A number of recent redevelopment initiatives have focused on making the city more welcoming to arts and culture organizations. In July, the City Council approved a $1.5 million bond to fund a new Performing Arts Center at 102 State Street adjacent to the newly completed Atlantic Street Park. The park will be the focal point of a contemplated Cultural Arts District encompassing the surrounding area.

The City is now actively pursuing funding from the National Endowment for the Arts to fully explore an arts district designation. The Center will eventually replace a smaller performance space at 39 Broadway and expand the existing programming currently limited to the first floor at 102 State Street. The City is now creating a Cultural Arts Board that will oversee the expansion of artistic and cultural programming throughout the city by enlisting arts enthusiasts and creative industry participants to help develop programming, Lombardo says.

“We think it's an absolute key component to any great downtown. In fact, we think it's a magnet to bring people to our downtown,” he says. “We want to be friendly to the cultural arts community and we want to make Hackensack a place where they are going to feel comfortable.”

The zoning changes in the downtown district are “state of the art,” says Lombardo. “We have very aggressive zoning, it's pretty much teed up for developers to come in and do projects here.” The downtown Hackensack area needs more residential development, Lombardo says. A few projects are poised to go on line. One is the 222-unit Metro Meridia multifamily residential building, which is expected to have residents by October.

Currently under construction is a 14-story, 382-unit mixed-use project at 150-170 Main Street. Main Street is also being reconfigured to permit two-way traffic, Lombardo says.

Last year marked a major milestone for Hackensack and its downtown business district. The Upper Main Alliance, the City of Hackensack, Archer & Greiner and DMR Architects received a New Jersey Future 2014 Smart Growth Award for the creation of the City's Downtown Rehabilitation Plan. Adopted in 2012, the plan calls for new housing, retail and restaurants to maximize the city's strategic advantages in the region.

Encompassing 163 acres and 389 individual properties on 39 city blocks, the Hackensack Downtown Rehabilitation Plan promotes a range of land uses. These include retail, restaurants, office, commercial, civic, and entertainment, along with a diversity of housing types, to create a mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly downtown. One of the key objectives is to connect a series of neighborhoods with improved infrastructure, parks, plazas, open spaces and the city's public transportation facilities.

“We think Hackensack is going to be a very viable place for a lot of people to live,” he says. “it's not as congested as Hoboken, but our location is just as good. We hope people from upper Bergen County and all over the state will find Hackensack a good destination.”