Remembering Al Koeppe

December 6th, 2016 by New Jersey Future staff

All of us in the New Jersey Future community are saddened by the passing of our friend and advocate Al Koeppe.

“New Jersey had no greater champion for its cities than Al,” said New Jersey Future Executive Director Peter Kasabach. “Whether in the private sector at Bell Atlantic and PSE&G or in public service as chairman of the Economic Development Authority and as founder and later leader of the Newark Alliance, he was a voice of insight and integrity, ever the facilitator of wise investments and collaborative action. The many institutions he served are the richer for his tenure with them.”

New Jersey Future honored Mr. Koeppe with its 2016 Cary Edwards Leadership Award, citing his ability to convene leaders from business, government and community to foster sustainable economic development in New Jersey’s cities. The Newark Alliance, which he founded as a forum for Newark-based leaders from all sectors to develop achievable solutions to the issues affecting Newark’s growth, serves to this day as a unique model of community partnership that fosters pragmatic and sustainable solutions.

Mr. Koeppe was also cited for his work at the EDA to ensure that recipients of incentives make and uphold commitments to local investments and hiring, and to make the revitalization of New Jersey’s urban areas an economic priority. (The video above was produced for the Smart Growth Awards ceremony. Read Mr. Koeppe’s full Cary Edwards Leadership Award profile.)

We mourn the loss of a leader committed to the vitality of New Jersey’s urban areas, and we are grateful for the legacy he leaves to the cities he loved.