On Wednesday September 9th, 2009, L. Nicolas Ronderos, Director of Urban Development Programs for Regional Plan Association, presented a statement on the Western Rail Yard Rezoning to express our support for the actions under review. The rail yard is one of Manhattan's largest developable parcels, bound by 33rd St. on the north, 30th St. on the south, 11th Ave. on the east and the Hudson River on the west.

The proposed actions would have an overall beneficial effect on neighborhood character at the development site, additional housing sites, and the areas surrounding them. As we expressed in our seminal 2004 report "Urban Development Alternatives for the Hudson Rail Yards", a mixed-use development on the yard is more desirable than other options and would better connect the waterfront to the district, promote urban development throughout the area and provide a significantly larger rate of return for public infrastructure investments.

A preliminary study released by the Regional Plan Association issues recommendations for how to revive water-dependent maritime uses and highlights their importance to the Region's economy and quality of life. The 47-page draft report for discussion, Making Waterfronts Work, lays out four major areas where steps can be taken to support maritime uses. These include preparing a regional inventory of such maritime uses; assessing maritime economic impacts and contributions; convening a regional forum of key decision-makers; and developing a toolbox of financial incentives and land use protections for local and state governments to employ to ensure the viability of this sector. Summarizing current research and synthesizing interviews with nearly 50 stakeholders, the report also found that port facilities throughout the region have declined significantly over the past six decades. The report was conducted in partnership with University of Rhode Island's Coastal Institute IGERT Project.

Download Press Release (PDF 200K)
Download Study (DOC 4.7MB)

With growing public interest in property tax reform and a proposed Constitutional Convention in 2006, Regional Plan Association and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy have teamed up to address New Jersey's over-reliance on local property taxes to fund public education and identify policies which would encourage smart growth. Three public forums are being held in the winter and fall of 2005, and a final report will be released in the spring.

As part of the property tax reform series, Regional Plan Association produced a series of white papers on the deficiencies of the current system and key policy issues for each forum, as well as summaries of the discussions and ideas presented at each program. A final report will include recommendations for reforming the State's property tax system to encourage smart growth. This information can inform New Jersey leaders to reform the current system in ways that will discourage sprawl and encourage compact, mixed-use communities.

For each forum below please find the accompanying white paper/agenda and a summary of the forum:

Forum 1: How Can We Afford Smart Growth? February 23, 2005
Co-hosted by the Edward J. Bloustein School for Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University, this program explored the financial obstacles to realizing smart growth, and raised suggestions about how to overcome these barriers.

Background paper/agenda
Summary of Proceedings

Forum 2: Welcoming Families Back to New Jersey: Schools, Housing and the End of 'Fiscal Zoning' March 9, 2005
Held in partnership with the Municipal Land Use Center at The College of New Jersey, this forum addressed New Jersey's over-reliance on local property taxes to fund public education, and examined how reforms that have been implemented in Michigan and Massachusetts have changed school funding and land use policies.
Summary of Proceedings (coming soon!)

Forum 3: Should Land and Buildings Be Taxed Differently?
The final forum will take place March 23^rd at the Rutgers University Center for Law and Justice in Newark. Co-hosted by the Joseph C. Cornwall Center for Metropolitan Studies, panelists will look at differential taxation (i.e., taxing land and buildings at different rates) as a possible tool for reforming the state's land use and fiscal policies. Background Paper/Agenda

As New Jersey charts its course for the new century, it must confront two structural challenges to sustain the growth and prosperity it achieved in the 1990s. One is driven by the continuing transformations of the global economy, the second by the internal capacity constraints created by decades of largely unplanned metropolitan growth. Regional Plan Association is developing economic and transportation analysis to better understand the implications of the changing economic geography for New Jersey's infrastructure and development needs. An analysis of industry clusters and infrastructure conditions in different regions is being completed. Future work will focus on identifying priority infrastructure investments and opportunities for interstate collaboration.

Since September 11, RPA has been leading efforts to examine the future economy of Lower Manhattan for the Civic Alliance to Rebuild Downtown New York. In 2002, this effort resulted in the publication of Reports from the Economic Development Working Group and the development of economic scenarios and their regional implications for the Civic Alliance's Planning and Design Workshop for Lower Manhattan. The first report included an analysis of the Manhattan and regional office market, an examination of the future of Lower Manhattan as a creative center for the region, and economic development recommendations for the Alliance. In 2003, RPA will continue its analysis of the regional implications for a revitalized Downtown.

* Reports from the Economic Development Working Group (7.7 mb) pdf