walkableprinceton

Why Did AvalonBay Walk Away From Court Fight With Princeton?

Posted on April 9, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Are we all friends again?

AvalonBay and Princeton have entered into a settlement that will suspend AvalonBay’s litigation that had threatened to see the two sides square off in Mercer County Court at the end of April. The court case related to the Princeton Planning Board’s decision to reject AvalonBay’s redevelopment plan for the former Princeton University Medical Center site on Witherspoon Street. We are relieved that a costly court battle has been avoided, but we can’t help wondering: what made AvalonBay decide to give up on the court fight at such a late stage? Continue reading →

Posted in Local, Princeton, Zoning | 49 Comments

Have Your Say On Route 1 Expansion

Posted on April 8, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Route 1 near Princeton

Princeton Council is seeking public input into plans from NJDOT to expand Route 1 south of Princeton. You can now have your say directly by going to this site, where you can enter your address and leave feedback.

At this point there are several plans under discussion, so it’s worth considering them together: Continue reading →

Posted in Local, Traffic | 6 Comments

Taking a Walk Around The Residences at Palmer Square

Posted on April 5, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Final construction work on the ‘Residences at Palmer Square’.

In an earlier post, we noted that Princeton’s famous Palmer Square was still a work in progress, with construction continuing to the present day. We decided to take a look at the ‘Residences at Palmer Square‘, a complex of new condos and townhomes that is approaching completion around Palmer Square.

The Residences have several advantages, and a couple of disadvantages. On the positive side, we can say that Continue reading →

Posted in Affordability, Local, Princeton, Real estate | 11 Comments

Congratulations to New Jersey Future!

Posted on April 4, 2013 by walkableprinceton

This is a story that brings together two amazing organizations. We’d like to congratulate New Jersey Future for winning a major award from affordable housing group, The Central Jersey Housing Resource Center! New Jersey Future is one of our favorite organizations because they promote affordable, sustainable development by advocating for Smart Growth in New Jersey. We strongly believe that Smart Growth development is the key to enabling Princeton to meet the challenges of the future without destroying our environment.

New Jersey Future won its award for ‘Outstanding Leadership in Housing Issues and Land Use Policies’. If you aren’t familiar with either NJ Future or the Central Jersey Housing Resource Center, we encourage you to check them out. Both these groups are doing fantastic work to make our state a better, fairer place to live.

Posted in Affordability, Smart Growth | Leave a comment

Are New Ratables A Solution To Princeton’s Looming Tax Explosion?

Posted on April 3, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Old Hospital: Princeton should aim to reap tax revenues from this site.

Old Hospital: Why not get the maximum possible tax revenue benefit from redevelopment?

Princeton is getting a tax cut! Hooray!!! Consolidation IS working. But despite the municipal savings that came from consolidation, Princeton taxpayers are still facing a hike in their tax bills in the medium-term. How can this be? One problem is that Continue reading →

Posted in Density, Local, Princeton, Real estate, Smart Growth | 8 Comments

Princeton U. Vice-Chancellor Admits Dinky Will Be Even Further Away

Posted on April 2, 2013 by walkableprinceton

The Dinky (image: Adam E. Moreira)

We discussed last Friday how the historic Princeton Dinky station is to become a new Terra Momo restaurant. We just learned some news relating to Princeton University’s plan to move the station.

According to The Times of Trenton, Princeton Council heard on Monday night from Princeton University Vice-Chancellor, Bob Durkee, who said that the ‘Dinky’ Station will be 750 feet from its new, final location during construction of the new ‘Arts and Transit’ project. Continue reading →

Posted in Local, Princeton, Transit | 5 Comments

10 Local Sites For Princeton Students To Walk To

Posted on April 1, 2013 by walkableprinceton

The Waxwood, a former school for Princeton’s African-American kids, in the Witherspoon-Jackson neighborhood

Princeton students are not well-known for venturing out to explore the town. Continue reading →

Posted in Local, Princeton, Trails, Walking | 2 Comments

Dinky Station To Join List of Converted Railroad Stations

Posted on March 29, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Former Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Railroad Station (now condos).

We learned this week that the historic Princeton Railroad Station is going to become part of the Terra Momo restaurant empire. Not everyone is entirely happy about this, but it is far better than the possibility of the station crumbling away or, worse still, facing the wrecking ball.

Interestingly, Continue reading →

Posted in Local, Princeton, Transit | 2 Comments

Princeton Movie Gala for Affordable Housing!

Posted on March 28, 2013 by walkableprinceton

wwww.centraljersey.com / The Princeton Packet

This is a really great event to raise money for affordable housing in Princeton (from the Princeton Packet): on Thursday, March 21, the Princeton Garden Theater held a red-carpet gala showing of new movie ‘Admission‘, featuring Tina Fey and Paul Rudd.

The movie has a local link, with a plot that revolves around a Princeton University admissions officer. But the best part is that the whole thing was to raise money for local non-profit Housing Initiatives of Princeton. This group is doing great work to provide low-income and transitional housing to members of the Princeton community. We’re sorry to have missed this fun event!

Posted in Affordability, Events, Princeton | Leave a comment

Green Spaces and Courtyards

Posted on March 27, 2013 by walkableprinceton

Holder Hall, Princeton University

(Note-This post was updated 4.2.2013 in the light of ongoing developments regarding the proposed AvalonBay development at the former Princeton Hospital site.)

At the southwestern end of Nassau Street in downtown Princeton lies a number of beautiful buildings that are part of Princeton University. Madison Hall, Hamilton Hall and Holder Hall (which are themselves parts of Rockefeller College and Mathey College), are joined around two large courtyards, with Nassau Street on one side, University Place on another side, and the rest of the Princeton University campus behind. These buildings are built in the Collegiate Gothic style for which Princeton is famous, and are an essential stop on any tourist trail of the University.

Continue reading →

Posted in Density, Local, Princeton, Zoning | 1 Comment