walkableprinceton

Is That A Good Deal? “Walk to Small World Coffee in 15 minutes”

Posted on February 18, 2014 by walkableprinceton

Living room in home for rent at Henderson Avenue in Princeton. (click to expand.)

As part of an occasional series where we cast an eye over walkable rentals and real estate in Princeton, we invite you to comment on a current, local listing. You can find previous entries here and here.

‘Is That A Good Deal’ is back after something of a hiatus since early January! It’s a quiet time for selling and renting homes, and there’s been so much other stuff going on in Princeton! Today we are looking at a: Continue reading →

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Just Off Route 206, Princeton University’s Merwick-Stanworth Housing Rises

Posted on February 17, 2014 by walkableprinceton

New graduate housing being built at the Princeton Merrick-Stanworth Site. (click to expand.)

New graduate housing being built at the Princeton Merwick-Stanworth Site. (click to expand.)

In addition to building a new roundabout and its ‘Arts and Transit’ complex, Princeton University has made major progress this winter with construction at its Merwick-Stanworth housing site. Continue reading →

Posted in Affordability, Density, Princeton, Real estate, Smart Growth | Tagged graduate, Princeton, Princeton University | 6 Comments

Homes For Diversity And Inclusivity Part 4: Allow Microapartments

Posted on February 14, 2014 by walkableprinceton

Cosy: micro-aparments have less than 400 sq. ft. – too small for a family, but enough for many people. (Image via rentreporters.com – Click to expand.)

Princeton planning and zoning has had unintended exclusionary outcomes, making it hard for local middle-class workers to live in town, and incentivizing car-dependency and traffic. In this series, we explore options for adding more walkable housing in Princeton to enable diversity and inclusivity, while maintaining and enhancing Princeton’s historic charm. (See other posts here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)

Going small is a potential answer to the idea that Princeton doesn’t have space to provide more homes for people locked out of the local real estate market. In recent years, ‘micro-apartments’ have emerged as a way to provide more affordable housing in hot real estate markets like Princeton. Continue reading →

Posted in Affordability, how-to-add-density, Smart Growth, Sustainability, Zoning | Tagged apartments, micro apartments, planning, Princeton, Zoning | 1 Comment

Walkable Housing Helps Local Princeton Businesses

Posted on February 13, 2014 by walkableprinceton

Produce at Nassau Street Seafood & Produce in Princeton. (click to expand.)

Princeton is lucky to have a number of really great local businesses. Despite the combined onslaught of the big box chain stores and internet shopping, these businesses have survived and play a great part in making our town an interesting place to live. We all want our local merchants to be successful, and one way we can help them is by increasing the amount of walkable housing. Walkable housing helps Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown Vibrancy, Princeton, Zoning | Tagged business, housing, planning, Princeton | 1 Comment

Beautiful Walkable Princeton: Boulders Of The Woodfield Reservation

Posted on February 12, 2014 by walkableprinceton

Tent Rock in Woodfield Reservation in Princeton (Click to expand.)

The Woodfield Reservation is one of the largest tracts of preserved land in Princeton, but the trails are very lightly walked. The park is at the very edge of Princeton, between Great Road and Drakes Corner Road. Visitors often look for two large boulders along the trails. Continue reading →

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Princeton Taxpayers Face The Burden Of Caring For Our Aging ‘Burbs

Posted on February 11, 2014 by walkableprinceton

Expensive: Accounting for deferred maintenance of Princeton's street trees looks set to be another burden on local taxpayers. (click to expand)

Expensive: Maintenance of Princeton’s street trees looks set to be another burden on local taxpayers. (click to expand)

Many of us know what it’s like to care for an elderly relative. It takes a lot of time, commitment, and often a lot of money too. Princeton’s taxpayers are now facing another concern: the burden of caring for aging suburban infrastructure. Continue reading →

Posted in Density, Princeton, Smart Growth, Sustainability, Zoning | Tagged Land use, Princeton, Zoning | 2 Comments

NJ Planners Told: More Apartments and Condos Needed

Posted on February 10, 2014 by walkableprinceton

New Jersey towns build nowhere near enough multi-family housing such as this on Spring Street in Princeton. (Click to expand.)

A successful multi-family development in Spring Street in Princeton- but New Jersey towns are not building anywhere near enough housing like this. (Click to expand.)

The New Jersey Chapter of the American Planning Association heard a plea at their recent annual conference to stop fix the housing market by phasing out dysfunctional planning and zoning practices. Real estate expert Jeffrey Otteau told the conference that Jersey is not building anything like enough housing, and is building the wrong types of housing. Continue reading →

Posted in Affordability, Zoning | Tagged housing, planning, Princeton | 2 Comments

Most Of Princeton Is Pretty Much Fine With The AvalonBay Redevelopment

Posted on February 7, 2014 by walkableprinceton

I'm still standing yeah yeah yeah...the old Princeton hospital has been lying derelict for months as Princeton argues about a development that most people think is a perfectly good idea. (click to expand.)

“I’m still standing-yeah yeah yeah”…the old hospital has been lying derelict for months as Princeton argues about a redevelopment that most people think is a perfectly good idea. (click to expand.)

Princeton municipal officials are poised to spin through the doors of the Mercer Superior Court in Trenton once again as a new set of local residents petitions against the decision to build apartments on the old Princeton Hospital site. Tens of thousands of dollars have now been spent on attorney fees, to defend the municipality and Planning Board against resident law suits and court actions objecting to the plan. But what does Princeton really think? Continue reading →

Posted in Affordability, Density, Princeton, Smart Growth, Zoning | Tagged AvalonBay, planning, Princeton | Leave a comment

More Details About 255 Nassau Street ‘Plan B’ Mixed-Use Development

Posted on February 6, 2014 by walkableprinceton

Circulation and parking plan for 255 Nassau Street ‘Plan B’. (click to expand)

Last week, we published a rendering of the proposed new mixed-use development at 255 Nassau Street, Princeton. A bank will occupy the first floor, with residential housing at the back of the first floor, and on the second and third levels. The latest plan follows on from a previous version, which was rejected by the Princeton Zoning Board of Adjustment last year. The original application became a subject of concerns about parking and circulation. What is proposed in the new plan? Continue reading →

Posted in Smart Growth, The Parking Question | Tagged infill, planning, Princeton, smart growth | 1 Comment

Princeton Environmental Film Festival To Screen ‘Tiny Houses’ This Friday

Posted on February 5, 2014 by walkableprinceton

Dream Big, Live Small in a Tiny House...an answer to sustainability and affordability challenges? (Click to expand - image via PEFF website).

A Tiny House from the short film ‘Tiny- A Story About Living Small’…Is this an answer to sustainability and affordability challenges? (Click to expand – image via PEFF website).

‘Dream Big, Live Small’ is the motto of a 62-min movie to play at the [excellent] Princeton Environmental Film Festival this Friday, Feb 5 at 4 p.m. at the Princeton Public Library. The film, ‘Tiny: A Story About Living Small’ focuses on a couple who chose to disregard the trend for ever-larger homes, and instead build their own little corner of the world. The emphasis is clearly on the ‘little’, as the home they seek to construct a ‘tiny house’ of just 124 sq ft. It has a living space with an 11-foot ceiling, a small galley kitchen, a small bathroom with a composting toilet and camping-style gravity fed shower and a sleeping loft. Continue reading →