A planned 107-unit affordable senior housing development in Trenton is moving forward with the help of a $54.3 million state tax credit award.
The New Jersey Economic Development Authority has approved the Aspire Program award for THA Senior, a four-story mixed-use development planned for 800 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in the city’s North Ward.
The project is being developed by the Trenton Housing Authority and People Restoring Communities on the 1.85-acre former site of Junior One Middle School. The school closed in 2007 and later fell into disrepair. A fire damaged the property in 2023, and the building was demolished in 2025.
Plans call for 107 one-bedroom apartments for residents ages 62 and older, along with a two-bedroom superintendent’s unit. The apartments will be restricted to households earning no more than 60% of the area median income.
The NJEDA award can cover up to 85% of the project’s total cost, with the tax credit capped at $54.3 million. The project is also receiving a $900,000 federal grant through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Choice Neighborhoods program and support through Low-Income Housing Tax Credits administered by the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency.
Construction is expected to take slightly more than two years.
In addition to housing, plans for the development include about 10,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space for community organizations. About 7,400 square feet is expected to be used for a day care center.
The project will also include a fitness room, community room, outdoor patio, walking paths, parking and playground equipment.
Programs planned for residents and the surrounding neighborhood include workforce development, senior services, education and youth support, financial empowerment and early learning.
Trenton Mayor W. Reed Gusciora said the project is part of broader efforts to redevelop the North Ward through the city and Trenton Housing Authority’s participation in the federal Choice Neighborhoods program.
Gusciora said the partnership recognizes that “rebuilding a neighborhood requires more than building housing.”
THA Senior will combine affordable senior apartments with early childhood education and other community services at the property, he said.
NJEDA Chief Executive Officer Evan Weiss said the development will expand affordable housing for older residents while also providing services for families and businesses in the surrounding community.
The property is less than a mile from the Maternal and Infant Health Innovation Center, another major development project underway in Trenton.
The Aspire Program provides tax credits intended to close financing gaps for residential, commercial and mixed-use development projects. The NJEDA has temporarily stopped accepting new Aspire applications while it develops a revised framework and criteria for the program.+
