Actress and recording artist Queen Latifah is building an affordable housing development in Newark, New Jersey.
Latifah, a Newark native, praised her hometown in a commencement speech last May at the Newark campus of Rutgers University, saying she was “proud to be one of Newark’s own today. This is home.”
She is building a residential development in Newark with 20 townhouses and a rental apartment building with 76 units, including 60 market-rate units and 16 affordable units. Construction is expected to conclude by December 2021.
Eligibility to rent the affordable units will be based on the prospective tenant’s income. Market-rate rents will start at $1,800 a month.
Latifah is co-president of BlueSugar Corporation, which is working on the Newark residential development with GonSosa Development. [Ebony] – Mike Seemuth