Congressman Andrews is working to reverse public policies that encourage sprawl, eating up open space and destroying formerly vital civic centers and neighborhoods.  For decades, taxpayers have picked up most of the costs for sewers, roads and schools while prime farmland has been paved over.  Andrews outlined a five-part strategy to work with local communities to provide flexibility, options and incentives to enhance the quality of life in our region's communities: 
 * improving public transportation
 * revitalizing and cleaning-up existing industrial centers 
 * strengthening local downtown business districts
 * preserving open space
 * sustaining the housing stock of existing residential areas 

"Through the help of specific federal initiatives in these areas, including the federal Community Development Block Grant, the EPA's brownfield clean-up program, a reduction in the estate tax targeted to preserve open space, mortgage rules which promote homeownership in existing residential areas, support for public transportation, and cooperative planning by our municipal and regional governments, South Jersey can preserve and build livable communities," Andrews said.

Andrews traveled throughout South Jersey to applaud localities that are taking advantage of federal assistance to combat sprawl and maintain livable4 communities.  Andrews first traveled to Woodbury to tour the recently renovated business district to highlight the success of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program.  The CDBG is the principle federal program that works in partnership with municipalities to rejuvenate previously blighted business districts to retain current businesses and to attract new ones.  In Congress, Andrews has strongly supported fully funding the CDBG program, which last year brought more than $4.5 million in CDBG funding to Camden, Gloucester, and Burlington counties.

Andrews then traveled up the street to highlight his successful efforts to help Woodbury redevelop a previously abandoned military surplus building, to provide a future residence for senior citizens.  Andrews, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, convinced the U.S. Department of Defense to declare this site fit for civilian use so that town officials could allow private developers to purchase and renovate the building.  This facility will enable seniors to live in close proximity to public transportation as well as with in walking distance to a bustling shopping district.

Speaking to an undergraduate class on Civic Responsibilities at Rutgers University in Camden, Andrews outlined the five elements of his comprehensive plan to cultivate livable communities, and advocated several specific solutions for which he is fighting in Congress.  Andrews is working to combat a major cause of blight on formerly-thriving neighborhoods: the problem faced by people who sell their home for less than the value of the outstanding mortgage (known as "underwater mortgages").  Andrews has written a bill to ease the burden of homeowners faced with such "short sales," by exempting from taxation any mortgage amount that is forgiven by the lender, thus keeping property values from spiraling downward and destroying the entire neighborhood.  Andrews has also worked with Fannie Mae to promote a reduction in mortgage rates for homeowners that live in close proximity to public transportation to reduce the amount of traffic on our roadways.  Andrews supports reducing the federal estate tax, to prevent farmers from having to sell their land to developers, thus reducing sprawl and preserving open space land for agricultural use. 

Later this morning, Congressman Andrews toured the "Steed Site," an abandoned toxic industrial site in the City of Camden, to illustrate his efforts to revitalize industrial areas by fighting for federal "Brownfields Clean-up" funding.  "Taxpayers save money when we clean-up brownfields.  By taking a long-term view, all should realize that taxpayers don't lose when we spend money to clean-up these brownfields, they win," Andrews remarked.  "The additional taxes that businesses would pay if they occupied these vacant sites would more than cover the cost of the clean-up."  Andrews has written two bills to provide grant and loan funds to clean up brownfields, turn them into useful real estate, and then pay for the clean-ups with the future tax revenues from the new businesses that use the newly redeveloped sites.  Andrews has also worked to increase the level of EPA funding from the federal government to clean up abandoned, environmentally hazardous industrial sites in order to attract new businesses, which reduces the need for sprawling industrial expansion into previously undeveloped areas.

Andrews concluded his day learning about ways to improve the Community Development Block Grant with a group of South Jersey Mayors and other municipal officials.  Andrews invited representatives from each municipality in Camden, Gloucester and Burlington counties, to share strategies on using the federal program to sustain their communities.