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Form-Based Code As A Regulatory Tool For Mixed Use Urban Infill Development In Lincoln, Nebraska, David A. Gaspers Dec 2006

Form-Based Code As A Regulatory Tool For Mixed Use Urban Infill Development In Lincoln, Nebraska, David A. Gaspers

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses and Student Projects

The separation of incompatible uses by zoning has been an established land regulatory tool for the past eighty years. The Standard State Zoning Enabling Act was made available to states by the U.S. Department of Commerce in 1924 to provide state governments with standardized language with which they could pass legislation that would grant governments the authority to enact zoning ordinances to promote the health, safety and welfare of the public. The United States Supreme Court held up the legality of zoning with the landmark 1926 case of Euclid v. Ambler Realty. Since that time, zoning has been the predominant …


Selfish Form, Selfless Nature, Richard K. Sutton Aug 2006

Selfish Form, Selfless Nature, Richard K. Sutton

Landscape Architecture Program: Faculty Scholarly and Creative Activity

Tension exists between the use of technology and human connection to nature. While architectural design begins in the imitation of nature and attempts to solve human/nature problems, its final forms too often have more to do with technology than with nature. So much so the natural conditions at building sites are too often ignored, minimized or trivialized, The culprit in all this is the human ego a master that must be served an becomes memorialized in built form.


Arenactivate, Greg Brown May 2006

Arenactivate, Greg Brown

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

The primary focus of the project will be the design of a new multipurpose arena and support spaces on the northern edge of the Haymarket in Lincoln, Nebraska. Additionally, the project will address the schematic master planning of the area, including vehicular and pedestrian traffic access, streetscape design, and parking structures. Addressing the present void between the Haymarket District and Haymarket Park while providing an active link between the two will also be a priority. The arena will have the ability to host a variety of sporting and entertainment events and will have a capacity between 12,500 and 17,500, depending …


One Stop Community Center – Adaptive Reuse Of A Vacant Wal-Mart, Heather A. Dysart May 2006

One Stop Community Center – Adaptive Reuse Of A Vacant Wal-Mart, Heather A. Dysart

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

It is the intention of this project to redevelop a vacant Wal-Mart store into an adult education/community center. With the ever changing nature of our retail environ¬ment vacant stores will become a part of our architectural scene, thus it is important to make considerations of what could be done with buildings, besides just tearing them down. There are several considerations that will be integral in developing a successful renovation of the abandoned store. These considerations include the aesthetic nature of a Wal-Mart, the program elements that should be offered, the integration of light into such a large structure, entries into …


Lincoln Multi-Modal Center, Jeffrey Bayer May 2006

Lincoln Multi-Modal Center, Jeffrey Bayer

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

The problem with many cities today is the lack of transportation options. Our society believes and enforces that the only way to get somewhere is by car. Mass transit is seen as dirty and bad, and we are just too lazy to walk. It is also next to impossible to walk from place to place most of the city; everything is just too far apart. This is the case when cities are made of suburbs and big box developments. The ability to implement an alternative transit system is severely inhibited by this style of development. The urban core, or downtown …


Film Institute In Leicester Square, Anne Franco May 2006

Film Institute In Leicester Square, Anne Franco

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

The cinematic experience involves many conventions; from the length of the film and the theater seats’ cushiness to the existence of a largely passive audience and the acceptance that the actors are portraying other people. The development of an architectural thesis project has much in common with the film-making and film-viewing process. There are initial ideas, a final product, a change in directors, key scenes, and vital characters. This book, the final act of this architecture thesis project, is the documentation process that records the journey of the project; everything from the early concepts to the moment the project’s real …


A New Palavela: A Temporal And Enduring Home For The Arts, Jennifer Parkening May 2006

A New Palavela: A Temporal And Enduring Home For The Arts, Jennifer Parkening

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

In choosing a thesis project the desire was to design a facility where similar structures had not done the event justice. The sport of figure skating represented this desire well. This idea transformed into a design for an Olympic site in Turin Italy for the 2006 figure and short track speed skating. The facil¬ity will become a permanent fixture in Turin as a civic-center. Pierre Baron de Coubertin, developer of the foundation for the modern Olympic games, defined what Olympic architecture should strive to achieve,

The Olympic City should captivate the visitor as a dignified and grandiose complex by monumentality …


Inspriring Minds: Creating Community In The Classroom, Jean A. Vacha May 2006

Inspriring Minds: Creating Community In The Classroom, Jean A. Vacha

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

My desire is to focus my sixth year project on a primary educational facility. Over the past five years, I have spent countless hours engaged in the child’s environment. I have volunteered in an after school program at Elliot Elementary, refereed YMCA basketball games, co-lead a bible study for junior high students, and spent two summers as a day camp counselor working with elementary students. Though my past experiences have influenced my thesis decision, it is my interest in exploring how architecture is perceived by the youngest of users that has had the greatest impact on my decision.

Spending one …


Cotton Top Farm: A Natural Horsemanship Training Facility, Nicole Schiermeyer May 2006

Cotton Top Farm: A Natural Horsemanship Training Facility, Nicole Schiermeyer

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

In order to meet the requirements of the masters of Architecture Terminal Project, I propose to design an equestrian training facility for Cotton Top Farms in St. Joseph, Missouri. The site is located in a rural area three miles outside of St. Joseph, Missouri, on a bluff which overlooks a flood plain. The area has been used for farming for over 150 years. The original farm was a dairy, 40 acres of which has been adapted into Cotton Top Farms, a small family horse farm. Cotton Top Farms was established in 1985 by the current owner functioning as a family …


Reexamine The American Automobile Dealership, Jamie D. Winters May 2006

Reexamine The American Automobile Dealership, Jamie D. Winters

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

INTRO:
As a result the American society's dependency on the automobile, automobile dealerships grow in size and number unparalleled in any other industry. Dealerships are constantly seeking more inventories and require an ever increasing amount of space in which to display this inventory. This creates a constantly evolving cycle of abandoning old dealerships in search of a new larger space to accommodate the growing quantity of cars. This effect is compounded by the fact that many dealerships locate in colonies with other dealerships to multiply their customer drawing power. These huge sprawling parking lots may be a successful business practice …


Activating The Void: Exploring The Abstract Notion And Manifest Reality Of The Grid, Megan L. Lutz May 2006

Activating The Void: Exploring The Abstract Notion And Manifest Reality Of The Grid, Megan L. Lutz

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

The grid plays an ever-present role in our daily lives--however, its time as an authentic organizational tool used to cultivate the terrain and encourage rapid growth has passed and its effects upon the individual experience must be re-examined. This project seeks to scrutinize the grid city through an individual’s personal lens, to create an intervention based upon activities, perceptions and interactions at the street level.

As it progresses south of O Street, Lincoln’s downtown deteriorates into a grid without a defined streetscape, a collection of individual buildings overshadowed by the space between them. Consisting of nine square blocks, the chosen …


The Woodstock Exposition: Fractured Reflections Of...Architecture - Rememberance - Experience - Music, Ryan Boe May 2006

The Woodstock Exposition: Fractured Reflections Of...Architecture - Rememberance - Experience - Music, Ryan Boe

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

“Architecture is frozen music. Music is thawed architecture. How can the two arts be compared or juxtaposed? Or, how can they co-exist and interact with each other when they come together and intersect? (Grueneisen pg. 10).” Music, like architecture, plays a profound role in our everyday lives; it has the power to uplift us with a single gesture. Like architecture, music has its movements of change and their respective moments that create those changes. The three-day music festival of 1969 known as Woodstock provided the world of music with such a monumental moment in time. But, this monumental moment in …


Urban Architecture Studio, Steve Greco May 2006

Urban Architecture Studio, Steve Greco

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

I. Project Title
This proposal calls for an Urban Architecture Studio in London, UK. Preliminary programmatic elements include: studios, critic space, library, computer area, residence units, faculty suite, office(s),social lounge, porters’ lodge, dining room, kitchen, cook/maids room, and reception area.

II. Statement of Intent
As a current student with an interest in teaching later on in my career, I am naturally drawn to the design of an architecture facility and how it may facilitate the education that occurs within it. This notion was first presented to me by a representative of LeoA. Daly during a presentation regarding high performance K-12 …


Cather-Pound Redesign, Jason Seckman May 2006

Cather-Pound Redesign, Jason Seckman

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

Cather Pound - Redesign addresses the redevelopment of the Cather Pound Residence Complex located on north 17th Street on the University of Nebraska, Lincoln campus. These upperclassmen dormitories were hastily built in the 1960’s during a period of rapid growth for the university. These corridor style dorms were originally designed for double occupancy, but are now more often used by only one student. As our student culture changes the university is building more popular suite and apartment style residences. The archaic nature of dense student housing that these new units are replacing, becomes more apparent, and thus a redesign of …


Garden District Station: A Proposal For Transit-Oriented Development In St. Louis, Charles Closser May 2006

Garden District Station: A Proposal For Transit-Oriented Development In St. Louis, Charles Closser

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

The presence of light rail is increasing across the United States. This mode of transportation provides unique opportunities to serve as a catalyst for new developments and redevelopments. This document studies what types of redevelopment can be stimulated by the expansion of Metro Link (St. Louis’s light rail system) into the Gardens District. The information gathered is used to present urban design strategies and an architectural solution for a transit-oriented development.


A National Park, Denver Finlinson May 2006

A National Park, Denver Finlinson

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

In the fall of 2004, Major league baseball announced the end of an era for the Montreal Expos, resulting in their immediate move to the Washington D.C. area to compete in league play starting in the spring of 2005. A temporary solution for the team to play at RFK stadium in the D.C. area has been found, however a long term solution is needed for the team who will now be known as the Washington Nationals. I am proposing for my thesis project designing a new home for the Nationals that will meet the demands of the 21st century athletic …


Rezidential Housing: A Prototype For The Winnebago Tribe, Alissa Piere May 2006

Rezidential Housing: A Prototype For The Winnebago Tribe, Alissa Piere

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

This project investigates the current housing challenges of the Winnebago Indian Reservation located in Northeast Nebraska. The project will develop prototypical solutions to the housing problems and design the residential environment on the reservation at three different levels: 1- the domestic unit itself, 2- at the level of the immediate community formed by the clustering homes within a neighborhood and the indoor/outdoor spaces they share, and 3- at the level of the site plan. Mentors: Zeynep Kezer and Martin Despang.


Downtown Revitalization: Parks In The Sky, James C. Adrian Jr. May 2006

Downtown Revitalization: Parks In The Sky, James C. Adrian Jr.

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

Over the past eight to ten years Omaha has taken great strides in redeveloping the downtown business district. Many businesses have reinvested in the downtown adding new buildings and parks to the area. The most noticeable are the two new high-rise buildings or First National Bank and Union Pacific Railroad. One key ingredient missing in the revitalization of downtown is the source of people throughout the entire day. Omaha has made some attempts to bring people back downtown by creating new apartments and condominiums. When you take a closer look, you will see the lack of mixed use buildings.

With …


Effects Of Changing The Amount Of Absorption In A Computer Model Of Queen’S Hall, Copenhagen, Denmark, Michelle C Vigeant, Lily M. Wang, Jens Holger Rindel May 2006

Effects Of Changing The Amount Of Absorption In A Computer Model Of Queen’S Hall, Copenhagen, Denmark, Michelle C Vigeant, Lily M. Wang, Jens Holger Rindel

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

Room acoustics modelling and auralizations are very useful tools in the design of acoustically sensitive spaces. One area of improvement for auralizations is the method of modelling the source directivity. A new method to incorporate source directivity is multi-channel auralizations. This study first evaluates the objective effects of using four and thirteen channel impulse responses in an ODEON model of Queen’s Hall, where the actual variable absorption is changed within the model. Analyses of the results reveal great differences in the objective parameters of reverberation time and sound pressure level across each channel’s impulse response. Subjective studies were then conducted …


Active Living:
[Pro]Active Planning
[Re]Active Residence
, Jamie Wietfield
May 2006

Active Living: [Pro]Active Planning[Re]Active Residence, Jamie Wietfield

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

The Near South Neighborhood within Lincoln was originally a prominent neighborhood of large single-family homes. Within the 20th Century a need for higher density living initiated the development of multi-family units within the area, which has drastically affected the characteristic of the neighborhood.

The intention of this project is the development of a system of infill housing that allows for higher density living, enhances the characteristic of the neighborhood, provides affordable housing options, and adapts to multiple site and user characteristics.

Developing a system of modular units, the project allows for multiple design solutions, personalization of space, and an efficient …


Flexible Overlay: Unearthing Potential At The Nebraska State Fair Park, Katherine A. Gluckselig May 2006

Flexible Overlay: Unearthing Potential At The Nebraska State Fair Park, Katherine A. Gluckselig

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

The Nebraska State Fair Park is utilized to its full extent for only eleven days in the fall when the annual State Fair takes place. For the remaining fifty weeks of the year, the vast outdoor space sits vacant and underutilized. The Fair “Park,” as it is called, is not a park at all—as a collection of empty buildings and useless lots, it offers little possibility for recreational use by members of the surrounding community. Not only does the current layout fail to encourage seasonal activities, it does not provide optimal support for the State Fair itself. Buildings have been …


Education In Transition: An Urban Middle School, Jeremy L. Carlson May 2006

Education In Transition: An Urban Middle School, Jeremy L. Carlson

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

The main objective of this project is to successfully design a middle school in downtown Omaha Nebraska. With the development of nearly a dozen condominiums in the downtown Omaha area, representing over 400 units, (Omaha World Herald 11-29-2004) there presents a need for a middle school that is currently missing in the downtown area.

Downtown Omaha currently has an elementary school and a high school in the area. A middle school downtown will complete the educational infrastructure in the downtown area.

The majority of the school population will be students living in the area, but also will accommodate those families …


Recovery Of Lake Mcconaughy, Joanell Mueller May 2006

Recovery Of Lake Mcconaughy, Joanell Mueller

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

This terminal project investigates the ephemeral qualities of site as a response to the interventions of humans harnessing nature. An environment untouched and/or unaffected by humans does not exist. This project examines that idea by recovering an environment by responding to the ephemeral qualities and exposing its true nature. It begins with the understanding that the site is both the venue and the medium for architectural design. Following concepts and procedures based in landscape theory, it conceives the site as a process, and through research and site analysis, design redefines the architectural notions of program and spatial/formal composition. The ephemeral …


Appropriate Characterization Of Background Noise Levels In The Workplace, Erica E. Bowden, Lily M. Wang Mar 2006

Appropriate Characterization Of Background Noise Levels In The Workplace, Erica E. Bowden, Lily M. Wang

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

Overall loudness is not the only quality of indoor background noise that affects occupants. The distribution of noise across frequency (pitch), whether or not the noise contains tones, and whether or not the noise changes over time must also be considered. There are several indoor noise criteria systems available to quantify the background noise in rooms, but many of them do not account for these factors. These systems are commonly used by architects and engineers, and often incorporated into manufacturer’s data, design guides, and standards. There is much debate over which of the criteria systems best reflect how occupants will …


Room Acoustics In Coupled Volume Spaces, David T. Bradley, Lily M. Wang Mar 2006

Room Acoustics In Coupled Volume Spaces, David T. Bradley, Lily M. Wang

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

The study of sound in the built environment is finding more awareness in the 21st century. As this awareness has increased, and as computing power has grown, the method of computer modeling for studying room acoustics in such settings as classrooms, offices, and performances spaces has taken great strides in recent years. Of particular interest has been the study of the coupled volume space due to its unique ability to provide contrasting acoustical phenomenon. A coupled volume room is generally defined as a space consisting of a large main volume containing high levels of sound absorption connected through small …


Effects Of Noise On Productivity: Does Performance Decrease Over Time?, Jessica Errett, Erica Eileen Bowden, Marc Choiniere, Lily M. Wang Mar 2006

Effects Of Noise On Productivity: Does Performance Decrease Over Time?, Jessica Errett, Erica Eileen Bowden, Marc Choiniere, Lily M. Wang

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

Most people at one time or another have found themselves irritated or distracted by the background noise in a building. The irritation might have resulted in minor aggravation or may have been dramatic enough to hinder their work. This leads us to ask whether occupants are increasingly aggravated by noise the longer they are exposed to it, or if they naturally habituate to their acoustic environment. In an effort to answer this question, a study was completed in the “Indoor Environment Lab” at the University of Nebraska. This lab resembles a typical office and was specially constructed to be acoustically …


A Review Of Diffuse Reflections In Architectural Acoustics, Jonathan Rathsam, Lily M. Wang Mar 2006

A Review Of Diffuse Reflections In Architectural Acoustics, Jonathan Rathsam, Lily M. Wang

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

Diffuse reflections have received increasing attention in architectural acoustics over the past quarter century. The term diffuse refers to non-specular directions. This paper identifies three mechanisms that cause diffuse reflections. Practitioners have found that changing specular reflections into diffuse reflections can reduce noise and echoes both indoors and outdoors. Developers of acoustical modeling software have also found that modeling diffuse in additional to specular reflections produces more accurate predictions. The final portion of this paper presents results for a study of scattering coefficients in acoustical modeling software.


Measuring Sound Power In Ducted Heating, Ventilating, And Air-Conditioning (Hvac) Systems For Use In Verifying Acoustical Prediction Methods, Steven R. Ryherd, Lily M. Wang Mar 2006

Measuring Sound Power In Ducted Heating, Ventilating, And Air-Conditioning (Hvac) Systems For Use In Verifying Acoustical Prediction Methods, Steven R. Ryherd, Lily M. Wang

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

This paper discusses issues regarding in-situ methods of obtaining sound power at a point in a heating, ventilating and air-conditioning (HVAC) duct system. Such a method is being used as part of a larger investigation on acoustical prediction methods to allow for comparison of measured data to results from attenuation predictions of individual duct elements, such as elbows or dampers. Sound propagation in HVAC duct work is complex. Any measurements of sound energy in the duct must address the characteristics of sound propagation in ducts, end reflections, and air turbulence. Investigations are being conducted to understand the extents to which …


Room Acoustics Computer Modeling: Study Of The Effect Of Source Directivity On Auralizations, Michelle C Vigeant, Lily M. Wang, Jens Holger Rindel Mar 2006

Room Acoustics Computer Modeling: Study Of The Effect Of Source Directivity On Auralizations, Michelle C Vigeant, Lily M. Wang, Jens Holger Rindel

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

Auralizations are very useful in the design of performing arts spaces, where auralization is the process of rendering audible the sound field in a space, in such a way as to simulate the binaural listening experience at a given position in the modeled space. One of the fundamental modeling inputs to create auralizations is the source directivity. Standard methods involve inputting the measured source directivity, calculating the impulse response and convolving it with a single channel anechoic recording. An initial study was conducted using this method and the results showed significant differences in reverberation time and clarity index when using …


Comments On Plan View Visual Assessment, Richard K. Sutton Jan 2006

Comments On Plan View Visual Assessment, Richard K. Sutton

Landscape Architecture Program: Faculty Scholarly and Creative Activity

Plan view visual assessments ignore human horizontal orientation to the landscape.