Brendan Gill, Commissioner, Essex County
In an interview with Invest:, Brendan Gill, commissioner of Essex County, discussed the programs designed to support the county’s businesses and growing population. “The county of Essex alone is roughly an $800 million entity, and all that money is spent, by and large, on businesses and people within the county,” Gill said.
What recent milestones have most impacted Essex County?
I am approaching this question from a few different perspectives. I have been a member of our board of commissioners for over a decade now. I have also spent time both in the public and private sectors, including working for two U.S. senators, working in state government, as well as running my firm in public affairs and digital media. I am a small business owner in the county of Essex, having the opportunity to serve as one of our legislators at the county government level. Here, we have a county that continues to grow in areas like healthcare, social services, finance, insurance, scientific innovation, and manufacturing. These are all the underpinnings of the county’s economy. The county is anchored by the state’s largest city, Newark, and we’re also close to New York City. So, Essex County is subject to the trends we’re seeing in both New York and Newark. The tri-state economy, in particular, drives much of the economy here. We’ve had decent and sustainable growth in healthcare, educational services, and retail trade. We see a need for additional market-rate and affordable residential housing, but our residential market, and to a lesser extent, our commercial market, have been stable. Median home prices have been stable in many communities because it is an incredibly attractive place to live and to work, with quick and easy access to New York City and other urban centers in New Jersey.
How does Essex County contribute to the broader economic landscape of New Jersey?
At the county level, we must make sure that our infrastructure is maintained and improved. We are obligated to make sure that we’re providing the best possible public safety that we can, so people can feel safe to both live and work here. We also have to create the best possible educational opportunities. This is the basic formula for any level of government, whether it’s municipal, county, or state. The services we provide make this a place that will grow our economy, where people want to work. We start with educational opportunities and safety, then we provide good quality infrastructure, including access to mass transit, proper access to roadways, proper maintenance, and open spaces. Even protecting our environment directly contributes to the growth of our economy. Those are the things we, at the county level of government, can participate in. We find creative ways to get people to use mass transportation options and invest in our parks and open spaces, so people want to be in our communities. We attract people to these communities, who then become part of the workforce in the county.
What projects are coming to support the growing population?
In June 2025, Essex County received an AA+ credit rating from Fitch Ratings, which is a global credit rating agency. It is unusual for a county government to have that high a rating, so we’re proud that we have a well-run and fiscally responsible government, allowing us to invest in the projects we’re doing. We spend a lot of time building strategic partnerships with the private sector, including financiers and insurers of small, women- and minority-owned businesses. We do a lot of outreach to individuals, groups, and organizations to expand our network of those types of businesses. We offer all types of technical assistance to grow these businesses within our county. We also have collaborative partnerships with groups that share the county’s vision of growth on these specific opportunities. For example, our residents and visitors are interested in the promotion of pedestrian access. Walkability is a big issue. We have invested in the infrastructure to make sure that our roadways and byways are safe, not only for vehicle traffic, but also for promoting the idea that more people want to walk or ride bicycles to work. More people are indeed looking for transportation alternatives. Over the years, we have improved the curbs and intersections, which contribute to the overall safety of the roadway network and make the county a more attractive place to be. We now have an influx of people moving from urban centers into our county. This county is a hybrid, both a suburb and an exurb, so we are not just going to put up traffic lights and pave over roads. We’re trying to create pedestrian-friendly access to this network of roads that we oversee.
What steps is the county taking to support small and mid-sized businesses in the region?
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act strengthens the Essex County Workforce Development Plan. This four-year plan sets a timeline to help residents of Essex County get the skills they need to succeed in a wide array of potential jobs. The programs train people in industries like healthcare, social assistance, education, retail trade, finance, insurance, utilities management, as well as scientific and technical services. The growth of AI and AI-driven industries is something we’re trying to get ahead of. We are one of the few counties with an office of small business development where the residents can, at any time, be guided through the technical process of acquiring skills as a small business. For example, they can compete for public work, like for the sheriff’s department, roads and bridges, engineering, vocational school, county college, county hospital, criminal justice system, and jail. The county of Essex alone is roughly an $800 million entity, and all that money is spent, by and large, on businesses and people within the county. Our aggressive outreach team and outreach office educate those potential businesses on how they can compete for that work that may exist in the public sector, and if they need other technical experience or training to do private sector work, such as insurance and bonds. They can also tap into the university systems, from Rutgers University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Montclair State University, to Seton Hall University, all located in the county, for both undergraduate and post-secondary education.
How do public-private partnerships deliver further benefits for the county?
That’s the future of how county government and public entities can grow our economy. These partnerships we forge, for example with the university ecosystem, provide the technical assistance and skills to train high school students who may not need or want to go to college, but want to join the emerging industries. We have the core industries in healthcare, educational services, and retail, but the growth of AI-developed businesses, utilities management, and finance can be further promoted by providing specific training for technological skills or administrative skills that don’t necessarily involve a four-year degree. We have our county college system and an outstanding vocational high school program, but we also make sure that we’re tapped into the various four-year institutions. Oftentimes, people don’t realize what’s available to them in their immediate area. That becomes an opportunity for us to build those partnerships and build a concentration of skilled workforce. People who look for better work-life balance can also tap into the startup corridor, since we have the university infrastructure, access to mass transportation, and a great quality of life. We have great arts, culture, open space, parks, healthy restaurants, retail, and a bar scene. We could be the next frontier of where people would invest, and we make sure to provide that ecosystem.
What is your outlook for Essex County in the near future?
Post-COVID, we’re dealing with a changing attitude to work-life balance. Our largest urban centers are home to some large-scale employers, so we still need people to come to work. We’ve invested a lot to make sure that we have access to these work centers. We also understand that many people no longer want to work in self-contained large-scale office parks, such as the ones on the west side of the county. They want to be closer to the community. The idea of going to the office is evolving, and we have to keep up to figure out what, as a county, we can do. Maybe, the space has to be repurposed, and we have to help these economic drivers with special programs or transitions that are still economical.
