Here is a blip.tv video of the 6/10/10 meeting of Northampton’s Planning Board. The Chamber of Commerce presented “Rezoning King Street” to the board. This video is 1 hour 58 minutes long and was recorded by Lachlan Ziegler. Below are excerpts from the Chamber’s “Findings & Recommendations” (PDF). The attention to parking issues and pedestrian comfort […]
Neighborhood Character
Albuquerque Journal: “City Should Address Growing ‘Bad Infill’ Problem”
From the March 14, 2010 Albuquerque Journal: A new two-story house in an unassuming Santa Fe neighborhood is built six feet from the back lot line and looms over the windows of the neighboring one-story home. Across the street from one of old Santa Fe’s most notable Pueblo Revival-style historic homes, a row of faux-Territorial condominiums […]
“Opposition grows to suburban-style design in Birmingham neighborhoods”
The Birmingham News reported on May 27: Officials say the uprising against the sameness of suburban design threatening the uniqueness of some of Birmingham’s established downtown neighborhoods is not a temporary bristling that will die down. Instead, it’s a fundamental shift they say has been a long time in the making as more young professionals and […]
Denver City Council Considers Form-Based Zoning; Stabilizing Neighborhoods
The Denver Daily News reported on May 24 (emphasis added): After five years of what at times has been an excruciating process to update the city’s more than five-decade-old zoning code, the City Council tonight will finally introduce the new code on first reading, paving the way for an extensive public comment period… The new […]
June 10: Attend the North Street Road/Traffic/Tree Meeting – Download Flyer
Please download this flyer (PDF) and post freely! See also: June 10: Informational Meeting on North Street Reconstruction (date changed) Angela Plassmann: “Mayor: Conz Street Slated for Reconstruction This Year, North Street for Next Year” (4/13/10) Laura Hanson will be meeting with North Street residents to begin the process for the reconstruction of North Street […]
Case Study: Brooklyn Neighborhood Rezones to Combat Out-of-Scale Development
Even in the New York City metro area, with its walkable neighborhoods, areas of high density, and extensive public transit system, many citizens are concerned about development that conflicts with the scale and character of the neighborhoods they love. The New York City Department of City Planning provides this overview of recent rezoning in the Bay Ridge district of Brooklyn: […]
Video: Zoning Revisions Discusses Making Core Urban Neighborhoods More “Conforming”, More Dense
Here is a 7-minute YouTube excerpt from last night’s meeting of the Zoning Revisions Committee, recorded by Adam Cohen. It is observed that in zoning district Urban Residential C (URC)–the dense neighborhoods surrounding downtown Northampton–perhaps 40% of the existing single-family homes are “non-conforming”, and the percentage for multi-family homes is even higher. These homes don’t meet today’s zoning requirements […]
“Save the Chesterfield Road Dam” Seeks Your Support
Save the Chesterfield Road Dam would like your support: Dear Friends, Please help the Community Preservation Committee to vote yes in support of the Upper Roberts Meadow Dam! Send a brief email to the CPC and City Council Members to ask for their support of the application before the CPC (which the City Council will then […]
April 21: Conservancy of Sheldon Field, Montview Farms and Meadows – Presentation
The Ward 3 Neighborhood Association makes the following announcement: Subject: Conservancy of Sheldon Field, Montview Farms and Meadows Date: Wednesday April 21, 2010 Time: 7PM to 9PM Place: Bridge Street School Cafeteria Robert A. Levite, Esq. from Natural Resources & Environmental Conservation at UMASS Extension will talk about forming a conservancy, holding a Conservation Restriction […]
Zoning Revisions Committee Releases Synthesis of Comments from March 17 Forum
Northampton’s Zoning Revisions Committee has released a synthsis of comments from its public forum on March 17. Download the full-size PDF. See the slides from the forum. See the video. The committee will next meet on April 7, 7-9pm in City Hall Room 10 (second floor, enter via the back door). See also: Video and Slides: Joel Russell […]