The Housing Authority of Plainfield Celebrates the Opening of Newly Built, $19.3 Million Elmwood Square Apartments

• Posted on: 10/29/2021

PLAINFIELD, N.J. – On Thursday, October 28, the Housing Authority of Plainfield (HAP) was joined by community leaders for the ribbon-cutting ceremony of Elmwood Square Apartments. The celebration took place in partnership with the City of Plainfield, the Premier Community Development Corporation (PCDC), the County of Union, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and The Alpert Group.

Elmwood Square Apartments is a 58 unit, 43 2br and 15 3br, townhouse complex on 3.68 acres. The apartment complex has individual entrances in a design which is very conscious of defensible space, new urbanism design, eyes on the street concepts, open space, passive recreation, and a free-standing community building which has a community room, office space, and maintenance space. There is also supportive housing in the design and 5% of the units meet 504 requirements. All ground floor units are handicap adaptable. All units have Section 8 project-based assistance. Amongst all of the partnership and celebration, the city welcomed Lt. Governor Sheila Oliver.

“The Elmwood Square Apartments are yet another example of the City of Plainfield leveraging public and private partnerships to create more vibrant, equitable, and inclusive neighborhoods,” said Lt. Governor Sheila Oliver, who serves as Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs and New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency board chair. “Governor Murphy and I are committed to advancing housing and economic development opportunities throughout the State to help ensure that safe, affordable and desirable housing is available to everyone.”

Since the groundbreaking last year, construction on the new apartments had been underway during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and continued to stay on track with its development. The housing authority and its partners planned to create a new housing opportunity for its residents due to the fact that their other project, Elmwood Gardens, had architectural issues that prevented safe and reliable housing for its residents. In 2012, the demolition began for Elmwood Gardens in order to rebuild better and efficient housing. This year, HAP and the residents of Plainfield come together to celebrate a new achievement in infrastructure in the community.

“This project has been years in the making,” said Mayor Adrian O. Mapp. “I remain dedicated to improving the quality of life for all Plainfield residents and today’s ceremony is yet another milestone on the path to quality, affordable housing. I’m grateful for HAP and our city’s partners for their vision and collaborative partnership as they worked to bring this to reality. They have provided a fresh new start for many of our residents.”

Executive Director Randall M. Wood of the Housing Authority of Plainfield stated, “We are all here today to welcome residents to Elmwood Square Apartments, which will be a significant part of our community. By rebuilding better housing that is affordable yet accommodating to our residents, we can provide our community with a higher quality of life. I would also like to acknowledge our partner and HAP’s qualified nonprofit arm, Premier Community Development Corporation for their dedication and work to making this possible.”

Elmwood Square Urban Renewal, LP has received a 9% tax credit designation from the NJHMFA to develop Elmwood Square Apartments on the site of the Elmwood Gardens location. Elmwood Square Urban Renewal, LP is an equal partnership between two limited liability companies formed by Premier Community Development Corporation and the developer, the Alpert Group.

“Our company’s goal was to redevelop urban areas for the residents of Plainfield. I’m truly honored to be part of this project and to be able to give tenants peace of mind with a new sustainable housing complex.” said Joe Alpert, President of The Alpert Group.

For more information on Elmwood Square Apartments, visit www.hapnj.org or call 908-769-6335 ext. 600.

DCA offers a wide range of programs and services, including energy assistance, housing vouchers, affordable housing production, fire and building safety, community planning and development, local government management and finance, and disaster recovery and mitigation.

For more information about DCA, visit https://nj.gov/dca/ or follow the Department on social media: