NJ Smart Choices

Building the movement for smart land use
and transportation planning in New Jersey.

NJ Funding Programs

Please send feedback, suggestions for improvements and corrections of information to Juliette Michaelson (jmichaelson@pps.org).

Search results for Open space

EPA Programs
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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

From time to time, the EPA offers funding opportunities for communities trying to implement smart growth principles.

For more information:

Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program
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U.S. Department of Agriculture

The Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (FRPP) is a Federal program managed by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). The goal of the program is to protect farm and ranch lands that contain prime, unique, or statewide and locally important soils or historic and archaeological resources from conversion to non-agricultural uses. The program preserves valuable farm and ranch lands for future generations. USDA NRCS achieves this goal by working cooperatively with State, Tribal, and local governments and non-governmental organizations.

For more information:

Farmland Preservation Program
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NJ Department of Agriculture

The Farmland Preservation Program is administered by State Agricultural Development Committee. Under this program, farmland is preserved through the sale or donation of development easements (deed restrictions preventing the land from being developed for anything other than agriculture); fee simple land purchase; and eight-year preservation (in which landowners voluntarily restrict development on their land for a period of eight years in return for cost-sharing grants for soil and water conservation projects, as well as other benefits and protections).

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Green Acres Program
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NJ Department of Environmental Protection

The Green Acres Program serves as the real estate agent for the Department of Environmental Protection, acquiring land to become part of the system of state parks, forests, natural areas, and wildlife management areas. The Green Acres Program comprises four program areas: State Park and Open Space Acquisition, Local Governments and Nonprofit Funding, Stewardship and Legal Services, and Planning and Technical Assistance. In addition to preserving 1.2 million acres of open space and farmland, the program also provide assistance to urban and suburban municipal governments and nonprofit organizations to provide parks and outdoor recreation facilities, urban wildlife preserves and quality open spaces in our cities, suburbs and other developed communities.

For more information:

Local Finance Tools
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Municipal Governments
  • Special (Business) Improvement Districts: SIDs assess residents within set boundaries for additional services, such as park maintenance and public safety. They establish a partnership between property owners and businesses in downtown or commercial areas for the purpose of improving the business climate in a defined area. Impetus for the SID generally comes from business and property owners hoping to attract new customers by cleaning up sidewalks, improving parks, increasing lighting, etc. These business owners want better city services and are willing to pay for it -- within their neighborhood. In some places, they are willing to take on nongovernmental tasks, such as marketing, to supplement city services. There are currently an estimated 70 SIDs in the state of New Jersey. Refer to DCA's "SIDs: Loans & Grants" program for technical and financial assistance.
  • Tax Increment Financing: Tax increment financing can be used for a variety of purposes, including acquiring property to be resold at reduced prices and on-site improvements such as utilities, lights, repaving streets, and restoring neighborhood parks. TIF works like this: When a TIF plan is adopted, the assessed valuation of real property within a designated redevelopment area is frozen. Taxes are paid on the property at this base level while improvements to the area are made, new businesses are attracted, and property values rise. Typically, any increase in the assessed value of the property or additional sales tax revenues makes up the tax increment, which is then used to pay project costs or repay the bonds or other obligations that helped finance the project. By investing in a designated area, the TIF technique has aptly been described as a means of borrowing against the speculative gain that a project should bring.
  • Impact Fees: An impact fee is a one-time charge that private entrepreneurs, often developers, must pay to the local government in order to undertake their projects. In turn, the revenue from the impact fee finances public goods and services associated with the project, but which the developer would not provide voluntarily. Water and sewer lines, streets and bridges, and parks and recreational facilities are typical impact fee-funded projects.
  • User Fee Financing: Parking fees, dog tags, community college tuition, water bills, and park and recreation fees are just a few of the many different kinds of user fees collected by local governments. These funds can then be used to pay for transportation improvements, park maintenance and other municipal services.
  • Property Tax Financing: Perhaps because it is paid in a large lump sum check as opposed to small additions to each purchase, the property tax is the least popular of all state and local taxes. Yet they are an important source of revenue for local governments because they provide a steady source of revenue, less affected by downturns in the economy than either the sales or the income tax. In addition, property taxes are relatively easily administered at the local level, revenues can be accurately predicted, and the tax burden is fairly equitably distributed.

For more information:

Office of Smart Growth Planning Unit
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NJ Department of Community Affairs

Field representatives from DCA's Office of Smart Growth Planning Unit assist local and county government efforts to implement the State Plan, providing field support to locals and the general public on many planning issues, including master plans, design standards and resource protection.

For more information:

Planning Incentive Grant Program
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NJ Department of Agriculture

The State Agriculture Development Committee provides grants to municipalities or counties for the purchase of development easements to permanently protect large blocks of reasonably contiguous farmland in project areas they have identified.

For more information:

Recreational Trails Program
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NJ Department of Environmental Protection

The Recreational Trails Program provides financial assistance for developing and maintaining trails and trail facilities. Trails can be for non-motorized, multi-use and motorized purposes. Land on which a trail facility is to be funded must be public land or private land with an easement for public recreational use. Funding levels vary from year to year depending upon a federal appropriation, but maximum grant award is $25,000.

Funds may be used for: the maintenance of existing trails and trail facilities; the construction of new trails, including the acquisition of property and equipment; as well as state administrative costs related to the program. The program, including solicitation of projects and project selection, is administered by the Office of Natural Lands Management in the Department of Environmental Protection. State, county, local governments, and non-profit organizations are eligible for funds.

For more information:

Smart Future Planning Grants
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NJ Department of Community Affairs

These grants are intended to advance the legislative goals of the State Planning Act by helping local jurisdictions to plan for growth. The program is designed to promote comprehensive urban redevelopment that is sensitive to community needs, as well as efficient investment in and use of public infrastructure, affordable housing, environmental, natural, historic and cultural resource protection, and farmland preservation. Smart Future Planning Grants can be used to create centers-based plans, master plans, economic development or redevelopment plans, regional strategic plans, zoning or site plan ordinances, or other planning documents. This program is administered by the Office of Smart Growth at the Department of Community Affairs.

For more information:

Smart Growth Planning Grants for Municipalities
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Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions

Through the Smart Growth program, ANJEC (the Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions) will award 1-to-1 matching reimbursement grants of up to $20,000 to municipalities for local or regional plans, ordinances, studies or document reviews that protect natural resources and establish the land use patterns envisioned in the State Plan. Suitable projects include, but are not limited to, the following: natural resource inventories (NRI); open space plans and preservation programs; master plan conservation elements; brownfields or revitalization plans that include new open space; bicycle/pedestrian network plans; capacity studies including build-out analysis, septic capacity and groundwater supply; master plan and zoning ordinance revisions that incorporate smart growth concepts including clustering, downzoning, conservation design and transfer of development rights (TDR); critical areas protection ordinances for steep slopes, stream corridors, wellhead areas; planning tasks that help obtain Plan Endorsement from the State Planning Commission; planning that will achieve affordable housing within the municipality while protecting the environment; intermunicipal/regional plans to protect common resources (greenways, open space, etc.).

For more information:

Transfer of Development Rights Bank / TDR Grants
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NJ Department of Agriculture

TDR programs are designed to encourage a shift in growth away from agricultural, environmentally sensitive or open space regions of a municipality. Landowners in areas where land use is restricted are allowed to sell their development rights - or development credits. Purchasers of these credits then may use them to build elsewhere in a designated growth area at a higher density than is normally allowed in a town's zoning ordinance.

The Bank provides planning assistance grants to municipalities for costs incurred in preparing transfer of development rights (TDR) ordinances. The Bank also has the authority to purchase, or provide matching funds for the purchase of 80 percent of the value of development potential, as well as provide grants to municipal TDR banks.

Implementing a transfer of development rights program requires a major planning initiative on the part of the participating municipality. Before any credits can transfer from landowner to developer, certain planning and implementation documents must be adopted. More information can be found at OSG's TDR webpage.

For more information:

Transportation Enhancements
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NJ Department of Transportation

The Transportation Enhancements program funds community-based projects that expand travel choices and enhance the transportation experience by improving the cultural, historic, aesthetic and environmental aspects of the transportation infrastructure. Several types of transportation-related projects are eligible, including: provisions for pedestrians and bicycles; safety and educational programs for pedestrians and bicyclists; scenic or historic highway programs; landscaping and other scenic beautification; historic preservation and site acquisition; rehabilitation of historic transportation buildings; preservation of abandoned railway corridors; control and removal of outdoor billboards; archeological planning; environmental mitigation of stormwater; establishment of transportation-related museums.

Any municipal or county government, non-profit organization or State agency may submit a Transportation Enhancement application. However, the municipal governing body in which the project is located must support it. All applications from local agencies and non-profit civic groups should receive municipal governing body endorsement. Regional projects should receive the endorsement of all affected counties and municipalities. A multi-discipline Committee reviews the projects and makes recommendations to the Commissioner of Transportation who makes final selections. Designated "Centers" receive additional consideration since acknowledged consistency with the goals of the State Development and Redevelopment Plan usually increases a project proposal's chance of success. This program is federally funded, and is administered by the NJDOT Division of Local Aid and Economic Development. In FY 2004, more than $11.5M was given to 27 New Jersey towns.

For more information: