NEWARK, N.J. — Bradley Court residents will get a send-off Friday. A farewell event at the West Ward public housing complex runs from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. It offers food, music, free school supplies and on-site help for families relocating as the complex is redeveloped. Saturday is the rain date.
Organizers are billing it two ways: Bradley Court Farewell Resource Day and the Munsters Back to School Giveaway Concert, a reunion for the neighborhood. Organizer Muta El Amin said the point is to celebrate the people leaving.
“So as they get displaced, we wanted to make sure that we honor them the best way possible,” El Amin said in a voice message to West Ward Beans.
Bradley Court opened in 1940 off Munn Avenue. In December 2025, Newark Housing Authority Executive Director Leonard Spicer presented a plan for the complex to the Newark Municipal Council. Families from 10 buildings would be consolidated into five with reliable heat, and parts of the property would be rebuilt with new units no taller than five stories. Spicer said the authority would keep a master list guaranteeing residents a right to return.
The plan comes as the authority carries an $88 million backlog in capital needs across an aging portfolio. Council members pressed Spicer at the same meeting about tenant complaints over lost heat and water, mold and uncleaned common areas.
The lineup Friday reads like a block party. There will be hot dogs and hamburgers, bouncy houses, games, and music from DJ PrinceCannon. Kids can pick up free bookbags and school supplies.
Behind the party is a resource line. Tables and kiosks will connect residents with job training, housing assistance, financial literacy classes, health services and voter registration. El Amin said the aim is to make sure families who remain are treated humanely as the complex winds down.
Young people are a priority. Some kids still linger around the property with no clear place to go, and organizers want to give them one.
He put it plainly: “Make sure that we provide an alternative for them, you know?”
The Match My Love fundraiser raised a little over $2,000, and organizers will hand it to local youth. In El Amin’s words: “It’s gonna be a dope situation.”
Partners include Khalil Tutt of New Direction and the I Am Pryclss Jegna program, along with the individual donors who gave to the campaign.
For the families leaving, take pride in accepting the resources and know that you are not alone in this journey. We walk with you and your families! Today you get to say goodbye on your own terms.
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