The Streicker Bridge, completed 2010, which spans Washington Road in Princeton. (click to expand)
In 2015, Princeton University is making a new Campus Plan, a process that will be of tremendous importance for shaping the future built environment around town. But what about the ‘Campus 2016‘ plan, which has guided University development since 2005? What have been the hits and misses, and how did the plan affect the town? Continue reading
Walkable housing under construction at Greenview Avenue in Princeton. (click to expand)
Princeton’s Planning Board is revising the Housing Element of the Community Master Plan. As part of this effort, they have developed a list of ‘goals’ that are intended to guide plans for housing. The goals appear to be a worthy effort to bring together competing visions of how development should proceed in Princeton. But are they sufficient to address the need for housing, and to promote walkable living? Continue reading
Mercer Road heading from Lawrence Township toward downtown Princeton: “Bike Lane Ends”. (click to expand)
The Town of Princeton recently won a grant to make a new bicycle master plan. The plan could pave the way for improved bike facilities around the town. But in an extraordinary step, the town has advertised for an ‘On-Street Parking Advocate’ to join a key committee tasked with overseeing the creation of the new master plan. The move suggests that the town may not be serious about creating top-quality bike facilities. Continue reading
Suburban Transit 100 bus service, which connects Princeton and New Brunswick, seen here in Kingston. (click to expand)
Princeton and New Brunswick are two anchors of the Central Jersey tech corridor. Both towns are substantial employment centers, and are connected by a chain of residential communities and shopping areas. It should be possible to run an efficient transit service between them, which would allow employees to commute to many workplaces without using a car. But the only transit service is the Coach USA 100 service, a long-distance commuter bus that is operated by Suburban Transit. It suffers from several significant problems that limits its usefulness as a local commuter option, but still works in a pinch. Continue reading
Affordable housing developments with > 10 units in Princeton. Blue line is former Borough boundary. * indicates units under construction. (click to expand)
Princeton Planning Board continues to discuss their response to recent court decisions focusing on affordable housing. According to one estimate, Princeton needs to build 1,000 new affordable units. At a recent joint meeting of the Planning Board and Princeton Council, there was much discussion about where new units might be added. In particular, Council member Jenny Crumiller seemed to argue that new units should not be added at walkable sites, but instead should be spread out further away from downtown. Continue reading
Bicycles at West Windsor WaterWorks. (click to expand)
Today, Princeton is not waking up to flooded roads, downed trees, and widespread blackouts (phew!). The much-discussed ‘Hurricane Joaquin’ is somewhere far out in the Atlantic Ocean. Our compatriots in South Carolina are not so lucky. Lashed by rain last week, the state is now in a full-flung state of emergency, having sustained billions of dollars in damages. The SC weather event was “exactly the type of supercharged storm system climate scientists have been warning about for years as a likely consequence of global warming.” West Windsor has woken up to the challenge, and is developing a ‘Climate Action Plan’ to guide the municipality on a meaningful response to the danger posed by climate change. It’s time for Princeton to follow the lead of our neighbors to the south, and develop our own plan.
Prof Donald Shoup, speaking at the Rutgers Vorhees Transportation Center 10/1/2015. (click to expand)
Professor Donald Shoup gave The Vorhees Distinguished Lecture yesterday at the Rutgers Bloustein School of Planning in downtown New Brunswick. As a planning professor at UCLA, Shoup made a career out of studying parking policies, and wrote the famous 733-page book ‘The High Cost of Free Parking‘. As a consequence, he is often called a ‘Parking Rock Star’, which is a ridiculous enough idea that he began his talk by making several jokes about it. Prof Shoup went on to make a compelling case that although free parking is free to a driver, it must be paid for by somebody. In practice, requiring free parking carries immense costs, in terms of both a financial burden and by contributing to a degraded built environment. He urged a different approach based on three principles:
Affordable housing litigation has been a regular topic in Princeton Council’s private closed sessions this year. (click to expand)
All across New Jersey, elected officials are dealing with an urgent question: how much affordable housing should they plan for? Earlier this year, the New Jersey Supreme Court told local courts to rule on whether towns are adding their ‘fair share’ of housing. The judgement potentially clears the way for builders to overturn zoning ordinances in towns that have not added enough homes. Continue reading
Unmarked crossing of the D&R Canal Towpath at Washington Road in Princeton. (click to expand)
In October 2014, a father and his 8-year old son on the D&R Canal trail in Princeton were struck by a car while crossing Washington Road. The crash sent both to hospital with serious injuries. Although Princeton Council quickly passed a motion calling for a crosswalk to be added at the unmarked trail crossing, the crosswalk is still delayed almost one year on. Now, thanks to reporting in the ‘Princeton Packet’, we have learned that Mercer County, which operates Washington Road as CR 571, has not yet even approved a plan for a crosswalk. The proposal is stuck, as Princeton’s Historic Preservation Commission ponders what design meets their requirements for ‘aesthetic concerns’. Meanwhile, an unsafe condition persists, and trail users are being put at risk every day.
Terra Libri coffee shop at Princeton Public Library. (click to expand)
Last week, Princeton Council voted against a proposed ordinance to limit ‘free’ parking for users of Princeton’s Public Library. Library users are currently able to validate parking tickets from the municipally-owned Spring Street Garage, to allow 2 hours of parking without payment. The proposed ordinance would have reduced that to one hour, in part to help cover the cost of upgrades to the entry/exit system for the garage. But Council backed off the idea as users and library staff argued that users should not have to pay to park when using the libary. The result is that people driving to the library get parking worth $2.50 provided for free, while people arriving on foot or by bike get nothing. It’s time for people arriving without cars to get rewarded too.
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