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The Exchange Place Alliance has helped foster a transformation along the Hudson River in Jersey City. Now, the special improvement district is widening its footprint away from the waterfront.

The Jersey City Council approved an ordinance March 12 to expand the Exchange Place Alliance SID boundaries. The change essentially squares a portion of the district, adding about 20 additional blocks to the Alliance’s purview. The newly added zone will include the area bordered on the west by Marin Boulevard, to the north by 2nd Street, to the east by Warren Street and to the south by Christopher Columbus Drive.

Established in 2017, the Alliance has since invested in a plethora of projects and organizations downtown to enhance the district for residents, visitors and businesses alike. The work aims to establish a cleaner, safer and more energized neighborhood featuring stronger community ties and engagement, as well as increased property and business values.

“We are excited to extend our capital improvement program beyond Exchange Place into neighboring communities to create similar vibrancy and a sense of place,” said Alliance Executive Director Deidre Crockett. “We thank the Councilmembers who share our vision for the area to benefit all Jersey City residents.”

In addition to maintaining clean streets, removing snow and improving public safety, the group has reimagined spaces for public gathering and recreation, embraced and displayed public works of art, hosted community events and more.

As board President Michael DeMarco explains, “The things that the Exchange Place Alliance does are the things that the city should, could or would do if they had the time, the resources in the budget.” 

Something different

And while the Alliance commands a substantial budget – $4.25 million this year – it prioritizes putting the funding into projects by keeping management costs low. 

“I wanted something different,” former Mack-Cali Realty Corp. CEO DeMarco explained about establishing the Alliance. “I thought you really needed to do physical improvements to make the district more vibrant.” 

In 2023, the Alliance debuted the updated Exchange Place Plaza, reborn as a public pedestrian plaza — the city’s first along the waterfront. A month later, the group got to work adding more trees there, increasing the number of plantings to nearly 100. At the time, the Alliance said the work represented the largest single-location tree planting in the city that season. It was also the largest private planting by a community group in the city. 

Other marquee efforts have included adding multiple playgrounds, including some of the first downtown.  

“I never get a complaint for anyone who pays us. In the eight years I’ve done it, I’ve never had anyone call me up and say … ‘You’re [a] waste of money. You didn’t do this,’ I never get that,” DeMarco said. “What I do get is requests, which we handle incredibly efficiently … ” 

Highlighting the benefits, DeMarco said the SID offers property owners accessibility and assurance.

“If there’s a problem, there’s somebody to handle it for me. … If somebody comes and says, I got a security problem, I got a trash problem, a sign got broken – then we take care of it. I got a crew who goes out and fixes it. It’s like living in a first class building. I mean, literally if you call us on a Monday, it’s done on a Wednesday.”

Looking ahead

In expanding the SID’s boundaries, DeMarco said the Alliance added about 30-40 new property owners to its roster. Previously the tally stood at 110. 

On the waterfront

The Grundy Pier playground marked a collaboration between the Alliance and Jersey City. The project features an innovative playground that is fully accessible for children with disabilities. See more.

The Alliance’s expanded area incorporates Jersey City’s Powerhouse Arts District – and the group plans to expand its public art efforts into the new space. Building on its work of buying, commissioning and exhibiting artwork, DeMarco said the group is working with local artists to decorate a set of windows that will front a Public Storage building downtown.

The Alliance’s other upcoming capital projects include plans to redo two additional playgrounds, partner with the Powerhouse Arts District Neighborhood Association on a large-scale installation at the Art Walk on First Street, and a dynamic community center.

The Ice House Creative Center will establish a neighborhood hub for artistic expression, innovation and appreciation. According to architectural plans for the project, four spaces (two 2,000 square feet and two 1,500 square feet) would comprise the main level. The building located at 335 Washington St. will also feature a large roof deck, according to the plans.

The project is ready to go once the Alliance gets its 2025 budget in June. With work expected to start later in the summer, it should wrap up about nine to 12 months later, DeMarco said.

There are seven SIDS operating across Jersey City. Within their respective zones, commercial properties pay a special assessment to fund services provided by these private, not-for-profit organizations.

According to the Alliance, the collective sum of the individual assessments comprise the total yearly assessment of the SID. That figure underwrites most, if not all, annual operating expenses.

“It basically is kind of a self-help group in this day and age of working with cities,” DeMarco said of the Alliance and its collaborative efforts. “It’s a public private partnership … we get things done.”