with Matthew Hersh of the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey
Homelessness in New Jersey increased 24% from 2023 to 2024. 30% of people reported as homeless have been so for more than a year. Yet millions of dollars have been diverted from New Jersey’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund, just when it’s needed the most. Other proposed laws would make it impossible for unhoused people to sleep on public property.
Matthew Hersh from the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey will tell us about the causes of homelessness, recent changes to laws that make it harder to survive, and what we can do to help our neighbors and make real change in our communities.
Since 1989, the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey has worked to improve the environment for the work of community development corporations (CDCs), and to strengthen their capacity to create housing and revitalize distressed neighborhoods throughout New Jersey. The Network is a statewide association of over 250 non-profit housing and community development corporations, individuals, professional organizations, and prominent New Jersey corporations that support the creation of housing choices and economic opportunities for low- and moderate-income community residents.
The Main Library on Plainfield Avenue next to the Edison Train Station. The library offers an extensive children’s room, a Meeting Room/Event Space, and a dedicated Maker Space.
