Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony Celebrates Award-Winning 1425 Teaneck Road Project

​​Local officials and partner organizations joined leaders of The Bright Side Family and Age-Friendly Teaneck at a ribbon-cutting ceremony this month to celebrate the opening of a new affordable senior apartment building and community center in Teaneck.

Elizabeth Davis, executive director of The Bright Side Family, thanked the Township of Teaneck and the many organizations that joined forces to ensure the success of the innovative project at 1425 Teaneck Road.

“Today, we celebrate the opening of a building that has created more than just 40 new homes,” Davis said at the Nov. 1 ceremony. “It’s created a securer future for these new tenants, who will be able to age-in-place in an affordable setting with on-site health, social services and aging-in-place supports. 

“It also has created a new community gathering space, one that will benefit older adults from throughout the community and foster new intergenerational ties,” she added.

The Bright Side Family, the nonprofit that leads the Age-Friendly Teaneck initiative, partnered with The Alpert Group, Monarch Housing Associates, Thriven Design, C&C Construction Management, and the Township to develop the 5-story building with 40 units of affordable senior housing and a ground-floor community center on the municipal-owned parcel at 1425 Teaneck Road.

“Throughout these last few years, what has stood out to me the most has been the commitment of support from the Township of Teaneck,” Davis said. “While many towns in New Jersey are still actively opposing the construction of affordable housing, Teaneck officials dedicated municipal land and resources to making sure this project could succeed, recognizing the dire need to create more affordable housing for older adults.”

Many government agencies and non-profit providers – including the Township Social Services department, Holy Name Medical Center, Jewish Family and Children’s Services of Northern New Jersey and Bergen County Division of Senior Services – will be providing wellness services and informational programming in the building. 

The community collaborations fueling this effort are one of the reasons that 1425 Teaneck Road was recently named  “Project of the Year” by the Supportive Housing Association of New Jersey, which will present the award at a Nov. 15 conference.

In making the award announcement, the Supportive Housing Association commented that the project “exemplifies what is possible when a municipality enthusiastically supports the creation of supportive housing.” 

In another acknowledgement of the community spirit and determination that went into the development of 1425 Teaneck Road, the building and the community center will be dedicated to the memory of the late Teaneck Mayor Lizette Parker.

A portrait of Mayor Parker, who was a social worker and champion of senior citizen causes as well as of the Northeast Teaneck neighborhood where this building is located, will be hung in the building at a dedication ceremony to be held on a still-to-be-determined date. 

With support from its partners, Age-Friendly Teaneck began hosting some informational events at the community center in October, with the goal of building out a calendar of social, education and intergenerational activities in subsequent months.

 “We intend for this community center to be shaped by input from residents of the building and from older residents throughout Teaneck,” said EJ Vizzi, director of senior programs for The Bright Side Family. “We will be distributing surveys to gauge interest and rely on the input of our Age-Friendly Teaneck Advisory Board, which is made up of a cross-section of older residents, civic leaders and community providers.”

The hope is that the community center will be the site of new intergenerational programs. Age-Friendly Teaneck’s leaders are working with administrators of Teaneck Public Schools to develop creative community service opportunities for students to volunteer with and for older adults and to establish an Age-Friendly Teaneck Club at Teaneck High School.

The center will also be the lead site for AFT’s Exploring Careers in Aging internship program, with the hope of also expanding that program to include internship opportunities for local college students.

“We want to introduce this center as a place for older adults to make connections with one another and with young people in the community,” Vizzi said. “It is gratifying to know we now have a permanent gathering space from which to anchor our future age-friendly endeavors.” 

Anyone interested in receiving announcements about programs to be held at the community center should email [email protected] to be placed on our email blast list, or call us at 201-530-6756.

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