Here is a complete blip.tv video of Zoning for King Street, a public forum hosted at the Bluebonnet Diner on 9/21/10 by Northampton’s Zoning Revisions Committee. This video is 2 hours 2 minutes long. The first hour is a presentation of proposed zoning changes (PDF, 2MB), including those suggested by the Chamber of Commerce (PDF, 1.3MB). The […]
Infill
September 23: Second Forum on Northampton Open Space, Recreation & Multi-Use Trail Plan
Northampton’s Office of Planning and Development announces today: The second public forum on the draft Northampton Open Space, Recreation, & Multi-Use Trail Plan: 2011-2017 will be held this coming Thursday, September 23rd, at 7:00 PM in the basement of the Unitarian Church next to City Hall. The first public forum was held on Tuesday [see video]. […]
Video: Wayne Feiden Presents Draft 2011-2017 Open Space, Recreation & Multi-Use Trail Plan
Wayne Feiden, Director of Northampton’s Office of Planning and Development, presented highlights from a draft of the 2011-2017 Open Space, Recreation & Multi-Use Trail Plan (PDF, 237 pages, 5MB) to the public at Northampton High School’s Little Theater last night. Here is a complete blip.tv video of the presentation and discussion (1 hour 20 minutes). The recording was […]
Brookhaven, NY: Infill Design Guidelines in Two Pages
Brookhaven, NY is working hard to make its infill design guidelines accessible to developers, regulators, and the public, writes New Urban Network. As a companion to Brookhaven’s 43-page Design Guidelines for Lake Ronkonkoma (PDF), people may also access a two-page summary (PDF). Like many towns on Long Island, [Brookhaven] has old main street districts that are […]
September 21 & 29: Public Forums on Zoning for King Street
Ward 3 City Councilor Angela Plassmann announces at her website today: The Chamber of Commerce has proposed a group of zoning changes to help revitalize King Street (PDF). Some of these changes would authorize more uses without a Special Permit, including hotels. Other changes would reduce the setbacks between commercial areas and residential neighborhoods. Your input is […]
Joel Kotkin: “Urban Legends: Why suburbs, not cities, are the answer”
This week in Foreign Policy, Joel Kotkin challenges the notion that bigger is always better when it comes to cities. Urban Legends The human world is fast becoming an urban world — and according to many, the faster that happens and the bigger the cities get, the better off we all will be. The old […]
Summer Thunderstorm Pressures Stormwater Infrastructure
This afternoon’s thunderstorm pressured Northampton’s downtown storm drains. Police closed the North Street underpass after a car began floating and had to be pushed out. Photos by Adam Cohen. Water at the corner of Hampton Avenue and Old South Street overran the sidewalk… State Street approaching Summer Street… See also: Flooding Incidents in the North […]
Boston Globe: “The growth of a thoughtful city”
The results of breakneck growth in China lead Carlo Rotella to appreciate how Boston values continuity: The growth of a thoughtful city …When I get back from China I no longer take it for granted that I can walk with my kids down our street past trees, yards, and lawns to a park with a […]
September 14: Public Information Session on Update to Open Space Plan
A message from Sarah I. LaValley, Conservation, Preservation and Land Use Planner in Northampton’s Office of Planning and Development: “A public information session on Northampton’s 2011-2017 Open Space, Recreation, and Multi-Use Trail Plan will be held September 14 at 7:00 PM in Northampton High School’s Little Theater. This Plan will be an update to the […]
TED Video: Ellen Dunham-Jones on Retrofitting Suburbia
As King Street goes under the microscope, architect Ellen Dunham-Jones talks in Atlanta about the successful reuse of empty buildings and parking lots, and enhancing the attractiveness of major thoroughfares. Infill doesn’t have to mean swallowing up our remaining in-town greenspace. From the TED Blog, 6/29/10: “Ellen Dunham-Jones fires the starting shot for the next 50 years’ big sustainable […]