Author: shuttleworth.25

Looking Forward: A Simple Addition to the Transit Model

Today’s transit model has a number of problems, but none are as large as its inherently limited service area. It is this that causes the bus transit network to have poor service in lower density neighborhoods, which can lead to poverty if the inhabitants cannot get to work. But as self driving cars become more viable, they can be incorporated into the existing transit model cheaply and easily. In my Vlog, I propose a small addition to the current bus transit model as used by Columbus that will allow more people to reliably use existing transit to get to work.

 

Video

Edwin Shuttleworth

On the Preservation of the Ace Morgan Theater

On December 12th of last year, the Granville Village Planning Commission approved the demolition of Denison’s Ace Morgan Theater. First opened in 1956 the building is dedicated to a Denison theater student, LeRoy Morgan, who was killed in combat during the Second World War. Posthumously awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart, Morgan’s classmates and friends raised the money and support necessary to persuade the Denison administration to dedicate the then-new theater to him. Since 1956, it has been used to host a variety of productions, in addition to the administrative and logistical support wings needed by the Denison Theater department.

While the Granville Historical Society has “after careful consideration” given their blessing to the demolition of the theater and the construction of its replacement, their focus was first and foremost on the historical significance of the building. In order to appease them, Denison administration has promised to both try to reuse material from the original building and “look into” dedications for Morgan. However, the author holds the opinion that when considered from a holistic perspective, including not just historical significance, but also its stylistic effects upon the area, the building should be preserved. The Theater has an architecture style that uniquely contrasts the rest of the nearby Denison buildings. This contrast helps to create a modern, but intelligent atmosphere in the adjacent green space where everything from concerts to graduation ceremonies are held. All of this will be lost with the demolition of the building.

Currently, the Ace Morgan Theater is being demolished as part of a larger project to create a new Arts Center and the building’s requisite access and parking needs. Instead of demolishing the theater, the $30 million allocated to the project could be used instead to renovate the existing buildings. If further funds are required, they could be raised through the Granville Historical Society, though such a situation seems unlikely.

As for its use, the building has been in use by the Dension Theater Department for years, as it should be. If they have outgrown it however, it could be reused as an administrative building, given to another department (perhaps it could be used to host their new Data Analytics major), or simply sold to a private entity. Though the latter is a touch extreme, it would be preferable to demolishing the building, its history, and the carefully cultivated atmosphere of the entire block.

KEK Design’s Latest Project Unvieled

KEK Residentials

Newark is a small traffic friendly city that has been expanding rapidly in recent years. Currently, Newark’s city center is being restored, driving up property values and attracting a far wealthier demographic than those who have lived there in recent history. It is in this setting that KEK Designs has decided to unveil KEK Residentials. The overall goal with this project is to capitalize on the future influx of wealth and overall lack of upscale housing. KEK Residentials is a three floor gym-apartment complex hybrid, designed to offer a modern, upscale alternative for wealthy tenants.

 

Figure one demonstrates an aerial view of the plot that the new residency intends to cover. Figure two demonstrates the floor plans of the three story building with underground parking. Figure three is a rough sketch of the front of the building.

 

(Fig 1)

 

(Fig 2)

(Fig 3)

Proposal Justification:

After discussing a number of different ideas of varying seriousness (see appendix for a sample), KEK Designs decided on a hybrid gym and upscale apartment complex for a number of reasons. The principle reason for the gym part of the project is the lack of a nearby, upscale gym. There are a handful of gyms sprinkled liberally throughout Newark, but many would feel unfamiliar to a wealthy Columbus expatriate. Furthermore, income can be supplemented by selling gym memberships to the general public, with the intent of providing an alternative source of revenue to the owners to insulate the project from fluctuations in the housing market. The upscale apartment portion of the project was decided upon after the gym portion, though the gym is supposed to supplement the apartment complex, rather than the inverse. This portion of the project is a bit of a gamble, reliant on Newark doing well financially in the relative long term. While finding investors at this moment would be extremely difficult, KEK Designs is confident that funding could be secured within a few years, as long as Newark’s growth continues to accelerate at the same rate it is now.

The building is offset from the sidewalk by the green space located in front of the building and this is approximately 412/192 feet. This offset and the associated green space is designed such as to both draw the eye into the front of KEK Residentials while simultaneously being consistent with the setbacks of the surrounding buildings. KEK decided the green space would also be a beneficial touch to the apartments as it adds a backyard like feeling to the space and thus inspiring a notion of home.The green space contains three picnic tables for outdoor lunches and meditation. The gazebo outside of the residence has a stone path and serves as a great place for pictures or simply enjoying the view.   The first floor houses half of the gym, a small indoor track and basketball court (as currently proposed) as well as a lobby area, mailroom, and offices.The first floor is designed to be a common area, where the public gym goers mix with residents freely. One heavily debated feature of this floor is the indoor basketball court and track, with concerns about the resulting noise being the main complaint. In any case, much like the underground parking, the basketball court is an addition that may or may not be realized, depending on other external factors. The second floor encompasses the other half of the gym and features the first set of apartments. As currently planned, there are ten spacious apartments, each with private bathrooms and pseudo-balconies overlooking their respective sides. The remaining space is reserved for a common area, which serves as a buffer between the gym and apartments. The third floor offers penthouses and larger sized rooms to accommodate families while the second floor consists of smaller rooms for those who want a more solitary space.

The strengths of this proposal include an adaptable plan that allows the residence to adjust to threats,a potentially substantial return on investment,easy access to downtown Newark, and nearby access to necessary utilities. The weakness of the proposal are the proximity to other gyms and less appealing infrastructure of Newark’s downtown. However, these weakness may be overshadowed by the opportunities that the residence provides and may take part in. Opportunities include expansion to vacant lots that may be easy to acquire and the opportunity to attract millennials to its downtown creating a diverse generations for the city of Newark. Threats that may impede the implementation of KEK residentials are limited demand for high end apartments, assumption of Newark’s economic expansion, competition of smaller high quality lofts in the area, and the surrounding buildings not tailored for high end clients.

 

Appendix: Rejected Ideas

  • Shopping Complex
  • Public Park
  • Space Elevator
  • Parking Lot
  • Tannery and Rendering facility
  • Low cost housing apartments
  • Vertical Shooting Range
  • Low cost gym

 

 

Photos and Reflection of Downtown Newark

The Canal Market District was planned fairly well. It has the appropriate parking on site for the venders and a nearby parking garage for people who wish to attend events here. Overall the city of newark managed to find a spot big enough to hold this site and it is also tucked away so as not to cause traffic problems.

Chicago’s comprehensive plan summary

Major goals

Chicago’s major goals are to

  1. Have communities that are a great place to live through managing the natural resources of Chicago in an efficient manner
    1. Manage and Conserve Water and Energy Resources
    2. Expand and Improve Parks and Open Space
    3. Promote sustainable local food
  2. Supporting chicago’s economy and workforce
    1. Support Economic Innovation
  3. Ensuring that government policies are “transparent and “efficient
    1. Reform State and Local Tax Policy
    2. Improve Access to Information
  4.  Improving transportation efficiency
    1. Invest in useful Transportation
    2. Increase availability of Public Transit
    3. Create a More Efficient Freight Network

Changes KEK thinks might help the city’s plan-Kait

Beginning with the former development of the city, we would have gradually developed around the city entirely as opposed to one “chunk”, if you will. Also, housing appears to be an issue in the regard of commuting to and from a job. There are several “major” employment centers with no close residency. We would also focus on bringing in more supermarket options, for there are pieces of city that have low access to one. While considering the lack of major roads, we would also like to bring in more Amtrak stations to accommodate issues involving housing and work. We would add more Meta rails, too.

 

Interesting points in Chicago’s plan-Kailyn

  • In Chicago’s plan it is mentioned that they have many units of government that are also not as responsive as the citizens would like. This was interesting because as the amount of people handling issues increased it seems reasonable to assume the government would be more capable of handling these issues.
  • Water in Chicago is extremely scarce ,despite its proximity to lake Michigan ,due to laws prohibiting its use.

http://www.cmap.illinois.gov/about/2040

 

Zoning

Inclusionary Zoning-Kailyn

Inclusionary zoning makes sure that residential land developers have affordable housing for residents of lower incomes. The developers are often granted special permissions such as allowing them to build more or faster as  consequence of their agreement. This type of zoning is used to create a  community with different financial situations ,so that different socioeconomic levels will be integrated. A scenario where inclusionary zoning would be used is one where the amount of affordable housing is scarce and to encourage it a city government says that buildings with more than twenty-five units must be at least ten percent affordable housing.

 

Cluster Zoning- Kait

Cluster zoning is a technique used to preserve green area by placing lots closer together. It also focuses on creating less roads. It contrasts to other zoning techniques because it drives away from straight lines in regards to lots and streets. This type of zoning allows for a lot of creativity, for the form is flexible. We may see cluster zoning used heavily in subdivisions and small neighborhoods as opposed to bigger metropolitan areas.

 

Planned Unit Development-Sam

Planned Unit Development, also known as (PUD) has been used in the U.S. for many years and is spreading to several other developed and developing countries.

 

Incentive Zoning – Edwin

Incentive Zoning is a very robust zoning technique that is arguably the best for a community who has a highly desirable plot of land that they want developed and want more than just money from the developer in return. Incentive zoning is most often used in larger cities, and can help supplement existing infrastructure and/or provide services that are missing or insufficient. For example, in return for allowing a developer to build a skyscraper, the city may require the developer to reserve a certain number of floors for affordable housing or community services, like a day care or public space.

KEK Designs Blog Post 2

Kailyn – Economy

The economy is expected to come into play in any design decision as it is typically common knowledge that  budgets can restrict what can be done within designs. However,the economy also influences what should be done for a city. As the movie, Urbanized mentioned Detroit’s design decisions were made to accommodate millions of people ,but after Detroit’s debacle from its motor city reputation, the city contained vastly fewer individuals. The economy drives the population of the  city and as the mayor mentioned the people drive what the city needs as far as design. The mayor’s decision to keep Newark more rural makes the people drawn to its peace but they may also be drawn to its proximity to the job market in Columbus. The most important thing about planning and design is who it is being designed for. The easiest way to tell what a city needs without asking the people in them is to observe the local economy in combination sometimes with the local infrastructure.

 

Edwin – Economy

The most important element one must consider when creating a city plan is economy. Without an appreciation for the economic power of a city or region, nothing else will matter. When designing the a master plan for a growing city, failing to account for the overall wealth of its populace can lead to empty houses and shantytowns, while failing to account for what is produced in the city or region can lead to inefficiencies. Furthermore, if a city has a strong economy, it becomes easier to modify as problems arise. A clever and elegant solution is useless if it requires more funds than accessable. China may have some serious design problems, but they can fix their problems by using the time-tested technique of throwing money at them until they go away.

 

Kait – Form

Form positively impacts design in so many ways. It really has the potential to set a specific and desired tone for an entire community or neighborhood as a whole. We see a wide variety of form across our country, or the world eve, for accommodations and needs within societies differ. Also, culture impacts form immensely. Form allows for creativity on a much larger scale than design does. It can potentially set apart communities and create different emotions for travelers and residents of a particular area. Form brings together design and efficiency, and considers the functionality of a space or community.

 

Sam – Economy

The economy has a major hand in any of the other aspects of planning.Without enough Money/material you will not have a very efficient neighborhood. For example the city off the coast in Africa from the movie had rather narrow walkways, few streets,poor lighting and several other problems. Which led to high crime rates.A good economy will help make planning the neighborhood easier as well as more efficient. With a well off economy you can afford to have proper lighting, wide streets, a good sewage/storm water drain system.well planned cities also have a considerably lower crime rate. A city built with a good economy is more attractive to people looking to move. Cities with a good economy are more likely to improve themselves.

 

 

 

The ideal city we designed focuses on combining nature with modern suburban design. It pulls nature and urbanization together to create an efficient, unique, & activity-filled area. As pictured above, we have an almost central-park. Wrapping around the central park there are 2 paths and a parking lot for visitors. The park is quite large and has some paths for walking and running, along with green space for other leisurely activities. This whole neighborhood design really accommodates travelers, for there is parking and roads, and an easy detour right off the highway exit to allow for quick shopping and dining. This design as a whole has a lot of contemporary touches, for its unique and accommodated modern lifestyles. There’s plenty of living space, too, on the outskirts of the inner town. It’s a really ideal neighborhood in regards to efficiency, residency, and activities. Perhaps maybe more shopping and dining could be added along the outside of the park to address the people that utilize the park often. For instance, maybe a healthy shake shop, workout attire shop, or even a running shoe store. The possibilities are endless with a neighborhood like this. It has the potential to appeal to residents of all sorts: older, younger, traditional, or contemporary. This neighborhood has a piece for everyone.

KEK Designs

Welcome to our Blog! First off, we would like to introduce ourselves. My name is Kait, and my team members are Kailyn and Edwin. Collectively, we comprise a firm named KEK Designs. Our name was created to symbolize who we are as a whole.

TEAM LOGO AND BIOS

KEK designs is the name of the our team composed of each of the first letters of our group member’s names. We chose designs to represent the careful planning and artful creations we will be making for this class. The logo is overseen by an unfinished triangle that resembles a roof in order to give the simplistic design a flair of city architecture.

 

Kailyn

Hello I’m Kailyn, an aspiring real estate lawyer from the city of Groveport, Ohio with a love of Detroit. Interested in city planning to observe the planning and construction of a well designed real estate area.

 

Edwin

‘Ello, I’m Edwin Shuttleworth. This is my first year at OSU, much like the rest of the team. I’m from the nearby town of Granville, my favorite city is Chicago, though I’ll readily admit I prefer small towns, such as Speculator, New York. I am taking CRP2110 primarily because it sounded like an interesting class, rather than because of any interest in the major.

 

Kait

Hi! I’m Kait. I am currently in my first year of college at Ohio State Newark. I am studying Architecture, and I also plan to double-major in Interior Design. I’m from small town New Concord in Southeastern Ohio. I someday aspire to reside in one of my favorite cities in California or New York. I’m a huge fan of Los Angeles and the thriving society it acquires. I’m taking CRP2110 to help introduce myself to my preferred field of work. I am so thankful that this course is offered at Newark, and I can begin looking beyond general education into my future field.

Activity 1: Draw your Home

Kait:  In activity 1, I learned a lot about my team. I learned that we can draw comfortably around each other, and that we all came from Ohio. We seem to be a very diverse team, and for that I’m excited to see what we come up with in this course.

Kailyn: Edwin’s drawing demonstrates the nice suburban area he lives. Though he mentioned the hill that has a slight underground basement, he could not demonstrate this in the picture. It was one of the favorite features of his home along with the window that he could escape from by jumping on the garage roof. Through this activity I learned that Kait lives in a nice suburban home tied with fond memories of the place she resided. Kait is a much

better sketcher than I am and her drawing ability details the nice landscape of her home.

Edwin: This was an interesting assignment, though I’m sure my drawing abilities left something to be desired. Unsurprisingly, we are all from Ohio, and lived in homes somewhere on the suburban portion of the population density spectrum. Furthermore, I found out that either I had a much more exciting childhood than my other group members, or they are less willing to blab about it to total strangers. In any case, I’d rate my house as being the most climbable, followed by Kait’s, closely trailed by Kailyn’s.

 

 

Activity 4: Emotions of the city

A reminder of time can be quite daunting especially in a college setting where there seems to always be work to be done. This picture of the clock is made particularly dreary as it is alone high out of reach on a monochromatic gray scale wall. I think its isolation adds to the feeling that time is unreachable and unchangeable.

The bridge is the main thing that caught my eye when I first entered campus. It is unique aspect of OSU Newark and inspires a calm feeling of amazement. The bridge seems to be an entryway to new paths in our lives and to places unseen. At first it seems to connect to an island that gives you a sense of isolation from the busy activities of your mind.

Between the way the obelisk blends into the overcast sky and odd architecture of Founders, this is particular picture screams melancholy to me. Honestly, the architecture of Founders looks downright brutalist, though it is symmetric and the windows are on the large side. Honestly, I find it rather odd that the planners decided that the administrative building should be made from unpainted concrete that would develop an unappetising patina of rust and what appears to be some sort of mold.

In stark contrast to the last picture, this one shows the lounge area in Reese through the display fridge of the old cafe. Through the condensation, one can see the warm lights of the lounge, as well as a sliver of overcast over the door to the right. This gives it a warm, cozy feel, that makes me want to curl up somewhere with a book. While it certainly would be nicer if the cafe was actually active, it’s still a nice little area.

Found in LeFevre Hall, a painting jumped out at me and spoke “euphoria.” A sense of peace is quite necessary in our crazy, college-student lives. A sense of serenity and sensation is just as fundamental as sleep and studying in order to gain mere success.