Phase 4: Assignment

Crossing Site Lines

DEADLINES

  • 2/12/20 Wednesday. Pin-up by site group, bring research, map/diagram precedents, mock-ups of your maps/diagrams, and site underlays. Be ready to tell the story of your neighborhood.
  • 2/14/20 Friday, 2:00pm. Upload draft powerpoint file to google drive. Remote review and graphics crit/tutorial format TBD.
  • 2/17/20 Monday, 2:00pm. Review.

OVERVIEW

Closely review the assignment posting and introductory lecture on the studio site. Always do this, but for this assignment the lecture has several useful examples. When reading the assignment make sure you understand not just the basic requirements, but also the point of the assignment: what we’re interested in exploring through this project. I recommend you closely read and consider the assignment text about:

  • 1A. Analytical analysis. What is it? What will it give you insight into?
  • 1B. The discussion of “people” and place”. The distinction between the terms may seem unclear at first. But what do we mean by “life” and “environment”?
  • 1C. Deliverables. Note that for our section the quantity of maps and diagrams is increased from 12 total (6 and 6) to 34 total (17 and 17). Otherwise the math is too complicated for me.

Investigate all the data resources listed in both the lecture and the assignment. There will be others you can find, but these are a good introduction to the types of data available online. You will need to cite your data sources in your final presentation.

QUESTIONS

Questions we identified in discussing the assignment. I’d like each group to formulate their own answer as you get familiar with the available data and ways of researching and gathering your own data.

  • Demographic information: At what level of precision is it available? How do you figure it out at the scale of an individual block, building, or household?
  • Comparison: Should you compare to other neighborhoods? (Do you need to show them?) Are there other comparisons to be made: to the overall city, to national averages…?
  • Metrics: Are there other standards to compare to. Is there a normal? An abnormal? (For example, what “should” a neighborhood have on its commercial strip?) Are there
  • Definitions: What are the actual definitions of terms like “food dessert”, “walkable”, “poverty”…? Which ones are relevant to your neighborhood?
  • People v. Place: How important is the distinction? Are the research areas that connect the two?
  • Diagram v. Map: Will there always be a paired map and diagram (of the same data)? How do you determine where a map is more informative or where a diagram is?
  • Extra Credit: When do you think I”m going to ask your to answer these questions? Be prepared…
  • History: What’s the significance of understanding the general history of your neighborhood? How could that affect your analytical analysis?
  • Time: Changes in the use and/or how busy it is on different days and at different times. How do you measure or assess this? What does it tell you- how do you make use of this?

THE STORY

The assignment focuses on analytical data, but in the end we’re asking you to understand your neighborhood: what it has been in the past, what it is now, and where it is headed in the future. Your choice of what data and how to present it will be your primary means of telling that story; you should have a broader sense of your neighborhood and what you want to tell us about it that informs all of your choices.

CONTENT

Possible content for maps and diagrams identified in our first discussion. Note this is a good start, but far from sufficient. It does not even cover all of the possible content identified in Professor Park’s lecture.

  • Demographics (of the neighborhood inhabitants): Race, age, income, household size, education level, gender, employment/occupations…
  • Applied statistics (based on demographics): % households below poverty line, income as a % of AMI (area median income)…
  • Crime statistics
  • Zoning: allowed land uses (ie residential, mixed use), maximum densities and heights.
  • Other plans or regulatory controls: Is the neighborhood a historic district? Is there a neighborhood development plan?
  • Actual land use (esp. residential v. commercial, office…)
  • Types of establishmens/amenities/services: coffee shops, bars, clothing stores, grocery stores, restaurants, offices, gyms, schools, arts and cultural facilities…
  • Specifics of a certain type. From the lecture example of schools: ages/grades, type (public/private/charter), tuition, enrollment, teacher/student ratio…You could also look at demographics of the students’ and their parents: race, income, where do the parents work, what do they do, do they live nearby…? For a restaurant: is it fast food or not, what price point, a specific cuisine/ethnicity…
  • Distances/access/transit: 4 block radius, 1 mile radius, public transit, parking, bike infrastructure, walkability…
  • Buildings: size, height, materials, older vs. newer…there might be discernible contrasts over time (ie older 2 story brick commercial buildings vs newer 20 story mixed use residential buildings)
  • Ownership: For commercial use, who is the landlord? For residences: are the homes owned or rented?
  • Home types: single family (detached), townhomes, or apartments?
  • Buildings and lots: used vs. vacant
  • Economics of the neighborhood: property values, taxes, jobs, wealth…
  • Changes over time (historical): could be applied to much of the data. Examples from lecture: buildings, population by race…

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