In Celebration of Doug KohlIn Celebration of Doug Kohl’s Life
Doug w as one of the most responsible businessm e n or person of any kind I have ever worked
with. He was on our list of recipients for our next Northampton Planning Award. I so regret
not being able to publically give hi m that award in front of his community. I tend not
connect physical features with spirit, but Doug has a sparkle in his eyes that I am convinced
came from his essential character.
Doug made a difference in preservation of natural areas , from his support for the Community
Preservation Act (one of the few developers to do so), to helping the city acquire his land in
Turkey Hill, to being our single largest open space endowment donor. I remember us
working with one very scary “partner” at that time and how stressful it was, but Doug was a
true mensh and let his essential goodness keep us above the craziness.
Doug went so far beyond what was
expected to meet abutter and city
needs. He was rightly proud walking
the sustainability walk for his North
Street project. His patience and
willingness to work with neighbors
regardless of their position was awe
inspiring.
Doug’s investment and vision in downtown were
game changing and inspiring. H e had an amazing
commitment to the BID and downtown, even given
the challenges of a never ending recession. What I
loved was that even in the midst of challenges, and as
recently as two weeks before his passing, Doug
talked about how to go further on property he owned , with two of my favorite future projects :
b uild on th e parking lot next to Fitzwilly’ s and build a mixed use building with an office
accessed from the Roundhouse parking lot and a residen ce accessed from New South Street.
Wayne Feiden , Northampton Director of Planning and Development