NJ Green Acres

 New Jersey has released the list of recommended Green Acres projects (PDF).

Terracotta

Our department just had an enticing lecture by Haemee Han, whose recent design in South Korea featured a creative use of terracotta. 

The talk reminded me of an often overlooked source of terracotta here in Central NJ: the Atlantic Terra Cotta Company. It was based in Perth Amboy but continued much of its later production in Rocky Hill. You have seen their tiles and architectural ornamentation. They are on the Philly Art Museum and the Woolworth Building and the Flatiron Building. And many others.

This brief history of the local terracotta company is worth a peek.

Trail survey

If you use trails in New Jersey, here is a survey from the NJ DEP about trails and trail use.

Good neighbor policy?

In New Jersey, Home Rule gives the municipality substantial autonomy over its own planning and zoning decisions. As such, even a development on a shared border with a neighboring town is left largely to the one community. Hence, Edison just approved a new warehouse on its border with Metuchen despite objections from "Metuchen's land use attorney and planner." 

Planning Board Meeting

The next meeting of the City of New Brunswick Planning Board will be February 10, 2025 at 7:00 p.m. in Council Chambers, New Brunswick City Hall, 78 Bayard Street, New Brunswick, New Jersey.

New rule!

 New Jersey has a new Inland Flood Rule that is the first in the US to account for changes in precipitation due to climate change. The recent extreme weather suggests that this cutting edge, first of its kind change may already have been overdue. 

First egg of the new year

The Duke Farms bald eagles have laid the first egg of the year. You can watch live: 

But sometimes they watch back

A lesson in moving sand

NJ.com has posted a helpful article about the beach replenishment that is necessary to get the Jersey Shore ready for summer. While it focuses on the current work in Avalon, it provides a quick lesson in a variety of practices and terms including back passing, scarping,and borrow and fill areas. 

 

A sign of the tides

As flooding becomes more common in some New Jersey coastal towns, flood gauges are getting reset so that more of them work together. Cook alum Joe Martucci reports that the gauges in Ship Bottom, Tuckerton, Absecon, South Dennis, Avalon and Stone Harbor are now calibrated with those in AC and Sandy Hook. Not only does it provide more widely consistent reports, but it also is forward looking:

“The new calculations will take into account the continued effects of sea level rise,” Iovino said.

According to a Rutgers University report released in 2019, sea levels rose an average of 1.5 feet along the New Jersey coast from 1911 to 2019, compared with the global average of 0.6 feet.

Mapping out testing sites

According to NJ.com, today's list of COVID-19 testing sites for New Jersey has 113 locations. They are not all open to the public. A couple are not very specific about the location. Some appear to be small and limited in ability while others are large and high volume.

The state relies on alternatives and private companies as part of that equation. Of the 113 listed testing sites, 58 are one of these retail locations:

Rite Aid drive-thru	13
CVS Pharmacy	11
MedExpress Urgent Care	7
MedExpress Urgent Care	7
Walmart	6
AFC Urgent Care	5
Immediate Care	4
PM Pediatrics	3
Patient First	2

UPDATE: CVS has announced that they are expanding to 45 drive-thru sites:
https://www.nj.com/news/2020/05/cvs-expands-drive-thru-coronavirus-testing-to-45-more-nj-locations.html (5/28)


The map below shows all 113 testing sites as points. The locations are generally more concentrated in urban areas than rural. The redlines are Voronoi polygons which calculate the areas closest to each site without regard to population or capability.

Looking closer, the list shows that the state's 4 largest cities only have a seven of the sites:
Newark:       3 sites   7.059 cases
Jersey City:  3 sites   6,709 cases
Paterson:      0 sites   7,007 cases
Elizabeth:    1 sites    5339 cases

That means those four municipalities represent about 9% of the state's residents and nearly 17% of the cases in New Jersey but have about 6% of the testing sites. The disparity is striking. Some of these are counting on larger sites in adjacent towns,  but those without cars might find this challenging. With limited information on capability, it is hard for us to know which sites contribute the most to New Jersey's burden. The map below shows distances from the sites (as the crow flies).

Even with a car, some areas are pretty distant. The map below shows areas within 20 minutes a of all sites, in yellow. Many of the underserved areas in North Jersey are from from other services too, so maybe they won't be surprised. But notice how much of the Jersey Shore is left without easy access - all of LBI is well over 20 minutes. The far ends of the island are over a 90 minute round trip to and from a testing center.

 

  

As the beaches reopen, New Jersey is going to need more testing near those active areas. Both for beachgoers and the many workers in LBI businesses.


I made these today with publicly available data and limited time while moving between other projects. But with more time and better data there is plenty more worth asking. What does the map look like if we remove few of the most selective sites (e.g., front line workers only)? Are the urban clusters of testing sites proportional to the populations in those areas? Do site capabilities change that any? How far do people without cars have to travel to access a walk-up or walk-in site? How does access compare with social vulnerability?

Remembering Candace McKee Ashmun

One of New Jersey's most important voices for preservation has passed away. Candace McKee Ashmun, whose environmental leadership included service on the Pinelands Commission, ANJEC, the Great Swamp Advisory Committee, the Coalition for Affordable Housing and the Environment, and the NJ State Planning Commission, was 96 years old.

Sometimes called the Godmother of the NJ Pines, Ashmun's work as a founding member of the Pinelands Commission is permanently memorialized with the 4,000 acre NJCF Candace McKee Ashmun Preserve. But her impact was felt statewide.

I was struck by the way that all factions of the New Jersey environmental community respected her.  The Burlington County Times quoted Michelle Byers, “Within an environmental community that doesn’t always get along everyone respected Candy. She helped bring people together.”

Local rates of reported cases

The latest municipal map from the GeoHealth Lab shows recent activity down in Gloucester and Camden. But definitely keep watching AC as well. The earlier caveats still apply.

COVID-19 in NJ towns

New Jersey has 565 municipalities. Based on the reports I am seeing, there only 10 that still do not appear to be reporting a single case of coronavirus, yet. Altogether these 10 communities represent only about 3,000 people. Three of them, Pine Valley, Tavistock, and Walpack, each have fewer than 20 residents each. Pine Valley Borough CAMDEN Tavistock Borough CAMDEN Cape May Point Borough CAPE MAY Stone Harbor Borough CAPE MAY Shiloh Borough CUMBERLAND Stockton Borough HUNTERDON Harvey Cedars Borough OCEAN Mantoloking Borough OCEAN Elsinboro Township SALEM Walpack Township SUSSEX By April 7th the state had broken 500 municipalities reporting at least one case. On April 15th we had around 541 municipalities with cases. On April 27th we had 550. On May 10th Washington Township, Burlington County, reported a case leaving us with just 10 towns without reported cases.

Getting better

The map of the changes in infection rates is definitely going in the right direction. When it finishes up, you will see blue flecks in Bergen County. That area which was an epicenter is now seeing declines in numbers.

Don't get too comfy, we still have a long ways to go. According to the New Jersey data dashboard, the Garden State still has over 131,000 cases. Based on the JHU COVID Dashboard, there are only about 8 countries (including the US) that have more cases.

This map is part of the ongoing effort at the GeoHealth Lab @ CRSSA to explore alternative ways to see and track patterns of the COVID spread across New Jersey.

Coronavirus by town

 

                             
Hospitalizations are down and the rate of cases is slowing, but the spatial spread continues. There are not many places left in New Jersey that are free from COVID-19. This map shows the rate, by municipality, by date (Cases/100,000).

If we isolate the 20 largest municipalities (by population), the May 1 reported rates still some variability. I've added population numbers (2010) for quick reference. Please remember that these are being made quickly during the outbreak and not with unlimited time to check and confirm. Hamilton Township is in Mercer County.

May 1 rates and 2010 population data

	Reported Cases/100k	2010 Population	Population Density
East Orange City	2277	64270	16395
Gloucester Twp	433	64634	2776
Old Bridge Twp	1142	65375	1690
Union City	4052	66455	51918
Middletown Twp	647	66522	1528
Passaic City	3238	69781	21604
Cherry Hill Twp	626	71045	2939
Brick Twp	1081	75072	2316
Camden City	1015	77344	7394
Clifton City	2568	84136	7361
Trenton City	1427	84913	10317
Hamilton Twp	928	88464	2199
Toms River Twp	1178	91239	1731
Lakewood Twp	1830	92843	3700
Woodbridge Twp	1438	99585	4148
Edison Twp	1290	99967	3263
Elizabeth City	3164	124969	8984
Paterson City	3416	146199	16824
Jersey City	2127	247597	15611
Newark City	1958	277140	10574

NJ Cities with COVD

Going through yesterday's reports on COVID cases (which probably already lag a little), there were 22 cities and towns in New Jersey with over 1,000 cases. Four of those are in Middlesex County alone. For much of our mapping we have focused on rates (cases/100,000), but for these cities, the actual numbers are important. Imagine trying to track that many cases, or even simply trying to contact them. The cases from the 22 municipalities combine to represent 41% of the cases in New Jersey.  Of the 565 municipalities in New Jersey, only about a dozen do not report cases. That leaves the potential for about 550 separate places to watch and address coronavirus in NJ.

Newark, Jersey City, Paterson and Elizabeth are the largest municipalities by population, so it is no surprise seeing them in those same spots on the list. But usually I expect to see Edison and Woodbridge next, so it is interesting to see Passaic with the 5th most cases even though it is the 15th largest by population. Here is the list for "on or close to" April 29th.

Newark     5,300
Jersey City     5,144
Paterson     4,751
Elizabeth     3,953
Union City     2,678
Passaic     2,172
North Bergen Township     2,095
Clifton     2,094
West New York     1,668
Lakewood Township     1,668
Perth Amboy     1,614
Plainfield     1,451
East Orange     1,420
Woodbridge Township     1,404
Union Township     1,404
Edison Township     1,252
Hackensack     1,125
Trenton     1,120
New Brunswick     1,113
Irvington Township     1,112
Toms River Township     1,060
Linden     1,046


The number of cases reported is a fairly one-dimensional representation of the situation (add in uncertainty about reporting, testing, etc. and it gets even tougher). But it is worth noting that while none of these appeared to yet be going down, few are growing nearly as rapidly as they were a week ago. Just remember that these numbers are constantly changing and not something easy to double-check.

Exploring coronovirus over time

The GeoHealth Lab @ CRSSA has been exploring municipal patterns of COVID-19 in New Jersey. With 565 municipalities, this is a fairly detailed look at the movement of the virus across the landscapes of the Garden State. It is fraught with challenges since not all municipalities are reporting these numbers every day, they may not be using consistent definitions, and the municipalities range wildly in area and population. While we are culling these data from a variety of sources - tweets by mayors, county web sites, various newspapers - the reporters at NJ.com have not only been publishing numbers, but they published a great explanation of why you should be wary of these data. In that spirit, these early data visualizations are offered as a rapid response. 

While you should be careful in reading these data, as longitudinal data they display some remarkable patterns. Eventually there will be more carefully checked data that is presented in carefully balanced representations. But as we are currently surrounded by this pandemic, we should see what we can in the moment.  As a simple example, we can start just comparing the reported rates (cases per 100,000 residents) for just a few cities:

Early reports asked why New Brunswick (yellow) wasn't experiencing growth as fast as a few other cities, but the graph shows New Brunswick (blue) catching up with Newark's rate in  recent days. There is also a spatial pattern implied, as the southern cities lagged - it seems that northern New Jersey started first but Trenton is starting to catch up. Will Atlantic City (light blue at the bottom) see a later jump in its rate? The answer to that will have policy implications for the statewide shutdown.

Having suggested that the pattern is spatial, what we need is a map that shows us the changes over time. Here is an animated GIF tracking the municipal data from March 31 to April 27. (If it isn't animated for you, you can download it or refresh this page.)

The first time through you might just notice that the map gets darker. But with a second run through the animation you might notice that it starts with higher rates in Bergen County and spreads West and South. As it does, you can also see that it moves like a wave, washing across both large and small towns.

To see if large cities were having similar experiences, we selected out the 20 largest municipalities in New Jersey by population. For each of these, we graphed their change in reported rates over time. With so many squiggles it is hard to pick out just one town, but the legend shows their rankings and. more importantly, the graph shows that most of them are experiencing similar trends (consistent growth), but at decidedly different rates. Again, don't get lost in details, since these data could still use some polish. But the big pattern can help identify where to watch in the coming days.

Keep an eye out for updates. There is plenty more in the pipeline.

Peter Wacker

When I first came to Rutgers, Peter Wacker was quick to welcome me. He and I had both attended LSU for graduate school and, despite having few mutual acquaintances there, we shared connections to remarkable places in the Louisiana landscapes. He was also an incredible advocate for New Jersey and schooled me an appreciation for the landscapes I was discovering here in his home state.

Before I knew it, I found myself on graduate committees with him where I got to watch him in action as an educator. These were some of my first experiences as a graduate faculty member and were incredibly formative. But I made the mistake of thinking he was just innocuous friendly faculty member. As I began to attend meetings in other corners of Rutgers and all across New Jersey, I discovered that he was an academic celebrity. Every one seemed to know him, counted on his expertise, read his writings, and wanted to be sure I knew him too. But which Professor Wacker were they telling me about? The geographer? The historian? The expert on NJ land use? The researcher? The teacher? There seemed to be many Peter Wackers all leaving an indelible mark on New Jersey.

Sadly, we lost Peter Wacker this week. I expect that there will be a few other detailed professional obituaries later. But a first obituary is posted for those who did not know him as well.

1910 aero-Map of New Brunswick

The Library of Congress has a rich Digital Collection that we access pretty often. One of my favorite pieces is the panoramic map of New Brunswick from 1910 with so many richly drawn details, surrounded by photographs capturing that moment in the city's history.

Brian Rose photos of Atlantic City

With many of our students returning from the NJ ASLA meeting in Atlantic City, this is a great time to revisit Terrain.org's photo essay of a series of Atlantic City photos by Brian Rose. The photos and accompanying quotes document the city's troubling juxtaposition of glam and depression.

If you missed the meeting, maybe you should consider the MAC-URISA 2020 meeting in AC.