Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Jason Brody / This report evaluates the success of the Green Light for Midtown in New York in order to understand the factors that led to its success and thereby determine how social spaces can be created along streets and the initiatives that can be taken by other cities to create such spaces. It begins with a review of historical trends of urbanization that shifted the focus on streets from open spaces to transportation networks. The report attempts to answer a two-fold research question. Firstly, the Green Light for Midtown project in New York that attempted to reinvent the public space on Broadway and Times Square is evaluated in depth to examine the design elements that resulted in a thriving public space. This is done with the help of documents produced by the city and the concerned organizations as well as interviews with the officials in charge of the project. Analysis of the Green Light for Midtown illustrates certain elements that are essential for the design of social spaces along streets and bring the focus back on the pedestrians. Through the second part of the research question, the report attempts to determine the lessons that can be learnt from the New York example. The study reveals certain key elements for the creation of successful public spaces along streets in urban areas. The primary element is to have a political will that enable these changes to take place in the public realm. In addition, the area should be able to maintain a competitive edge in order to attract people and keep them coming back to the area. Finally, the regulations should be made more specific to the context of the area so that the identity of the place can be maintained effectively.

Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / John W. Keller / This report reviews asset building for communities to promote youth healthy development. It addresses a comprehensive approach to youth development by engaging all members and sectors of a community. Bellevue, Washington is a community nationally recognized for its collective approach to tackling issues faced by their youth. The Search Institute’s 40 Developmental Assets 1997 Survey showed Bellevue youth possessed less than 50% of the developmental assets necessary to become responsible adults. Since receiving these results, Bellevue has continued working to improve the lives of youth in their community by utilizing the knowledge and resources of community members, organizations, and institutions. For this report, Bellevue’s collective engagement was analyzed to identify which developmental assets youth could obtain through participation, support, and engagement in various community sectors. Bellevue was used as a case study for an asset building community for youth, to determine what makes a great community for youth to live and thrive.

Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Architecture and Regional and Community Planning / John W. Keller / This report is a reconnaissance analysis of the Topeka, Kansas downtown district to determine a process of rejuvenation. Many office buildings are established in or near the downtown core, and bring an estimated 30,000 employees to the area; however, after 5:00 PM much of the work force leaves the downtown making it difficult for retail and entertainment businesses to stay open. The purpose of this study is to analyze the downtown district of Topeka in terms of its strengths and weaknesses, and determine the steps that must be taken before a process of rejuvenation can occur. To accomplish this, the study examines strategic data such as a workforce profile, location information, public facilities, historical and current demographics of the city, along with specific information on the downtown area such as past and present plans for renovation. This analysis also includes current plans in the downtown and how they might impact the future physical development of the central core of downtown Topeka such as the potential realignment of Interstate 70. The key to making any downtown project a success is to acknowledge the weaknesses and threats of the area and to recast them as potential opportunities and strengths for the area. This is why the study has a building survey and a S.W.O.T. (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Strengths) analysis.

Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Katherine Nesse / Most adults have grown accustomed to the current design orientation of their communities; however, as adults grow older they will be hard pressed to maintain their current lifestyle and level of activity in their community. This research identifies the importance of incorporating accessibility and usability elements into the streetscape of a community to encourage the integration of seniors into community life. One of the four pillars of the Main Street approach is design. This encompasses the design of building facades, streetscapes, and public spaces. This research looks at the Kansas Main Street program and investigates its success in furthering usability and accessibility of streetscapes in rural communities experiencing an aging population and infrastructure. My thesis is if the Main Street organizations of Kansas were concerned about the access and use of streetscapes for elderly populations, their concern would be expressed in development plans and practices through their Main Street program undertakings. Through this research, I have found that while rural communities see the value in accessible streetscapes their primary barrier to creating them is a financial one.

Master of Landscape Architecture / Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Mary C. Kingery-Page / Literature shows that walkable neighborhoods have the potential to significantly decrease the carbon footprint of cities by lessening the need to drive, as well as providing many health, economic, and social benefits to society. The goal of this research, therefore, was to devise a practical strategy to create walkable places in the car-oriented city of Wichita, Kansas. A necessary component of this strategy is an “urban triage,” described by Jeff Speck in Walkable City as identifying streets with the most existing potential and concentrating limited resources to their improvement (2012, 254). This report employed an urban triage of Wichita at two scales based on three central characteristics of walkability: urban fabric, dense street network and connectivity. Comparing block length and link to node ratio, I built a case for downtown, which is organized on a traditional grid of streets, over a typical shopping district organized around the more modern hierarchical pattern of streets. Within downtown, I further narrowed the study area primarily based on urban fabric, the degree to which streets are enclosed by buildings. I created a method to measure urban fabric, using aerial imagery and street views, taking into account the consistency of the street wall, height of buildings and foreground. The strongest complete corridor, in terms of urban fabric, and three potential links between that corridor and downtown’s largest event space, became the study area for further analysis. A rubric, based on characteristics of walkability extrapolated from literature, served as the instrument to measure the attributes of each block in the study area. Each attribute, as well as the characteristics that they create, yielded a map, contrasting strong and weak blocks. This analysis provided the detailed information necessary to create an informed conceptual strategy to resolve these weaknesses. Selective building infill resolved gaps in the urban fabric, road diets and improved crossings restored modal balance to the street, and a new pedestrian corridor completed a broken street and activated an existing park.

Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Jason Brody / The use of partnerships between the public and private realm have become increasingly popular. This is due to today’s challenges of declining public resources to fulfill the social and physical needs of urban environments. This dilemma has placed a heightened emphasis on executing creative and collaborative redevelopment projects. Downtown Kansas City has an opportunity for such a project. Washington Square Park in downtown Kansas City, Missouri has a unique opportunity to stand as a catalyst project that would reconnect the urban fabric of the city, increase the population within downtown, and create an unsurpassed gateway into the greater downtown area. The public realm alone cannot accomplish this undertaking. Therefore, implementing the redevelopment of the park through public private partnerships is a natural choice. This study explores the intricacies of implementing the proposed Washington Square Park redevelopment project through the use of public private partnerships. It draws from a body of literature and precedents to provide background material, context and principles that are applied to the Washington Square Park project. The study employs site, market, and stakeholder analyses to assess the current economic environment, property ownership, power relationships and influences relating to the redevelopment project. These methods determined that as the value of Washington Square Park increases so will adjacent property; existing economic incentives are critical for project implementation; multi-family and retail real estate markets are strong while office trends are improving; current zoning allows for very high density with no height limitations; and several “key players” hold the attributes for establishing a conservancy for Washington Square Park. These findings reveal the symbiotic relationships between Washington Square Park and the surrounding context which provides the rational basis for project implementation through public private partnerships. Overall, this document informs the various stakeholders and decision-makers of pertinent information pertaining to the Washington Square Park redevelopment project and propositions a scenario for project implementation through the use of public private partnerships.

Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Hyung Jin Kim / In the past 20 years, the promotion of bicycle-friendly environments in the United States has become a major topic for city planners, engineers, landscape architects, and concerned citizens. The City of Manhattan, Kansas, and Kansas State University (KSU) are following the trend by creating more bicycle infrastructure. As an example, the Campus Planning and Facilities Management Department at KSU recently installed new signs on the pavement that support existing bicycle rules around campus. The rules require cyclists to dismount and walk their bicycles on the main campus sidewalk and yield to pedestrians when crossing Bosco Plaza. While signs are important, these markers should be part of a bigger plan that includes infrastructure, education and enforcement working together to create a safe, active transportation system. This project explores bicycling culture at KSU campus and uses three key concepts of infrastructure, education, and enforcement to discover what improvements are needed and what improvements can be made. The video-based observation method consists of recording the activity of cyclists entering the campus core and analyzing the behavior of cyclists and pedestrians. The survey was conducted via social media in order to understand safety perceptions and behaviors of bicyclists and pedestrian as daily commuters to campus. The results from both methods show a lack of involvement with infrastructure, education, and enforcement for cycling at Kansas State which creates areas that are not safe for pedestrians. Bicycling (15.4%) and walking (46.7%) represent 62.1% of commuters to campus; therefore, a safer approach to campus infrastructure needs to be addressed for these users. Results indicate that the dismount signs are ignored 82.9% of the time, and collisions between cyclists and pedestrians do happen on campus. An absence of enforcement is shown in the data, which is compounded by a non-existing bicycling education program, making for a less than optimal active transportation system on campus.

Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Jae Hong Kim / Professional sports stadium development projects are major civic endeavors, and city officials and sports franchises often promise stadiums will generate significant gains in the regional economy. This study examines the effectiveness of stadium development in inducing economic development and urban revitalization by conducting a secondary data analysis, and case study of PNC Park and Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Consistent with prior empirical studies, the secondary data analysis shows that stadium projects do not always produce significant regional economic benefits. A close investigation of the two stadium projects in the North Shore neighborhood of Pittsburgh, however, finds substantially positive effects on investment and physical development at the district level. The present research suggests that stadium developments can be a more powerful urban redevelopment catalyst when consideration is given to four essential factors – location, design, institutional structure, and history and timing.

Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Larry L. Lawhon / This report examines the Town of Frisco, Colorado development process utilized to implement an attainable housing development within a resort style community. This report begins with the review of historic trends in affordable housing initiatives in American culture that has led to the importance of creating a diverse housing stock. The report was conducted by review of articles, government records, private and public reports, and research on the housing demand and analysis in the regional area. This report was conducted to provide resort style communities, similar to the Town of Frisco, a clear process of implementing an attainable housing development through the use of private/public partnerships. Frisco’s private/public partnership with the development team of Ten Mile Partners serves as a plausible process a community can undertake to increase a community’s housing stock diversity and affordability for long term residents.

Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / John W. Keller / Regions are an intricate network of communities, geographies and economies that together impact the long-term growth and stability of one other. Cooperation between municipalities within the same region is vital in order to achieve sustained growth, both economically and in the built environment. The research question states: What is the value of regional planning bodies in ensuring effective communication and collaboration among region-wide governmental and non-governmental agencies? This research report includes a detailed history of the role and significance of regional planning bodies in the United States, as well as a case study involving the regional planning body in Houston, Texas and the Gulf Coast Region. The Houston-Galveston Area Council is the lead participant in a 25-member coordinating committee working together to complete a regional sustainability plan under the federally funded Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant Program. The interviews included in this report give conclusions and recommendations to the success of the region working together in terms of communication and collaboration. The challenge of establishing effective collaboration among a variety of agencies in the Gulf Coast Region is proving to be difficult and slow moving, however, there are signs of improvement as the three-year grant program moves forward. The conclusions from the literature review and case study show that regions with an unbiased planning body benefit both from the communication and social capital gained by working together on a shared goal.