OVERVIEW FACULTY: Pra Cassiy Jennifer Marin Lewis STUDENTS: Ning Chen, MEPD Brian Chernoff, MEPD Melissa Conrad-Alam, JD Renee Dillon, MLA Xiaofan Liu, MLA Sherri Livingsone, MPH Michael McCord, In. Sudies Miko Mikus, MLA Manasi Parkhi, MEPD Allen Pra, MLA Cay Rushing, MHP Alana Saul, MHP Xiao Siyu, MLA Chris Sebbins, MLA Wen Sun, MLA Lindsey Whie, BLA Jessie Wes, BLA Kevan Williams, MLA Hui Iris Zou, MLA TARGET AREAS During he pas decade, many governmenal and nonprofi agencies have worked o remove bligh, reduce crime, provide affordable housing, improve educaional opporuniies, and creae jobs in he hisoric African American neighborhood known by a variey of monikers Brooklyn, springs, Waddell, Henderson, Moe s Hill, Jackson Town Communiy, and The. Old Wes Broad Sree School and Marke Garden The new communiy garden and marke is he firs aciviy on he hisoric school campus in several years. As a prioriy area for he neighborhood and he, he charree conduced a sie invenory and suggesions for phased improvemens o use as a decision-making ool for he fuure of he propery. The UGA College of Environmen and Design (CED) parnered wih he and he Ahens Housing Auhoriy o develop a concepual maser plan for he neighborhood in Ahens bounded by Baxer S., springs S., Wes Broad S. and Evans S. Addiional parners include he Hancock Communiy Developmen Corporaion, he Universiy of Georgia (UGA) Law School s Communiy Economic Developmen Clinic and he UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences. Magnolia Sree Magnolia Sree is he only shorcu in he springs communiy ha direcly links W. Broad S. and Baxer S. The residens on his road would simply like o feel safer when walking along he sree (due o he lack of sidewalks), and no have o worry abou cars speeding hrough he neighborhood. American Legion Propery Magnolia Sree is home o a hisoric, boarded up, wo-sory Ar Deco building originally housed he American Legion. Currenly, he srucure is owned by he nearby Behel A.M.E. Church on Rose Sree and is zoned as residenial. S. Mary s/alps Plaza Healhway Pah and Program Access o he Kroger-anchored Alps Road Shopping Cener from adjacen Magnolia Sree is much more difficul han i should be, especially for pedesrians. S. Mary s Hospial and a 20 reaining wall sis in beween he neighborhood and he shopping cener, hwaring direc pedesrian access. PLANNING GOALS 1. Conduc neighborhood meeings and inerviews o obain and record residen inpu 2. Develop a parnership wih organizaions and individuals who wan o be par of he redevelopmen process 3. Develop a plan wih an implemenaion sraegy, based on residen inpu and available resources 4. Presen a sraegy for he redevelopmen of he Wes Broad School sie 5. Provide neighborhood residens wih a greaer sense of involvemen and empowermen, knowledge of heir heriage and of exising programs, and increased income. ACTION ITEMS Revive, coalesce, and srenghen neighborhood associaion of sakeholders. Creae a sraegic plan and develop an annual work program. Make he collecion of oral hisories a op prioriy. Agencies and organizaions should parner on planning for resource assisance o avoid duplicaion and disribue assisance hroughou he neighborhood equiably. To achieve his, parnering agencies mus have coordinaed access o GIS mapping ools ha fis needs and budges. Hos along wih UGA, S. Mary s Healhcare and ohers a day-long symposium addressing creaive ways o parner o improve neighborhood healh in all forms.
MAPPING THE FUTURE 1) BEGIN WITH NEIGHBORHOOD BASEMAP The analysis began by providing a neighborhood map a he communiy inpu session. Residens and sakeholders placed green adhesive dos on areas of posiive aciviy and red dos on areas ha need improvemen. 2 ee ad Sr ro Wes B gs S ree GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM e r Sree Baxe S. Mary s sprin On February 2, 2013, a Public Inpu Session was held a he H.T. Edwards Complex in Ahens, GA o discuss he Brooklyn/springs Neighborhood. Paricipans were asked o idenify areas wihin he neighborhood where hey fel good hings were happening and where hey fel he neighborhood could use improvemen. Common opics of concern included Wes Broad Sree School and Communiy Garden, neighborhood circulaion and conneciviy, Magnolia Sree raffic conrol, he former American Legion Building, and lack of public green space. 1 INPUT SESSION ree road S Wes B s Sre 1 pring Decision-making based on consisen informaion available o all is key in making fair, ransparen and democraic choices. In discussions wih parnering agencies acive in he neighborhood, i became apparen ha having updaed and readilyavailable informaion on properies in he neighborhood would assis in he coordinaion of services o residens and adopion of a neighborhood improvemen sraegy. s r Sree Baxe S. Mary s GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM: A METHODOLOGY FOR DESIGN ANALYSIS AND DATA COLLECTION A Geographic Informaion Sysem (GIS) is a compuer-aided mapping and analysis. Like paper maps, i can show you he disance and relaionship wih places on he surface of he earh, bu wih much more speed and accuracy. Using GIS as a ool, analyss can derive he answers hey need o make he mos informed decisions in regards o all ypes of land use planning. The diagrams o he lef demonsrae how he GIS process informs decision making. One simply adds desired layers of daa o visualize and idenify various relaionships and paerns. The charree process used he daa colleced a he public inpu session, combined wih daa concerning hisoric buildings, o idenify arge areas on which o focus. 2) ADD PUBLIC INPUT SESSION DATA Nex, he daa gahered a he public inpu session was mapped along wih he public s associaed commens. Concenraions of red dos emerged as arge areas from repeaed and inense commens. These are places ha sudens focused on during he charree. Wes Broad Sree School 3 Porches, hisoric reaining walls, shallow sebacks and engaging yards give he neighborhood a unique physical ideniy. ee ad Sr g sprin ro Wes B Paris/Waddell Inersecion e s Sre Magnolia Sree S. Mary s Sudens and communiy members a he inpu session. r Sree Baxe 3) INTERPRETATION/ANALYSIS/DESIGN The image above shows he inpu session daa correlaed wih hisoric building daa from he neighborhood (orange). This is an example of how addiional informaion can be added o become a dynamic planning ool for sakeholders and parner agencies. Brooklyn/springs neighborhood wih charree arge areas shown.
KEY: WEST BROAD STREET SCHOOL: VISION Four sages of propery improvemen emerged from he charree and should help guide decisions abou phased improvemens a he sie. No improvemen should compromise he curren levels of parking, securiy, or reduce space for planing. The prioriies are organized based on sie needs, affordabiliy, and feasibiliy: WEST BROAD STREET SCHOOL 2 WEST BROAD STREET SCHOOL Mainain (M): Parking and Plos Exising Wes and Souh parking Exising garden plo space Prioriy 1: Couryard Improvemens Minimal inervenion Improve visibiliy Improve condiion Implemen mainenance plan Prioriy 2: Circulaion and Pahways Improve circulaion pahs from parking o sie inerior Address access issues Improve souhern enry Firs, sie visibiliy and couryard condiions should be addressed immediaely. The couryard is in good order o funcion for several programs, bu requires mainenance and regular upkeep, even ou of he growing season. Second, sie circulaion and access should be addressed o creae a beer connecion beween parking areas and he garden/cour yard areas is needed. Prioriy 3: Sree fronage/pedesrian Norheas corner planing design Sree-fron improvemens especially along Wes Broad Sree Improve conneciviy Third, larger scale sie design issues like more enrances, beer monioring and improvemens marking he propery s corners are a hird-level prioriy. Prioriy 4: Building Rehabiliaion Building rehabiliaion Building program Fence replacemen Fundraising Fourh, he final phase of propery improvemen would be oal building rehabiliaion ha includes communiy-relaed services and garden-relaed aciviies. The securiy fence should be replaced wih an equally effecive bu friendlier perimeer fence, possibly augmened wih permanen ar insallaions and publically-available frui and vegeable plans ouside he fence o discourage sealing from privae plos. Unique ceramic ar adds o he hisory of he school and enhances he couryard. Curren condiion of couryard. Simple mainenance and up-keep -- such as pressure-washing he brick paio o avoid slips -- would grealy improve he usabiliy of he space. Poenial arrangemen of couryard space and produc display ables. Exising reaining walls could serve as seaing for vendors, and exising ree canopy provides shade.
COMMUNITY GARDEN: BEAUTIFICATION COMMUNITY GARDEN 3 How can chain link fences and unaracive walls be disguised wih vines? Alhough a cos effecive opion, chain link is no he mos aracive ype of fence. Forunaely, i is easy and inexpensive o nauralize a chain link fence wih vines. Typically, hardy perennial vines (preferably evergreen) will creae a permanen green fence. However, annual, foodproducing vines are an opion o consider in some cases. Frui rees and some ornamenals can be pruned and rained (espalier) o grow horizonally o camouflage unaracive areas. The fence also provides an opporuniy for displaying permanen ar, perhaps commission from neighborhood residens. Trumpe Creeper (Campsis radicans) hiding chain-link fence The fence provides an opporuniy for hanging permanen ar. Suggesed improvemens o he Wes Broad Marke & Garden include mainaining wha works, maximizing space, and improving visibiliy. WEST BROAD STREET improved Broad Sree fronage; prune rees and shrubs o increase visibiliy of garden for passersby (if desired) COMMUNITY GARDEN: ACCESS/VISIBILITY Improving visibiliy ino he garden will celebrae and promoe is exisence. By implemening larger, addiional signage and/ or by removing secions of vegeaion along W. Broad S. would allow passersby o realize he hisoric school has a new communiy funcion. sorage shed or greenhouse maximize planing area MINOR Addressing he sie s circulaion could improve access for communiy members of all ages and abiliies; a vial key o promoing communiy engagemen. Example of a Pear Tree Espalier STREET mainain couryard for vendor ables and oudoor performances mulch and edge he pah from enrance o couryard for improved access Use he exising blank signboard along Wes Broad Sree o idenify he school s new funcion. added enrance o he couryard from Hills Chapel S. parking relocaed compos sorage area, leaving paved area by school building for addiional vendor seup
AMERICAN LEGION ST. MARY S ACCESS ROUTE Magnolia Sree is home o a hisoric wo-sory Ar Deco building ha residens say was originally used by he American Legion. Currenly, he srucure is owned by he Behel A.M.E. church on Rose S. and is zoned as residenial. The church should consider re-using he American Legion building in a way ha mees he needs of he neighborhood and fulfills heir Chrisian mission. MAGNOLIA STREET 4 The church migh parner wih oher organizaions, such as he, o urn he building ino affordable housing. This would allow he building o reain is curren zoning and make i more affordable for boh paries o resore he building. Oher poenial uses suggesed by residens include emporary housing, afer-school programming, muli-generaional classes, or a laundroma. Exising American Legion Building condiion 1. SIDEWALK DISTANCE.6 MILES Pedesrian access o he Alps Road Shopping Cener is much more circuious han need be. Baxer S is a an incline ha many walkers avoid, despie is having sidewalks. 2. PEDESTRIAN DISTANCE.5 MILES Mos walkers avoid he Baxer hill by walking behind S. Mary s parking lo, bu a 20 reaining wall forces hem o go ou o Baxer and around o he shopping cener s fron enrance. 3. PROPOSED ROUTE.25 MILES Being able o raverse he wall wih sairs or a swichback ramp would cu residens walking imes by half, plus i would provide hospial employees and visiors wih more direc access o sores and resaurans. Proposed speed able locaions TRAFFIC CALMING: SPEED TABLES, LIGHTS AND RADAR Because here is no neighborhood consensus regarding which side of he sree should give up fronage or on-sree parking o accommodae a sidewalk, he mos feasible and effecive raffic calming soluion is he use of speed ables/humps. Adding speed ables under or near each of he five exising sree lighs (above) will assure even placemen, good visibiliy a nigh, and will allow he speed ables o double as crosswalks. Augmening he sporadic sree lighing wih pedesrian-scale lighs on exising power poles will give evening foo raffic a sense of securiy. Addiionally, implemening radar speed signs is a proven way o decrease speeding. Poenial rehabiliaion Speed ables and radar deecion signs