Architecture Commons^™

Focus: The Journal Of Planning Practice And Education | Journal Of The City And Regional Planning Department | Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo | Volume 15

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Cartoon Corner

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Theses And Professional Projects: 2016/2017 Ay

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For fulfilment of the MCRP degree at Cal Poly’s CRP department, the student may choose between developing a thesis or a professional project, or a specific individual project in a final planning studio.

The following abstracts are from master’s theses and projects defended in the 2016/2017 AY. They are available to download from Cal Poly’s Kennedy Library at http://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses.

Learning From California: Highlights From Crp Studios 2016/2017 Ay

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These are some highlights of the studio projects from both BSCRP and MCRP programs during the 2016-17 academic year. The studios are fundamental in the learn-by-doing pedagogy embraced by the department, and help shaping students into professionals that are fully engaged with their communities.

Conversations With Alumni - Back To Basics: Planning In The Peace Corps, Rwanda, Michael Heater

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Before studying planning, Michael worked as a professional photographer, primarily in the newspaper industry. He served as a Peace Corps volunteer from 2014-2016 in Rwanda with his wife. He is now working as a Realty Specialist with the General Services Administration. He and his wife currently live in Philadelphia with their adopted Rwandan cat. Check out Michael’s article with Brian Harrington “Creating more than a Snapshot: Photography for Planning and Design”, in FOCUS 9 (2012).

Conversations With Alumni: Nadege Dubuisson, Nadege Dubuisson

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Developing A Resiliency Index For Csu Campuses, William Siembieda

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Sustainability and resilience have become intrinsic to good planning and are particularly important to Cal Poly's Master Plan. Professor William Siembieda discusses his interdisciplinary elective Hazard Mitigation Planning and Design, and describes the students' efforts in developing an index to measure campus resiliency.

Urban Design Visions For Riverside, Paso Robles, Vicente Del Rio, Hemalata C. Dandekar

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Following the CRP Department's tradition of community-oriented projects with real clients, the authors discuss their studio work for the City of Paso Robles Community Development Department. The students explored development scenarios and urban design ideas for the area between the Salinas River and the railroad tracks, including more memorable, walkable and livable spaces, and stronger connections to the downtown and the rest of the city.

Shaping A Vision For Old Town Newark, Hemalata C. Dandekar, David Christie, Gabriel Ward

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This article describes the MCRP first-year studio project for Newark's Old Town, considered by the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) as one of the region's Priority Development Areas. In collaboration with the city's Community Development Department, the proposal includes a vision and a development strategy to revitalize Old Town through mixed-use, development opportunities, and vibrant and memorable environments.

Sketching In The Crp Department, Vicente Del Rio

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In this article, Vicente del Rio reflects on the importance of sketching for planners and urban designers, and reports on an elective offered in the CRP department in 2017. Sketching is understood as a skill and a tool to help observe, analyse, represent, and conceptualize spaces and places, as well as to communicate with other professionals, the clients, and the public.

Successful Planner/Developer Collaborations For “Workforce” Housing In California, Hemalata C. Dandekar

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Housing affordability is a significant barrier to social and economic growth in California. In this article, Dr. Hemalata Dandekar reports on her research on successful housing projects for low and moderate-income families by private sector and non-profit developers in collaboration with city and county planning departments. The research was funded by the California Department of Housing and Community Development.

Deconstructing Howard Through The Lens Of Hall: Lessons From The Garden City Reformer, William W. Riggs

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In this provocative essay, William Riggs discusses the lasting legacy of Ebenezer Howard's and Sir Peter Hall's work and who it challenges us to think our solutions and deal with familiar issues like protecting green belts, equitable jobs and housing. The author notes that the resurgence of a stronger focus on physical design and the sustainability and eco-towns movements will help us move towards a Howard-inspired "Peaceful Path to Real Reform".

Between The One And The Other, Aruane Garzedin

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The contemporary city is a polarized environment with increasingly strong divides between the public and the private realms. Public space has lost quality and does not stimulate new social practices; there is little surprise and diversity in the landscape. Aruane Garzedin has been using art interventions to provoke new urban perceptions and public engagement, encouraging a different city poetic.

The Culture Of Windows, Ivor Samuels

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Windows are a fundamental element for both architecture and urban design. Ivor Samuels discusses the impact of daylight on housing practice, particularly in the United Kingdom. He claims that while the focus of research and regulations seem to be on sustainability and energy conservation, cultural context, privacy, and surveillance are equally important in planning and urban design. He calls for more interdisciplinary work in the study of the relationships between daylight, architecture and urban form.

Home Sharing: An Important Housing Option For Us Cities, Anne Wyatt

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The housing crisis in the US is fundamentally an affordability crisis, particularly in larger cities and in expensive real estate markets. Planner Anne Wyatt has been a strong advocate for affordable housing in San Luis Obispo for many years. In this article, she discusses the importance of home sharing in helping to tackle the affordability crisis, its advantages, the problems that may rise, and the need to include it as a formal option in the General Plan's Housing Element and in affordable housing action plans.

The Rio Games Legacy In Mobility: Challenges Beyond Infrastructure, Simone C.R. Silva, Carlos E.G. Maiolino, Jacqueline A. Torres

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The City of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, a city of 6.5 million inhabitants, had several years to plan, invest, and prepare for the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. A significant part of these efforts were in mobility infrastructure and operations, as they would become a fundamental legacy for the city. Silva, Maiolino and Torres, who were involved in these efforts in various capacities, discuss this experience and some of the challenges that go beyond investments in infrastructure such as behavior and operational changes.

From Downtown To The Inner Harbor: Baltimore's Sustainable Revitalization - Part 2: The Inner Harbor Plan (1967 To 2005), Vicente Del Rio

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Baltimore's effective revitalization efforts are internationally recognized in planning and urban design. After the successful Charles Center redevelopment plan in the late 1950s, Baltimore's efforts expanded to its Inner Harbor and waterfront. In this sequel to a two-part article that started in FOCUS 13, Vicente del Rio discusses these later efforts, and how Baltimore ensured a process for sustainable economic, social, and cultural revitalization.

Urban Economics By Design: Thinking From Down Under, Kobus Mentz, Susannah Goble

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Based on their experience in Australasia, Kobus Mentz and Susannah Goble discuss how, by considering urban economics, urban design, and local governance concurrently, greater efficiency, prosperity and social equity can be delivered at differing levels of city scale. The authors are, respectively, director and planner of Urbanismplus, one of New Zealand's most respected and awarded planning and urban design private firms.

Broadband Applications For Digitally Based Public Transportation In The Smart City, Evandro C. Santos

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Inevitably, cities are becoming more interconnected and dependent on smart wireless computer systems and networks. In this paper, Evandro Santos discusses broadband applications in generating Big Data, and the role of technology and communication in the efficiency of urban functions and services. He argues that digital and mobile technologies are making the connections between transportation service providers and users tighter, faster, and more personal to greater collective and individual b enefits.

Active Transportation And Perceptions Of Safety: A Case Study Of A Regional Trail And A Transit Corridor In Salt Lake City, Utah., Ivis Garcia Zambrana, Shabnam Khan

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In this article, Garcia and Ara Khan discuss their study on the relationship between perceptions of safety from crime and active transportation with a regional bike and pedestrian trail system in Salt Lake City. Based on community surveys and focus group discussions, the study concludes on important suggestions on how to increase the perception of safety in low-income neighborhoods that go beyond streetscape improvements.

The Conversable Scale Of Cities, Lineu Castello

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One of the usual criticisms of the contemporary metropolis is that it is fragmented by mega-projects run by private sector interests. In this provocative article, Castello notes the positive outcomes of this phenomenon as long as the fragments result in places of a type and scale appropriate for public engagement and social conversation.

Cartoon Corner

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3rd California Climate Action Planning Conference

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Eulogy For W. David Conn, William Siembieda

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A Note From The Editor, Vicente Del Rio

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A Note From The Department Head, Michael R. Boswell

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Editorial Board

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Table Of Contents

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Cover

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Focus: The Journal Of Planning Practice And Education | Journal Of The City And Regional Planning Department | Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo | Volume 14

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