The ‘B Home’ in situ at D&R Greenway Park in Princeton. (Click to expand.)
What is a house? In Princeton, it’s typically a one/two story structure with a sloping roof and some ornamental shutters that don’t actually close (see also ‘The Princeton‘ model from stack ’em housing constructor, Toll Brothers). However, occasionally, an innovator comes along and questions the entire idea of how we build homes…
Homes on Jefferson Road in Princeton. (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 also Part 1 and Part 2.)
Take a look at the photo above. What do you see? Low-rise single-family homes, gardens and mature trees. A typical Princeton neighborhood scene. But this photo also shows the location of a recent doubling in housing density. How did this happen? Continue reading
Who needs a car to move a Christmas tree? (click to expand.)
Cross-posted at Strong Towns Network.
Compact, walkable development reduces municipal infrastructure costs, builds the tax base, and allows for efficient, green, car-free transportation. On the other hand, it has been argued that compact walkable housing does not reduce traffic, because people who live in such developments still drive cars all the time. Locally, this idea is completely contradicted by data on how people get to work, but there is still a persistent belief that cars are essential for the majority of journeys. How, for example, could you go to the supermarket without a car? Continue reading
Province Line bridge could become a road for cars again according to Princeton’s recently-revised Masterplan Circulation Element. (Click to expand.)
The bridge you see in the photograph above provides a crossing over the Stony Brook on Province Line Road in Princeton. It was built in Berlin, Connecticut in 1903 and is the longest of three surviving Warren pony truss bridges in Mercer County. It was closed in 1981, but rehabilitated and re-opened (to bikes and pedestrians only) in 2012. What happens to this route now could be an indicator of the direction that Princeton’s transportation policy is going to take in the coming years. Continue reading
The little cabins of Princeton’s Butler Apartments look set to face the wrecking ball in summer 2014. (click to expand.)
Princeton University is planning to demolish graduate student housing at their Butler Apartments site on S Harrison Street, but not everybody thinks it’s a good idea. Writing in ‘The Daily Princetonian’, University Professor Anthony Grafton expressed disappointment that the University was reducing its provision for housing for graduate students. Meanwhile, graduate students are circulating a petition to keep Butler open, because it provides a large amount of affordable housing. Continue reading
Hi everybody- sorry to post again about our upcoming Happy Hour, but given the pretty substantial snow out there, we have decided that it’s for the best if we postpone tonight’s meet-up to next Monday, December 16. We’re going to do it at the same time (7 p.m.) and the same place (Yankee Doodle Tap Room). Just next Monday. Hope to see some of you there! (Full, up-to-date details here.)
Come join us at Yankee Doodle Tap Room on Tuesday evening. Picturesque snow guaranteed. (click to expand.)
NOTE: Our meet-up has been rescheduled to Monday, December 16 because of the blizzard! Hope to see you then, and apologies if you made plans for tonight (12/10/13)
This week Next Monday, we are hosting the third of our Walkable Princeton meet-ups. This time, we are going to get together at Yankee Doodle Tap room in the heart of walkable downtown Princeton. Why not swing by while you’re doing some holiday shopping in some of our great local businesses? We’ll be chatting about ways to make Princeton more walkable and livable. Full details are below: Continue reading
We are going to hold our next Walkable Princeton get-together this coming Tuesday, December 10 at the Yankee Doodle Tap Room in downtown Princeton. Come join the WP team from 7 p.m. as we talk livability and walkability in Princeton! More details on Monday…
Princeton fire department wants more space for their firehouse at Witherspoon Street and Valley Road. (click to expand.)
Princeton Council recently voted to redirect $768,000 of grant money to new projects. The grant money was awarded by Mercer County in 2006 to install synthetic playing fields at Greenway Meadows park. Princeton has failed to even start the project, leading Mercer County to demand that we hurry up and spend the money so they can close out the grant program. But one of the projects approved for spending out the grant is raising eyebrows… Continue reading
View of the D&R Canal from the towpath trail in Princeton, near Alexander Road. (click to expand.)
This post is part of a series where we celebrate the many beautiful and characterful sights of Princeton, NJ. You can find previous entries in this series here and here or by searching our site for posts tagged ‘beautiful walkable Princeton’.
We previously wrote about how the D&R Canal Greenway should be a model for other parks in Princeton. It is extraordinarily beautiful to watch as the seasons change here, surrounded on either side by the waters of Lake Carnegie and the D&R canal itself. Continue reading
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