive Director, Administrative Assistant and attorney.

CoBRA’s primary responsibility is to “implement redevelopment plans and carry out redevelopment projects” within a designated redevelopment area. The Area is bordered by the Delaware River, Assiscunk Creek, High Street and US Route 130. It also includes remote parcels including the Metropolitan Inn site (corner of High and Broad Streets), the Burlington Mart site (corner of Salem Road and Mott Ave.) and the City's existing recycling center (corner of Mitchell and Williams Streets).

In 1997, a redevelopment plan was prepared for the New Yorkshire and Yorkshire neighborhoods.

In 1998, the City of Burlington Planning Board adopted that Redevelopment Plan and designated boundaries for the Redevelopment Area.

Commissioners and Staff Directory  |  top of page

MATERIALS AVAILABLE: ?

Summary of Burlington’s Redevelopment Area Plan  |  top

In 1997, Marc R. Schuster, AIA, was hired to help develop a plan for the New Yorkshire and Yorkshire neighborhoods. He states a proposed light rail line could, “...bolster Burlington’s place as a tourist attraction and recreational haven for the entire county and region”. It “...will increase various business opportunities”. However, the Redevelopment Plan is not dependent on the success or failure of light rail. The “Goal” of the Plan is as follows:

“The overriding, fundamental goal of the redevelopment effort is to promote, encourage and generate a more compatible reasonable and productive pattern of land uses, while enhancing positive residential characteristics and appropriate economic development”.

Redevelopment Area Plan “Objectives”  |  top of page

• Eliminate, where possible, incompatibilities among land uses
• Ameliorate negative impacts of incompatible land uses, where feasible
• Remove isolated pockets of inconsistent land uses
• Control negative social and aesthetic impacts of businesses near residential neighborhoods
• Encourage rehabilitation in designated residential uses
• Construct new housing in appropriate locations
• Promote business uses along Broad and High Streets
• Ensure that any non-residential development will adhere to stringent design criteria
• Improve public services generally in the community
• Add links between residential areas and community uses
• Create focal points or centers for community identification and interest
• Increase opportunities for community activities such as recreation

Recent Results  |  top of page

Pennrose Properties, Inc., received ownership and recently completed the renovation of 400 High Street (Metropolitan Inn) and 235 Penn Street (formerly West Electronics or Budd Shoe Factory) culminating a nearly $9,000,000 investment in creating 52 senior housing apartment units for age and income restricted citizens. On May 28, 2003, Pennrose received a Historical Preservation award from the Burlington County Board of Chosen Freeholders for excellence in historical renovation of these two buildings.

Metropolitan Inn, High and Broad Sts. 16 subsidized low-income senior apartment units over mixed-use office / retail space. One block from light rail, post office, shopping

West Electronics, 235 Penn Street 36 units subsidized low-income senior apartments. Near Riverfront

CoBRA was instrumental in coordinating and securing a Smart Growth Grant for the New Yorkshire Neighborhood. A number of initiatives are currently in progress related to this grant including:

• Neighborhood organization and planning
• traffic study analysis
• historical inventory analysis
• recommendations to complement Redevelopment and Master Plans

Continuing solutions and plans are being formulated to deal with eliminating neighborhood blight and housing deterioration, as well as, exploring ways to encourage and assist in commercial redevelopment

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