NJ Gets Millions in HUD Grant Money [AUDIO]

The Garden state is getting 5 million dollars in grant money from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development - to expand and develop economic opportunities in 13 Counties where significant infrastructure already exists.

The goal of the Sustainable Communities grants is to help communities and regions improve their economic competitiveness by connecting housing with good jobs, quality schools and transportation.

During a ceremony at a construction site in New Brunswick, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan announced the Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant award to the North Jersey Sustainable Communities Consortium. 27 Jersey communities and organizations will receive Community Challenge grants and 29 regional areas will receive Regional Planning grants.

Jersey U.S. Senator Bob Menendez says the grant money means "we'll be able to plan the future of the Garden state - working with local communities to ensure that we maximize our potential to grow our economy, create jobs and create communities where people will want to live and work at…when you look at parts of North and Central Jersey - it presents quite a challenge - I mean it's among the most densely populated part not only of the state but the nation."

He says the question is "how do you maximize on what you have, how do you make the most of it…how do you create the jobs of now, and create the economic opportunity for the future? How do you create communities where people will have a place to call home, and grow their families, and how do you have our residents spend less time in traffic and being more productive at work- or having more quality time with their families? All of that comes together by taking advantage of our great cities, that already have a lot of infrastructure and transportation connections - and maximizing it in an intelligent way."

Menendez adds "there is no question that wherever there is a major transportation connection - that you will see growth along that transportation connection - it just makes common sense - less cars, less sitting in traffic, more time with family, greater access to jobs - it all comes together."

The grant money will be distributed by the Rutgers University Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy in New Brunswick.