‘The Yard’ at street level, Union Street, New Brunswick, NJ. (click to expand)
Earlier this semester, Rutgers University opened a significant new addition. ‘The Yard‘ replaced a parking lot at Hamilton St and College Ave in New Brunswick. Imagined as a ‘front porch’ for the campus, the project features a mixture of stores and apartments arranged around a park. But how successful is it? Continue reading
Historic townhouses in Trenton’s walkable Mill Hill neighborhood. (click to expand)
Last weekend was the Mill Hill Holiday House Tour. Now in its 50th year, the event allows members of the public into the homes of Mill Hill residents, offering a view of one of Trenton’s most interesting neighborhoods. Continue reading
‘The Waxwood’ in Princeton. (click to expand)
Princeton Council spent over an hour at their meeting on Monday night night debating whether to convert 5 affordable rentals at ‘The Waxwood’ condominium to ‘for-sale’ units. Council members couldn’t agree about whether it is appropriate – and the bigger question about what to do about Princeton’s unmet affordable housing need is also going unanswered. Continue reading
Part of newly-redeveloped housing at Princeton University’s Merwick-Stanworth site (click to expand)
Princeton University’s big redevelopment of the Merwick-Stanworth site is now almost complete. The construction, which is located on the east side of Bayard Lane (Route 206) between Leigh Avenue and the Princeton YMCA site, broke ground in late 2013. A map is available here. It is one of the biggest new residential projects in Princeton in recent years. We took a walk around to check it out… Continue reading
World Trade Center Memorial and new PATH Station (click to expand)
A couple of weeks ago, I finally got the chance to visit the new World Trade Center PATH station in New York, which its spectacular ‘Oculus’ hall. The station is absolutely amazing, and a fitting addition to the world’s greatest city. Visitors can’t help but gather and gawk at the beautiful structure, which was designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava to resemble the wings of a dove in flight. The cathedral-like serenity inside stands as a contrast to the downtown hustle outside. The contrast to the decrepit, chaotic New York Penn Station could hardly be greater for Jersey commuters traveling into the city. Continue reading
Princeton Mayoral Candidates, Liz Lempert and Peter Marks (click to expand)
Princeton will elect a Mayor in the Election next Tuesday, November 8. Voters will choose between incumbent Liz Lempert (Democrat) and challenger Peter Marks (Republican). In their recent debate hosted by the League of Women Voters, the questions touched on many issues of planning, development and neighborhood character. We followed up with the candidates with some questions of our own, to help local residents make up their mind about who our next Mayor should be. Continue reading
New bikeshare dock (click to expand)
Short-term bike rental has arrived in the town of Princeton with the addition of a new bikeshare station next to McCaffrey’s supermarket at the Princeton Shopping Center. The new station features Zagster bikeshare cycles, the same as those found at the bikeshare that first launched by Princeton University at the new Princeton Rail station in November 2014. The University subsequently expanded its Zagster bikeshare scheme to nine docks in March of this year. All the previous bikeshare stations were at University properties in town or at the Forrestal campus in Plainsboro. The new bikeshare dock is the first in Princeton at a non-University location. It is next to the bus stop, by McCaffrey’s at the Princeton Shopping Center at 301 North Harrison Street. Continue reading
View of Princeton from the 6th floor of UMCPP Hospital in Plainsboro.
If you happen to find yourself on the 6th floor of the University Medical Center of Princeton in Plainsboro, you will get a rare opportunity…. The wards offer a really beautiful view of Princeton and the surrounding area, with the Millstone River and surrounding parkland in the foreground. How many buildings in Princeton can you spot?
Route 1 near Princeton – operated by NJDOT using funds from the New Jersey gas tax. (click to expand)
This week, Governor Christie is expected to sign into law a new deal to fund the New Jersey Transportation Trust Fund (TTF). The TTF, which funds state transportation projects, had reached a point where existing funds could only pay off interest on bonds taken out to pay for previous projects – no money was left to start new projects to build roads, repair bridges, or make needed improvements to help people move around the state. After months of haggling, the NJ State Assembly and Senate passed a deal last week, which will see the state gas tax increase to provide new funds for the TTF. In exchange – and in response to demands form Governor Christie – the state sales tax will be trimmed, along with a blend of other tax cuts, including phasing out the estate tax. We called for a gas tax increase years ago, and although the deal is messy and overdue, it is still necessary. Continue reading
Historic downtown Princeton offers housing choices (click to expand)
This week sees the first public meeting of Princeton’s new ‘Neighborhood Character and Zoning Initiative’. Consultants hired by the town will make a public presentation, with the aim of creating “strategies, policies, guidelines, and regulations that will shape future home development activities so their outcomes better complement the traditional character and form of Princeton’s residential neighborhoods and streets.” The task force plans “short-term, medium-term, and long-term” changes to local zoning, apparently with the goal of preventing ‘tear-downs’ and ensuring a greater degree of conformity with existing properties. But just as Princeton begins to further ratchet up zoning controls, the Obama White House has released a new policy document, urging looser controls on development. Who’s right?
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