This study investigated the potential for development of station catchment areas around the proposed California High-Speed Rail System. The study was prompted by a review of practices of Japanese railway company groups that engage not only in train operations, but also in business diversification and property development within the station areas of their lines. These actions allow the company groups to diversify their revenues streams, increase ridership on their lines, and operate as a whole with net profits. This is in contrast to transit agencies in the United States, which only focus on transporting passengers along their lines and do not engage in other commercial activities. This situation limits the potential for transit in the United States to play a larger role in urban transportation. With the implementation of the California High-Speed Rail System, an opportunity exists to introduce the commercial transit model seen in Japan to the United States. Since the California High-Speed Rail System is a brand-new system with few entrenched interests to impede change, it has the potential to lead as an example of transit operating with net profits and providing additional benefits to the station areas it serves. However, since planning for station areas to turn into commercially successful activity centers is still a new concept and practice in the United States, a methodology has to be developed to assess the potential for development of station areas. This study set out to answer the two questions: 1) To what extent are the locations of the California High-Speed Rail System’s planned stations currently attractive to development within their respective contexts? 2) Given the information gathered from the study, what policies should be taken to enhance the future development potential of the California High-Speed Rail System’s planned stations as activity centers within their respective station areas? The potential for development was quantified by calculating accessibility indices for each station catchment area using the inputs of number of jobs, population size, and number of housing units within a gravity model. The results of the analysis indicate that the station areas at the ends of the alignment in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area will benefit the most. The next biggest beneficiaries are the major population centers in the San Joaquin Valley, which are Fresno and Bakersfield. Other stations that are not likely enjoy the benefits of a high-speed rail connection as much as other stations are those that have very little development around them currently, such as Kings Tulare and Madera. However, the potential exists for all stations to enjoy substantial development opportunities if the proper plans, policies, and business strategies are implemented early on and at the corridor level to make the station areas attractive for development. The study makes the following recommendations: Promote the commercialization of train operations and station areas to capitalize on their long-term economic value; Integrate the planning, construction, ownership, and management of train operations and station area development and services to reduce transaction costs; Develop plans or business strategies for each station area to create roadmaps and timelines for their development; And plan for land use activities at station areas on a corridor level to capitalize on specific synergies between station origin-destination pairs (e.g., land use activities that accommodate long-distance travelers between the San Francisco Bay Area and the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area, or those that accommodate commuter needs between up-and-coming station areas in the San Joaquin Valley with major job centers).

There is a large body of literature in the planning field on the topic of collaborative processes of decision-making, particularly in the United States and Europe. However, there appears to be less debate on the subject of complementing these ideas with contributions from urban governance. This research aims to contribute to that complementary work. In order to accomplish that, this thesis presents first a theoretical analysis of collaborative rationality and urban governance contributions. This analysis focuses on the articulation of those aspects that can offer a more holistic framework for addressing urban issues in a more inclusive way. Second, it provides a case study that takes place in the City of Rafaela, Argentina. The case study consists of an assessment of the regulatory and institutional framework that affects planning and the exploration of two contentious recent processes. One of them is the ‘Downtown Revitalization’ project and the second one is the ‘Future use of the Old Bus Terminal’. Several interviews with key actors were conducted in order to gather the information, which was combined with public and media documentation available. These two processes help to understand how significant decisions regarding uses and renovation of urban space are made and the opportunities to implement more collaborative processes in planning. The results show that the combination of the aspects highlighted by both bodies of theory can help to better address conflicts that arise regarding urban space, while increasing citizen participation and addressing issues of inequality in the process of decision-making.

<p>North American suburbs are facing decline and obsolescence. They cannot meet the needs of North America’s ageing society, future climate change, or higher energy prices. Compounded with their negative environmental impact, non-resilient is an appropriate label for North American suburbs.</p> <p>Resilient suburban communities can be realized through retrofitting to meet current and future needs. Community scale retrofitting is in the early stages of development. House-level retrofitting tools exist but must be synthesized into a useable form for homeowners.</p> <p>Homeowners arguably have the largest stake in the future of the suburbs for both financial and social reasons. Empowering them with tools to make their suburban home and community more resilient is considered to be desirable.</p> <p>This thesis empowers homeowners by developing a prototype decision support system (DSS) that will help them (or their contractors) make choices about adapting and retrofitting their home for resilience. This Microsoft Excel-based DSS addresses the following suburban needs: new housing types, reducing the environmental impacts of the home, and decreasing reliance on fossil fuels. The DSS does this through three constituent ‘modules’.</p> <p>The first module, <em>Dividing Suburban Homes</em>, demonstrates the feasibility of dividing large suburban homes into multifamily dwellings. The second module, <em>Sustainable Additions</em>, selects resilient building materials for housing additions. The last module, <em>Reducing the Home’s Environmental Impact</em>, helps homeowners choose methods for reducing the environmental impact and fossil fuel usage of their home.</p> <p>Through these three modules, this DSS addresses a considerable number of the current and anticipated issues facing the suburbs.</p> / Master of Applied Science (MASc)

It is my contention that through activating participatory design and community engagement strategies, in conjunction with innovative construction methods that address issues of resource scarcity, the standard of living and level of accessibility to critical resources in impoverished portions of Honduras can be drastically improved. The newly provided model of construction can be done it such a way that it is cost effective in its building method, and provides highly sought after scarce critical resources. This allows participants to allocate more of their finances towards other necessary resources they normally would not be able to acquire. A new community center designed to address the issues of resource scarcity and job opportunities will stand as a first built model with the intent that the methods of construction and innovations employed will be replicated in further applications. The center will be innovative in its construction in such a way that it recognizes local building practices, and brings some new ideas to them allowing for a method of construction that is both improved and more affordable. The center will also take a fresh look at ways the community can address issues of food and water through architectural innovations. The intent is that the success of the center’s combined interventions will encourage local people to replicate the design ideas in their own residential applications. This will improve the quantity of resources available in the community and also start to build a new job market for installing the newly desirable systems. Resource scarcity has wreaked havoc on the typical Honduran villages’ sense of community. Hondurans are in constant competition with their neighbors for scarce critical resources required to sustain life. These resources include, food, water, shelter, and employment opportunities. Violent conflict often arises within communities as individuals compete with their neighbors for the basic necessities required to sustain life. While architecture alone cannot solve all the issues that contribute to the problem of violence, a new center with a program that builds community and provides needed resources stands to potentially curb neighborhood conflict and begin the community healing process. The center stands as not only a replicable model, but also as an immediate community element to bring neighbors back together physically in daily interactions and emotionally in the new resources being provided.

The removal of New York Interstate- 81’s (I-81) 1.4 mile stretch of raised, four-lane highway in Syracuse will highlight the critical role of socioeconomics, accessibility, and community building in urban neighborhood reclamation. The removal of what had been previously deemed an urban renewal project, presents Syracuse with new opportunities for space restoration and place-making efforts, atoning for careless and traumatic historic divisions, all the while exploring more substantive design responses tailored to the realities of the City. This thesis explores these fundamental planning considerations through a design lens; by proposing a comprehensive and integrated vision of physical and spatial opportunities provided by the removal of the Viaduct. Through a series of demographic, socioeconomic and spatial analyses, this thesis begins by working to understand the effect of these proposed changes on the communities most directly affected both by I-81’s construction and now its destruction. Then, the thesis examines what it means to be a Sanctuary City in the United States and explores methods in which the vacancy of this land can be found to serve Syracuse’s most disadvantaged and at-risk populations. If Syracuse deems itself a home for everyone, what types of facilities could exist to serve that designation, both built and imagined? In this thesis I propose my own theories about the role of architecture in helping to create a true sense of sanctuary. Finally, the thesis explores the design and programming of a series of buildings, spaces, and urban interventions which serve as a means to this end. In so doing, the thesis critically examines the role of socially integrated urban renewal in Syracuse, NY, and offers design explorations that might mediate social inequities.

Die Dissertationsarbeit ist der Erforschung des Phänomens der Transformation der urbanen und lokalen Identität im Rahmen des Migrationsprozesses nach dem Zerfall der UdSSR gewidmet. 1. Einer der wichtigsten Fokusse der Forschung ist die vergleichende Geschichte der Entwicklung der drei Städte - Sankt-Petersburg (Russland), Odessa (Ukraine) und Baku (Aserbaidschan), die als Räume im Kontext urbaner Gesellschaft und Habitus konstruiert wurden. Der wichtigste geschichtliche Zeitraum ist mit der Europäisierung des Russischen Reichs verbunden. Dieser Faktor bestimmt weitgehend die Spezifität des urbanen Habitus (Lebensraum). 2. Der zweite Fokus liegt auf der urbanen Gesellschaft der Bürger*innen Sank-Petersburgs, Odessas und Bakus. Zur Zeit hat die jeweilige Gesellschaft in ihren Heimatstädten, nachdem sie massive Auswanderungen und den Zustrom von Menschen aus anderen Städten oder ruralen Räumen erlebt hat, einen Teil ihres Einflusses sowie ihrer dominanten Position verloren. Aber in diesem Kontext der Verluste, haben die Mitglieder der urbanen Gesellschaft, auch durch die rasante Entwicklung der digitalen Kommunikation die Möglichkeit erhalten, transnationale Netzwerke zu entwickeln. 3. Der dritte wichtige Fokus liegt auf den sozialen Netzwerken der Bürger*innen von St. Petersburg, Odessa und Baku in Deutschland, u.a. in Berlin. Sowie auf der Institution – „Urban Clubs“, die von Aktivist*innen der urbanen Gesellschaft im Rahmen der Jüdischen Gemeinde Berlin, Anfang der 2000er gegründet wurden. Die Praxis der Netzwerk- und Vereinsgründung ermöglicht es Migrant*innen, auf symbolische Weise ihre gewohnten Lebensbedingungen zu rekonstruieren und bestimmt so die Besonderheit ihrer Integration in die deutsche Aufnahmegesellschaft. Eine solche Studie erlaubt es, die innere Vielfalt einer sich als „russischsprachige Juden“ definierenden Gruppe zu beschreiben. Zusätzlich trägt sie auch dazu bei, die Diskussion über die Prinzipien der Integrationspolitik in Deutschland anzuregen. / Диссертация посвящена исследованию феномена трансформации городской локальной идентичности в контексте миграционных процессов, развивавшихся после распада СССР. Исследование проводилось на трех уровнях и четырех городах и странах. 1. Один из важнейших фокусов исследования - это сравнительная история развития трех городов: Санкт-Петербург (Россия), Одесса (Украина) и Баку (Азербайджан), как социо-культурных пространств в рамках которых создавались городские сообщества и конструировались городские габитусы. Все три города играли разную, но особенную роль в истории Российской империи, а позже СССР. Данное обстоятельство во многом определяет специфику городских габитусов. 2. Один из основных фокусов исследования был направлен на городские сообщества петербуржцев, одесситов и бакинцев. В настоящий момент пережив массовую эмиграцию и приток населения из других городов или сельской местности, эти сообщества в родных городах утратили определенную часть влияния и доминирующие позиции. Но в этом контексте утрат, а также в связи с быстрым развитием цифровых коммуникаций, члены этих городских сообществ приобрели возможность конструирования транснациональных сетей. Институтами играющими особенную роль в создании таких сетей стали городские клубы, созданные в 1990-1991 годах в Петербурге, Одессе и Баку. 3. Третий основной фокус - социальные сети петербуржцев, одесситов и бакинцев в Германии, и в Берлине в частности. А также институты - "городские клубы", создававшиеся активистами этих городских сообщества в рамках Еврейской общины Берлина. Практики создания сетей и клубов позволяют мигрантам проводить символическую реконструкцию комфортных условий для проживания и определяют специфику процесса их интеграции в принимающее сообщество (в Германии). / This dissertation is devoted to the study of the transformation of urban local identity in the context of migration processes after the collapse of the USSR. 1. It offers a comparative history of the development of St Petersburg (Russia), Odessa (Ukraine) and Baku (Azerbaijan) as socio-cultural spaces, within which urban communities were created and urban habitus was designed. The most important period in their history is connected with Europeanisation of the Russian Empire. This history largely determines the specificity of the cities’ urban habitus, respectively. 2. Research is focused on the urban communities of Petersburgers, Odessites, and Bakuvians, which are presently experiencing mass emigration and an influx of population from other cities or rural areas. These communities remaining in their hometowns have lost some influence and status, but in the context of this loss, and due to the rapid development of digital communications, members of these urban communities have also created transnational networks. The city clubs established in St. Petersburg, Odessa and Baku in 1990-1991 have played a special role in creating such networks. Specifics of the communities and their urban habitus have been studied in parallel with the research concerning urban club activities. 3. Social networking practices of members of these urban communities are studied, with focus on immigrants in Germany, and Berlin in particular. Club creation practices allow migrants to symbolically reconstruct familiar living conditions and define the specifics of their integration into the host community (in Germany). Such research makes it possible to describe the internal diversity of the group defined as Russian-speaking Jews, and contributes to discussion about integration policy principles.

Access to water from San Antonio Creek was critical in Claremont’s growth from a small stop on the Santa Fe Railroad to an agricultural powerhouse and an elite college town. While Claremont has sought to distinguish itself from surrounding communities since its founding in 1882, the innovative Pomona Valley Protective Association (PVPA) aligned Claremont with the City of Pomona and its other neighbors in a scheme to conserve the Creek’s resources at the turn of the century. Organized around the discovery of local confined aquifers and the development of a strategy to recharge them with water from the San Antonio Creek, the Association was a contradictory moment of cooperation in an otherwise highly contentious zero-sum game of water rights politics. As conflicts wore on, the PVPA quietly orchestrated the purchase of large tracts of land in the San Antonio Creekbed, where the construction of diversion dams and spreading grounds served dual purposes of water conservation and flood control. As dam building in the Creekbed continued, large tracts of the previously undevelopable Wash were transferred to the aggregate mining institutions that gouged the area’s many gravel pits. This thesis uses the story of the PVPA and the contemporary example of the Claremont University Consortium Gravel Pit to explore the context of development in the San Antonio Creek Wash. Understanding the political and social contexts of the gravel quarry problem reveals possibilities for a more integrative, conscious, and sustainable approach to improving the former gravel quarries that currently occupy the Wash landscape.

On July 4th, 2007, a small group of housing activists set up a tent city encampment in a plaza adjacent to New Orleans City Hall. The action resulted in the creation of Homeless Pride, a small group of politicized Plaza residents. Six months later, hundreds of homeless people were moved from the park, and it was fenced off. Using archival videos, interviews, and news media, this thesis analyzes the opportunities and constraints that activists, service providers, and local officials faced in light of two intersecting and overlapping contexts. The first context is the immediate crisis of the levee failures after Hurricane Katrina, and the second is the longer-term national political-economic context of “neoliberal urbanism”. Because of dire short-term circumstances, Homeless Pride articulated a message of homelessness as a “crisis” even though they had larger structural goals and vision. In light of recent “Occupy” movements, this case study addresses crucial questions for organizers and policymakers attempting to combat poverty and wealth inequality.

The rapid growth of Louisiana's coastal restoration science and technology assets is paralleled by the growth of business resources to fulfill myriad project needs. Many institutions and organizations in Louisiana seek to further develop the state's research, education, engineering and related restoration assets into a globally competitive set of industries with exportable expertise and products that help the state capitalize on its water challenges. Globally, similar efforts are identified (and often branded) as water technology innovation clusters (or more simply water clusters). This paper explores the phenomenon of the development of water clusters by public-private partnerships and initiatives, nationally and internationally, in a comparative analysis with Louisiana.

Sustainable development is achieved through the equal promotion of environmental protection, economic development and social equity. Urban planners play a key role in sustainable development through the mediation of tensions inherent between these priorities. Using urban planning theory that focuses on the conflicts between the priorities of sustainable development and lessons learned from planning practice provides a basis from which to evaluate the claims of sustainability present in the Greater New Orleans Urban Water Plan. Outreach initiatives, policy frameworks and ecosystem co-management are suggested to make the planning and implementation processes of the Greater New Orleans Urban Water Plan more feasible in terms of its ability to foster sustainability. Additionally, conceptualizing integrated stormwater management for Greater New Orleans within the context of the Louisiana coastal crisis can help to make the goals of the Urban Water Plan more realistic in the long term and boost institutional capacity to promote regional resilience.