walkableprinceton

Does Mayor Lempert Really Think That Middle-Class Princeton Workers Should Live In Trenton??

Posted on October 1, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Mayor Lempert says people in Princeton ‘don’t want’ commuters to live in town. Where should they live instead? Trenton? (Image from Princeton Community TV – click to expand)

Princeton is suffering an affordability crisis that has seen the town’s middle-class largely driven out in the face of high property prices and taxes. Even junior research staff at the University find it hard to justify the cost of living in Princeton, and more than 3 out of 4 local workers now live elsewhere and drive into town every day, creating traffic and contributing to global warming. What does our Mayor think is the answer to this issue? Continue reading →

Posted in Affordability, Alternative Transportation, Density, Downtown Vibrancy, Local, People, Princeton, Smart Growth, Traffic | Tagged Princeton, Trenton | 1 Comment

Can You Bear To Read These Offensive NJ.com Blog Comments, Left After Affordable Housing Court Decision??

Posted on September 30, 2013 by walkableprinceton

The New Jersey Supreme Court, who insisted on stricter standards for municipal affordable housing last week. (Click to expand. Image from judiciary.state.nj.us)

A key solution for Princeton’s ongoing traffic and parking challenges is to enable people to live closer to where they work, so that they have the option of walking or cycling instead of using a car. Sadly, Princeton has got so expensive that middle-class workers find it hard to live here. Affordable housing, provided by groups such as Princeton Community Housing is vastly over-subscribed. Anyone signing up can expect to wait years to find an affordable home. Continue reading →

Posted in Affordability, Local, Zoning | Tagged Affordable housing, Council on Affordable Housing, New Jersey, New Jersey Supreme Court | 4 Comments

Parking Fiasco Exposes Princeton’s Failure To Add Needed Housing

Posted on September 27, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Parking tickets: Princeton-area workers avoided them by placing symbols of local businesses in their cars. (Click to expand.)

Reporting from Planet Princeton this week exposed an extraordinary scam where employees at local businesses bypassed Princeton parking regulations by placing menus, coasters and receipts from their place of employment in their windshields. Apparently, local parking enforcement did not write tickets for cars with these symbols, even when they were parked illegally. In response, the town has suspended the parking enforcement agents without pay. That’s quite right- but big questions remain unanswered. Continue reading →

Posted in Affordability, Density, Princeton, Smart Growth, The Parking Question, Traffic | Tagged Commuting, Planet Princeton, Princeton | 4 Comments

Where Is The Housing Density Around Princeton?

Posted on September 26, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Population density in the Princeton, NJ person. Each dot represents one person. From US Census data.

Population density in the Princeton, NJ region. Each dot represents one person. From US Census data. (click to expand.)

Brandon Martin-Anderson of the MIT Media Lab has created a new map showing every person listed in the US Census. This is the most visual exactly where people live throughout the USA. Zooming in on Princeton reveals the exact density of local population and what we see might surprise a lot of people… Continue reading →

Posted in Density, Local, Princeton, Traffic | Tagged Affordable housing, Central Jersey, MIT Media Lab, Plainsboro, Plainsboro Township New Jersey, Princeton, Princeton University | 4 Comments

Princeton, Is That A Good Deal? “Normandy-Inspired”

Posted on September 25, 2013 by walkableprinceton

114 Elm Road, a 6-bed, 8-ba property available to rent for $11,000 per month. (click to expand.)

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

Apartments to rent are hard to find these days- perhaps because they’ve been snapped up by newly-arrived students? However, we found one that is still listed as available, although it’s maybe not for the average Princeton renter… It’s a 6-bed, 8-ba property on Elm Road, in the Western Section of Princeton. It’s available for $11,000 per month. Continue reading →

Posted in Good Deal? | Tagged New Jersey, Princeton, Princeton New Jersey | 2 Comments

What Happened When A Local Mom Asked Princeton For Improved Crosswalks?

Posted on September 24, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Hooray! A new in-street ‘stop for pedestrians’ sign at Chambers and Hulfish! But questions remain… (click to expand)

Last Wednesday, two representatives of ‘Walkable Princeton’ accompanied Dr Rachael Winfree, a Princeton resident, to a meeting of the municipal Traffic and Transportation sub-committee that deals with pedestrian improvements to local streets. (Regular readers will recall that we recently reached out for support regarding this issue.) Continue reading →

Posted in Alternative Transportation, Complete Streets, People, Princeton, The Parking Question, Traffic, Walking | Tagged Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, Pedestrian, Pedestrian crossing, Princeton, traffic, Transportation | 17 Comments

How Many Car-Free Households Are There In Princeton?

Posted on September 23, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Two wheels is enough for lots of people in Princeton! (click to expand)

Tomorrow, September 24, is Car-Free Day! Will you be leaving your car behind? Among the estimated 6,400 people who both live and work in Princeton, fewer than one in four use a car for daily commuting. Nonetheless, many more of us are still car-dependent. If Princeton were more walkable, more people might be able to get by without a car. But having no car at all is unimaginable for many local families. But how about getting by with just one car? Does that sound possible? And how many families currently have just one car? We dove into the US Census Bureau’s ‘American Fact Finder’ to investigate how many car-free households there are in Princeton. The results were interesting! Continue reading →

Posted in Affordability, Local, Princeton, Sustainability | Tagged Borough of Princeton New Jersey, Car-Free Day, Carsharing, Princeton | 2 Comments

Princeton Kills Personal Rapid Transit, Dinky Heavy Rail Extension Plans

Posted on September 20, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Kevin Wilkes updates Princeton Council Sep 3 about the latest findings of the ASUP Transit Task Force. Image: Princeton Community Television. (Click to expand.)

Princeton Council heard testimony at their September 9 meeting from Kevin Wilkes, the Chair of the Alexander Street / University Place Transit Task Force. He reported that the possibility of a heavy rail extension of the Dinky Line to take it up to Palmer Square is no longer being considered. Use of Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) technology has also been excluded from further discussion. However, several other transport modes remain under discussion. Continue reading →

Posted in Alternative Transportation, Local, People, Princeton, Traffic, Transit | Tagged Personal Rapid Transit, Princeton, Princeton Branch, Princeton Community Television, Princeton University | 10 Comments

Beautiful Walkable Princeton: Barbara Smoyer Park

Posted on September 19, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Fountains and lake in Princeton’s Barbara Smoyer Park. (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 ‘beautiful walkable Princeton’.

Princeton’s Barbara Smoyer Park is a 38-acre green space in between Snowden Lane and Herrontown Road which offers recreation facilities, a picnic area, and this beautiful pond. Continue reading →

Posted in Beautiful Walkable Princeton | Tagged Green Acres, New Jersey, Princeton, Princeton Township | 1 Comment

Princeton’s Walkable, Inclusive YMCA Gets An Awesome New Gym: We Take A Tour.

Posted on September 18, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Princeton’s Y has a new fitness center and it’s pretty nice. (Click to expand.)

Last Saturday, Princeton’s YMCA held the official ribbon-cutting of its new fitness suite. The ‘Jim and Nancye Fitzpatrick Wellness Center’, to give the gym its full name, features a thorough-upgrade of the facilities. Continue reading →