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Trenton Lofts subscribers
This is the event Trenton Lofts subscribers have been
waiting for (whether you know it or not). I got a note
from Michael Goldstein this week inviting Trenton
Lofts subscribers to the Cracker Factory loft project
kick-off. You'll need to RSVP directly to
info@trentonferry.com. Hopefully you've already read
about the building on this site or theirs and know how
important this is.
Wednesday, I ran into Michael's fellow Disciple of Jazz, Larry Hilton, who was on his way to Casa Goldstein to help plan the jazz entertainment they'll have at the event. Besides first class jazz, HHG Development will have refreshments and presumably tours. If you're at all serious about buying a loft in Trenton, I'll see you at the Cracker Factory on June 10th between 2 and 7 at 242 Centre St. |
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Is Trenton really ready for the big leagues?
So now the finger pointing begins. The Developer is
saying the city is dragging its feet. The city ... well the
city is likely just dragging its feet.
In fact, there are private citizens getting involved by filing Open Records requests to find out what's going on. The Mayor boasted heavily about this project last year but it doesn't look like his staff is ready to play in the big leagues. As cool as this project could be (it's planned to be a "Green" building and reuse an old AT&T Central Office), my money is on city development honcho Dennis Gonzalez's inertia. We're 1 for 5 of big development projects in Trenton.
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| Dan Dodson |
I get asked about crime in Trenton all the time. Here's
an excerpt of a reply I sent recently to a reader that
gives my
perspectives on the subject.
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There's nothing like a big night out at the symphony.
On June 23rd one of the nation's big Orchestras is
coming
to Trenton's wonderful War Memorial Auditorium.
I'd like to go if we can work out the baby sitting. |
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| Dan Dodson |
One of the ways governments try to aid economic
development in cities like Trenton is to fund big public
works projects. Two such projects are underway in
Trenton, the $60,000,000 Trenton Train Station and
a recently announced urban state park that will take
20 years to complete.
At first blush, there seems to be no way projects like this could be worth the money. Sixty million dollars could fund a lot of residential rehab and a state park will displace a lot of new development. In addition to the money, there's quite a large risk that these projects will simply backfire. The train station might look like a fortress and disconnect itself from the surrounding area preventing pedestrian based commerce from spilling into the neighborhood and vice versa. The park could create uncrossable barriers between otherwise vibrant commercial areas. My hope in writing this, is for urban activists to question what they're told by government planners. The planners for these projects don't live here and don't have a sense for how revitalization is happening. They're playing around with a lot of money and big dollars can lead to big bungles (e.g. Rt 29). |
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