Recommended Readings

Climate change in the Arctic

Beating a retreat

Arctic sea ice is melting far faster than climate models predict. Why?

Source: http://www.economist.com/node/21530079

Recombinant Urbanism: Conceptual Modeling In Architecture, Urban Design And City Theory

by David Graham Shane

Chapter 01. Pages 62-75

• City Design vs. Urban Design
• City Design Since Lynch
• Conceptual Modeling Since Lynch
• A Place Utopia
• A Glance Ahead

Also: Page 176, on Armatures and Page 198, on Enclaves

Phase II. Charrette. Armatures. 09.23.11

Sections 601.002 and 601.004

Katie Holmquist and Kyle O'Connor

Hang Su

Design Critic Assistant Nicolas Pevzner

Meghan Pecaut Talarowski

Melissa Levin and Shushmita Mizan

Prof. David Gouverneur

Urban Voids. Grounds for Change. Competition. 2005

Reports

• www.philaplanning.org/plans/areaplans/areaplans.html
  Reports on neighborhood blight and redevelopment by the Philadelphia City Planning Commission
• www.philaplanning.org/plans/vls.pdf
  Vacant Land in Philadelphia, a 1995 report by the Philadelphia City Planning Commission
• www.lgean.org/documents/Revitalization%20of%20Vacant%20Properties.pdf
  The Revitalization of Vacant Properties, a report by the International City/County Management Association
• www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/uscities/pdf/philadelphia.pdf
  The National Resources Defense Council’s 2003 report on pollution in Philadelphia’s drinking water
• www.housingalliancePA.org/Issues/Issues_Home.htm#Reclaiming%20Abandoned%20PA
  The Housing Alliance of Pennsylvania’s report and action guide for vacancy in Pennsylvania

Websites

The City of Philadelphia and Its Neighborhoods

• www.phila.gov
  The official website of the City of Philadelphia includes links to agencies, officials, and policy documents
• www.pasda.psu.edu
  Pennsylvania Spatial Data Access website with Pennsylvania GIS information, including online GIS tutorials
• www.cml.upenn.edu
  The cartographic Modeling Lab at the University of Pennsylvania
• http://citymaps.phila.gov
  Maps and photographs from the city of Philadelphia, including aerial photos, zoning maps, and a searchable photo archive
• www.ushistory.org/philadelphia
  Historical background on Philadelphia from the Independence Hall Association in Philadelphia
• www.pbs.org/philadiary
  The website companion to the PBS film “Philadelphia Diary” based on interviews with Philadelphia residents
• www.epa.gov/epahome/commsearch.htm
  The EPA website, with a searchable "EnviroMapper" and "Envirofacts," as well as watershed information

Vacancy and Vacancy Initiatives in Philadelphia

• www.cml.upenn.edu/nbase
  Philadelphia NIS NeighborhoodBase, with GIS maps and charts of Philadelphia neighborhoods
• www.philaplanning.org/plans/areaplans/areaplans.html
  Blight and redevelopment plan information from the Philadelphia City Planning Commission
• www.phila.gov/nti
  The City of Philadelphia’s Neighborhood Transformation Initiative (NIS), lead by Mayor John Street

Philadelphia’s Natural Resources

• www.phila.gov/fairpark
  Philadelphia’s city parks system
• www.fow.org/park/park.htm
  Friends of the Wissahickon website, with information on the geology, soils, vegetation, wildlife habitats, and water quality of this valley in Fairmount Park
• www.nlreep.org/amy's.htm
  Downloadable PDF brochures on Philadelphia’s native flora
• www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/distr/lepid/bflyusa/chklist/states/counties/pa_101.htm
  Philadelphia’s butterflies, from the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center of the US Geological Survey
• www.fow.org/download/checklistofthebirds.pdf
  PDF brochure on birds found in Wissahickon Valley
• philadelphia.extension.psu.edu/
  Penn State Extension for Philadelphia, with information on soil testing, plant cultivation, and the Penn State Urban Gardening Program

Source: http://www.vanalen.org/urbanvoids/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=77&Itemid=49

Trends for the Future (Business + Energy)

The Top 10 Trends of The Extreme Future

1.      Fueling the Future - The energy crisis, the post-oil future, and the future of energy alternatives like hydrogen. The critical role that energy will play in every aspect of our lives in the 21st century.

2.      The Innovation Economy - The transformation of the global economy based on the convergence of free trade, technology and democracy, driving new jobs, new markets, globalization, competition, peace and security. The Four Power Tools of the Innovation Economy are Nano-Bio-IT-Neuro.

3.      The Next Workforce - How the workforce of the U.S. is becoming more multicultural, more female and more Hispanic. Why the future workforce must embrace innovation to become globally competitive.

4.      Longevity Medicine - The key forces that will radically alter medicine such as nanotech, neurotech, and genomics, leading to longer and healthier lives.

5.      Weird Science - How science will transform every aspect of our lives, culture and economy—from teleportation to nanobiology to multiple universes.

6.      Securing the Future - The top threats to our freedom and our lives, from hackers to terrorists to mind control. Defining the risk landscape of the 21st century.

7.      The Future of Globalization - The new realities of global trade and competition; the rise of China and India; the clash of cultures and ideologies; and the cultural-economic battle for the future.

8.      The Future of Climate Change - How the environment is changing and how we need to prepare for increased global warming, pollution, and threats to biodiversity.

9.      The Future of the Individual - The risks and challenges from institutions, governments, and ideologies in the struggle for human rights and the freedom of the individual in the 21st century.

10.    The Future of America - The power of America and its destiny to champion global democracy, innovation, human rights and free market

Source: http://www.globalfuturist.com/more-on-the-extreme-future.html

The Top Ten Energy Trends for the 21st Century 

Energy is a metaphor for the future economic mobility of the world. Deep changes are coming. Energy is mission-essential to the growth, social stability and security of all nations. Oil overdependence and petro-fuel decline offer the world an incentive towards the discovery of renewable energy.

1.      Global demand for energy in the near future will outpace supply within twenty-five years unless new sources are found to support global growth.

2.      Energy terrorism and theft will become a future weapon of choice, threatening global peace and security.

3.      Energy, being linked to all vital services such as health, food, transportation and commerce will be a key driver of future global business.

4.      Clean, renewable energy sources such as solar, hydrogen and wind will be essential for future productivity.

5.      Oil-dominated energy is politically and economically unsustainable as a reliable source of fuel for the future. Although oil reserves are in supply decline and increasingly costly, oil will continue to play an important role in the 21st century.

6.      GDP, growth and productivity will decline if new and cost-effective non-oil energy sources are not found fast to protect future growth and prosperity, and to help rebalance the future of the world.

7.      New sources of renewable abundant and cost-effective energy must be fast developed within 20-30 years to manage the population's expectations of enhanced quality of life worldwide.

8.      Carbon based pollution, from fossil fuels, will be linked to a growing number of future public health risks.

9.      Energy security will be one of the chief concerns in the 21st century leading to global competition, conflict and the collaboration of nations and corporations.

10.    Exciting new energy frontiers are emerging such as nanotechnology which will offer promising alternatives to traditional sources of energy in the future.

Source: http://www.globalfuturist.com/future-trends/energy-futures.html

Problem 01. Site Analysis Presentation. 09.19.11

Topics:

Environmental Issues

Team 01. Geology, Topography and Landform, and Surficial Hydrology

Team 02. Hydrology: Storm water and Potable Water

Team 03. Hydrology of the Schuylkill and Climate Change

Team 04. Ecologies

Team 05. Soils and Remediation

Team 06. Climate and Energy Systems

Social Systems

Team 07. History of and Present Day Transportation

Team 08. The Growth of Urban Form and Pattern

Team 09. Philadelphia Block/Grid Typologies and Building Typologies

Team 10. Land Use: Historic and Present Day and Land Ownership

Team 11. Philadelphia Public Realm Framework, Garden Networks, Opportunity Land, and Park and Open Space Players

Team 12. Historic and Present Day Social Patterns

Team 13/14. City Ambitions-Who are the players and drivers? How is the city organized? Public/Private

Energy

The power of infinity

How will mankind keep the lights on and the temperature down?

The Quest: Energy, Security and the Remaking of the Modern World. By Daniel Yergin. Penguin Press; 816 pages; $37.95. Allen Lane; £30. Buy from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk

 Link to article: http://www.economist.com/node/21529001

Site Visit. 09.12.11

Harris Steinberg (PennPraxis). A Vision for the Schuylkill Yards

Sites

Syllabus (short)

THE PHILADELPHIA STUDIO:

Urban Transformation and the Making of Sustainable Districts

LARP 601. Fall 2011

Studio Goals:

 I.         To introduce students to the fundamentals of urban, territorial, and site specific design while developing the sensibility and acquiring the tools to deal with a variety of scales and a diversity of design considerations.

      II.         To develop an ability to make effective contributions to urban design problems and to learn to assume a leadership role in those conversations.  Urban design problems are increasingly complex.  In order to understand them and to adequately address them, it is necessary to develop a set of skills and methods that cross the lines of the disciplines of city planning, urban design, landscape architecture and architecture.  These are some of the leading professions with direct responsibility in the outcome of the built environment.

    III.         To learn multiple considerations in urban design problems.  For this reason, instilling interdisciplinary sensibilities is an essential part of academic training and professional practice. This studio intends to offer participants the opportunity to address relevant contemporary urban issues with a holistic and rich vision, allowing the students to “read” cities and to respond with creative and feasible solutions.

As we move into the 21^st century, alternative systems and strategies must be considered as cities continue to be shaped and inhabited. These include considerations of ecology, economics and social dynamics.  Urban design must be responsive to site, environmental considerations, morphological aspects, social conditions (e.g., culture, institutions, stakeholders, politics, demographics) and economic structure. In most instances, the incorporation of pragmatic concerns (such as budgets, technical requirements, and project feasibility), are key ingredients in design strategizing and decision-making. It is expected that your solutions will incorporate this depth and breadth of understanding.

    IV.         To understand the significance of the civic realm.  The public realm, also referred to as the civic realm, has had and will continue to have a significant impact on the quality of cities throughout the world. Successful actions usually result from bringing together the complex array of physical, environmental and social issues that produce urban strategies and ultimately define the apportionment, the quantity, the quality, and the form of the public realm.  It is well understood that successful urban public space has been the result of the close interplay between the built architectural component, whether of private or public nature, the engineering and design of infrastructure systems, and the treatment of public space.  The social scientists of the 1960’s, 1970’s and 1980’s deemed that successful and defensible spaces came about through the integration and interface of these realms. This is a principal concern of politicians, design professionals, developers, communities and many other urban actors; your projects are expected to represent a sophisticated understanding of this concept.

    V.         To understand the evolution of cities.  Urban design and place-making are typically collective, multi-disciplinary and long term endeavors. Rarely is an urban environment of substantial scale constructed as one gesture.  We will require that you arrive at a comprehension of the strategies and design moves that will guarantee successful change.  Many schemes will also require an understanding of the phasing of the proposals, including a determination of interim and more permanent uses, the establishment of structural moves to insure the viability of the proposals and even the provision of flexibility in the design strategy to deal with uncertain or unpredictable future conditions. 

The Site and the Program:

For this studio, we have selected two study areas in the city of Philadelphia, one located along the banks of the Schuylkill River, the other located between Lancaster Avenue and the southwestern edge of West Fairmount Park. These two study areas are linked by their (potential) relationship to 30^th Street Station and University City.

 

• The Schuylkill River is one of the two waterways between which the first capital of the United States – Philadelphia – was founded. The Schuylkill and the Delaware Rivers provided natural transportation hubs and connectivity with much of the Eastern Seaboard of the USA and Europe, which enabled the city to position itself as one of the most prosperous manufacturing centers in North America.

 

• West Fairmount Park (WFP) is notable for its size, as well as for hosting the United States first World Fair - the Centennial Exhibition of 1876.  Though much of the architecture that was part of this exhibition no longer remains, WFP is still home to a number of the city’s important cultural institutions.  Much of the urban fabric adjacent to the park emerged because of the extended streetcar and railroad lines built to accommodate visitors to the exhibition. 

• Lancaster Avenue (also known as U.S. Route 30) is part of a major east-west national highway stretching from Atlantic City in the east, to Oregon in the west.  Within the Philadelphia metropolitan area, Lancaster Avenue connects University City and Center City with the Main Line Suburbs to the west.

Philadelphia’s decline began after World-War II, due to the shift of cargo from water transportation to highways, the obsolescence of its manufacturing stock, and a lack of modernization to the ports. The loss of business and investment to New York City and Washington DC, as well as to the periphery of the Philadelphia metro area must also be recognized. 

Over time, the decline of the manufacturing industry and the flight of middle and upper income groups to suburbia resulted in a population loss of over a million residents since the late 1940s. Residential areas typically suffered with the loss of jobs, amenities, and services. As a result, many communities eroded or simply vanished.  Despite this population decline, the greater Philadelphia metropolitan area of southeast Pennsylvania, northern Delaware and southern New Jersey constitutes the sixth largest urban agglomeration, by total population, in the nation.

Decaying manufacturing industries along both rivers provided thousands of acres of underutilized, relatively cheap and centrally located land, which coupled with the planning trends of the early 50s and 60s, favored the construction of the new interstate highways. Local highways took advantage of these declining industrial lands, despite their environmental contamination or location in flood plains. 

For the most part, the construction of the highways cut Philadelphia off from its previously active commercial waterfronts. Some portions of the Schuylkill waterfront have been used to locate large scale facilities for industry, shipping and storage, railway and trucking facilities, utility plants, and large scale big box stores.  The neighborhoods that are located closer to these industrial and infrastructural service corridors tended to be affected in a negative way, and were generally severed from the waterfronts or from cohesive urban fabric.

Like the Expressways, the rail lines extending west from Center City also served to cut off and isolate neighborhoods –from each other, as well as from amenities like Fairmount Park.  The Overbrook and West Parkside neighborhoods of West Philadelphia are characteristic of this condition.  The situation has been further exacerbated by the suspension of freight rail service along these particular rail lines, leaving dormant large parcels of land previously devoted to warehousing and industry, enlarging the barrier to connectivity between these neighborhoods