Project Archives


pomeroy village center intersection improvements

The Town of Amherst has secured a $1.5 million grant to make significant improvements to the public way in Pomeroy Village Center - an area defined by the intersection of West Street (Rt 116), Pomeroy Lane, and West Pomeroy Lane. The improved intersection will seek to enhance pedestrian, cyclist, and driver safety and add to the vitality of this growing village center.

The Pomeroy Village Center area is home to many residents, offices, retail spaces, schools, restaurants, and nearby to Hampshire College to the south. Route 116 is an important north-south thoroughfare in the town and is traversed by many commuters every day. With a diversity of groups using and travelling through this area, hearing from the public is essential in shaping the collective vision for this intersection re-design.

For more information and to make your voices heard, visit engageamherst.org/pomeroy



Amherst Branding & Way Finding Program (Updated 11/13/15)

Summary

 

A preview of the final draft designs for this first phase of the Downtown Branding and Way Finding Sign Program will be reviewed by the Amherst Planning Board on Wednesday, November 18.  The Select Board will formally review the final draft designs, including any Planning Board recommendations, on November 23 and will refine or approve those designs.  All interested parties are invited to attend and comment.

In Spring 2015, the Town of Amherst, in collaboration with the Amherst Business Improvement District (B.I.D), and with the support and participation of the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce, applied for and received a grant of $10,000 in technical assistance funding from the Downtown Initiative Program of the Department of Communities and Housing Development.  The grant was for technical assistance in developing designs for an Amherst Downtown Way Finding & Branding Program—a design program including community branding imagery, and way finding signs and other elements for downtown Amherst.  Technical assistance is being provided by designer Mark Favermann of Favermann Designs, a consultant working for the Downtown Initiative Program. 

On June 18, an informal Advisory Group representing downtown organizations, institutions, and Town staff met with the consultant to help develop a process for developing preliminary designs for review by Town boards and committees and the public.  On August 18, the Advisory Group met a second time to review and refine designs for three preliminary community “brand” elements—titles, logos, and imagery that will visually identify Amherst for visitors and others on signs and other way finding elements.  Based on recommendations from the Advisory Group, a series of preliminary designs for several alternative community brand images and families of conceptual sign types were developed.  

These designs were reviewed by the Historical Commission on Monday, October 19.  They were reviewed by the Advisory Group at an advertised public meeting on Tuesday, October 20, with members of the Select Board and Design Review Board in attendance.   At that meeting, the Advisory Group issued final recommendations to the consultant for the overall branding design and the conceptual sign types.  The consultant then worked with staff to develop final draft designs.
 
The second phase of this project will extend beyond the state-funded grant program into the winter, and will include finalization of specific sign designs, selection of sign types for specific purposes, sign locations, and bid specifications for a complete system of downtown signs.  A proposal for funding for fabrication and installation of the new downtown sign system will be developed during that phase, and funding for those purposes will be sought.

The general conceptual designs for community branding and way finding signs and elements resulting from this technical assistance grant will provide a template for signs and way finding elements in other parts of the community in the future. 

 Amherst Downtown Branding & Way Finding Program 

Amherst_FamilyofElements Refined_151106 - final draft

   

Branding = Selecting one or more names, terms, designs, symbols or other features that visually identify a community or place.

 

Way Finding = The ways in which people orient themselves in physical space and navigate from place to place. 

Preliminary Branding Design Concepts (August 18, 2015) PDF

Draft Downtown Sign Designs (October 2, 2015): 
             Option A (Link)
             Option B (Link)
             Option C (Link)
  
Public Meeting - Summary of Input (October 6, 2015) 
Link to Summary PDF
 
Revised Branding Designs (October 9 and October 16)
               Option A (Link)
               Option B (Link)
               Option C (Link)
               Option D (Link)
               Option E (Link)
               Option F (Link)
               Option G (Link)
               Option H (Link)
               Option I   (Link)
               Option J  (Link)

North Common Concept Plans (January 24, 2013)
Presentation - April 1, 2014(PDF 5MB)
Notes from the Public Forum (PDF 20KB)
Concept AA (PDF 12,379KB)
Concept BB (PDF 12,863 KB)

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Atkins Corner Workbook (2002)

This report was the result of a long-term participatory planning process in the Atkins Corner neighborhood in South Amherst. Working with the major property owners - Hampshire College and Atkins Farms Country Market - as well as with other local property owners and residents of the area, this plan was developed to guide future growth in this part of Town.

The Plan includes guidelines for a sustainable compact village center plan for Atkins Corner. These model guidelines can also be used for other village centers in Amherst, as well as other center and towns.

This project was funded by a grant from the Livable Communities program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The Workbook and Action Steps were developed by Dodson Associates & Joel Russell, land use attorney. 

Action Steps for a Better Amherst (PDF - 230KB) 

Atkins Corner Workbook (PDF - 24MB - Very large file) 

Page 14 - Stream and Wetland Buffers (11 x 17 map) (PDF - 8MB - Very large file) 
Page 15 - Soils and Stream Buffers (11 x 17 map) (PDF - 8MB - Very large file) 
Page 16 - Topography (11 x 17 map) (PDF - 4MB - Very large file)


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Build-Out Analysis and Future Growth Study (October 2002)

At its most fundamental, a build-out analysis sets out to determine how much land in a town is available for development, what type of development is permitted on that land, and how much development could ultimately result.
The Town hired the consulting firms of Applied Geographics and Phil Herr & Associates to conduct this study, which was completed in October 2002. The consultants were assisted by the Planning Department through the use of the Town’s highly accurate Geographic Information Systems (GIS) that provided the detailed digital base-map information for the build-out analysis. 

Comprehensive Planning Committee - Report to Town Meeting, Fall 2002 (PDF - 151KB) 

Build-Out Analysis and Future Growth Study (PDF - 1.4MB - Large file)


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Comprehensive Planning Study: Defining Village Boundaries & Open Space Preservation Strategies (PDF - 15MB - Very large file) (May 2004)

The Town of Amherst has recently completed several projects as part of the process to update the Town's Comprehensive Plan, including the Build-out Analysis and Future Growth Study, Action Steps for a Better Amherst, and Atkins Corner Workbook. There are still many steps that need to be taken to complete the different sections of the Comprehensive Plan, several which will be undertaken by different committees in Town (i.e., Open Space Committee and Historical Commission) and others that await major funding by the town. In order to assist the Town's Comprehensive Planning Committee and Planning Department in these planning efforts, the Planning Department contracted with the University of Massachusetts' Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning to work on three key focus points of the Plan. These are:

Open Space and Viewshed Protection,
Defining Village Boundaries,
And Designing Village Centers.

This May 2004 report details the results of that work.

The Town of Amherst also worked with professional consultants to develop the Town of Amherst Community Development Plan (PDF - 3.88MB) which was completed in May 2004.


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Pomeroy Village Streetscape Planning (2006-2007)

The Amherst Design Review Board, Planning Department, and Public Works Department are making plans for future sidewalk and streetscape improvements for the center of "Pomeroy Village," the area around the intersection of West Street (Rte. 116) and Pomeroy/West Pomeroy Lane. The process started with a survey distributed to the people who use the village center, including residents, property owners, business owners, customers, employees, and visitors.

The Pomeroy Village Public Survey (PDF - 232KB)

Results of the Pomeroy Village Public Survey (PDF - 633KB)

Announcement poster for Pomeroy Village public meeting on July 26, 2006 (PDF - 695KB)


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Town Center Streetscape Design Guidelines Manual (December 2002)

These Design Guidelines were prepared as part of the Town Center Sidewalk Design and Accessibility Project, administered by the Amherst Planning Department.

These guidelines provide design direction for streetscape improvements throughout the downtown. These improvements include new sidewalks, crosswalks, benches, street lights, way-finding signs, and trash receptacles. The improvements will also provide for increased safety and mobility for the disabled.

The overall goal of the Guidelines is to create a more pedestrian friendly downtown, one with increased safety, comfort, and amenities for Amherst citizens and visitors alike.

The Guidelines may also be applied to the village centers in Amherst at a later date.

The Guidelines were developed by Berkshire Design Group, Inc., working with numerous Amherst boards, committees, and citizens. 

Amherst Town Center Streetscape Design Guidelines Manual (PDF - 10.5MG - Very large file)


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