Rutgers–Camden Research Center to Present Update on its Camden Neighborhood Change Study

The Center for Urban Research and Education (CURE) at Rutgers University–Camden will present an update on the significance and goals of its “Camden Neighborhood Change Study,” at noon Friday, Jan. 30.

The talk, which is free of charge and open to the public, will be held in the faculty lounge on the third floor of Armitage Hall, located on Fifth Street, between Cooper Street and the Benjamin Franklin Bridge on the Rutgers–Camden campus. Lunch will be provided. No registration is required.

The presenters are Natasha Tursi, associate director of the Rutgers–Camden research center and project director for the study; Anthony Voci, a 2014 graduate of Rutgers–Camden and a project coordinator; and Danielle Davis, a graduate student in Rutgers–Camden’s master of public administration program and a project volunteer.

According to the Rutgers–Camden researchers, major new investments in different Camden neighborhoods, such as The Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center, could have major spillover effects on housing conditions and neighborhood integrity in affected areas.  In order for community researchers to understand the scope and magnitude of these effects, it is essential to develop baseline data on current neighborhood conditions and to build a longitudinal database. 

The “Camden Neighborhood Change Study” thus seeks to document housing conditions on a parcel-by-parcel basis in neighborhoods in the City of Camden that have received or will receive major resources; photograph each parcel; make data and photographs available to researchers and the general public through an interactive, online map; and update the data and photographs annually in order to document changes and trends in housing and neighborhood conditions.

The researchers also aim to involve the community in data collection, present the data annually to community residents and city stakeholders, and – based on the observed trends and changes – recommend policies and strategies for neighborhood transformation, especially preserving and sustaining affordable housing.

“The project has already demonstrated the feasibility of the project by pilot testing our data and photograph-collection procedures in a three-block area of Cramer Hill,” explains Tursi. A prototype, interactive website is accessible at cure-cncs.camden.rutgers.edu.

For further information regarding the study or the lecture, contact Tursi at ntursi@camden.rutgers.edu or 856-225-6797.

Founded in 2001, the Center for Urban Research and Education at Rutgers–Camden aims to encourage, facilitate, and promote research on urban issues by Rutgers–Camden faculty and their collaborators around the nation. The research center’s monthly seminars, held in conjunction with Rutgers–Camden’s Office of Civic Engagement, provide members and affiliates with opportunities to learn about cutting-edge research and initiatives from scholars, community activists and others engaged in urban research and/or urban change.

For directions to Rutgers–Camden, visit camden.rutgers.edu/resources/getting-to-campus.

Tom McLaughlin
Rutgers University–Camden
Editorial/Media Specialist
(856) 225-6545
thomas.mclaughlin@camden.rutgers.edu