walkableprinceton

The Virtual War To Control Princeton’s Historic Sites

Posted on July 31, 2016 by walkableprinceton

Christ's Congregation Church on Walnut Ave in Princeton. (click to expand)

Christ Congregation Church on Walnut Lane in Princeton – which is also a key site in the online game ‘Ingress’. (click to expand)

The Pokémon Go craze has occupied many news stories this summer as kids of all ages have discovered the joys of chasing virtual creatures around real-world locations using their smartphones. Pokémon Go is a product of Google offshoot Niantic Labs, and has many similarities to their earlier game, ‘Ingress‘, which has been running since 2012. For Ingress players, Princeton is not just a cultured college town, but a battlefield for an online war to control culturally-significant sites.
Continue reading →

Posted in Princeton, Walking | Tagged ingress, Placemaking, Princeton, Walking | Leave a comment

New Sidewalk Commissioned On Shadybrook Lane In Princeton

Posted on June 28, 2016 by walkableprinceton

New sidewalk under construction, Shadybrook Lane, Littlebrook neighborhood, Princeton (click to expand)

A new sidewalk has been added to a section of Shadybrook Lane in Princeton’s Littlebrook neighborhood, and it’s a bit of an interesting case. Sidewalks in Princeton are usually added as part of specific road improvement or sewer upgrade projects. If the road is part of the municipal sidewalk masterplan, a new path is laid as part of the wider project. A sidewalk is being constructed on Valley Road right now, for example, as part of a big engineering project that will also see new sewer pipes put down. Continue reading →

Posted in Complete Streets, Princeton, Walking | Tagged Complete streets, sidewalks, Walking | Leave a comment

Avalon Princeton Announces Apartment Rates: One-Beds To Start At $2,655 per month.

Posted on May 24, 2016 by walkableprinceton

One-bed apartment plan. (Via avaloncommunities.com) (click to expand)

One-bed apartment plan at new Avalon Bay apartments in Princeton. (Via avaloncommunities.com, click to expand)

Avalon Bay has released floor plans and prices for their new apartments on Witherspoon Street in Princeton. The apartments are currently under construction, but are listed as available for move-in from August 19, 2016. The apartment community will eventually have 256 units, making it one of the biggest in Princeton. It is easily walkable to downtown and Princeton University campus. As expected, the apartments are pretty expensive… Continue reading →

Posted in Affordability, Princeton | 1 Comment

Town of Princeton Reveals Draft Bicycle Circulation Plan

Posted on May 23, 2016 by walkableprinceton

Draft Princeton bike facilities network (click to expand)

A map of proposed facilities for bicyclists in Princeton has been released. The draft map was drawn up by consultants funded by a grant awarded to the town by the New Jersey Department of Transportation. It proposes a network of bike lanes and other facilities that are intended to make streets safer for people on two wheels. Continue reading →

Posted in Alternative Transportation, Biking, Complete Streets, planning, Princeton | Leave a comment

New Princeton Shopping Center Circulation Plan Is a Let-Down For People On Foot And Bikes

Posted on May 19, 2016 by walkableprinceton

New Nomad Pizza, with missing sidewalks (click to expand)

New entrance to Princeton Shopping Center from North Harrison Street- with no matching sidewalks. (click to expand)

Recent attempts to freshen up the ‘Princeton Shopping Center’ on North Harrison Street have seen remodeling of the parking lots and the arrival of new businesses, such as the instantly-popular Nomad Pizza (see photo above). But when it comes to providing for people on foot or on bicycles, the redesign has been something of a failure. Although a sidewalk extends all along North Harrison Street, there is no path connecting them to the entrance of Nomad Pizza. Instead, pedestrians must become nomads, wandering through the parking lot. This kind of glaring error fits with statistics that show that New Jersey is the state with the highest rate of pedestrian victims as a share or total traffic casualties. Continue reading →

Posted in Alternative Transportation, Complete Streets, Placemaking, planning, Princeton, Sustainability, Walking | Tagged Cycling, Princeton, Walkability | 1 Comment

Town Of Princeton Seeks Feedback On John Street Park Designs

Posted on May 17, 2016 by walkableprinceton

Mary Moss Park concept (via princetonnj.gov) (Click to expand)

Mary Moss Park concept (via Recreation Department website) (Click to expand)

The town of Princeton has revealed competing designs for a rebuild of ‘Mary Moss Playground’, a small park on John Street. Consultants hired by the town gathered community input at a public meeting earlier this year, before developing two potential concepts for the redesign. In both cases, the park would be expanded slightly, using land that the town acquired by buying and knocking down an historic home on adjoining Lytle Street. Members of the public were shown the new plans at a second public meeting at town hall on May 3, but input can still be provided by emailing the Recreation Department. Continue reading →

Posted in Community, Placemaking, planning, Princeton | Tagged park, parks and recreation, Princeton | Leave a comment

Revisiting The First Princeton Jane Jacobs Walk

Posted on May 11, 2016 by walkableprinceton

‘The Warehouse‘, former home of Michael Graves, Patton Avenue, Princeton. (click to expand)

On Saturday, the first Princeton ‘Jane Jacobs Walk’ took place, honoring what would have been the 100th birthday of the famed urbanist. I’ve never been on a Jane’s Walk before, so it was a whole new thing. But it was great to get together with some local residents, and enjoy the great stuff that exists in our town. Although Princeton is a small town, there is much to discover, and in a group its even better because different people can point out different things that they know about. On this walk, we started from Small World Coffee East Nassau, at 254 Nassau St. Our group considered the nearby busy commercial area, much of which is zoned as ‘special services’ reflecting its history as a strip of automotive garages, gas stations and car dealers. (It is now a top dining destination in Princeton). The group was conflicted over the current plan to build a roof deck and screen in the front Continue reading →

Posted in architecture, Community, People, Placemaking, planning, Princeton, Real estate, Walking | Tagged jane jacobs, Princeton | Leave a comment

Limiting Undergraduate Parking Is Consistent With Princeton University’s History

Posted on May 10, 2016 by walkableprinceton

This section of College Road, on Princeton University campus, was closed to traffic in 1964. (click to expand)

Princeton University undergraduates and the ‘Daily Princetonian’ editorial board are protesting about a plan by the University to limit undergraduate car parking on campus. This is nothing new. Students have been protesting for decades about plans by the University to restrict car use. Despite that, the University’s historical lack of interest in easy car use is a major reason why the present campus is so great. Let’s consider the reasons why… Continue reading →

Posted in Princeton, Sustainability, The Parking Question | Tagged Parking, Princeton | 2 Comments

First Princeton ‘Jane Jacobs Walk’ Is This Saturday, May 7!

Posted on May 3, 2016 by walkableprinceton

Scenes of Princeton's East Nassau St neighborhood. (click to expand)

East Nassau St scenes. (click to expand)

This Saturday, May 7, the Walkable Princeton team will be leading the first-ever Princeton ‘Jane Jacobs Walk’! The short walk is an opportunity for people who love our town to explore some of the things that make it great, such as the mix of local stores, character-laden residential areas, and the University campus. What things that exist today do we want to protect, and what opportunities are there to make the town even better? Starting at the excellent Small World coffee shop at 254 Nassau Street, our 1.3-mile ‘walking conversation’ will commemorate the life of Jane Jacobs. May 4 marks what would have been the 100th anniversary of her birth. Through her life, Jacobs stood up for community planning and supported fine-grained, walkable places. Her grassroots campaigning and influential books made her a legendary figure in planning circles.

Continue reading →

Posted in Community, Events, Placemaking, planning, Princeton, Walking | Tagged Events, jane jacobs, planning, Princeton, Walking | Leave a comment

Walkable Central Princeton Leads Local Area For Increases In Home Values

Posted on May 2, 2016 by walkableprinceton

Central Princeton (08542 zipcode) has seen 32% increase in property values since 2004 (click to expand)

Central Princeton has seen a 32% increase in property values since 2004. The price jump downtown, which greatly surpasses anything else in the local area, was revealed in data published by ‘The Washington Post’ last week. By taking a long-range view of property prices, the study goes beyond the effects of the crash of 2008, and subsequent recovery. Compared to the former Township, which posted gains of 14% over the same period, the downtown area, which was formerly known as ‘Princeton Borough’ is showing much more significant price increases. This reflects the growing demand for walkability among home-buyers, particularly in amenity-rich places like Princeton. Continue reading →