Newark is set to gain or rehabilitate 274 affordable housing units after the New Jersey Economic Development Authority Board approved three Aspire Program tax-credit awards on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, totaling more than $77 million. The money will fund a full renovation of the Cottage Place Apartments on West Kinney Street and a ground-up redevelopment of the former Pabst Blue Ribbon brewery site into a project called Crown Village.
The NJEDA Board approved the three awards on Oct. 22, according to roi-nj.com, which reported that the Cottage Place and Crown Village projects together will create or rehabilitate 274 housing units in the city. The authority awarded more than $77 million in Aspire tax credits across the two developments, according to Real Estate NJ, whose reporting by Joshua Burd forms the basis of much of the project detail here.
A Major Overhaul for Cottage Place
A WinnDevelopment LP affiliate plans to renovate the 100-unit Cottage Place Apartments at 125 West Kinney Street, per the Real Estate NJ report. The project was approved for an Aspire award of up to 60% of eligible project costs, not to exceed $29.6 million, the station's report notes. Cottage Place comprises 20 buildings and includes 15 one-bedroom, 54 two-bedroom, 28 three-bedroom and three four-bedroom units, all of which will remain reserved for low- and moderate-income households.
The rehabilitation will include comprehensive upgrades to apartment kitchens and bathrooms, new windows and roofs, and upgraded, energy-efficient HVAC equipment, according to the same account. The project will also include supportive services aimed at promoting housing stability, economic mobility and community well-being. Construction is expected to begin in March 2027, per the outlet's reporting.
WinnDevelopment's co-applicant is SPE ULEC Cottage Place Partners LLC, which is affiliated with The Urban League of Essex County, Real Estate NJ reports, and that organization will provide job-training assistance and community outreach, including construction-trades pre-apprenticeship programs. Hans P. Erdenberger of ENV Architects is serving as the project architect, while Del-Sano Contracting Corp. is the general contractor, per the same account.
Crown Village Rises on the Old Pabst Brewery Site
The second major beneficiary is Crown Village, which will redevelop the onetime Pabst brewery site at 572-588 South Orange Ave. The project received two separate Aspire awards: $27.8 million for a ground-up 105-unit senior housing complex and $20.04 million for a 69-unit family housing component, according to Real Estate NJ's reporting.
The initial phase will consist of two five-story buildings with 105 affordable units intended for residents aged 55 or older and individuals experiencing homelessness, each including one level designated for on-site parking. Crown Village's family housing will occupy a third five-story building with one level of on-site parking and four housing levels above, comprising 69 one-, two- and three-bedroom units that will also be available to low-income people and individuals experiencing homelessness.
The Newark Housing Authority has committed to provide project-based Section 8 rental assistance to Crown Village units, the outlet reports, and tenants across the development will benefit from supportive services including job training and community outreach. Passaic Affordable Housing Coalition Inc., a co-applicant with Ramas Contractors LLC, will provide the project's supportive services.
It's worth noting that the Pabst site has a complicated development history. Jersey Digs reported in 2020 that Crown Real Estate Holdings went before the city's Zoning Board of Adjustment with a much larger vision for the parcel — 660 apartments and commercial space — and that Newark's municipal council agreed to provide two 30-year tax incentives for the site's redevelopment, according to Jersey Digs. A more recent January 2026 Jersey Digs account described the Crown Village phase differently, citing 144 affordable housing units with 12 apartments for tenants earning 50% of area median income and 132 for tenants earning 60% of area median income, and elsewhere described an earlier phase as two buildings with 185 senior affordable units — figures that differ from the 105-unit senior and 69-unit family components cited in the current Aspire award reporting. Newark's area median income was reported as $135,300 in 2025, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, as cited by Jersey Digs.
How the Aspire Program Works
All three Aspire-approved projects are also supported by Low-Income Housing Tax Credits through the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, per the roi-nj.com report. The Aspire Program is a gap-financing tool for commercial, mixed-use and residential real estate development, according to the New Jersey Economic Development Authority.
State and city officials framed the awards as part of a broader affordability push. NJEDA's Evan Weiss said the authority is supporting Governor Sherrill's efforts to address housing affordability, lower costs and accelerate housing production through Aspire. Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka said the funds will improve the lives of the city's elders, vulnerable individuals and families, while state Senator M. Teresa Ruiz said the investments address community needs through affordable housing, supportive services and job training.
