College Square Rendering Reveals RAMSA Influence

A new rendering of the College Square project appears on the Centerplan website, showing the design influence of Robert A.M. Stern Architects. Groundbreaking for the anticipated five-star hotel portion of this project is still planned for this fall, with completion scheduled for 2011. The building is situated directly across the street from Cesar Pelli's new high school.

According to developer Robert Landino, the hotel will be a "full-service luxury hotel with 240 rooms with a full package of amenities that will complement the neighborhood, business community and [Yale-New Haven] hospital."

Lieberman: Trains are for those who can't afford cars

Aware that Congress has taken up consideration of Amtrak funding (H.R. 6003, the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act), a DNH reader wrote to Senator Lieberman urging better funding of Amtrak and more service to New Haven, suggesting an earlier train to Penn Station in order to allow for connections to early-morning departures to cities such as Pittsburgh, Raleigh, Toronto and Montreal. The letter did not once mention high gas prices.

Senator Lieberman's long reply to his constituent began as follows:

"Thank you for contacting me regarding high oil and gasoline prices. I fully share your concerns; and I am working to alleviate the pain at the pump on several fronts through a number of legislative measures that are intended to ease gas prices, increase oversight of energy markets, prevent price gouging, increase fuel efficiency and vehicle fuel economy standards, reduce America's dependence on foreign sources of oil, and increase tax benefits for renewable energy and conservation."

The reply went on for more than fifteen paragraphs, excoriating oil executives, discussing alternative fuels and battery-powered cars yet not once mentioning Amtrak. A simple slip-up by a busy staffer? Perhaps. But the implication is still distressing: our leaders think the only reason we would support intercity rail is that we just can't afford to drive any more. Never mind climate change, the 42,000 killed yearly in "accidents," the erosion of community into the endless sprawl that reliance on the automobile leads to. To Senator Lieberman, travel by rail is apparently a second-rate option, one for people who can't afford proper transportation. And he's from Connecticut. (Thank you to the anonymous reader for contributing this post).

New Website: New Haven Safe Streets

"New Haven Safe Streets is a coalition of various organizations and individuals advocating for streets that are safer and therefore more livable, walkable, economically viable and environmentally sound."

Update 5/28/08: An article about the safety coalition, with quotes from sponsors including Senator Toni Harp and Alderwoman Erin Sturgis-Pascale, appears in today's New Haven Register. Also, a TV news item appeared on WSFB news today. Tri-State Transportation Campaign's blog also features a post on the petition.

Harvard School of Public Health: High traffic reduces child IQ levels

Original post 3/24/08: This interesting news article was widely circulated throughout New York City today.

"If we don't do something to reduce automobile congestion, our children's brain development could be put at risk. "

Update 5/24/08: Speaking of traffic, a recent high-profile public health study adds to the growing evidence that particulate air pollution is several times more deadly than previously thought -- causing up to 24,000 deaths per year in California alone, a staggering figure. Expect public health officials and concerned area residents to issue renewed calls for pollution controls and/or higher fees on cars, buses and trucks to try to offset this.

Update 5/29/08: Yet another study shows elevated health risks associated with high levels of particulate pollution. The lead author, Dr. Andrea Baccarelli, writes “it’s a risk to live where pollution is high... but air pollution is not the only risk for D.V.T. Rather, this emphasizes the need for having a healthy lifestyle. That’s important wherever you live, but even more important if you live where pollution is high.” A DNH reader points out that creating safer streets, so that residents can walk and bicycle more often, is essential to promoting that.

Green Drinks, Simple Pleasures, Pipas and Model City Blues

A trio of Downtown New Haven events this week (among many others):

1. New Haven’s monthly eco-friendly happy hour, New Haven Green Drinks, will be Wednesday, May 21, 6-8:00pm at Café Nine, at 250 State Street. This month Daniel Schaefer, the founder of the New Haven-based nonprofit Invested Citizens will be speaking on ways to make climate change and clean energy relevant to a wider audience. Remember to walk, bike, bus or carpool to the event.

2. New Haven band The Simple Pleasures - the featured musicians in the groundbreaking Yale School of Drama production of Baal last year - will play this Wednesday night at BAR. They are coming straight from their recent shows at Luna Lounge, Fortune Cookie and The Midway. On Friday night (5/23), check out Min Xiao-Fen's Asian Trio at Firehouse 12: Min Xiao-Fen is among the most renowned pipa masters in the world and has collaborated with Derek Bailey, Björk, Jane Ira Bloom, Tan Dun, Philip Glass, Susie Ibarra, the New York City Opera, Ned Rothenberg, Randy Weston and John Zorn among many others.

3. Mandi Isaacs Jackson, author of Model City Blues: Urban Space and Organized Resistance in New Haven, a new book about 1960s urban renewal and political struggle, will hold a discussion this Thursday, May 22nd at 5:30PM at Labyrinth Books New Haven.

Also, if you are an architecture writer, stay on the lookout for another one of Robert A.M. Stern's hard-hat tours of the renovated landmark Rudolph Building. The New Haven Register reports on Gwathmey Siegel's $130+ million Rudolph Building renovation here.

Downtown Traffic Safety Event and Ride of Silence

All are invited to "Traffic Safety in Our Community," an event being held by the community this Thursday in memory of Mila Rainof.

• Thursday, May 22nd
• 4 to 5:30 pm
• Fitkin Amphitheater, 330 Cedar Street, New Haven, CT
• Speakers include Dr. Kimberly Davis, MD, FACS, Chief of Trauma, Surgical Critical Care and Surgical Emergencies, Yale University School of Medicine and Michael Piscitelli, AICP, Director, New Haven Dept. of Transportation, Traffic and Parking.

For background information, see this post or join the Yale Traffic Safety Group email list here.

Update 5/20/08: On Wednesday, May 21st, at 7PM there will be a nationwide "Ride of Silence" to commemorate those injured or killed in traffic accidents over the past year. New Haven's silent bicycle ride leaves from the flagpole on the New Haven Green, and will be slow-paced and appropriate for all skill levels and age groups.

Update 5/23/08: New Haven Independent post-event coverage, and valuable information on what to do next, posted here. New Haven Register coverage here.

Update 5/29/08: The Yale Traffic Safety Group is one of the sponsors of the new citywide petition for safe streets.

Northland Explains Plans for Coliseum Site

Northland Investment Corporation chairman Lawrence R. Gottesdiener explains his approach to developing Downtown New Haven's former Coliseum Site, and the importance of walkability, in the most recent issue of Business New Haven:

"We have three business plans. One is growth surrounding information-technology markets. One is contrarian: for us that's south Florida. And one is high-barrier-to-entry markets where it is very difficult to build, and that includes Connecticut and Massachusetts. New Haven fits the 'growth' and the 'high-barrier' business plan. My belief about New Haven is that it has the ability to be the greatest second-tier city in the country. New Haven has everything Hartford doesn't have - it has pulse, energy, a vibrant restaurant and somewhat of a retail scene. It now needs to go to the next level: It needs some landmark development to say, 'Forget Greenwich, forget Stamford - this is the place to live.' Not just for the best and the brightest, but also for the empty nesters who are gravitating toward university towns. The big challenge is to knit downtown to Union Station, which is why my interest in the Coliseum site and to emphasize its location at the crossroads of New England."

"The old paradigm that density is bad is over. If you really study the New Urbanism, now the argument is that density is good - live, work and play, keep people close, let people walk. Walking and train, the pedestrian experience and the train experience is going to be the future of the Northeast corridor."

For more details on Northland's plans, also visit our most recent posting on the New Haven Coliseum site (and see additional image above).

Direct from London to New Haven

According to Variety, two very popular London plays - Happy Now and Scarborough - will have their American premieres in Downtown New Haven this coming season. In other, unrelated New Haven theater news, Yale University received a $3 million grant to establish a center for new theater commissions.

National Train Day to hit New Haven Union Station

First Robert DeNiro and Kate Beckinsale, now National Train Day. New Haven's elegant Union Station will host the "only National Train Day celebration between New York & Boston" this Saturday from 4:00-5:30 PM, on the 2nd Floor Balcony. See here for more photos courtesy Herbert S. Newman and Partners.

The press release notes that "sticker shock at the gas pump is matched by increasing congestion on the roadways and in the air, and that polls, referenda, and ridership data on train systems across the country (including those in New Haven) all point to a demand for more trains, the National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP) and its local affiliates are sponsoring events at stations across the country that highlight the role of passenger trains in a networked transportation system." In addition to discussing plans for the future of Union Station and the opportunities for the national rail network, the New Haven event is also likely to focus on multi-modal transportation, such as bicycle access on trains. The speaker-driven event will include a number of local and state officials and state environmental advocates, and several members of the media are expected. For more details, see the press release.

SeeClickFix

Original Post, 5/7/08: Anyone who has used SeeClickFix so far knows what an excellent and fun resource it can be. So to make things easy for readers to become citizen advocates, we've included a SeeClickFix widget on the left-hand bar of Design New Haven. Enjoy!

A Quicker Fixer Upper (Downtown New Haven Tea Leaves, Early May 2008)

Ever wondered who’s responsible for fixing potholes, replacing blown out street lights and cleaning graffiti? Well, there’s a huge network of organizations (including the Town Green District) working together to take care of all sorts of issues throughout the city, but now there’s a way you can help them (and us) do the job more efficiently. It’s as simple as SeeClickFix!

Elm City locals Jeff Blasius, Ben Berkowitz, Kam Lasater and Miles Lasater launched SeeClickFix as way to use the power of the internet to keep New Haven clean, vibrant and beautiful. With SeeClickFix, concerned citizens, merchants’ associations, Aldermen or utility companies are alerted to concerns or requests for service. The website’s map based interface makes it easy for anyone to pinpoint a location and identify an issue. Here’s how it works:

See: See a non-emergency issue in your neighborhood.

Click: Go to www.seeclickfix.com, click on the map, open a ticket and describe the issue. Each ticket generates an email to a "Fixer," someone involved with solving issues in that area. All tickets regarding graffiti in Downtown are addressed by the Town Green District’s Clean Team.

Fix: Click save on your ticket and the issue is reported for a more timely resolution. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? Want to be an even bigger help? Sign up to be a SideClick and you can help spread the word, work with Fixers, and provide feedback.
SeeClick Fix: Open your eyes, raise your voice, click your ticket!

The article above is courtesy of the Town Green Special Services District's monthly Tea Leaves newsletter. The Town Green District is the business improvement district (BID) for Downtown New Haven and one of the preeminent BIDs in the Northeast. In addition to running a variety of programs that keep Downtown clean and safe, the Town Green has been hosting the monthly Wine Dine Design series as part of its 10th anniversary celebration. Visit InfoNewHaven for details.

Update 6/26/08: New press coverage of SeeClickFix discusses how the Mayor of New Haven, John DeStefano, is interested in the technology and its possible integration with city services.

Downtown New Haven Unicycle Mania

Click here for New Haven Independent reporting on the latest Downtown New Haven impromptu circus event, and the city's unicycle craze:

Matt Feiner of the Devil’s Gear Bike Shop said that unicycles have been jumping off the shelves. “It’s crazy, it really is,” he said. “We’ve been selling about four or five a week for the last six weeks.”

Unicycling (well, or monowheeling) has hit New Haven before. At left, the 1869 US Patent 92,528 by Richard C Hemmings of New Haven, Connecticut. Not surprising for a city that was home to the world's first bicycle patent, and was home to a "velocipede craze" as early as 1819.

Postcards of New Haven

Check out these New Haven postcards by Isaac Cates here (original photography). He has a bunch of extra copies and is leaving town soon, so you may be able to get these for a song. While you're there, if you are a poet, do not miss his poetry submission guidelines.

City Receives Multiple Bids for Former Coliseum Site

Original Post, 4/22/08: Official RFQs for the major 4+-acre Downtown New Haven site were received this morning from a wide range of development and real estate companies. The City of New Haven has been seeking a project team that can create a vibrant mixed-use, walkable development incorporating the Long Wharf Theater.

The list of proposers looks promising at a first glance. Related Companies, for example, was the successful developer of the massive $1.1 Billion, 2.8 million square foot Time Warner Center -- the most valuable real estate property in all of New York City. AvalonBay has 171 major developments with 49,000 apartments. The other bidders have impressive track records as well -- focusing on development in, for example, "the most desirable neighborhoods in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, Southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area, the New York metropolitan area, Seattle and Boston."

The site has also long attracted attention from New Haven-based architects (also see here).

What's next? Selected development firms will face an in-depth selection process and a difficult financing market. In fact, fallout from the financial troubles in the global market effectively prevented a number of major companies from responding to the RFQ, even though the site's central downtown location -- one block from Union Station and the proposed new Transit Oriented Development there -- is extremely valuable. More information on the RFQ (including details such as proposed land uses) should be available soon.

RFQ SUBMITTALS 4/22/08
THE RICHMAN GROUP DEVELOPMENT , GREENWICH , CT
ARCHSTONE , NEW YORK , NY
HEYMAN PROPERTIES, LLC , WESTPORT, CT
NORTHLAND INVESTMENT CORPORATION , NEWTON , MA
AVALONBAY COMMUNITIES, INC. , SHELTON , CT
RELATED COMPANIES LLP , NEW YORK, NY

Update, 4/24/08: Coverage of the response now appears in today's New Haven Register, Yale Daily News and New Haven Independent.

Update, 5/2/08: Articles about the proposed downtown development, with additional details and images of the responses, appear in Business New Haven, New Haven Register and the New Haven Independent. More images may be available soon and will be posted here.

Update, 5/8/08: Additional details on the Coliseum RFQ are now posted in a separate article.

Grand Theft Velo II: Elm City

Alleycat race this Saturday in and around Downtown New Haven. Speaking of design, check out the excellent poster (click to enlarge). More information here.

An article on the alleycat race, and New Haven's bicycling culture, appears in this week's issue of Play Magazine:

""We've got about a dozen people coming up from Maryland," Nemetz says. "There's a group from Boston, the New York group, some from Chicago and everyone from Connecticut.""

Update 5/7/08: Post-event coverage from the New Haven Advocate.

500-unit Shartenberg Mixed-Use Development Begins Construction

Original Post, 4/21/08: Becker + Becker's "360 State" development on the former Shartenberg Site at the heart of Downtown New Haven is now beginning construction. An 8-foot high blue fence with concrete barriers has been erected around the complete perimeter of the block, and informational graphics along the length of the fence will be installed this week. Utility and site work has already begun, with a significant amount of underground work planned as part of the project. Major construction activity will be underway within the next few weeks.

Scheduled for completion in 2010, the 355-foot-tall tower will be the second-highest building in New Haven, bringing the residents of 500 new apartments to Chapel Street between Orange and State.

The site is conveniently located across the street from the State Street train station. Aside from its dense urban location, the development contains energy efficient design features. Elements like geothermal heating and cooling and solar cells, if used, would benefit from various state subsidy programs designed to promote energy efficiency. There will also be indoor bicycle parking spaces for each unit. The project also is planned to contain a massive ornament program, running the full length of the facade, designed by internationally-renowned New Haven-based public sculptor Kent Bloomer.

The 500-unit, 34-story building is designed to be set back from the street and tower above a retail and parking garage base with glass entrance towers. The project, tentatively called "360 State" for its actual street address as well as its panoramic views of the region (and the fact that it is 36 stories tall), will even feature a half-acre landscaped terrace (sitting on top of the parking) with an outdoor pool. The developer expects to get the same rents as what the 227 Church Street luxury building currently gets -- $3,500 for 3BRs, $2,300 for 2BRs, $1,700 for 1BRs and $1,250 for studios. Most of the building will consist of studios and 1BRs. 10% of units in the building will have subsidized ("affordable") rents tied to income level.

According to Business New Haven this week, a "high end" grocery store on the first floor may be leased shortly. The city hopes that the project will help encourage walkability between the Downtown New Haven core area and Wooster Square, a historic neighborhood just a couple blocks to the east of the site.

Click here for the preliminary renderings by Becker + Becker; updated renderings should be available shortly. In the meantime you can also download a CT Business article about the Downtown New Haven project.

Update 5/1/08: New Haven Independent coverage of the 360 State project appears here, along with a new rendering of the project. It appears that the building on the corner of Orange and Chapel Street has been changed from its original design, which was to have continued the retail and parking garage along the entire length of the block. If the building ends before the corner with Orange Street, it might create an opportunity for another developer or architect to create a concept for a second building on the site.

Update 7/31/08: The New Haven Independent reports that building permits have been approved for a revised design, following a brief delay to adjust for rising prices and a change in the construction manager, formerly Fusco, to Suffolk.