In preparing to write this article about the importance of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority’s (NJEDA) funding and investment in the arts, I visited their website to learn more about their programming.
The bevy of readily available information makes it clear just how much the NJEDA is doing to spark economic development in New Jersey through innovative strategies that are serving as a blueprint of leadership for the rest of the country. Thanks to an illuminating chat with Barbara Bickart, the Senior Advisor Arts & Culture of the NJEDA, this article intends to break down some of these support programs by focusing on the state agency’s efforts to utilize the arts sector as a catalyst for economic vitality at both the local and state levels.
Before we can understand the current programming, it is important to understand the mission of the Authority. Their statement reads: “[NJEDA] grows the state’s economy and increases equitable access to opportunity by supporting high-quality job creation, catalyzing investment, and fostering vibrant, inclusive community development. NJEDA works in partnership with a diverse range of stakeholders to implement programs and initiatives that improve quality of life, enhance economic vitality, and strengthen New Jersey’s long-term economic competitiveness.”
They further clarify their vision by stating that their goal is “to make New Jersey a national model for sustainable and equitable economic growth by investing in communities, fostering innovation, and supporting industries with high-quality jobs in the State.”
This is where Bickart comes in. It is her responsibility to foster this innovation by building bridges and encouraging cross-sector collaborations to leverage the transformative power of the arts as a means to bolster the state’s economy. If that sounds like a mouthful, that’s because it is. This is a hefty responsibility and one that is rather new to the agency. While the NJEDA was first established in 1974 by then-Governor Brendan Byrne, the aforementioned position was established just over two years ago in 2023, under Governor Phil Murphy’s administration.
Bickart, a lifelong artist, was brought in to help guide the process of activating the arts sector in partnership with government and business. She provided a brief overview for me in which she said, “The NJEDA is filled with incredibly smart, innovative people, and it is our job to think, ‘how do we take our niche expertise and figure out how to lift the state in terms of economic stimulus, and create more jobs?’” Bickart’s expertise as an interdisciplinary artist and former teaching artist affords her the connections to keep abreast of the needs of the arts sector. She considers her job two-fold, focusing on both outreach and inreach. Outreach is the cultivation of partnerships among organizations within the arts sector, whereas inreach is sharing information from artists on the ground with coworkers at the NJEDA and from there, creating a joint path forward.
Bickart, whose influence reaches our everyday lives, speaks with an incredible passion. I found her ardor for the work reassuring.
“Artmaking is at the center of everything I’ve done because it’s such a powerful language that connects people,” said Bickart.
That same sentiment can be seen in the NJEDA’s shift in focus towards utilizing and collaborating with the arts sector. This vision was anchored in several new arts-related grants and tax credit opportunities developed over the last several years. Among the first ventures into this realm was the amazingly successful Film and Digital Media Tax Credit Program, which has boosted production in the state by 200% as of 2025, having brought in $402 million to date.
The New Jersey Motion Picture and Television Commission (NJMPTVC), which is now part of the NJEDA, is a reflection of the Authority’s diverse and inclusive mission under Governor Murphy’s leadership and makes clear that arts and culture are key to the economy’s growth.
Bickart’s focus, under the leadership of Tai Cooper, Chief Community Development Officer, has been a key figure in the Activation, Revitalization, and Transformation (A.R.T.) program, as well as the recently launched Cultural Facilities Expansion (CAFE) Program. Both programs have potential for widespread impact that will help stimulate economic growth and community revitalization.
A.R.T. Phase I, which launched in June 2023, amplified the idea of creative placemaking, investing $5 million of federal American Rescue Plan funds into Newark and Atlantic City to support post-pandemic recovery. One of the grant recipients was the Newark Alliance which took six arts and culture-based festivals that had previously lived independently, and encouraged them to join forces and collaborate as one entity. Thanks to the benefit of the A.R.T. program, they are now known as Festivals United Newark. This is a prime example of how the NJEDA is both encouraging and incentivizing partnerships that lead to increased efficiency of resources, benefiting the entire ecosystem.
A.R.T. Phase II, which is funded at $15 million, launched months later and remained open through the end of 2024. Phase II expanded across the state to 31 eligible municipalities, specifically communities that had been hurt by reduced commuter traffic as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Only nonprofits were eligible to apply (sans application fee), and the proposed projects must have been arts-based, with partnerships being incentivized in the scoring process. The application round has closed, and the winners will be announced later this year, with rollouts happening over the next two years or so. Over the course of the project period, the goal is to see an increase in commuter traffic through major rail stations across the state, alongside surges in local economic activity, especially in downtown areas. The NJEDA is expanding on what we already know to be true through data like the Arts and Economic Prosperity Study 6: when government invests in the arts, every adjacent sector benefits, and communities thrive.
The CAFE Program falls under the NJEDA’s Real Estate department. The intention is to build facilities across the state that will act as large-scale arts and cultural venues, open to the public. For example, theaters and museums would qualify for this program. The amount of tax credits an applicant receives is 100 percent of the eligible project costs and is subject to a statutory cap of $75 million, with a minimum of $5 million. Two rounds of applications have already opened and closed.
As echoed in the mention of incentivized partnerships on all grant applications, Bickart reiterates that this notion of collaboration is key to the NJEDA’s new mission. “Partnership, partnership, partnership is the way forward for the arts and culture folks to sustain themselves. The days of thinking ‘we’re just going to keep writing grants and working alone in our bubble’ are over. But if you have an arts organization that partners with a corporation, like Audible, for example, or a government agency, much more becomes possible!”
For a chance to speak with them directly, Bickart and Cooper will be leading an upcoming panel on September 16th at the 2025 Governor's Conference on Housing and Economic Development in Atlantic City to further break down these programs and explain the importance of cross-sector collaboration.
The panel breakdown reads, “The arts in New Jersey contribute deep social and economic impact, representing a $27.3 billion industry and 138,000 jobs in 2022, with nonprofits contributing $116.9 million in total tax revenue to federal, state, and local governments. This interactive session brings together leaders in the arts and economic development, as well as developers who are leveraging arts and cultural partnerships, such as opportunities presented by the state’s thriving film production sector, to revitalize communities throughout the state. Learn how to partner with the arts and deepen the economic ripple effect of your projects for all community stakeholders.”
