CRDA: Board Approves Tourism District Projects

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At its monthly Board Meeting today, the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA) Board of Directors approved several measures concerning the Tourism District including establishing an open container area, approving an initial fund reservation and granting final project approval for the Women/Minority Business Entrepreneurship Center Project, and authorization to purchase a property in the Ducktown section of Atlantic City located at 2405 Pacific Avenue.

The open container area was approved pursuant to recent legislation that was approved by the Legislature and signed by the Governor. The designated area will mirror the area memorialized in Mayor Small’s Executive Order that was signed in June 2020, which is on the Boardwalk between Sovereign Avenue and Rhode Island Avenue; on Tennessee Avenue, New York Avenue and Saint James Place between Pacific Avenue and the Boardwalk, also known as the Orange Loop, and the non-residential areas of Gardner’s Basin with the exception of the Marina. The CRDA now authorizes and approves the sale of alcoholic beverages by a licensed premises located adjacent to the designated open container area to a patron who is at least 21 years old and permits the patron to remove and consume a single beverage in the open container area.

“The CRDA is supporting the provisions of the legislation approved by the Legislature and Governor by allowing beverages in the most widely visited areas of the Tourism District,” said CRDA Board Chairman Robert Mulcahy. “Visitors to Atlantic City will now be able to enjoy the full benefits that are offered by other vacation destinations.”

The CRDA Board also authorized the Authority to establish a fund reservation of $1.3M, and authorized the negotiation and execution of an agreement to purchase a property located at 2405 Pacific Avenue, known as Delilah’s Den. “We have received letters of support from Mayor Small, the Atlantic City Police Department and the NAACP which support the purchase of this property by the Authority,” said CRDA Executive Director Matt Doherty. “We believe that purchasing this property will have a positive impact in improving the quality of life in the Tourism District.”

In other business today, the Board granted final project approval for the Women/Minority Business Entrepreneurship Center Project. The Board also approved a site plan for the Atlanticare Medical Arts Pavilion. The CRDA donated the land at the corner of Ohio and Atlantic avenues, valued at $3 million, to AtlantiCare. It has pledged an additional $15 million in grant funding toward the $38,338,000 project. The three-story, 69,700-square-foot facility will enable AtlantiCare to expand the care it provides to Atlantic City and surrounding communities.

The only agency of its kind nationwide, the CRDA has used Atlantic City casino reinvestments as a catalyst for meaningful, positive improvement in the lives of New Jersey residents since 1984. Under the 2011 Tourism District Act, the Authority's mission evolved from statewide projects to becoming the state's key economic development agency for Atlantic City. CRDA's expanded responsibilities now include land use regulation, tourism marketing and clean and safe initiatives. The CRDA also oversees Historic Boardwalk Hall (the leading entertainment venue of its size in the country) and the Atlantic City Convention Center. In total, CRDA has invested nearly $2 billion in more than 400 projects statewide, of which $1.8 billion has been invested in Atlantic City, spurring business investments and expansions, and creating permanent jobs in the process. For more information about CRDA and our projects, visit www.njcrda.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter. For complete Atlantic City tourism information, visit www.doatlanticcity.com, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.