The Tappan Zee Bridge/I-287 Corridor study team has been virtually silent this summer, but that doesn’t mean nothing is happening. Tri-State has learned that the study team has selected the Project for Public Spaces, Regional Plan Association, and Reconnecting America as consultants to administer transit-oriented development training for communities along the corridor. These are well-qualified groups, and their selection is a sign that the study team has heeded the advice of groups like Tri-State and Scenic Hudson and is now serious about promoting transit-oriented development (TOD) in the corridor.

As described in a Request for Proposals issued by the study team earlier this year, the organizations will educate residents about urban design and the benefits of TOD, and help community decision-makers learn how to implement effective TOD and explain its benefits to their constituents.

Both the Regional Plan Association and Project for Public Spaces have experience helping Hudson Valley communities plan. In May 2007, RPA hosted a “charette” where Rockland County officials and stakeholders reenvisioned sites along the I-287 corridor as transit-oriented developments (the charette results were summarized in a report released this year). In the last couple of years, Project for Public Spaces has held community “placemaking” meetings focused on the Yonkers waterfront and downtown Chappaqua in Westchester County.

According to the Request for Proposals, transit-oriented development training will begin soon after a transit mode is selected for the corridor. When that will be is an open question, since the Tappan Zee study team has now missed its original deadline of May and a revised deadline of June for announcing a transit mode.