New Jersey ASLA Today | Jane / February 2009

Calendar of Events

SATURDAY, MARCH 7, 2009 | 11:15 AM
Schuylkill Watershed Congress

"The New Municipal Math:
How Open Space Makes Financial Sense While it Helps Sustain Watersheds"
... with Mary Zagar of Heritage Conservancy
LOCATION: Montgomery County Community College, Pottstown, PA
Local tax dollars spent on land conservation helps protect watersheds and will avoid the cost of municipal and school district services.

FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2009 | 6:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Habitats For Healthy Bats
LOCATION: Lower Saucon Township Town Hall,
3700 Old Philadelphia Pike, Bethlehem, PA
FEE: Free admission ... $20 material fee for each bat box (optional)
As part of the Saucon Creek Watershed Association's Creatures of the Night, workshop, this dual-segment event encompasses an educational seminar and hands-on participation!
BE BAT AWARE!: 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Sandra Yerger, from Heritage Conservancy, will describe the various kinds of bats, their habits and habitats and the tremendous health benefits that bats offer. The program also discusses ways to "bat proof" your home and how we can live in harmony with these magnificant creatures. Children will be invited to participate in educational games and will see an animated video. (Free)
BUILD YOUR OWN BAT HOUSE: 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Materials and instruction will be provided for attendees who wish to construct a bat box, a structure that can be erected to attract bats. (Children must be accompanied by an adult.)
Due to the limited number of bat box kits, please register for this part of the workshop by February 27. ($20 fee for materials; please bring a cordless drill, if possible)
Call Keri Maxfield at 610-838-5312 for questions and registration information.
Or click HERE to download their information-packed flyer!

TUESDAY, MARCH 17, 2009 | 7-9:30 PM (DOORS OPEN AT 6:30 PM)
Going Green: Economics Vs. The Environment
LOCATION: Delaware Valley College, 700 E. Butler Ave., Doylestown
In this challenging economic environment, using energy efficient products, services and techniques in your home and office can save money and the environment.
Join the Central Bucks Chamber of Commerce Architectural and Environment Committee, Keynote Speaker Mike Fallon and interactive panelists at this free, informative seminar.

Space is limited ... and pre-registration is strongly advised.
Call the Chamber at 215-348-3913 to RSVP. Or click HERE to learn more! (PDF, 2.18MB)

MONDAY, APRIL 20, 2009 | TBD
PA State Association of Township Supervisors
Raising Local Dollars for Conservation:
Northampton County Supervisors Tell How It's Done
LOCATION: Hershey Lodge, Hershey, PA
Township supervisors tell how to run an effective campaign leading to a successful open space referendum.... with Sandy Yerger (Heritage Conservancy and Lower Saucon), Tom Maxfield (Lower Saucon), Jason Smith (Bushkill), and Matt Glennon (Plainfield)

SATURDAY, JULY 25, 2009 | 8-9 AM (MONTGOMERY) AND 11 AM (BUCKS)
River-to-River Heritage Bicycle Tour
LOCATION: Penn Valley Church in Telford, Montgomery County, PA
FEE: $35 per person
Whether a seasoned cyclist or a weekend warrior, the River-to-River Heritage Bicycle Tour offers a great day of cycling that takes you from the Delaware River to the Schuylkill River and through two of Pennsylvania’s most historic counties: Bucks and Montgomery.
Trek lightly traveled roads adjacent to the scenic Route 113 corridor, through small, quaint towns with farms, churches and businesses dating back to the 1700s.
Designed like a Figure 8, the River-to-River Bicycle Tour route begins and ends at the Penn Valley Church in Telford, Montgomery County, PA. Rest stops at historic sites will provide refreshment and lunch will be served. Choose 25, 50, 75 or 100 mile routes through varied terrain. There will not be a mass start time for the ride, so plan your day according to the number of miles and average speed you will travel.
Registration is only $35 per person and includes cue sheets and maps; marked roads; support by Bikeworks; SAG van and a mechanical support van (parts are extra); refreshments at rest stops and a hot lunch at Penn Valley Church. Post-ride massages are extra.
Proceeds from the PedalPa sponsored event will benefit Heritage Conservancy.
Register online today at: River-to-River Ride Registration.
For more information or questions email Bill McCoach. Or visit the River-to-River website.

NJASLA will hold an election in June for open Executive Committee positions of President Elect, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary and the NJ representative to the ASLA Board of Trustees. We encourage you to nominate members for these positions, now. Deadlines for Nominations will be in May. Send nominations to Jerry Lewis.

Landscape Architecture Month is a great opportunity to promote our profession to the public. This year the theme is Career Discovery and ASLA has several templates for activities with students. Go to http://www.asla.org/NationalLandscape
ArchitectureMonthDetail.aspx?id=6090 for ideas and let us know where and when you will provide this outreach service. We will also consider any other ideas to promote LA Month in New Jersey.

We will be gearing up for the next state annual meeting with a Kick Off meeting in March and invite all members to volunteer for the planning committee.

NJASLA gratefully acknowledges the contributions of the 2009 Annual Meeting Sponsors & Exhibitors:

Accurate Engineering Associates
ACF Environmental
Almstead Tree & Shrub Care Co.
Amereq, Inc./CU-Soil Division
Ameristar Fence Products
Anchor Concrete Products
B&B Pool and Spa Center
Bartlett Tree Company
Ben Shaffer & Associates, Inc.
Beyond Concrete, Inc.
Big John Northeast/Pun'kin Hollow Farms
BK Lighting/Teka Illumination
Boyce Associates, Inc.
Concrete Stone & Tile Corp.
Designed for Fun, Inc.
East Jordan Iron Works, Inc.
EP Henry
Ernst Conservation Seed
Fieldturf
Game Time Park & Playground Equip.
General Recreation, Inc.
George Ely Associates, Inc.
GreenPro Materials, Div. of Tri-State    Materials, LLC
Holophane
L. M. Scofield Co.
Liberty Lighting Group Inc.
LP Statile
Marquis Agency
M-F Athletic Co.
Mid-Atlantic Products
Modern Precast Concrete
MondoUSA - Northeast
Musco Sports Lighting LLC
National Seed
Nitterhouse Masonry Products
Northern Designs, LLC., Irrigation      Consultants and Designers
Pine Hall Brick Co., Inc.
Pineland Nurseries
Pleasant Run Nursery
Poligon By A. F. Ramondo & Sons, Inc.
Profile Products LLC
Public Service Electric & Gas Co.
Safe-T-Site
Shoreline Pools
Signature Sites, LLC
Simpson Strong-tie Company, Inc.
Spring City Electrical Manufacturing    Company
Sternberg Lighting
Storr Tractor Company
Traffic Calming USA
Trees Now Inc.
Unilock
Walpole Woodworkers
Weston Solutions / GreenGrid
Whitacre Greer

A new 'town' grows in Voorhees

By Cynthia Henry, Inquirer Staff Writer,
Reprinted from the November 16, 2008 Philadelphia Inquirer

From one end, the former Echelon Mall in Voorhees looks much as it always did: anchor stores Macy's and Boscov's floating in a sea of parking spaces. But on the other side, a village is rising where Sears and J.C. Penney once reigned.Following a national mall-makeover trend, the Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT) of Philadelphia is redeveloping the ailing Echelon into Voorhees Town Center, a mixture of housing, shops and offices."Echelon Mall was too big and outdated," said Marc Policarpo, senior vice president at commercial real estate company Binswanger and a South Jersey Chamber of Commerce board member. "PREIT is doing the right thing." Approved in 2006, the Main Street-style project is taking tangible shape, with the first apartments expected to rent in March.

"We expect it's going to be the heartbeat of the community," Mayor Michael Mignogna said.
Santa is presiding, as usual, in Macy's Court, but this year he looks out at a giant Christmas tree in a new outdoor plaza, which eventually will link to a business-lined boulevard leading into the residential area. Under construction in former parking lots are 317 apartments and 108 condominiums. For ground-floor retail below the residences, PREIT is marketing to the "best of the breed" from the region - salons, spas, restaurants and services, said Joseph F. Coradino, president of PREIT services.

The first step in redevelopment was renovating and "right-sizing" the mall to half its previous size. PREIT added features, such as a Krazy City arcade and game center, but some storefronts remain vacant, and Boscov's is in bankruptcy. Shoppers were scarce one day last week, and community-event advertising kiosks were months out of date. Despite the times, PREIT is encountering "a good reception" from potential boulevard tenants, Coradino said, although "the economy has slowed things a bit." Upon completion, the boulevard will host periodic community concerts and festivals, Mignogna said.

Marylee Margolis, who lives about two-tenths of a mile from the mall, said she thought neighbors would welcome those events. She recalled people "mobbing the area" when the mall sponsored fireworks. "PREIT realizes this is a very unusual limited space with residential very close," she said. "I have high hopes for it all." Three years ago, Margolis and other residents fought the township over the property's future. The initial mall revival revolved around a Wal-Mart superstore, which residents strongly opposed. "We feared the Wal-Mart would thrive and the rest of the mall would fold," said Lori Volpe of Voorhees. At the request of community activists in 2006, Voorhees architect Jim Baumann drew up a pedestrian-friendly village as an alternative to the big-box anchor and presented it to PREIT and the township planning board.

"We wanted more sidewalks and bike paths - more connections to the nearby community," Baumann said. "You still really have to drive there. The verdict is still out on what we'll end up with. It depends on the mix they get. But it's much better than a Wal-Mart and big-box stores." Instead of a grocery store, which Baumann saw as integral to a walkable neighborhood, PREIT built a 50,000-square-foot office building, now occupied by a 175-employee advertising agency.

Tim Evans, research director of the smart-growth advocacy group New Jersey Future, said his attitude toward enclosed malls had softened, especially when comparing them with other shopping options. While malls do require car travel, he said, at least shoppers can accomplish multiple errands in one trip, saving gas and reducing air pollution. Mignogna said Voorhees expected an infusion of tax money from the improved properties. By the project's completion in 2010, the 80-acre property is expected to generate about $2.9 million in taxes to be shared by the town, schools, county and fire district.

Without some kind of change, Echelon, like other aging malls, was headed in a decidedly different direction, residents, developers and township officials agreed. A 2001 study by PricewaterhouseCoopers of 2,000 regional malls nationwide identified about 19 percent as becoming "grayfields" - economically obsolete malls isolated in asphalt. Unlike an industrial brownfield, they're generally pollution-free and ripe for redevelopment. Like many regional malls, Echelon suffered from intense competition - shoppers' preference for open-air "lifestyle" centers (such as Marlton's Promenade) and so-called category killers (like Best Buy) - and poor freeway access and visibility. In 2001, Sears was shuttered, and Penneys, another anchor store, followed within 22 months. National nonprofits studying mall reuse, including the Congress for New Urbanism and the Urban Land Institute, rank a mixed-use center, such as the one Voorhees is attempting, among their top recommendations. Other makeover options include what retail scholars call "mall-plus," which incorporates alternate uses such as the skate park at Moorestown Mall, and "reinvested mall," such as the Cherry Hill Mall's addition of Nordstrom's, other high-end stores, and white-tablecloth restaurants. PREIT also owns those malls. After malls were built, not much was done to change their concept in the 1960s and '70s, Coradino said. "You attracted anchors, put stores between, and people came to shop. That doesn't work any more. "Now we look at each situation: Who's the potential customer, and what can we do to get that customer? . . . You have to give them a reason not to drive by."

Newsletter Layout/Graphics
Dean Tantum & Kristin Tencza

Editorial Offices:
414 River View Plaza
Trenton, New Jersey 08611
Phone: 609.393.7500
Fax: 609.393.9891

The opinions expressed in bylined articles are those of the authors and do not represent the opinions of NJ-ASLA. The authors are solely responsible for the information contained in those articles.

For advertising information, contact Kelly Biddle at 609.393.7500

NJASLA Today is published monthly by the NJ-ASLA. All correspondence, address changes, etc., should be sent directly to these offices.

Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve’s

9th Annual Land Ethics Symposium:

Creative Approaches to Ecological Landscaping


	Letter from the President Investing in Ecology Seminar A new 'town' grows in Voorhees Creative Approaches to Ecological Landscaping Thank You 2009 Annual Meeting Sponsors & Exhibitors NJASLA Executive Committee Needs Your Input	NJ Greenhouse Plan: Right Direction, Wrong Speed Engaging the Edge ASLA Conference Native Plant Society Meeting Connecting Ecological Research Conference 13TH Annual Land Conservation Rally Enviro-Events Calendar Heritage Conservancy Calendar





Volume 14 \| Issue 1 January / February 2009