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Architecture Commons™

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2019

Selected Works

Urban, Community and Regional Planning

Articles 1 - 10 of 10

Full-Text Articles in Architecture

Research: Planning And Provision Of Public Infrastructure. A Case Study Of Drainage Canals In Tema, Ghana.Pdf, Kwadwo Gyan Jul 2019

Research: Planning And Provision Of Public Infrastructure. A Case Study Of Drainage Canals In Tema, Ghana.Pdf, Kwadwo Gyan

Kwadwo Gyan

Rapid urbanization is a threat to the efficient and proactive provision of basic urban infrastructure. Nonetheless, existing formal regulations and design standards in Ghanaian cities are often outmoded, too expensive, cumbersome to implement and inconsistent with the incremental urban development practices that are prevalent. In response to this, many urban residents have resorted to self-financing and -provision of their basic infrastructure based on their resource capacities- time, money, and labor. The report explores this situation in Tema, a Ghanaian city with both planned and unplanned neighborhoods, with a focus on its drainage systems. The study addresses the broader question: How …

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The Reconstruction Of Haret Hriek: Design Options For Improving The Livability Of The Neighborhood / إعادة إعمار حارة حريك, Mona Fawaz, Marwan Ghandour Jul 2019

The Reconstruction Of Haret Hriek: Design Options For Improving The Livability Of The Neighborhood / إعادة إعمار حارة حريك, Mona Fawaz, Marwan Ghandour

Marwan Ghandour

The residential and commercial fabric of the southern suburbs of Beirut was severely damaged by the Israeli war on Lebanon in July and August of 2006. Most of the destruction in Beirut was concentrated within the municipal district of Haret Hreik where about 265 residential, commercial, and office buildings were razed to the ground or severely damaged. The municipality reported that 3,119 housing units and 1,610 commercial units (stores and offices) were completely demolished. In total , at least 20,000 residents of Haret Hreik lost their homes.

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Spatial Erasure: Reconstruction Projects In Beirut, Marwan Ghandour, Mona Fawaz Jul 2019

Spatial Erasure: Reconstruction Projects In Beirut, Marwan Ghandour, Mona Fawaz

Marwan Ghandour

Often associated with processes of healing, postwar re-construction projects may be less related to the pre-destruction phase than to the actual act of destruction. This, at least, is what the Lebanese case suggests. In this essay, we argue that the spatial erasure initiated by war destruction is consolidated during postwar reconstruction. We developed this argument by analyzing two of the main postwar reconstruction projects that have marked Beirut’s urbanization since the end of its civil war in 1990. The first project, the reconstruction of Beirut’s downtown, was undertaken starting 1994 by a private real-estate company, Solidere [1], extends over …

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Developing A Workflow To Integrate Tree Inventory Data Into Urban Energy Models, Farzad Hashemi, Breanna L. Marmur, Ulrike Passe, Janette R. Thompson Jun 2019

Developing A Workflow To Integrate Tree Inventory Data Into Urban Energy Models, Farzad Hashemi, Breanna L. Marmur, Ulrike Passe, Janette R. Thompson

Farzad Hashemi

Building energy simulation is of considerable interest and benefit for architects, engineers, and urban planners. Only recently has it become possible to develop integrated energy models for clusters of buildings in urban areas. Simulating energy consumption of the built environment on a relatively large scale (e.g., such as a neighborhood) will be necessary to obtain more reliable results, since building energy parameters are influenced by characteristics of the nearby environment. Therefore, the construction of a 3-D model of urban built areas with detail of the near-building environment should enhance simulation approaches and provide more accurate results. This paper describes the …

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Changing Urban Form In A Shrinking City, Justin Hollander, Michael P. Johnson Jr., Rachel B. Drew Jun 2019

Changing Urban Form In A Shrinking City, Justin Hollander, Michael P. Johnson Jr., Rachel B. Drew

Michael P. Johnson

This paper uses building footprint data in a shrinking city, Baltimore, MD, in 1972 and 2010 to achieve two primary research objectives. The first is to understand the historical patterns of housing construction and demolition in selected row house neighborhoods in Baltimore between 1972 and 2010. The second is to understand changes in housing footprints, and associations between these changes and physical and socio-economic characteristics in selected neighborhoods. We find that housing losses and associated changes in building footprints have shown substantial variation across our study area and exhibit clustering within our study area. Moreover, while housing loss is strongly …

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The Impact Of Trees On Passive Survivability During Extreme Heat Events In Warm And Humid Regions, Ulrike Passe, Janette R. Thompson, Baskar Ganapathysubramanian, Boshun Gao, Breanna L. Marmur Apr 2019

The Impact Of Trees On Passive Survivability During Extreme Heat Events In Warm And Humid Regions, Ulrike Passe, Janette R. Thompson, Baskar Ganapathysubramanian, Boshun Gao, Breanna L. Marmur

Breanna L. Marmur

Communities are increasingly affected by excessive heat. The likelihood of extreme heat events is predicted to increase in the Midwest region of the United States. By mid-century (2036–2065), one year out of 10 is projected to have a 5-day period that is 13°F warmer than a comparable earlier period (1976–2005). The frequency of high humidity/dew point days (“extra moist tropical air mass days,” MT++ synoptic climate classification system) has also increased significantly during a similar period (1975–2010) and between 2010 and 2014 included 8 of 26 heat events. This impact is exacerbated by the fact that many residences in low-income …

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Analyzing Lynch’S City Imageability In The Digital Age, Mahbubur Meenar, Nader Afzalan, Amir Hajrasouliha Apr 2019

Analyzing Lynch’S City Imageability In The Digital Age, Mahbubur Meenar, Nader Afzalan, Amir Hajrasouliha

Amir Hajrasouliha

This paper explores the role of virtual mapping environments in analyzing people’s perception of spaces and their implications
in planning. We examine how people interpret Kevin Lynch’s “city imageability” in the digital age by asking two questions: (1)
how can we create mental images of city elements by using virtual versus physical environments? (2) What are the strengths
and weaknesses of each method? We studied sixty-eight mental maps—created by thirty-four participants—identifying five
factors for disagreements on city elements: scale, eye level, details, accuracy/timeliness, and sensory/movement. We conclude
by suggesting how practitioners can take a balanced approach for city imageability analysis.

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Lost Spaces As Hidden Assets: A Refection On A Current Campus Design Issue, Torina Wilson, Amir Hajrasouliha Jan 2019

Lost Spaces As Hidden Assets: A Refection On A Current Campus Design Issue, Torina Wilson, Amir Hajrasouliha

Amir Hajrasouliha

University campuses face two common problems: lack of facilities for the expanding enrollment numbers, and inadequate spaces for the changing education and recreational needs. Wilson and Hajrasouliha discuss the potential of adapting left-over campus open spaces to respond to these needs, adapting their physical and technological capabilities to encourage multiple academic and non-academic functions.

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Designing For A Driverless Future In Downtown San Luis Obispo, Amir Hajrasouliha, Crp 512 Students Jan 2019

Designing For A Driverless Future In Downtown San Luis Obispo, Amir Hajrasouliha, Crp 512 Students

Amir Hajrasouliha

The graduate class CRP 512 Introduction to Visual Communication and GIS, focuses on skill development in visual communications and GIS through a planning exercise. In the Winter quarter of 2018, the class was assigned the re-design of two blocks in downtown San Luis Obispo. The students focused on developing visions and design ideas for a future with autonomous vehicles.

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The Argument For Archaeology, Megan C. Kassabaum, Rebecca Yamin Dec 2018

The Argument For Archaeology, Megan C. Kassabaum, Rebecca Yamin

Megan C Kassabaum

No abstract provided.

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