New zoning regulations that encourage multifamily projects are transforming downtowns in several New Jersey cities. The zoning policy shift could produce the biggest transformation of North New Jersey’s downtowns since the arrival of malls pulled shoppers away from town centers in the 1960s and 1970s, according to NorthJersey.com.
The suburban communities are responding to millennials who want to live in urban environments and aging suburbanites who want to downsize in their hometowns. “People want to live in places where they have that downtown, where they can live close to things that they’re going to eat and things that they’re going to buy, and the market is following,” said Maggie Peters, director of the Bergen County Economic Development Corp.
Permits for multifamily units in the county have outpaced single- and two-family permits every year since 2009. Since the 1970s, most of the region’s communities had zoned their downtowns for commercial uses. In recent years, some have added hundreds of new apartment units.
One area town, Ridgewood, which already has a thriving downtown retail district, has resisted the trend so far. Concerns over parking and traffic have come to the fore as the community considers zoning changes that would allow large multifamily projects downtown.
(http://www.northjersey.com/news/bergen-county-s-suburbs-embrace-a-touch-of-the-city-1.1134517)
Related Stories
| Oct 11, 2012
Morristown, N.Y., settles code violation dispute with Amish
The town of Morristown, N.Y., has dropped charges of building code violations against local Amish communities to settle a First Amendment complaint.
| Oct 11, 2012
Mesquite, Nev., rebels against state-mandated energy code
The city council of Mesquite, Nev., voted against adopting a new energy efficiency code adopted by the state.
| Oct 11, 2012
Bloomingdale, N.J., restricts ground solar and wind energy installations
The borough of Bloomingdale, N.J., recently adopted regulations for solar-energy and wind energy systems.
| Oct 3, 2012
Bill introduced to extend home energy efficiency tax credit
A bill to extend the expired residential energy efficiency tax credit for installing qualified furnaces, boilers, central air conditioners, and heat pumps was recently filed in the U.S. House of Representatives.
| Oct 3, 2012
OSHA publishes more detailed information on variances
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) enhanced its variances Web page to improve public understanding of the variance approval process and increase access to the agency's decisions regarding variance requests.
| Oct 3, 2012
Online program computes energy savings from green roofs; compares savings with other options
A free online tool can calculate the amount of energy savings from installation of a green roof. Portland State University‘s (PSU’s) online Green Roof Energy Calculator can be used for new or old structures.
| Oct 3, 2012
SERF, CSE launch a new accreditation for evaluation of building sustainability
The Society of Environmentally Responsible Facilities (SERF), a Chicago-based environmental building certification organization, and the Centre for Sustainability and Excellence (CSE) launched a new accreditation program that certifies professionals to evaluate buildings’ sustainable systems and practices according to SERF’s certification criteria.
| Oct 3, 2012
New version of Occupied Space Standard for DC microgrids in buildings released
The EMerge Alliance, an association leading the adoption of safe direct-current (DC) power distribution standards for commercial buildings, has updated the EMerge Alliance Occupied Space standard.
| Sep 26, 2012
Automatic budget cuts in January would slash federal agencies' construction budgets
Sequestration, or the implementation of automatic budget cuts as of January 2013, would slash government agencies' already reduced construction budgets further, and require agencies to shelve some repair and maintenance projects.
| Sep 26, 2012
Investment in greener data centers to reach $45 billion by 2016
Investment in data centers built to green standards will increase from the $17.1 billion predicted for this year to $45 billion by 2016, according to Pike Research.