We appreciate this letter in today’s Gazette from Eileen Hirsch. Here is an excerpt: Wants a mayor who’ll support green space in townMy first encounter with Mayor Higgins was 15 years ago when she was a city councilor at large and our South Street neighborhood was battling with a developer who wanted to convert green […]
Trees
Pictures from the August 27 Conservation Commission Hearing on the Kohl Condo Proposal
Northampton’s Conservation Commission discussed a hydrological review of the Kohl Construction North Street condo proposal at an August 27 hearing. They took no vote but agreed to discuss the proposal again on September 10 at 5:30pm (City Hall Hearing Room, 210 Main Street, 2nd floor). The commissioners desired to refine language in the draft covenants and project […]
National Grid to Inspect Trees Along North Street for Hazards
We are circulating this announcement at the request of Kyle Andrejczyk, a member of National Grid’s Hazard Tree Mitigation Program: Greetings All,My name is Kyle Andrejczyk and I am an arborist with National Grid’s NE Hazard Tree Mitigation Program–a multi-year reliability improvement initiative. The intent of this program is to reduce power outages by identifying […]
Our Ad in Today’s Gazette: “How to Avoid Classic Infill Design Mistakes”
Our ad in today’s Gazette (5/6/09) describes how Kohl Construction’s proposed condo development off North Street would commit a number of classic urban infill design mistakes. Download this ad as a high-resolution PDF (432 KB). Concerned citizens are urged to attend Conservation Commission and Planning Board hearings on this proposal on May 14 (see flyer, […]
Gazette: “Health, fiscal woes seed local vegetable gardens”; Freeman Dyson Sees Future Gold in Green
Today’s Gazette reports that vegetable gardens are even more popular than last year, a good reason not to infill away our urban greenspaces: An estimated 37 percent of all United States households, or about 43 million, plan to grow vegetables, fruit, berries or herbs in 2009, according to the Vermont-based National Gardening Association. That’s up […]
Flyer for May 14 Hearings; Get Your Free Yard Sign
Please encourage your friends and neighbors to attend the May 14 hearings on the latest Kohl condo proposal. Download our flyer (PDF, 394 KB) and pass it around freely. The flyer includes a review of our major objections to the proposal. Request a free yard sign from info@northassoc.org. We’ll let you know where to pick […]
Earth Day Photo Essay: Spring Buds in the North Street Woods
In honor of Earth Day, please enjoy these pictures of the woods between North Street and the new bike trail… See also: Topographical Map Shows How Kohl Condo Proposal Will Eat Into a Rare Stand of Mature Trees in Downtown Our Guest Article at Northampton Redoubt: “The Kohl condo proposal and the Struggle Over the […]
Tree Loss and Slab-on-Grade Foundations: A Poor Fit with the Sustainable Northampton Plan
Kohl Construction claims its North Street condo proposal deserves deference as “infill”, but its proposal is in fact at odds with many recommendations of the Sustainable Northampton Plan. In our last article, we discussed how Kohl’s latest concept now includes two cul-de-sacs. These are disfavored by the Sustainable Northampton Plan and in this case for […]
Video: Zero Lot Line Workshop, 3/17/09; Equity of Infill Distribution
Northampton’s Senior Land Use Planner/Permits Manager Carolyn Misch led a workshop on the proposed changes to the Zero Lot Line zoning regulations at Bridge Street School on 3/17/09. The goal of the changes is to facilitate infill by “[simplifying] Zero Lot Line Development to eliminate fences, reduce 30’ side setback to 15’, and allow lots […]
Watering-up: Studies of Groundwater Rising After Trees Cut
At the February 26 Conservation Commission hearing regarding Kohl Construction’s North Street condo proposal, Jono Neiger of Regenerative Design Group noted that removing large numbers of mature trees, as Kohl proposes to do, may cause the already high water table to rise even further. In Kohl’s Stormwater Drainage Report (PDF, 2.8MB, submitted 3/6/09), seasonal high […]