Working since 1998 with the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, Procida has brought 14 residential developments to Atlantic City. The partnership has evolved over time, but for the most recent projects, Carolina Homes and EastWind, CRDA acquired and contributed the land and provided oversight, while Procida designed, built and sells the homes.

The newest development, EastWind, includes 132 new, reasonably priced twin and town homes targeted to casino workers, empty nesters and second homeowners. Casino Connection talked to Senior Vice President Christine Procida and Senior Project Manager Richard Jinks about the growth of residential development in Atlantic City.

Casino Connection: What attracted Procida Homes to Atlantic City?

Christine Procida: For about 25 years, we’ve been doing affordable homes in areas such as the Bronx and Newark. We worked with the New York City Housing Partnership and built 2,000 units that transformed a lot of South Bronx neighborhoods. In Atlantic City, we’ve built 250 homes, and we see a lot of the same promise here.

And some of the same problems?

I don’t see them as problems. I came here 12 years ago, and all I saw was promise and opportunity.

How do you target places in need of redevelopment?

New York City was looking for redevelopment, so we were welcomed there. What we don’t do is go into rural communities, start subdividing and taking down trees and meeting with a lot of opposition. That’s not fun, that’s not rewarding. But when you see a city like New York, which has the New York City Housing Partnership, and this particular area, which has CRDA, with public agencies that are going to work together with profit developers—that combination works. If the partnership doesn’t exist, we can’t play in that game.

Atlantic City is in the midst of a renaissance, but problems still exist—we don’t even have a major supermarket. What do you tell people about the advantages of living in an emerging community?

I’m going to use the Bronx as an example. We put up the first 300 homes and then said, “There’s no neighborhood shopping here.” So we started building little strip centers and we put the bodegas in, and a couple of other smaller 5,000-square-foot stores. Fast forward, now you’ve got Pathmark coming in with 25,000-square-foot stores. If those supermarkets don’t see the housing, they will typically not come.

What do you say about buying a home in the current financial climate?

If you’re a first-time homebuyer, there is no better time, at least with the product that we’re offering. Number one, we negotiate our lenders up-front and we protect our buyers by making sure they aren’t overextended. We even qualify people at interest rates beyond what they are right now, so there’s no problem a year from now.

How can renters tell if they’re financially equipped to buy?

I keep it very simple. If a couple is making a total income of $50,000, $25,000 each, I want them to be able to buy my home. That’s where we have the smaller footprints. Does that mean someone who’s making $45,000 can’t get in the door? Well, we’ve got a couple of new products on a 40-year term. Depending on how their credit is, we can get lower interest rates. A lady just walked off the street who recently moved here, and she and her brother are looking for a place. I said, “Don’t rent. Do you make 25 grand? Does your brother? Let me get you a house. Let’s see what you’ve got.” The only way you know you qualify is if you pick up that phone. If a person makes $60,000 but has $10,000 in debt, they may have a really high interest rate.

Richard Jinks: A woman that rented in the neighborhood here (near EastWind) dragged her husband in because she wanted to see what we were selling. No intention of buying. They both work at Trump. They both work in the maintenance-custodial section and they never thought that they could buy a home. They just wanted to see. Our salesperson said, “Well, sit down. How much do you make?” They went through the numbers and now they own a home. They never, ever thought they could purchase a home. They thought they were locked into renting for the rest of their life.

And if you have bad credit?

Procida: You may have to do a little more work. You may have to come back next year.

What’s the best thing about living in Atlantic City?

This is the best-kept secret around, as far as I’m concerned. I could leave here and walk three blocks to the beach. I can go to Gardner’s Basin. I can go to some of the best restaurants, enjoy the best shopping. It’s city life.

More Featured Articles