Jonathan Sinay Building wins Adaptive Reuse Transformation Award at 2025 Governor’s Conference

Thriven Design is happy to congratulate the Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey and the entire project team for the Jonathan Sinay Building on its selection as the 2025 recipient of the Adaptive Reuse Transformation Award at this year’s Governor’s Conference on Housing and Economic Development. The award recognizes projects that creatively repurpose existing structures, preserve historical and architectural significance while contributing to economic growth and community revitalization.

The honor was conferred during a brunch reception on the final day of the conference. Jennifer Dubrow Weiss, Chief Executive Officer, Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey and The Jewish Community Foundation, Inc., accepted the award on behalf of the Jonathan Sinay Building project team.

The Jonathan Sinay Building, which opened in November, 2024, is the third phase of an ambitious development project undertaken by the Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey (JFSNJ) to create a holistic, supportive campus for seniors and adults with Autism spectrum disorders to live, socialize  and build life skills.  JFSNJ partnered with Pennrose on Phases I & II, which created 160 units of affordable housing, with a vision to create an intergenerational model combining seniors and younger adults on the autism spectrum.  The vision for the campus is made complete by the adaptive reuse of an existing gymnasium annex into a unique life-skills center on the Weinberg Campus where both residents and others with a variety of special needs can receive services and training to help them thrive in the greater community.

The creation of the Jonathan Sinay Building involved the preservation and adaptive reuse of an aging multipurpose building into a new kind of community center that would allow residents of the senior and supportive apartment community on site, Weinberg Commons, to engage in a wider range of social and skill-building experiences, all within a convenient, supervised, and self-contained setting. The 22,000 sf facility would be home to two cornerstone programs: The Aleph Adult Day Center and the Jewish Family and Children’s Service (JFCS) To Our Positive Success (TOPS) Day Habilitation Program.

Thriven Design’s architecture, engineering, and interior design plan transformed the underutilized campus building into a vibrant interior “Main Street,” with hair salon, coffee shop, and dry goods store to provide socialization and job skills training opportunities for community members. An outdoor area features adult and handicap accessible exercise equipment, walking paths, and a “fresh air cafe”. Not only are the destinations within the “downtown” an opportunity for program participants to gather and socialize, they also offer special needs residents and others from the outlying community the opportunity to participate in work and skills training in retail, cosmetology, and the culinary arts.

The adaptive reuse of this site enabled JFSNJ to fully realize its campus vision for a community where disabled and non-disabled residents would interact, mingle, and create a mutually-beneficial inclusive neighborhood. Phases I and II of the campus development involved the creation of Weinberg Commons, two three-story, 80-unit apartment buildings that were built in two sequential phases over a four-year period. Weinberg Commons provides 128 units of independent, affordable living for local area seniors, as well as 32 units dedicated specifically to adults with special needs.

Each unit offers Energy Star-rated appliances, and the complete project is built with Energy Star version 3 standards for home construction.

The Weinberg Campus has been recognized for its design and community achievements. In 2021, CSH, Corporation for Supportive Housing, selected Weinberg for its Innovation Award; in 2020 the Supportive Housing Association of New Jersey selected it as a Project of the Year.

“When I think about what makes Jewish South Jersey such a special place, I always come back to the notion of inclusivity and how our community is driven by the need to make it a place where everyone feels welcome,” said JFSNJ CEO Jennifer Dubrow Weiss at the ribbon cutting for the Jonathan Sinay Building. “The Jonathan Sinay Building and the programs it houses are a testament to this and demonstrate how we can provide opportunities that bring people together and foster change. I am so proud of the work being done to ensure the older adult and special needs populations will enjoy these facilities for years to come.”

The Jonathan Sinay Building’s selection as 2025 winner of the Adaptive Reuse Transformation Award is Thriven Design’s second consecutive Adaptive Reuse Transformation Award. In total, Thriven Design’s work has been honored with 16 Governor’s Conference Awards:

2025: Jonathan Sinay Building, Adaptive Reuse Transformation Award

2024: Village at Harmony Garden, Adaptive Reuse Transformation Award

2024: Autumn Ridge at Manitou Park, Leading Neighborhood Revitalization Partnership Award

2023: Barclay Place Apartments, Excellence in Housing Development Award

2019: Dr. Lena Frances Apartments, Leading Neighborhood Revitalization Partnership Award

2019: Camp Salute, Leading Supportive Housing Development Award

2017: Riverfront Village at Pennsauken, Housing Revitalization Award

2014: Dr. Walter G. Alexander Village (Phases I & II), Leading Housing Revitalization Award (Rental)

2014: Manitou Park Neighborhood Revitalization, Leading Housing Revitalization Award (Homeownership)

2014: Van Sciver Supportive Housing, Leading Supportive Housing Development through Creative Partnerships Award

2009: Sharp Road Family Housing, Outstanding Affordable Housing Development Award

2006: Faison Mews, Outstanding Green/Sustainable Development Award

2004: Metropolitan Inn & J. Frank Budd Building, Outstanding Affordable Housing Development Award

2002: Westport Homes / Elizabethport HOPE VI, Outstanding Affordable Housing Development Award

2001: Eastampton Town Center, Outstanding Green/Sustainable Design Award

1995: Fairmount Apartments, Project of the Year

To learn more about Thriven Design’s affordable mutifamily, affordable senior, and affordable supportive projects, visit: https://thriven.design/expertise/