The West Side neighborhood, located on the western edge of Jersey City (See Map 11) is one of the oldest and most densely populated parts of the City. It was, at one time, home to several industrial users and still has a number of large industrial operations, primarily along the southern edge of Westside Avenue.
Several traffic interchanges define the area geographically and esthetically. These include the Route 440/Lincoln Highway/Communipaw Avenue intersection and the Route 440/ Charlotte Circle/Pulaski Skyway-Route 1/9 confluence of roads on the area’s northern tip.
West Side’s major retail center is located on West Side Avenue. Other retail corridors include one along Communipaw Avenue and another along Kennedy Boulevard. Neither has experienced any significant facade renovations or infrastructure repair in decades.
New Jersey City University (NJCU), located along the southern edge of the area on Culver Avenue, has been a major engine of economic renewal. It is redeveloping the University’s campus and has purchased properties in the vicinity of the campus for mixed-use development including student housing.
The West Side area is home to Lincoln Park, the only County Park in Jersey City. The Park is one of the defining features of the area, as is St. Mary’s Cemetery located on Westside Avenue and Montgomery Street. Housing in the area ranges from single-family Victorian homes surrounding Lincoln Park to pre-war high-rise dwellings to two-three story row houses interspersed with detached single-family homes. Rental units account for about two-thirds of all housing in the area.