Topology

10/15/2026

Let there be (inclusive) play! 🛝

Yesterday, Township of Millburn and Millburn Recreation officials gathered to unveil the new all-inclusive playground at Taylor Park with a ribbon cutting ceremony!

The $750,000 funding from a 2025 New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Green Acres grant went toward installing all new equipment and safety surfacing for the playground.

In 2023, Topology helped the Township update their Open Space and Recreation Master Plan Element and Taylor Park was mentioned more than any other facility as being in need of improvements. The Plan recommended better accessibility, modernized facilities, and applying for Green Acres and other outside funding.

Congratulations! 💚 Read the full press release here: https://twp.millburn.nj.us/m/newsflash/home/detail/2842

10/12/2026

This , we recognize the importance of honoring Indigenous histories and their enduring connections to the places we call home. 🌄

In her SOM Foundation fellowship research, "Decolonizing Urban Landscapes," Michelle Chang explores how architecture, engineering, and urban planning can help address colonial legacies by creating spaces that reflect Indigenous cultures. Her work reminds us that inclusive design begins with learning from Indigenous communities and recognizing their role in shaping more equitable and sustainable places for generations to come: https://somfoundation.com/fellow/michelle-chang/

Decolonizing Urban Landscapes: Reclaiming an Indigenous Right to the City through Structural Design Indigenous communities have historically been exiled…

10/10/2026

Before car-centric development reshaped American suburbia, many commuter towns grew around rail stations, with walkable streets, nearby shops, and lively downtowns that connected residents to both local amenities and regional jobs. 🚉

While originally a model designed for privilege, many of these street car suburbs became the model for towns that exemplify great transit-oriented development today: https://www.planetizen.com/features/138516-suburbs-car

The world's first suburbs were designed to exclude. Today, they might just hold the secret to doing transit-oriented development right.

10/09/2026

As the Town of Morristown, NJ’s Planners, Topology led every aspect of the M Station redevelopment, from drafting the Redevelopment Plan and advising on architecture, public space design, and circulation, to making numerous presentations to the Planning Board, Town Council, and the public. 📝

So naturally, having laid that groundwork, we're incredibly proud that both M Station East and M Station West have received such widespread acclaim, bringing home five different industry awards and since the project's inception.

Thank you to New Jersey Future for recognizing the Sanofi Flagship at M Station West with a 2026 Smart Growth Award earlier this week, and congratulations to SJP Properties, Sanofi US, Scotto Properties, Cushman & Wakefield, and Gensler on this most recent accolade! 👏 Learn more about here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14KbQbZLfuM

A 2026 Smart Growth Award Winner! Sanofi Flagship at M Station West...

10/08/2026

It feels like we were just celebrating the groundbreaking last month and now it's already time for the grand opening? Now that's what we call efficient! 🤝

These inclusive playground renovations at the Township of Millburn's Taylor Park were funded by a $750,000 New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Green Acres grant. 🛝 And back in 2023, when Topology helped the Township update their Open Space and Recreation Master Plan Element, Taylor Park was mentioned more than any other facility as being in need of improvements. The Plan recommended better accessibility, modernized facilities, and applying for Green Acres and other outside funding.

Congrats to 's elected officials, staff, Millburn Recreation, and most importantly to the community on this new and improved facility! 👏 Meet you at the swingset on October 14th!

Join us on Wednesday, October 14 at 3:45pm for the grand reopening of the Taylor Park Playground.

We will have a quick ribbon-cutting ceremony, then the kids can enjoy the new all-inclusive playground!

We appreciate everyone's patience during construction and look forward to seeing everyone out there!

10/06/2026

A little birdie told us that earlier this year the Sanofi US Flagship at M Station West in the Town of Morristown, NJ was named the recipient of a 2026 Smart Growth Award from New Jersey Future! 🏆

As Morristown’s Planners, Topology led every aspect of the M Station redevelopment effort, from drafting the Redevelopment Plan and advising on architecture, public space design, and circulation, to making numerous presentations to the Planning Board, Town Council, and the public. 🧑‍🏫 Congratulations to SJP Properties, Scotto Properties, Gensler, Cushman & Wakefield, and the rest of the project team on the well deserved hardware. 👏

We look forward to celebrating M Station TOMORROW 10/7 at The Newark Museum of Art! Learn more about on our website: https://www.topology.is/work/m-station

10/03/2026

Is it time we developed a Transect for sprawl? How would you delineate the zones? 🛣️

Read how Touro University Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center Professor Michael Lewyn created a taxonomy of different types of sprawl: https://www.planetizen.com/blogs/138486-transect-sprawl

A development pattern this lifestyle-defining deserves its whole own classification system.

10/02/2026

Last month, the Plan4HealthNJ Advisory Counsel gathered for their 2026 Fall Plan4HealthNJ Grantee Kickoff to award $200,000 in funding, with ten New Jersey communities each receiving $20,000 to help advance health-centered planning elements and explore how land use and public policy contribute to healthier communities. 🍎 The core idea being that land use decisions are public health decisions.

Topology Principal Graham Petto, a Project Team Member, spoke at the event and also helped develop the program's Housing and Community Development Toolkit. ✍️ is a program under the New Jersey Chapter of the American Planning Association, with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, working towards increased integration of in municipal planning through data, community engagement, and practical planning tools.

Learn more about Plan4HealthNJ at https://plan4healthnj.org.

10/01/2026

Housing is a human right. 🏘️

Last week Topology Principal Chris Colley was a speaker at the Monarch Housing Associates, Inc. "Housing As A Human Right Conference," which addressed critical issues impacting housing across New Jersey. 🧑‍🏫

Moderated by Lynn Bartlett, "Storm Warning: How Extreme Weather is Shaping the Affordable Housing Crisis" discussed how the and climate crises have become intertwined and how is reshaping housing affordability, insurance markets, and development economics. Fellow panelists included Andrew Davis from Shipman & Goodwin LLP and Joe Quarantello from Brown & Brown.

Thank you to Lynn, Andrew, and Joe for a great discussion, to all who stopped by the panel, and to Monarch Housing Associates for putting on an importance conference! 💚

📸 Photos courtesy of Averie Ann Photography.

09/28/2026

Another day, another clean-up! 🗑️

Earlier this month, Topology teamed up with the Rockaway Borough Environmental Commission for a fall cleanup along the Rockaway River at Jackson Avenue River Park. 🌳 Members of the firm spent the morning with the Rockaway community, including Mayor Mulligan, helping to pick up litter. A big haul and a big W for our client community! 💚

It was beautiful day to make the world a better place. We only have one planet, so let's leave it a little better than we found it! 🌎