Jesse Adams is running for a City Councilor At-Large position in Northampton. Here is a blip.tv video of the speeches from his campaign kick-off event at the Northampton Country Club on 6/24/09. Mr. Adams is introduced by Rick Gifford and Wendy Foxmyn. This video is 18 minutes long and was recorded by Adam Cohen. For […]
Best Practices
Video: A Close Look at the Presentation of the Wetlands Ordinance to City Council on 9/20/07
The intent of Northampton’s new Wetlands Ordinance has been a hot topic of conversation at the recent Conservation Commission hearings for Kohl Construction’s condo proposal for North Street. What kinds of disturbance are acceptable within 10, 35 and 50 feet of a wetland in our zoning district (URB)? What kinds of mitigation balance a given […]
Wall Street Journal: “How Group Decisions End Up Wrong-Footed”
A 4/25/09 Wall Street Journal article has insights into getting good decisions from groups. It resonates with the goals of the Best Practices Committee. How Group Decisions End Up Wrong-Footed For committees and other boards to work well, they must be made up of people with differing perspectives and experience who are unafraid to speak […]
Our Guest Article at Northampton Redoubt: “The Kohl condo proposal and the Struggle Over the Meaning of Infill”
The Valley Advocate’s Northampton Redoubt blog today publishes a guest article from NSNA member Adam Cohen, “The Kohl condo proposal and the Struggle Over the Meaning of Infill”. This article reviews the current state of the condo proposal and outlines many of our key objections. A difficulty that is becoming increasingly apparent is how unresolved […]
Video: Presentation of Final Recommendations of the Best Practices Committee to City Council, 3/5/09
Here is a Google video of the first hour and 18 minutes from the Northampton City Council meeting of 3/5/09. This video was recorded by Lachlan Ziegler, and is also available on Vimeo. It includes the public comment period, an FY2010 budget presentation, the presentation of a certificate to Deputy Fire Chief Chris Norris, and […]
Michael Bardsley Declares Candidacy for Mayor: Opposes School Closings
The Valley Advocate reported yesterday that At-Large City Councilor Michael Bardsley has officially declared his intention to run for mayor. If elected, he said he plans to follow up on work done with the Ad-Hoc Best Practices Committee he had been a part of during the last year and conduct a thorough review of how […]
Video: Planning Board Meeting of 3/12/09; Training Presentation for Planning Board Members
Here is a video of the 3/12/09 meeting of Northampton’s Planning Board. It is 1 hour and 38 minutes long. It was recorded by Lisa Maloney and is available on Vimeo. Here is the agenda of the meeting: Board Elections Sustainable Northampton Implementation (1:04:20-1:36:50 on the video. Discusses priority of various initiatives.) More training (0:00:00-0:38:20 on the […]
Video: Conservation Commission Meeting of 3/12/09; Deadlock on Kohl Condo Proposal
Here is a Google video of most of the Conservation Commission meeting of 3/12/09. Only the portion that followed the Kohl hearing was not recorded. This video is 3 hours and 59 minutes long, and was recorded by Adam Cohen. Thanks to Steve Hathaway for transcription assistance. The portion of the meeting devoted to the […]
Valley Advocate: “Bogged Down – Doug Kohl runs into trouble with plans for his subdivision off North Street in Northampton”
The Valley Advocate today published “Bogged Down – Doug Kohl runs into trouble with plans for his subdivision off North Street in Northampton”. Mike Kirby reports on the gestation of the new Wetlands Ordinance and the problems Kohl Construction is having with securing Conservation Commission approval for its proposed condo project. Some excerpts: …a cloud […]
Video: Zoning Revisions Committee Meeting of 3/10/09; Draft Sustainable Northampton Regulatory Implementation
Here is a complete Google video of the first meeting of Northampton’s Zoning Revisions Committee. The meeting took place on March 10 in City Council Chambers. This committee is charged with recommending zoning revisions to the Planning Board that implement the Sustainable Northampton Plan. The video is about two hours long and is also available […]