Urban, Community and Regional Planning Commons^™

Adaptive Reuse As Sustainability: Reconciling The Crises Of Functionalism And Environmental Conservation In Copenhagen And San Francisco, Samuel J. Fernandez

Master's Theses

Sustainability is the buzzword for modern global development. In the age of rapidly growing populations, unsustainable building practices, and an ever-present climate crisis, there must be a reorientation in global urban development practices. While experts tend to tout one sustainable initiative as a catch-all solution to the above crises, a multidimensional problem cannot be solved with a one-dimensional approach. In other words, sustainable development can only be achieved through a combination of different practices and approaches. This case study seeks to present adaptive reuse as a viable reaction to the climate crisis, but one that requires a combination of other …

Measuring Urban Space: A Spatial Framework For Transit Stop Siting, Michael R. Leiting

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

Urban investment projects, particularly those related to transit infrastructure, are often evaluated through quantitative metrics that emphasize economic output, proximity, and development potential. While these measures provide useful benchmarks, they offer limited insight into the spatial conditions that shape how environments are structured, navigated, and occupied at the human scale. As a result, sites that appear comparable through conventional metrics may produce fundamentally different spatial experiences.

This thesis develops a drawing-based framework for evaluating spatial conditions across multiple urban sites. Four primary conditions, Urban Form, Threshold, Mobility, and Public Realm, are analyzed through standardized drawings and translated into corresponding indices. …

Designing For Dementia: Lessons In Using Wayfinding, Design, And Policy To Retrofit Neighborhoods For People Living With Dementia, Kiaya Siu Ling Batkin

City and Regional Planning

With advancements of modern medicine, more people are living longer lives. However, cognitive decline has become a greater issue faced by a growing number of people. The amount of People Living With Dementia (PLWD) has increased substantially, almost 10 million a year, and as such need different living conditions than what used to serve them (Alzheimer’s Disease International, n.d.). The common solution in the western world is to care for elders in specific sites for them like nursing homes or to hire a live-in nurse to care for them. These services are costly, highly specialized, and tailored to care for …

Quality Considerations In The Pedestrian Realm: Dead Space Intervention And Prevention, Alycia Ramage

Masters in Architecture Program: Theses

What if every space deemed “unadmirable” was reimagined as a stage for community life? Efforts to find solutions to this question prompted a more complex question: how can new construction promote interaction between architecture and the pedestrian realm?

This thesis is conducted in three main parts: 1) understanding dead space, 2) reinventing dead spaces in existing conditions, and 3) creating a design handbook that works to minimize dead spaces in new design.

Using Lincoln, Nebraska as a case study, part one begins with observation- looking for spaces that could be deemed unadmirable by a pedestrian. Utilizing research and observation, the …

The Relationship Between Artificial Intelligence And Urban Street Design To Meet Contemporary Human Needs, Azza Sobhi Elsakka, Marwa Ahmed Kamer Eldawla

Journal of Engineering Research

The fast expansion of urban construction has given rise to urgent public health problems in the context of the green economy and sustainable urban development, notably environmental pollution and the rising prevalence of chronic illnesses associated with urbanization.

The idea of developing "healthy cities" is receiving much attention as a result of these growing urban health problems.

In the meantime, urban dwellers' quality of life and health are significantly impacted by the planning and design of urban street space. Urban planners must accommodate resident demands for public events and make adjustments for motor vehicle traffic while adhering to the green …

Stitching Atlanta's Hbcus: Campus Design As The Site Of Integration, Nicole James

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

The DEI initiatives, which aim to cultivate an institutional culture at the intersection of diversity, inclusivity, and equity, have permeated every corner of public life. One can trace these initiatives to the rise of multiculturalism in the 1960s civil rights and other emancipatory movements that demanded the recognition of differences in general and ethnic, gender, religion, and cultural differences in particular. In architecture, however, the discourse of intersectionality arrived late and only in a fragmentary fashion. While Edward Soja, Saskia Sassen, David Harvey, Henri Lefebvre, among others, have underlined different dimensions of the relationship between space and politics, the intersection …

Square One Station: Atlanta's New Multi-Modal Passenger Terminal, Mariya Georgieva

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

The Atlanta Journal Constitution Building and its block is located in arguably the most historically significant area to Atlanta: The Gulch. Being so close to the original Zero Milepost location, this is where the City of Atlanta was founded. The Gulch started out as the center of downtown’s business district, but has since steadily declined in popularity, initially triggered by people moving out to suburban homes

Even after multiple attempts to revive the area, it proved unsuccessful. This is best illustrated by the fact that the city lost money on the property even during big events like the 1996 Olympics …

Riverview Community Park Commoning Plan, Haley B. Keene

Master of Urban and Regional Planning Capstone Projects

Riverview Community Park began as an illegal DIY skatepark in the Maymont neighborhood of Richmond, Virginia. Now, although it is a city park, it is still entirely managed by volunteer community groups (skateboarders, the neighborhood Civic League, and a community garden) who view the park as a creative, experimental community-led spatial project. Due to a dearth of communication between the three groups, the park has suffered political strife between the groups and a chaotic physical atmosphere. This plan utilizes a commons governance framework and participatory, asset-based community design to usher in a new era of enhanced collaboration, common narratives, and …

Pocatello Downtown Development Plan: A Vision For The Twenty-First Century, James L. Anglesey

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Downtown Pocatello is the beating heart of the city and serves as the community's epicenter of civic and cultural life. It encompasses Pocatello's unique heritage and will play a vital role in Pocatello's success in the future. Downtown's physical location between world-class recreational opportunities and a research-based university provides key metrics for creating a successful downtown. This thesis establishes the foundational premise for downtown success and sets forth a vision for Pocatello to reinforce, connect, and intensify its greatest community assets through a series of urban design and redevelopment solutions and recommendations. A literature review focused on the theoretical underpinnings …

Memorial Parking Trees: Resilient Modular Design With Nature-Based Solutions In Vulnerable Urban Areas, Haroon Stephen, Fortino Acosta

Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction Faculty Research

Nature-based solutions (NbS) include all the landscape’s ecological components that have a function in the natural or urban ecosystem. Memorial Parking Trees (MPTs) are a new variant of a nature-based solution composed of a bioswale and a street tree allocated in the road, occupying a space that is sub-utilised by parked cars. This infill green practice can maximise the use of street trees in secondary streets and have multiple benefits in our communities. Using GIS mapping and methodology can support implementation in vulnerable neighbourhoods. In this research, we based vulnerability assessments for London, Rio de Janeiro, and Los Angeles on …

Wayfinding In Warrenton, Logan Ashby

Master of Urban and Regional Planning Capstone Projects

This research helps to inform and establish a wayfinding signage system throughout the Town of Warrenton. A wayfinding system can help connect people to places using the built environment and serves as an easily understandable visual guide. Establishing a wayfinding system will help the Town create a cohesive branding, achieve cohesive gateways, while also helping to establish the five character districts that were introduced in the most recent comprehensive plan. This study included a wayfinding audit, which helped to establish the existing conditions and recommend the following the goals: Establish an advisory board to advise the Town on wayfinding decisions …

Oceanside Transit Center Transit-Oriented Development (Otc Tod): Revisioning North San Diego's County Transit Hub, Chad Johnston

City and Regional Planning

Many California coastal communities lack a supply of housing, produce high levels of greenhouse gas emissions by daily auto commuters but have existing local and commuter rail stations with large fields of parking surrounding it. Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) integrates the building of housing, retail, office, and public space together focused around transit stations. This infill of development locates people within comfortable walking distance, usually within a quarter-mile, of a public trail transit station reducing automobile dependence for local trips or commuting for work.

The Oceanside Transit Center (OTC) is a major railway interchange, serving as a gateway to the San …

Rethinking Participatory Design: Tools For Modelling Community Potentials, Adam Liu, Stephen Marinelli

Architecture Thesis Prep

This thesis aims to provide an alternative method of community engagement through the process of participatory model-making. Rather than only seeking out community voices for surveys and data collection, this project’s goal is to empower a community’s sense of ownership through collective design.

The methods of this project will be tested and examined in collaboration with students from Dr. King Elementary School in Syracuse, New York. By designing a participatory method for model-making, the project will involve students in the early stages of urban design and make it more educationally and socially accessible.

The Role Of Urban Design In Strengthening Social Links Between Residents Of Residential District, Hussam Alsahli, Tarek Habib

Emirates Journal for Engineering Research

When thinking about planning residential neighborhoods, they usually plan for a service purpose and to cover the housing need without taking into account social life, as Kreidis[1] mentioned that the traditional planning (network) pattern highlighted many social problems and the scarcity of spaces led to a decline in public life and affected the population negatively. With a general overview within the residential neighborhoods, the researcher found that the city of Riyadh suffers from the absence of urban design elements within residential neighborhoods, where it was noticed the absence of pedestrian paths and the lack of continuity of sidewalks, as …

Tokyo’S Kyōshō Jūtaku: Nature Through The Inside, Outside And The In-Between, Cathryn Klasto

Interiority

Born out of conversations with Japanese architects, as well as intimate spatial encounters with small houses (kyōshō jūtaku) in Tokyo, this paper discusses the way in which nature emerges and functions within fourth generation small housing design. Japan’s relationship with nature has generated many interconnecting architectural layers over centuries, arising out of culture, religion and the practicalities and consequences of the country’s economy, climate and experiences of natural disasters. These layers have fostered a deep and complex connection to land, and as a result, there is still a high value placed on owning one’s own plot, no matter …

Parlier Business Park - Specific Plan, Earl Mitchell Gatela

City and Regional Planning

The purpose of the Parlier Business Park Specific Plan is to:

• Develop the Business Park Zoning District and appropriate development standards.

• Prepare design guidelines for architecture, storefront design, landscaping, and signs that enhance the PBP image and encourage compatible manufacturing and warehouse uses.

• Develop an appropriate urban design and streetscape concept plan for the PBP.

• Encourage the development of the PBP as a center for manufacturing and warehouse uses.

• Ensure consistency with the Parlier General Plan.

The PBPSP has been developed to allow a mix of the manufacturing, warehouse, hangar/storage, and office uses currently permitted …

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 …

Reframing Urban Redevelopment Via Women Empowerment: Sustaining Existing Community In The West End Neighborhood, Dyesha Holmes

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Recent studies in England found out that people who know their family history are more resistant to stress and anxiety. (Bradley, 2016) This connection between family history and place history is important in understanding the connection individuals have to the places they grew up and know. However, gentrification poses a threat to inner-city neighborhoods and disrupts the cyclical relationships between history and culture that forms the character of their social community. Ruth Glass coined the term gentrification in 1964 to describe the influx of middle-class people displacing lower-class worker residents in urban neighborhoods. Gentrification is a matter of oppression; displacement …

Reimagining Future Sustainable, Climate-Resilient Urban Design For Apia, Samoa: Developing Plans For A Developing Nation, Alyssa Kaewwilai

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Small island developing states are arguably the most vulnerable, exposed nations on a global scale to the harmful effects of climate change. Particularly in Samoa, an abundance of environmental, economic, and social impacts have severe impacts on both the country as a whole as well as on an individual level. This study analyzes future mitigation strategies of land use and urban design to recreate Samoa’s capital of Apia as a more climate-resilient city to encourage economic growth and to ensure the well-being of all inhabitants. This planning is based upon current challenges of Samoa driven by climate change such as …

An Evaluation Of Public Open Space In Downtown Lincoln, Nebraska, Karl Dietrich

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses

Public open space provides many benefits to a downtown area. Among the benefits are economic growth, social connectivity, health, and helping to create an identity for a city. As many cities continue to sprawl outwards, it is important that their downtown areas create a sense of place so that businesses and people stay and visit. Public open spaces can help provide that much needed sense of place. This study examines whether the “public space index” designed by Vikas Mehta (2014) is effective at evaluating public open spaces. This was done by using four public open spaces (Foundation Garden, Tower Square, …

Paolo Soleri And Arcology: An Analytical Comparison To Frank Lloyd Wright And Louis Kahn, Henry Millard

Architecture Undergraduate Honors Theses

The city proposals of Paolo Soleri, he called them arcologies, are monumental and complex geometric megastructures intended to project great heights above desert horizons. These proposals purposefully abandon conventional notions of the city.

Soleri was physically isolated in his remote Arizona urban laboratory, Arcosanti, and philosophically detached from the professional urban design community. His proposals were often too easily understood as foreign and radical dystopian architectural metaphors meant to provoke thought more than to project an actual future. There is limited discourse on Soleri and this tends to isolate him in a vacuum, ignoring possible connections or parallels in his …

Urban Design Vision: The Fremont Hub, Megan Kristine Miller

City and Regional Planning

No abstract provided.

San Luis Ranch - Design Vision, Maddie Pritchard, Mackenzie Wrage

City and Regional Planning

No abstract provided.

A Model For Sustainable Living In Guanajuato, Mexico, Melina Smith

City and Regional Planning

No abstract provided.

Rebuilding Silicon Valley - An Assessment Of The Silicon Valley Corporate Campus And The Potential For Suburban Sustainability, Eden Lindeman

Master's Projects and Capstones

Silicon Valley is the San Francisco Bay Area’s economic powerhouse and is herald for its innovation and success. However, Silicon Valley’s urban design is unsustainable and characterized by remote and large corporate campuses that contribute to job sprawl and heavy traffic congestion. Many of the buildings are also not performing at an efficient level and are due for deep overhauls to cut back energy consumption and costs. The inevitable effects of climate change continue to loom large over the world, heightening the importance for the built environment to be reformed into an environment that can mitigate and adapt to climate …

Spacial Injustice In Education, Nima Kabirinassab

City and Regional Planning

No abstract provided.

Growing Portland: Not Whether, But How, Richard Barringer Phd, Joseph Mcdonnell Phd

Faculty Publications

In the 400 years since European settlement, Portland has survived the ravages of war, invasion, pestilence, conflagration, and economic depression and recession. Once a renowned manufacturing, trade, and shipping center, it now enjoys what might be called a post-industrial renaissance as a vibrant center for the arts, education, entertainment, and banking, legal, and medical services; and is frequently cited as one of America’s best small cities. As a result, Portland is growing today and is positioned for more growth.

The question, then, is not whether Portland will grow, but how well it will grow; or, how best to manage the …

Rethinking The Design Models Of Refugee Camps, Ruba Bdair Mrs.

ASA Multidisciplinary Research Symposium

This research aims to find architectural and urban design related solutions to enhance the living conditions of refugees and to lessen the pressure on the hosting communities' resources.

Rethinking The Design Models Of Refugee Camps, Ruba Bdair Mrs.

ASA Multidisciplinary Research Symposium

This research aims to find architectural and urban design related solutions to enhance the living conditions of refugees, and to lessen the burden on the refugee hosting communities.

Technical Communication In Place-Making Professions: Exploring The Network Pictures Of Urban Designers, Fernando Sanchez

Open Access Dissertations

This dissertation addresses how professional writing as a field can pay attention to broader definitions of design in order to help further conversations of spatial justice (the act of helping to promote equity in matters of development in urban spaces). I begin by noting the conversations that have circulated regarding the relationship between urban design and rhetoric, noting that professional writing can help add a unique lens to the conversation. The second chapter provides an overview of how design is discussed in technical communication scholarship. Here, I showcase how most of these discussions regarding research in design have centered on …