News

As part of the deal, NuTonomy will combine more than 100 employees, including 70 engineers and scientists, to Delphi's more than 100-member automated driving team. After the transaction is completed, Delphi will have self-driving operations in Boston, Pittsburgh, Singapore, Santa Monica, and Silicon Valley; NuTonomy will continue to be based in Boston, where both companies currently operate pilot programs. By combining efforts with NuTonomy in Boston, Singapore, and other pilot cities around the world, Delphi will have 60 autonomous cars on the road across three continents by years end.

https://www.theverge.com/2017/10/24/16533534/delphi-nutonomy-acquisition-450-million-self-driving

The small town of Isafjordur, Iceland is hoping an optical illusion painted onto a street will work to slow down drivers.

https://www.planetizen.com/node/95330?utm_source=newswire&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=news-10192017

https://nextcity.org/daily/entry/amsterdam-traffic-lights-removed

"In a market where buildable land goes quickly to private developers paying cash — or investors who sit on the property and wait for its value to rise — nonprofit builders are at a definite disadvantage. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh wants to level that building field, and his administration has announced an $8.5 million program designed to help nonprofits acquire parcels for affordable housing."

https://nextcity.org/daily/entry/news-boston-affordable-housing-developers-rethink-vacant-lots

An obscure ordinance published by the Department of Commerce in 1928 has had arguably the largest affect on how U.S. cities are developed. But a new, simple, two-sentence subdivision ordinance could actually result in much better places, and much better cities.

http://www.moderncities.com/article/2017-oct-two-simple-sentences-could-reshape-suburban-america

"Sunlight and shadow shape the character and rhythm of New York’s public spaces. They have the power to control the flow of foot traffic on our city streets and decide which plazas hum with activity and commerce and which stay barren and desolate. And probably most noticeably, they have the power to change the rent. In most parts of America, sunlight is not debated the way it is in New York, where the city’s thirst for living space, working space and economic growth has turned the sun into a virtual commodity."

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/12/21/upshot/Mapping-the-Shadows-of-New-York-City.html?_r=0

A message from Neighborhood of Affordable Housing, Inc (NOAH)

NOAH's great ClimateCARE team is planning an East Boston Climate Summit on Saturday, October 28, from 10AM to 2:30PM, at the Umana Academy on Border Street in East Boston. Climate change brings the increasing threat of sea-level rise, damaging floods, warming temperatures, and changing storm patterns. The diverse and vibrant peninsular community of East Boston is poised to experience these threats in a big way. Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria and Sandy have taught us that large urban centers can suffer loss of life and severe property damage. Personal and institutional preparedness are necessary in the face of these increasing challenges. The City of Boston and other City/State agencies are making plans to protect East Boston - its people, its businesses, and its community. NOAH is working closely with the City and various agencies so that plans make sense for all of East Boston's residents. Mayor Marty Walsh, a national climate change leader, is our invited speaker, along with Oscar A. Chacón, co-founder and executive director of Alianza Americas, an immigrant-serving organization. Our elected local representatives will also be speaking. There will be a variety of interesting workshops to attend. For more information, please contact NOAH's Climate Program Manager, Gabriela Boscio, at gboscio@noahcdc.org or register by clicking HERE.   

The report covers the following:

Urban Form

Population

Housing

Economy

Mobility

Climate and the Environment

See here: 

http://envision.cambridgema.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/2017-09-20-Cambridge-Today-Pages-For-Web.pdf?utm_source=Cambridge%2BToday%2BAnnouncement&utm_campaign=Envision%2B&utm_medium=email

When you walk through a city, does it make you feel happy? That’s the question author and urbanist Charles Montgomery set out to answer while researching his book, Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design. Through various experiments and urban labs, Montgomery discovered that, yes, walking through certain parts of a city can indeed spark joy. But that discovery led to another, more impactful question: How can cities foster happiness through urban design

https://blueprint.cbre.com/how-urban-design-impacts-happiness/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Wallpost&utm_campaign=Native&utm_term=Urban%2BDesign%2BImpacts%2BHappiness

The Massachusetts Association of Consulting Planners is supporting the Smart Growth Alliance on their Campaign to advance zoning reform in Massachusetts. 

Tomorrow Thursday, September 28th at 10:00AM, planning professionals will be providing oral testimony before the Joint Committee on Community Development and Small Businesses on Senate Bill #81-- An Act Promoting Housing and Sustainable Development. We encourage everyone to attend the hearing. 

Also, please sign the online petition at:

https://www.great-neighborhoods.org/petition

The petition signers will be asking the legislature to make Great Neighborhoods a top priority this term. 

Here is the link to more information about the bill: https://malegislature.gov/Events/Hearings/Detail/2733