Have A Need? NJBAC Can Help.

The NJBAC is offering no-cost technical assistance, training, and problem-solving – we are here to support all of your Business Enhancement needs. Whether you have a one-off resource question, are looking for a strategic assessment of a district, or could use some quick visualized tactical inspiration to foster visible and tangible change, NJBAC can help. Contact NJBAC Assistant Director Jef Buehler to start the conversation and move towards action.

Today’s email has information on assistance we can provide, as well as about technical and financial resources that may be a fit for your community or district.

Best Practices

1. Winter is almost upon us!  Want some ideas of how to program your district over this colder and darker season? Check out the Winter Placemaking Guide by 880 Cities that explains how communities can embrace winter through an asset-based community development approach that creatively activates public spaces for people of all ages and abilities. There are also videos about this approach along four key themes: Winter Mobility, Winter Fun and Programming, Winter Warmth, & Winter Health and Resources.

2. According to an NBC News article, New York City plans to bring back and expand its Open Streetsprogram this holiday season to boost local businesses and accommodate traffic to the city’s famous Rockefeller Center Christmas tree and Fifth Avenue shopping district. “Through the holiday season, the city will pedestrianize the streets surrounding Rockefeller Center and Radio City Music Hall, according to city officials.” Last year's program drove $3 million in additional spending to businesses in the midtown area along Fifth Avenue and around Rockefeller Center with streets opened to only pedestrians from Noon-6PM or from 11AM until midnight in some cases.

Featured Grants & Support

1. Reminder: Consider applying for the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation’s Love Your Block program. Only 20 communities with populations of 30K+ can access this amazing set of resources: Applications are due on December 4, 2023.

2. Also: The Bloomberg Cities Idea Exchange is a no-cost network to connect to support for your place-based revitalization goals and efforts. It’s free to join, and each municipality must have a dedicated point of contact for this program.

3. Speaking of Bloomberg Foundation resources, our own City of Passaic, working with EZ-Ride, was one of only 25 cities in the US, Canada, and Mexico to win this year’s Asphalt Art Initiative Grants. Passaic will be using the $25,000 grant to artistically enhance crosswalks, bump-outs, and the center of a key intersection itself to foster pedestrian safety and community pride.  There will be a new grant round in 2024 for those interested.  Want to do it sooner, but without the grant? Check out the amazing Asphalt Art Guide for tips on how to make it happen!

NJBAC Can Work With All the Businesses in Your Community

We are here for your communities’ and districts’ businesses. NJBAC offers free online chat and telephone (800-537-7397) assistance in English and Spanish to any business in NJ – any size, any location, and any type. Our team can advocate for businesses, concierge them to funding and technical solutions, help them find locations for growth or developing export markets, guide them to navigating the commercial cannabis sector, and much more. Want to set something up online or on-site for your businesses? Reach out to NJBAC Assistant Director Jef Buehler to get plugged in to all of our business success services.