Four years after helping launch Restrepo & Associates, James Barnett is stepping into a larger leadership role at the affordable housing and community development firm. Barnett has been promoted to Vice President and will oversee the company’s affordable housing initiatives across New Jersey, including a growing pipeline of mixed-income homeownership projects in Jersey City and South Jersey.
For founder John E. Restrepo, the promotion represents both a leadership transition and the next stage of a professional relationship that began with the company itself. “James has been with me since the inception of our organization,” Restrepo said. “He is the future of affordable housing and community development.”
Among the projects Barnett will help guide is 62 Sackett Street in Jersey City, where the firm recently secured $15 million in financing for a planned 40-unit condominium development. The mixed-income project will serve households earning between approximately $75,000 and $150,000 annually.
The company is also advancing plans for 311 Ocean Avenue in Jersey City’s Greenville neighborhood. Restrepo & Associates has secured the 17,000-square-foot site and plans to develop more than 50 mixed-income and affordable condominium units there.
Together, the projects reflect the firm’s broader focus on creating opportunities for residents to own homes and build equity, particularly in communities experiencing rapid development and rising housing costs.
Barnett believes homeownership needs to play a larger role in addressing the housing crisis.
“True progress is achieved through the empowerment of families through homeownership, enabling them to reap the benefits of economic growth rather than just the developers,” Barnett said.
That approach can already be seen in the firm’s Linden Street Homes project in Salem County. The development transformed 10 abandoned properties on a distressed block into newly constructed, affordably priced homes.
According to the company, the completed homes attracted buyers from throughout New Jersey while returning long-vacant properties to productive use. Barnett views the project as an example of how municipalities, particularly in South Jersey, can use vacant land and abandoned housing to attract residents, create homeownership opportunities, and strengthen local economies.
In addition to developing its own projects, Restrepo & Associates works with nonprofits, housing authorities and for-profit organizations seeking to create or preserve affordable housing throughout New Jersey.
Barnett and a team of two project managers recently helped secure a $1.8 million award for the East Orange Housing Authority and a $2 million award for New Brunswick Tomorrow. The funding will support affordable housing initiatives being pursued by both organizations.
Restrepo brings more than 25 years of affordable housing and community development experience to the firm, including his previous work with Garden State Episcopal Community Development Corporation in Jersey City.
As Barnett assumes greater responsibility for the company’s day-to-day operations and project pipeline, Restrepo will step back to chair the Board of Directors and focus on strategic growth and investments.
“As we enter this next chapter, I am fully confident in James’s ability to lead the company with compassion and innovation,” Restrepo said.
With projects underway in both North and South Jersey, the transition places Barnett at the center of the firm’s efforts to expand mixed-income housing and homeownership opportunities across the state.
More information about Restrepo & Associates and its development and consulting services is available on the company’s website.
