Camden Waterfront Targeted For Billion Dollar Makeover

By David Madden

CAMDEN, N.J., (CBS) -- The wraps have been taken off a billion dollar redevelopment plan along the Camden Waterfront.

In fact, that's the name of the project.

And public officials heaped a lot of praise on those putting up the money to bring this project to reality.

Bill Hankowsky, CEO of Liberty Property Trust, is the developer of the project. Liberty is the same firm that developed the Comcast Tower in Center City Philadelphia and other local projects.

"We at Liberty have entered into an agreement to acquire the development rights for 16 acres of Camden waterfront," he told several hundred people at the announcement, made at the Camden Aquarium. "And it's the intent to develop a mixed use project encompassing office, hotel, residential and retail space that will provide Camden with a lively new neighborhood."

The neighborhood will include two tall glass office towers, 5,000 parking spaces and three parks. It's thought thousands of jobs will come as a result of its construction.

An announcement of this magnitude, labeled as Camden's largest redevelopment project ever, was enough to bring New Jersey Governor Chris Christie off the Presidential campaign trail, if only for a few minutes.

Christie touted his administration's accomplishments in improving public safety and schools which, in turn, have spurred private investment.

"Camden is no longer America's most dangerous city," the Governor said. "Camden is a city where families come to live and work and do business."

At least four business entities are already committed to "The Camden Waterfront". One of them is South Jersey attorney and Democratic Party leader George Norcross.

Construction is expected to begin about this time next year, once permits are approved and the project gets the green light from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority. The work is scheduled to take some three years to complete.