why did the chicken cross cottage grove?
To wrap up the class Urban Planning we've been given the opportunity to redesign part of a neighborhood. The final unit has been flow in which we've learned about the design of cities, sprawl, redlining, transportation, environmental justice, and more related to urban planning. As a part of this unit, we visited Whitney Architects and talked to an urban planner, Itay Porat. Both of these Field Experiences were helpful in creating an understanding of these subjects.
For this project, I chose to redesign an area in Bronzeville, Chicago, loosely based around the 42nd block of Cottage Grove. It currently serves its purpose well and has good public transportation. However, there are many vacant lots in the area, an abundance of poor drivers, and abandoned buildings. I hope to turn this area into a public abode in which people feel safe and happy. To improve this area I have developed all the vacant lots, created more public spaces, added a traffic camera, added greenery to the sidewalks, and created more places for people to live and work.
SDG 11 is a goal set by the United Nations to create inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable cities. Target 11.2 creates the goal to have accessible transportation and better road safety. In my design, I wanted to improve the way that people move and I did this by creating safer intersections with traffic cameras and a speedometer. The area already has three bus lines that pass through it and I do not think there is much room for improvement there. Target 11.7 states the intention to create accessibility to public and green spaces. I was very interested in creating these areas as there is currently a lack of community in this neighborhood. I think adding more public spaces will help build relationships throughout the area and make a more resilient community.
For this project, I chose to redesign an area in Bronzeville, Chicago, loosely based around the 42nd block of Cottage Grove. It currently serves its purpose well and has good public transportation. However, there are many vacant lots in the area, an abundance of poor drivers, and abandoned buildings. I hope to turn this area into a public abode in which people feel safe and happy. To improve this area I have developed all the vacant lots, created more public spaces, added a traffic camera, added greenery to the sidewalks, and created more places for people to live and work.
Before creating a design I spoke to one of the people who live in this area. Resident RC spoke about how they view the area and what they think should be improved.
“I definitely think we should build more housing on the vacant lots.”
“Cars drive too fast on cottage grove. They need to slow things down more.”
“I would be happier if improvements were made to my neighborhood.”For creating my design I drew inspiration from many places. I think the place I drew the most inspiration from is Chicago itself. The city can change a lot from neighborhood to neighborhood and I chose to include some of the things I've seen in other neighborhoods to improve this one. All over the city, there are many community gardens and I think it is a great way to engage the habitants of an area in order to have a public goal to work towards. Another place that inspired me throughout this project is Bend, Oregon. It is a city that is built on adventure and nature. I wanted to add a lot of green space to this neighborhood to encourage people to get outdoors more and also to have a place that looks nice. The addition of three green spaces and the creation greener walkways was inspired by this city.
SDG 11 is a goal set by the United Nations to create inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable cities. Target 11.2 creates the goal to have accessible transportation and better road safety. In my design, I wanted to improve the way that people move and I did this by creating safer intersections with traffic cameras and a speedometer. The area already has three bus lines that pass through it and I do not think there is much room for improvement there. Target 11.7 states the intention to create accessibility to public and green spaces. I was very interested in creating these areas as there is currently a lack of community in this neighborhood. I think adding more public spaces will help build relationships throughout the area and make a more resilient community.
The big improvements I've made are as follows:
1. The addition of a park, community garden, and playground. These things will primarily be created in lots that are currently vacant. This will allow habitants of the neighborhood to have an area to be outdoors, engage with nature, and allow children and pets to play.
2. On Drexel Ave I continued the housing onto the vacant lot. This will create more places for people to live and own property. It will also allow for less littering because vacant lots are often places where people will dump their garbage. By developing this land it will allow for a slightly healthier area.
3. The sidewalks of these areas will be improved by adding greenery including trees, native grasses, and wildflowers.
4. All of the vacant lots on the west side of Cottage Grove will be developed into multi-use buildings. They will be zoned to allow for a commercial ground floor and apartments on the upper levels.
5. At the intersection I added traffic cameras and a speedometer. This will allow for a safer intersection, better drivers, and fewer car accidents.
2. On Drexel Ave I continued the housing onto the vacant lot. This will create more places for people to live and own property. It will also allow for less littering because vacant lots are often places where people will dump their garbage. By developing this land it will allow for a slightly healthier area.
3. The sidewalks of these areas will be improved by adding greenery including trees, native grasses, and wildflowers.
4. All of the vacant lots on the west side of Cottage Grove will be developed into multi-use buildings. They will be zoned to allow for a commercial ground floor and apartments on the upper levels.
5. At the intersection I added traffic cameras and a speedometer. This will allow for a safer intersection, better drivers, and fewer car accidents.
PC - inspiration for improvements - 2023
PC - final design for cottage grove - 2023
The area I am redesigning is a large rectangle. It has a width of 1,075 ft and a length of 645 ft. The total area of the space is 693375 square feet. To create a model of this area I used a scale of 50 feet to 1 inch. The model is 21.5 by 12.9 inches with an area of 277.35 square inches.
Here is the final model for my design:
PC - AP3 model - 2023
I found the volume of two of the shapes in my model. The first is the fountain located at the center of the park. It is composed of two cylinders on top of each other.
C1- radius: 15ft, height:2ft volume=πr2h=π(152)(2)=1413.7ft3
C2- radius:2.5ft, height:15ft volume=πr2h=π(2.52)(14)=294.5ft3
total area - 1412.7+294.5=1707.2ft3
I also found the volume of one of the houses located on the right side of the model. It is a trapezoidal prisim.
height:37.5ft base1:75ft base2:125ft length:60ft
volume=lh(b1 + b2)/2=154687.5ft3
This project has been very fun to complete but also stressful. I think next time I will need better time management skills and should also choose a simpler way (that doesn't take 8 hours) to visualize my project. I am super proud of how everything turned out and I enjoyed working by myself for this project because I got a lot more creative with my project. I enjoyed getting to redesign an area I interact with every day and talking with a resident was very helpful to identify what needed to be improved in the area.
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