Architecture Commons^™

Alleyway Revitalization: Planning For The Park Street - Pine Street Alley Between 12th Street And 13th Street, Paso Robles California, Mitchell Spector

City and Regional Planning

Alleyways generally refer to two kinds of paths. The first is a narrow pedestrian path between the walls of buildings in an urban environment. This type of alley is generally short and straight, although it may change in elevation. The second type of alley is a very narrow urban street or single lane. This is often used by slow moving vehicles and is more pedestrian friendly than a regular street. These alleys can be used as service roads for a variety of land uses and serves as a secondary vehicular network. It is very common in America to view alleyways …

Streets Of San Francisco: An Analysis Of The City's Transportation Network, Complete Streets Guidelines And Policies, Ian Xavier Connolly

City and Regional Planning

Transportation is a key element to everyday life, providing an efficient connection and movement of goods and people. While there are different modes of transportation, motor vehicles are still the preferred and highly used option, providing people the luxury of traveling to farther distances on their own time and in their own comfort. However, in a country where cities are increasingly becoming cores of pedestrian traffic, motor vehicles make these places less walkable, as well as produce pollution through their use of gasoline. At a time when we must continue to consider the safety and environmental aspects of transportation, we …

Campus Design: Assessing Outdoor Spaces At California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo To Improve Student Experience, Meha Patel

City and Regional Planning

The outdoor space of university campuses is an aspect of design which still remains, to a certain degree, uncharted. There are merely not enough relevant case studies and research in creating foundational principles which adhere to the design of a functional outdoor space on university campuses.

The success of the student body for a college, academically and socially, is dependent on creating a welcoming and holistic learning environment for students to thrive. Social spaces bridge the gap between the built and natural environment, therefore, providing proper physical components in an outdoor space becomes vital in creating a desired environment which …

Live-Learn Cal Poly: A New-Urbanist Vision For A More Livable And Sustainable Campus, Emily Huang, Justin Wong

City and Regional Planning

Universities across the nation have begun a mixed-use initiative in an effort to densify campuses and diversify retail and housing choices to increase student residency on campus. The movement to model the built environment after traditional mixed-use urbanism has been shown to improve capital flow within the local submarket on campus, foster flexible learning environments to support student success, and reduce automobile dependency. In order to reflect Cal Poly’s Master Plan moving forward, this report intends to follow the guiding principles outlined in the Master Plan while proposing sustainable and efficient land use designs to accommodate future growth at Cal …

Chrysalis Creek 2019 Bank Of America Merrill Lynch Low Income Housing, Ivy Zhao

City and Regional Planning

Chrysalis Creek provides 40 affordable housing units for very low- and low-income families in Templeton, California. A chrysalis refers to the third stage of growth, where a caterpillar metamorphose into a butterfly. The project name represents the transformative stage in life for families grow in strength, independence, and stability. Chrysalis Creek is the place where families will thrive and be well supported with resources for success.

Chrysalis Creek is a collaborative effort between architecture, planning and business administration students from Cal Poly. The Cal Poly team is working with Peoples’ Self-Help Housing as the development partner. Peoples’ Self-Help Housing is …

Enhancing Dublin's Emergency Road Network For Hazard Preparedness In The Event Of Natural Disaster, Ritu Muralidharan

City and Regional Planning

The purpose of this study is to assess and analyze the City of Dublin’s current emergency road network and provide recommendations to improve emergency evacuation in the event of natural disasters in the City of Dublin, California.

Planning for emergency preparedness, especially in the aftermath of the wildfires in Paradise and Montecito, California, is more relevant than ever. Learning from these disasters highlight the importance of preparedness, as well as the consideration of roadway capacity and conditions to evacuate during emergencies. This study analyzes the volume, capacity, density, and travel time to determine the capability of a mass evacuation in …

The City Of Pasadena: Circulating Without A Car, Caroline Bender

City and Regional Planning

This senior project will provide an analysis of the current bike infrastructure in the City of Pasadena and the Metro Bike Share program that was removed. This data collection and analysis will act as a basis for a proposal of improvements to the current infrastructure that would allow for the success of a bike share program and will present design guidelines for the proposed improvements. These proposed improvements would ultimately guide the City of Pasadena to achieving their vision for the city’s transportation system.

Sidewalks To Nowhere: A Tool To Prioritize Pedestrian Improvements, Ho Yan Lai

Master's Theses

Walkability as a concept that captures the ability to walk from one place to another has multiple dimensions. Between traversability to being a proxy for better urban places, there are also numerous measurements of walkability that attempts to quantify certain or all aspects of walkability. It is, however, unclear, through a review of available literature, how these measurements of walkability relate to each other statistically. This methodology focuses on generating a framework for analysts to evaluate and prioritize pedestrian infrastructure. WalkScore™ (WS), HCM Pedestrian Level of Service (PLOS), Average Nodal Degree (AND), and Intersection Density are the four metrics selected …

Inventory Of Aging-Friendly Pedestrian Environment, Qijun Zeng

Master's Theses

The dimension of humanization has been neglected for decades. Planning themes such as automobile and transportation have erroneously occupied a dominant position. While public space, pedestrian activities and urban space as a gathering place for urban residents have been placed in a very minor position. As motorization in contemporary cities develops, the overall pedestrian environment of cities is deteriorating, and the street spaces are seriously lacking in the care and consideration of pedestrians, especially the vulnerable groups. Urban design generally, and pedestrian environment in particular, has a significant influence on pedestrian activity. Also, with the aging of the Baby Boomer …

Improving Bicyclist And Pedestrian Safety In Riverside, Ca, Ryanne Browers

City and Regional Planning

There is great potential within the City of Riverside to increase the number of pedestrians and bicyclists. Currently, the largest barrier to this increase is user fear for health and safety. The geographic location of Riverside, which funnels pollutants from the Greater Los Angeles Area into the region, contributes to the region having very few good air days. This creates a barrier between those who potentially would walk or bike from actually doing so due to health risks.

The City of Riverside has identified in its Bike Master Plan that it currently has twice as many bicyclists than the national …

The Reinvigoration Of Oakland Neighborhoods Through Public Art Installations, Riley Anderson-Barrett

City and Regional Planning

The driving factor behind this project is my interest in how public art can drastically improve areas with somewhat little tangible change. With the implementation of a few key pieces, an area can gain recognition, triangulation, and life. Recognition begins when the location becomes recognizable and memorable, as opposed to being yet another mundane street corner or node. Making a location memorable and recognizable sparks the interest and desire for people to come visit the area. Having these pieces can generate interest and triangulation, which is when people come together to experience or converse about whatever it is drawing them …

Carousel Mall Redevelopment, Marissa E. Tietz

City and Regional Planning

The purpose of this project is to design a successful plan for the redevelopment of Carousel Mall in San Bernardino, California. In order for this project’s outcome to be successful, there are several aspects that need to be considered. Since Carousel Mall is an abandoned mall it is essential that we understand how it got to that place. To best gain that understanding, the first chapter of this project will look at the history of mall form and how it shaped the malls we know today. This chapter will also help understand why malls in America began falling and how …

Revitalizing High Street Through Pedestrianization, Laura Traffenstedt

City and Regional Planning

The purpose of this Senior Project is to recommend to the City of Moorpark a pedestrian-only street in their downtown district, specifically on High Street. This report will explore case studies of other pedestrian-only streets and plazas implemented in cities around Europe and the United States. These case studies will exemplify the importance of the addition of a partial pedestrian-only street on High Street in Moorpark, California, and the positive impacts pedestrianization in downtowns can have on communities. The project will include an amendment to Moorpark’s Downtown Specific Plan to include specific language on pedestrian-only streets/plazas.

Planning For Affordable Housing-A Suitability Analysis For Affordable Multifamily Housing In Hayward, Ca, Christian Manuel Montoya, Krystal Sanchez

City and Regional Planning

The City of Hayward’s General Plan indicates that affordable housing for people of all socioeconomic incomes is essential to the health and well-being of the community. The City has continued to assist and make efforts in supporting the building of affordable housing. However, this project seeks to support the City’s goal of building affordable housing by recommending the locations for appropriate developments. Therefore, this project intends to provide research and investigate vacants lots that should be prioritized for multifamily affordable housing within the City of Hayward.

California Waterfix Impacts On The City Of Modesto, Samuel J. Cunningham

City and Regional Planning

No abstract provided.

Proposal For A Signage And Wayfinding System For The City Of Parlier, Alejandra Janeth Alvarez

City and Regional Planning

Signage and wayfinding is a system of visuals that guide people throughout a built environment in a concise manner. It also adds to people’s understanding and experiences of the space they are in. As stated by the name, Signage and Wayfinding is comprised of two parts, physical signage and wayfinding system. Signage is the physical visuals you see on buildings and the side of streets. Whereas, wayfinding is the systematic way that these signs are placed in order to follow human intuition of following a route to a destination.

Downtown Porterville: Transit Oriented Design Strategy, Luke Troy Andres

City and Regional Planning

This Downtown Transit Oriented Design Strategy sets out opportunities and design guidelines for the revitalization of Downtown Porterville. It assesses the City’s goal for the downtown, enhancing the appearance and vitality of the historic center of the City.

This design for downtown demonstrates possible developments and builds out a new vision for the “heart of the City”. Implementing new strategies, this design program plans to create a transit oriented development in the area, allowing for new opportunities. Adding new residential, commercial and office uses, Downtown Porterville will be a vibrant place for people to live, work and visit in the …

Urban Heat Islands: Causes, Impacts, & Mitigation, Megan Rupard

City and Regional Planning

The purpose of this project is to understand the factors contributing to the urban heat island effect and why it is important to consider when planning a city. This senior project will review the factors that contribute to an urban heat island, what kind of effects urban heat islands have on our city’s and their inhabitants, and how the effects can be mitigated and minimized. This project will review current mitigation strategies that have been developed to combat urban heat islands and analyze the benefits that can be attained from these mitigation strategies. Case studies will be used to understand …

How Grants Improve Public Health In Sanger, California, Emily A. Rudger, Tabitha J. Tolsma, Jamie L. Mosler

City and Regional Planning

This report analyzes public health needs in Sanger, California. Gathering research from the community and generating a background using Healthy People 2020, the project outlines potential grants the community could benefit from, now and in the future. The grant chosen focuses on parks, as physical activity is an important factor and need for the community.

Making Sustainability Affordable In Parlier, Kyle Alexander Ferguson

City and Regional Planning

As climate change continues to threaten everyday life on Earth, humans from every corner of this planet struggle to keep up with changes due access, attitudes, and most importantly affordability. Over the past decade, governments around the world have invested billions into renewable power. Private investors followed, hoping to cash in on what looked like a transformational shift in the way the world produced electricity and lived sustainability. It felt as though it was a way to add jobs, manage fossil-fuel prices, and curb the impending affects of global warming. Unfortunately, a sustainable world will not happen overnight and requires …

Planning Methods For A Sustainable Future, Anthony Jay Herrington

City and Regional Planning

Today, climate change, pollution, poor health, and economic crisis pose a threat to Earth and its inhabitants. If these global threats are left unmitigated, serious economic, environmental, and social consequences will occur. Earth’s future currently rests in the hands of urban planners and policy makers. It is their responsibility to develop and implement methods that ensure a sustainable future. Sustainability is defined as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The current effort to achieve global sustainability needs to be improved as conditions continue to decline. Urban planners and …

A Proposal For An Adu Incentive Program For The City Of Mill Valley, Emi D. Sugiyama

City and Regional Planning

The development of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) is an important option for responding to increases in housing demand, increasing the diversity in housing options, broadening the range of space available, addressing varied financial needs, and increasing density.

Placemaking & Augmented Reality: A Theoretical Exploration, Erick Sebastian Gomez

City and Regional Planning

Augmented reality is a technology that has the potential to greatly impact current approaches placemaking. Place is an abstract term that refers to the ability of a physical space to have a deeper, more subjective level of meaning for an individual or group of people. Traditional placemaking strategies can impact physical space but their adaptability is often limited by cultural changes or local needs. Augmented reality is a reactive technology through which people are able to manipulate their environments to more closely reflect personal values and communicate ideas. This paper explores current trends and potential applications of augmented reality in …

Noho2: North Hollywood Transit-Oriented Development, Caroline Chen

City and Regional Planning

As population in California continues to grow, the demand for high-density housing alongside alternative transportation in communities across the U.S. has been steadily increasing. North Hollywood, a neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, is one such community. This transit-oriented development (TOD) proposal capitalizes on the existing assets of the community while introducing new elements that meet local and regional demand and enhance the harmony of the public.

Haiti Transitional Home: Solar Panel System Design, Kasey Riese Hetzel

Construction Management

Haiti is located in a region with optimal access to the sun’s rays, but not enough resources to make use of them. While the country is known for its limited access to electricity and unreliable power quality, it has the potential to become a renewable energy powerhouse. Providing a safe place for families to reunite under one roof, that runs solely on solar power is the ultimate goal of this project. Not only designing the most efficient system, but finding which products are available in country, and which products would be more cost effective to ship internationally was the intent …

Framing Exterior Partitions For The Great Northern Services Housing Project, Patrick Pierre Shami

Construction Management

In the wake of a fire in Weed, CA that destroyed 150 homes, Great Northern Services (GNS), a nonprofit organization, reached out to Cal-Poly San Luis Obispo about a service-learning opportunity. This opportunity involved designing a single-family home and prefabricating the exterior partitions in San Luis Obispo. In Fall 2017, interdisciplinary teams of students delivered design proposals in the Integrated Project Delivery studio. The selected design was then finalized into a permitted set of drawings, and planning for the prefabrication began. The extent of the prefabrication was limited to the framing and sheathing of the exterior walls. The length of …

Feeling Green: The Benefits Of Green Space On Urbanites' Mental Health, Kathryn A. Hoagland

Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies

This investigation intends to determine the best methods for incorporating public green space into dense urban areas, for the betterment of residents' mental health. Data from studies showing differences in the prevalence of anxiety and depression in urban and rural areas are discussed alongside data from studies looking at the effect that certain types of green space might have on mental health. While there is no exact consensus on the extent to which nature has positive effects on mental health there is enough of a correlation to argue for the implementation of public green spaces in urban design, in order …

How Autonomous Vehicles Will Reshape The Urban Landscape, Ian R. Mccarville

City and Regional Planning

Autonomous vehicles (AVs) will bring one of the largest revolutions to the nation’s transportation system, with major changes in planning policies and the urban environment. While AVs have already been introduced to our mobility network, they still require a human operator behind the wheel. In coming years, as AV technology becomes more sophisticated, it will begin to dominate the roadways due to the technologies ability to maneuver at a much high accuracy and predictability than human drivers. This transition into an AV oriented future will promote road safety, increase productivity, reduce travel and labor costs, and reinvent the urban landscape.

Little Big Planning: A Millennial Planner's Take On Small Town & Rural America, Jeffrey M. Setterlund

City and Regional Planning

When you work as a city or regional planner for a local community, the challenge is to find solutions to small town and rural problems without utilizing almost any of the high-density, mixed use principles you learned in university. However, what I have come to find is that what I thought was the most challenging aspects of my career is often the most rewarding.

Building Homes And Hopes In Bangalore, India, Sherry S. Saroufeem

Construction Management

Habitat for Humanity Global Village is an organization that continuously sends volunteers to work on construction projects around the world. My team and I were chosen to go to a village in Bangalore, India, where we dug and poured home foundations for three families in need. Given the opportunity to combine my love for construction and my passion for helping those in need, I was certain that this was the senior project for me. I wanted the capstone of my college educational experience to reflect a hands-on approach, where I had the opportunity to make a difference and see an …