GCDN is delighted to present the newest member to join our network: Newark’s New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC).

The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) is the anchor cultural institution for the City of Newark and the State of New Jersey. It delights audiences with world-class and diverse performances, nurtures students through comprehensive arts education programs, and engages the local community with free events and festivals across the city, the county, and the state.

In many ways, the opening of NJPAC in 1997 spurred the evolution of downtown Newark from a purely business district to a true downtown with a residential community. NJPAC continued driving change in 2018 with the opening of the first new construction market-rate high rise residential tower to be built in Newark in 60 years, One Theater Square, across from the Arts Center.

Now, NJPAC is masterplanning the rest of the surrounding acreage and has plans to build a new, walkable street, an education and community center, new residential (including among the first opportunities for urban home ownership in our neighborhood), other cultural assets, and green space. With this project, NJPAC has the opportunity to build an accessible, inclusive, dynamic, and unique 24-7 arts and entertainment district in Newark’s burgeoning downtown.