The Waterfront South was founded in 1851 by the Kaighns Point Land Company. During World War II, Waterfront South housed many of the industrial workers for the New York Shipbuilding Company. Currently, the Waterfront is home to many historical buildings and cultural icons. The Waterfront South neighborhood is a federal and state historic district due to its history and culturally significant buildings, such as the Sacred Heart Church and the South Camden Trust Company.[1] The Central Waterfront is located adjacent to the Benjamin Franklin Bridge and is home to the Nipper Building (also known as The Victor), the Adventure Aquarium, and Battleship New Jersey.
The Adventure Aquarium originally opened in 1992 as the New Jersey State Aquarium at Camden. In 2005, after extensive renovation, the aquarium was reopened under the name Adventure Aquarium.[4] The aquarium was one of the original centerpieces in Camden's plans for revitalizing their city.[5]
The Freedom Mortgage Pavilion, formerly known as the BB&T Pavilion, Susquehanna Bank Center, and Tweeter Center, is a 25,000-seat open-air concert amphitheater that was opened in 1995 and renamed after a 2008 deal in which the bank would pay $10 million over 15 years for naming rights.[6]
In May 2013, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority announced that it would seek developers for the site of the demolished Riverfront State Prison just north of the Central Waterfront and the Ben Franklin Bridge in Cooper Point.[10][11] In September 2013 Waterfront Renaissance Associates announced that it proposed to a develop a 2.3-million-square-foot commercial complex on 16 acres (6.5 ha) called the Riverfront World Trade Center. The project would be built in four phases, the first of which would be a promenade along the Delaware River. The plan calls for two 22-story and two 18-story buildings.[12][13][14] However, this proposal never came to pass.
The state of New Jersey has offered numerous tax incentives to corporations to locate in Camden, many along the Waterfront and Port of Camden districts.[25] In November 2014, the state offered tax incentives to Lockheed Martin to relocate 250 jobs to labs at the L-3 Building and Waterfront Technology Center.[26][27] Proposals to build two towers 590 ft (180 m)[28] and 450 ft (140 m)[29] were unveiled in September 2015.[30][31][32] Other elements of the project began construction in December 2016.[33]American Water Works opened its new headquarters. A new Hilton Garden Hotel broke ground in May 2019.[34]
^Strauss, Robert. "Camden Still Finds Itself Treading Water", The New York Times, April 30, 2006. Accessed July 3, 2011. "Three years ago, with great fanfare, Gov. Jim McGreevey announced the transfer of development rights for those 33 acres (13 ha) to Steiner and Associates, a Cincinnati firm, along with a $3 million grant and a $15 million loan to get started on a proposed $53 million renovation of the state aquarium, the linchpin, according to Steiner's plans, of a retail/entertainment/commercial/residential development that would transform Camden. Three years later, Adventure Aquarium, as it is now called, is there, but the rest of the site is still made up of those parking lots."