Architecture Commons^™

A Social-Ecological Systems Inquiry For Understanding Environmental Change In Los Angeles Outer-Ring Suburbs, Farnaz Kamyab

All Dissertations

Within the framework of the city's green infrastructure, urban and suburban green coverage play a pivotal role in delivering substantial benefits to health, economy, and the environment. However, the permanence of these green coverage is threatened by dynamic changes in neighborhood socio-economic, spatial, and ecological elements and their loss or degradation presents a problematic issue. Social-Ecological System Theory (SES) offers a comprehensive framework for understanding the potential correlations between socio-economic trends and the degradation of green coverage. This research is based on a case study of the highly diverse megacity, Los Angeles (LA), which encompasses a wide array of built-environments, …

Evaluation Of Green Roof Technology In Egypt, Hend Abada

Theses and Dissertations

A green roof is a well-known technology worldwide that provides many social, economic, and environmental benefits. In Egypt, green roofs are still a new construction practice where most stakeholders lack business and technical expertise within this emerging industry. This research is concerned with assessing this emerging technology within its contemporary context, Egypt, and testing its feasibility within the physical condition of the Egyptian buildings and the social and economic conditions of the Egyptians. This study starts by presenting intensive information about green roof technology and reviewing the literature on green roofs within the Egyptian context. A grounded methodology is used …

Towards Urban Biodiversity: Simulating Design Parameters For Wildlife-Inclusive Green Infrastrcuture, Alisa Abdulghany, Baher Farahat

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

As of 2021, more than half of the global population resides in urban areas. This resulted in an overwhelming footprint affecting species habitat areas leading to biodiversity loss. By definition, urban biodiversity is the diversity of living things within the urban realm. By providing chances for habitat as part of new developments, preserving on-site habitats, and attempting to connect with the local ecosystems, we can help promote biodiversity. Green infrastructure (GI), which includes all semi-natural areas in the urban context, can serve as a vessel for biodiversity. Therefore, the problem can be defined by the urban footprint that expands on …

Green Stormwater Infrastructure For The Town Of Maynard, Ma, Angie J. Gregory

Sustainability Science Working Papers

Green Infrastructure refers to ecosystem service solutions that provide human benefit. In the context of Stormwater Management, GI benefits address regulatory compliance measures related to stormwater runoff pollutant capture and flood mitigation on site, while providing co-benefits. Inherently distributive, non-exclusive, and non-rival in nature, Green Infrastructure as publicly owned infrastructure can provide restoration while generating capacity for community resilience. Comprehensive public and private investments will equitably advance public health and safety through this method. This paper will present the use of GI for satisfying compliance for MS4 permits for municipalities and implementation at residential and commercial scale with comprehensive review …

Springfield's Legacy: A Vision For A Transformative Transit-Oriented Union Station District, Keith Benoit, Nigel Cummings, Caitlan Davis, Kinjal Desai, Marcos Gonzalez, Jiaqi Guo, Anna Kellerman, Olivia Ashjian James, Bryce Lloyd-Hahn, Stephen Mccusker, Chris Ramage, Jessica Schottanes

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

This urban design studio developed concepts around equitable transportation Union Station in Springfield, Massachusetts. The work creates a vision for the Union Station District, a revitalized mixed-use walkable neighborhood adjacent to the restored transportation center. It emphasizes reusing the city’s historic street grid in new, forward thinking ways that enhance neighborhood connectivity. The plan creates physical and social networks that bring together diverse groups of residents and visitors. The Union Station District will be a place that offers a range of non-automobile transportation options to residents and visitors and will help transforming an area characterized by vacant lots and empty …

The Just Green City: A Vision Of The South Holyoke Neighborhood, Michael Gagnon

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Masters Projects

Landscape Architects need to take their place as formative roles in the planning and design of our cities in the era of climate change. Not only do we have to be a part of the collaborative efforts, but we also have to bring it to the communities who need it most to create long-lasting impacts. Climate change is an equity issue and without tackling our social problems, we cannot tackle climate change. Our role is to not reinforce the status quo but to change it. The Just Green City takes place in Holyoke Massachusetts. This legacy city was once the …

Multi-Purposeful Water Design For Monte Sano Park In Baton Rouge, Yuta Masakane

LSU Master's Theses

Today, water-related disasters, including hurricanes, flood, and stormwater surge, are occurring more frequently than in the past due to extreme weather brought by climate change all over the world. In August 2016, Baton Rouge had a historic heavy rain which brought flood and negative economic impacts specifically on the north Baton Rouge area. To mitigate the negative impact of future flooding, in Monte Sano Park and its neighborhoods in north Baton Rouge, it would be helpful to implement green infrastructure which utilizes natural infiltration process of soils and plants to slow, store, and treat the stormwater as well as enhances …

Design Of Low Impact Development And Green Infrastructure At Flood Prone Areas In The City Of Miami Beach, Florida, Usa, Noura Alsarawi

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates the effectiveness of Low Impact Development Infrastructure (LIDI) and Green Infrastructure (GI) in reducing flooding resulting from heavy rainfall events and sea-level rise, and in improving stormwater quality in the City of Miami Beach (CMB). InfoSWMM was used to simulate the 5, 10, and 100-year, 24-hour storm events, total suspended solids (TSS), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) loadings, and in evaluating the potential of selected LIDI and GI solutions in North Shore neighborhood.

Post-development results revealed a decrease of 48%, 46%, and 39% in runoff, a decrease of 57%, 60%, and 62% in …

Umass Amherst Campus Green Infrastructure Planning, Meilan Chen, Zhuoya Deng, Joseph Larico, Bin Liu

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Masters Projects

Conventional stormwater management methods are a major problem in urban areas that can result in erosion, sedimentation, flooding and in the contamination of natural waterbodies that can be harmful for wildlife and costly for humans. This project will focus on the integration of green infrastructure and UMass campus planning with the goal of solving stormwater management issues on campus. We propose a series of green infrastructure interventions that will increase infiltration and time of concentration, reduce peak flows of runoff, and filter sediment. These interventions will allow for the removal of catch basins and pipes, reduce pavement, and add vegetation. …

Assessing Downstream Stormwater Impacts For Urban Watershed Planning, Johanna Meyer Pavlowsky

Masters Theses

"The urbanization of watersheds has caused debilitating effects to downstream aquatic ecosystems in catchments and streams. The implementation of green infrastructure (GI), such as permeable pavements and bioretention facilities, has been shown to alleviate these effects by both reducing runoff and mitigating pollutants; however, the implements are often not designed with a specific goal of water improvement. This study targets understanding a small, impaired urban watershed, and the benefits green infrastructure may have to provide environmental, social, and economic improvement to the watershed.

Portions of Rolla including much of the S&T campus drain into the impaired urban waterbody Frisco Lake, …

Creating The West Gate Entrance: Erosion And Water Quality Solutions For The University Of Massachusetts – Amherst Campus, Nathan A. Frazee

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Masters Projects

The impacts of development have degraded the Tan Brook to the point that water pollution and flooding issues are affecting residents and the University of Massachusetts Amherst campus as well as the adjacent Mill River Watershed. Water quality measurements indicate high levels of conductivity possibly due to winter salting. This proposed design solution includes a vegetated swale that integrates sand filters and bioretention basins. These applications within the design could reduce erosion issues and improve water quality while providing students, faculty, and staff a location for educational purposes, recreation, and respite. By embracing innovative and aesthetic solutions, the West Gate …

Redefining America’S Postwar Urban Renewal At The Northgate Of Springfield, Ma, Mohammed Abdelaal, Meilan Chen, Zhuoya Deng, Ericka Duym, Laura Keskula, Joseph Larico, Bin Liu, Shu Liu, Wenjie Liu, Tharyn Nein-Large, Junzhi (Jason) Yu, Zhangkan Zhou

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

This project presents visions for an underutilized and overlooked district in Springfield, MA, developed by the Graduate Urban Design Studio in the spring of 2014. The area between downtown and the North End neighborhood has undergone major transformations in the 1950’s and 1960’s during America’s era of postwar urban renewal. Residential blocks were replaced by large office buildings and oversized streets left a ”no-man’s land”. The current rehabilitation of the Springfield’s Union Station into an intermodal transportation hub should draw new attention to the area as the northern gateway to downtown - the “Northgate”. Five visionary design proposals rethink and …

Urban Informal Settlements As Sites For Green Infrastructure: Regenerating Dayouzhuang And Saoziying Urban Villages In Beijing, Feiqiang Tong

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Masters Projects

Urban villages are the primary form of urban informal settlements in China. They emerge from the ongoing process of extensive rural-to-urban migration. While urban villages provide more readily available and affordable housing options for new urban migrants, their overloaded population and poor living environment have become a problem in the city. The existing official solution of urban villages is to remove them and to replace them with new developments. This solution takes a long time to complete and neglects the social role of urban villages in the city. This project focuses on solving the inland flooding problem that occur regularly …

Springfield’S “X” – From Crossroads To Center, Joseph A. Agrillo, Theodore D. Chesbro, Nic M. Brown, William Cody Black, Patrick W. Corey, Krystal A. Ford, Jay M. French, Alexander Jardin, Da Hee Lee, Henry C. Puza, Sean J. Regnier, Charles M. Richard, David William Ross, Stphen Sanborn, Julia Rose Sim, Thomas F. Holt, Bryan Anderson, Samuel Brown, Richard Disharoon, Andrew Fang, Dan Kamins, Colin Lord, John Nicol, Tricia O'Grady-Howard, Brett Riley, Jennifer Verville

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

The work explores a community service learning strategy within the framework of two urban design studios with the goal of revitalizing the city of Springfield, Massachusetts, through design, planning, and engagement with the community. The studio worked in the Forest Park neighborhood around the “X” – on the intersection of three major street arteries. Our study contains a diverse catalogue of strategies to make the Forest Park Neighborhood a better place to live, work, and recreate where the most important streets meet. Through rerouting of the traffic patterns around the “X” the number of pedestrian crossings is increased and the …

Climate Change Adaptation: A Green Infrastructure Planning Framework For Resilient Urban Regions, Yaser F. Abunnasr

Open Access Dissertations

The research explores multiple facets of a green infrastructure planning framework for climate change adaptation in urban regions. The research is organized in three distinct, but related parts. The first develops an adaptation implementation model based on triggering conditions rather than time. The approach responds to policy makers' reluctance to engage in adaptation planning due to uncertain future conditions. The model is based on planning and adaptation literature and applied to two case studies. Uncertainty during implementation may be reduced by incremental and flexible policy implementation, disbursing investments as needs arise, monitoring conditions, and organizing adaptation measures along no-regrets to …

2013 Proceedings Of Fabos Conference On Landscape And Greenway Planning, Mark S. Lindhult

Mark S Lindhult, FASLA

The Fábos Conference on Landscape and Greenway Planning is held every three years to bring together experts who are influencing landscape planning, policy making and greenway planning from the local to international level. The papers contained in this book highlight recent trends and expand the literature about landscape and greenway planning and describe how different countries are approaching greenway planning and tailoring them to each country’s unique geographical, cultural, and political circumstances.

The Revitalization Of Springfield’S North End - Envisioning New Housing And Places To Live, Work And Recreate, Samantha R. Anderson, Ngoc Xuan Doan, Ivette Banoub, Keith W. Hannon, Trudy M. Hall, Irene Estelle Miller, Colin N. O'Donnell, Amanda Lynn Rookey, Yan Xu

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

This report summarizes the results of a seven-week design studio in our Landscape Architecture Program and engaged experts, stakeholders and medical students of the Memorial Square Neighborhood, in conjunction with planning officials from the Springfield Office of Planning and Economic Development. The project brought students and local export together in a supportive and constructive atmosphere of reciprocal learning.

The proposals seek to connect the powerful economy of the medical sector with the rich culture of the North End to create a more balanced social and economic climate. More spatial, green connections of the hospitals with local businesses on Main Street …

City Food: Re-Imagining Urban Food Access Through Holistic, Multilayered Typologies Of Urban Agriculture Systems, Tiffany Managad

All Theses

Urban Agriculture is a growing movement that has resulted in response to the world's increasing urbanization. As global urban populations continue to multiply, the demand to supply healthy and nutritious food to cities has magnified. More than half of the global population now lives in cities and this trend continues to increase exponentially. This phenomena raises the question: How will cities continue to sustain and feed their growing populations now and in the future? Cities are hungry for sustainable ways to grow, access and consume healthier, more delicious food. The current industrialized food system is unsustainable due to escalated dependency …

Along The Chicopee River From The Mills To The Ludlow Bridge - Creating A Vision For Indian Orchard, Ying Cao, Elizabeth Englebretson, Scott Fulford, Jing Huang, Yiwei Huang, Rocky Liu, Tracy Murphy, Sparky Von Plinsky, Albert Wang, Jinglin Wang, Yan Yan, Shanshan Yu

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

The report documents design investigations for Springfield’s Indian Orchard neighborhood. The Graduate Urban Design Studio focused on the exciting area along the Chicopee River from the Indian Orchard Mills to the spectacular outlook at Indian Leap and the neighborhood gateway at the Ludlow Bridge. The primary goal of the project was to unveil the unique assets and character of the area, make these assets more accessible and legible and thus strengthen the identity of Indian Orchard as a vibrant place for its residents and visitors. Crucial keys to attaining this goal are: acknowledging the strong industrial heritage; improving connectivity to …

Bioretention: Evaluating Their Effectiveness For Improving Water Quality In New England Urban Environments, Mary Dehais

Mary Dehais

Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is one of the leading causes of water quality problems in the United States. Bioretention has become one of the more frequently used stormwater management practices for addressing NPS pollution in urbanized watersheds in New England. Yet despite increased acceptance, bioretention is not widely practiced. This study explores and evaluates the efficacy of bioretention for protecting urban water quality. This research found that numerous monitoring methods are used by researchers and industry experts to assess the effectiveness of stormwater best management practices (BMPs) and low impact development (LID) practices that include bioretention. The two most common …

From The Quadrangle To The River: Revitalizing The Heart Of Downtown Springfield, Mary F. Dehais, Yuanfang Gong, John E. Hulsey, Pamela Jo Landi, Adam G. Monroy, Seth A. Morrow, Alexander G. Seib, Jie Su, Kate A. Tooke, Owen M. White, Emily S. Wright, Kuang Xin, Xiao Zhou

Mary Dehais

This studio report explores community service learning in the graduate urban design studio taught in the in Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and instructed by Professor Frank Sleegers. The project will began with a visioning workshop, conducted to engage community members in the shaping of project goals and objectives within the project area of downtown Springfield. These findings were brought to the studio and guided the design process and outcomes. Five design teams developed five alternative master plans for the core area of downtown Springfield with focus on the revitalization of open …

Creation Of A Gis Based Model For Determining The Suitability Of Implementing Green Infrastructure: In The Town Of Berlin Maryland, Ronald A & W Marney

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses and Student Projects

This project is entitled “Incorporation of Green Infrastructure Into Comprehensive Storm Water Management and the Effective Utilization of LiDAR: In the Town of Berlin ”. The goal of this research was the creation of a Geographic Information System (GIS) based model for determining the suitability / feasibility of green infrastructure implementation, as defined by this study, within the study area. This model was only applicable for the identified elements or tools under green infrastructure as defined by this study. This enabled clear and concise definitions and more readily identified the criteria and their parameters. The scope of the model’s applicability …

From The Quadrangle To The River: Revitalizing The Heart Of Downtown Springfield, Mary F. Dehais, Yuanfang Gong, John E. Hulsey, Pamela Jo Landi, Adam G. Monroy, Seth A. Morrow, Alexander G. Seib, Jie Su, Kate A. Tooke, Owen M. White, Emily S. Wright, Kuang Xin, Xiao Zhou

jie su

This studio report explores community service learning in the graduate urban design studio taught in the in Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and instructed by Professor Frank Sleegers. The project will began with a visioning workshop, conducted to engage community members in the shaping of project goals and objectives within the project area of downtown Springfield. These findings were brought to the studio and guided the design process and outcomes. Five design teams developed five alternative master plans for the core area of downtown Springfield with focus on the revitalization of open …

Reconnecting People To Springfield’S Riverfront: From The South End To Forest Park, Nathaniel J. Bernard, Matthew S. Gallagher, Amanda Hart, Kyle J. Jackson, Corey E. Lammerding, Michael Naughton, Nicholas A. Petrouski, Jim P. Reichheld, Michael J. Ritacco, Matthew J. Silveria, Rebecca Leona Tran, Alisha L. Walls

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

This report documents the work of the Senior Urban Design Studio on Springfield’s southern riverfront. What is Springfield’s riverfront of tomorrow? The primary goal of the project was to develop a vision to connect the neighborhoods of the South End and Forest Park to the Connecticut River. What are new imaginative ways to engage the southern waterfront of Springfield as a place for people? How can a landscape engage water-ecology with both functional and sensual-aesthetic values?

Our proposals offer new planning and design strategies for this great location in Springfield.

The studio articulated four major design objectives:

1. Improving and creating …

Managing Stormwater Runoff With Green Infrastructure: Exploring Practical Strategies To Overcome Barriers In Citywide Implementation, Shaojing Tian

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses and Student Projects

Cities in the United States are facing the challenges of protecting water resources, drinking water and public health with a rapid pace of population growth and urban sprawl. Large quantities of stormwater runoff arising from increased imperviousness on urbanizing watershed will cause municipal sewer system overflow and discharge of untreated runoff into waterways, and as a result, pollute local water bodies and affect the quality of drinking water in the long run. It has been increasingly acknowledged that Green Infrastructure (GI) and Low Impact Development (LID) can be used as an effective tool to capture and retain stormwater on site …

Creating Livable Neighborhoods In Old Hill And Six Corners, Springfield, Massachusetts, Ryan Ball, Tai-Hsiang Cheng, Rebekah Decourcey, Somaye Garmroudi, Youjin Kwon, Jennifer Masters, Pat Mcgeough, Kathryn Ostermier, Maureen Pollock, Laura Selmani, Feiqiang Tong, Carol Waag, Fangfang Wang, Andrew Weir, Lawson Wulsin

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

This report documents the work of the Graduate Urban Design Studio in Springfield’s Old Hill and Six Corners neighborhoods with 12,000 inhabitants. Both neighborhoods are challenged by a very low average household income, housing foreclosures, lot vacancies, lack of substantial home ownership, high traffic volumes and poor quality of open space. The primary goal of the project was to develop a vision to renew Old Hill and Six Corners to improve livability for their residents and create new opportunities for housing, recreation, working and commercial activities. Crucial keys to attaining this goal will be creating a stronger sense of place …

Bioretention: Evaluating Their Effectiveness For Improving Water Quality In New England Urban Environments, Mary Dehais

Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014

Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is one of the leading causes of water quality problems in the United States. Bioretention has become one of the more frequently used stormwater management practices for addressing NPS pollution in urbanized watersheds in New England. Yet despite increased acceptance, bioretention is not widely practiced. This study explores and evaluates the efficacy of bioretention for protecting urban water quality.

This research found that numerous monitoring methods are used by researchers and industry experts to assess the effectiveness of stormwater best management practices (BMPs) and low impact development (LID) practices that include bioretention. The two most common …

The State Of Integrated Open Space Planning: Toward Landscape Integrity?, Lindsay Ex

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Open space planning has been present within the United States for over a century. Traditionally, open space planning efforts tend to focus more exclusively on either socially-based (e.g., recreational, scenic, or park planning) or ecologically-based (e.g., preserves, habitat networks or more general conservation planning) planning efforts. This separation of ecological and social frameworks in open space planning is reinforced by a persistent cultural model, where community and conservation are seen as opposing forces instead of partners.

While recent open space planning efforts have begun to integrate social and ecological frameworks into one plan, the majority of our knowledge on integrated …

From The Quadrangle To The River: Revitalizing The Heart Of Downtown Springfield, Mary F. Dehais, Yuanfang Gong, John E. Hulsey, Pamela Jo Landi, Adam G. Monroy, Seth A. Morrow, Alexander G. Seib, Jie Su, Kate A. Tooke, Owen M. White, Emily S. Wright, Kuang Xin, Xiao Zhou

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

This studio report explores community service learning in the graduate urban design studio taught in the in Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and instructed by Professor Frank Sleegers.

The project will began with a visioning workshop, conducted to engage community members in the shaping of project goals and objectives within the project area of downtown Springfield. These findings were brought to the studio and guided the design process and outcomes.

Five design teams developed five alternative master plans for the core area of downtown Springfield with focus on the revitalization of open …

Springfield`S Upper Lyman Warehouse District - Visions For Revitalization, Jane Alexanderr, Andre Belperron, Matt Bent, Nick Betts, Anthony Brow, Will Bunker, Tanya Chesnell, Julie Goodwin, Henry Hess, Christopher Johnson, Ryan Kemmerich, Wes Lomax, Nick Mastroianni, Carl Mccrae, Phil Morrison, James Rebello, Sage Sluter

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

This report documents the work of the Senior Urban Design Studio in Springfield’s Upper Lyman District in downtown Springfield. It is part of the Metro Center neighborhood and adjacent to the Union Station that will be revitalized in 2016. The district is challenged by high vacancies and general abandonment. Housing opportunities and market-rate housing in particular are very low. The primary goal of the project was to develop a staged vision to revitalize and rediscover the Upper Lyman Warehouse District and to improve livability in the heart of downtown Springfield for employers, employees, residents, and visitors. The following recommendations can …