Communities throughout the country are faced daily with growth and development pressures. Although such growth is vital to community economic health, its impact on the built environment is long lasting and much more difficult to address. Maintaining the identity or unique features of the community must be balanced against the effects of urban and suburban sprawl. Columbus, Indiana, a community world-renowned for its collection of modem architecture, is not immune to such pressures. This study is intended to serve as a tool for the citizens of Columbus as part of the never-ending process to create a better community and a more attractive urban setting.With Columbus serving as the setting, this urban design study explores how growth has evolved and reshaped the primary corridor running through the community--U.S. 31. Following a theoretical study of the traditional street corridor, and one's interaction with such a setting from both the motorist's and pedestrian's perspective, a detailed analysis of the 31 Corridor is conducted. The analysis encompasses a broad range of pertinent subjects including natural features, land use patterns, and urban design. Such analyses form the framework for the final section of this study.Following this analysis, recommendations for improving the 31 Corridor, and thus, Columbus as a whole are explored. The recommendations center on two primary goals. One focuses on stimulating and improving the motorist's perspective along the 31 Corridor and at the urban edges in the form of community gateways, while the second examines redevelopment strategies which intensify existing land uses and respect the established gateways. To support these goals, a series of objectives and methods are proposed. Both goals, and the supporting objectives are a means to maintain and strengthen the identity, or sense of place of Columbus. / Department of Urban Planning