National Center for Smart Growth

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/21472

The National Center for Smart Growth (NCSG) works to advance the notion that research, collaboration, engagement and thoughtful policy development hold the key to a smarter and more sustainable approach to urban and regional development. NCSG is based at the University of Maryland, College Park, housed under the School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation, with support from the College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, the A. James Clark School of Engineering, the School of Public Policy, and the Office of the Provost.

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End date: 2024Subject: search.filters.subject.Sustainability

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Now showing 1 - 10 of 114
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    Reimagining Wilmer's Park
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2022) Adams, Thomas; Akers, Bryce; Contreras, Edenilson; Dashiell, Isiah; Erwin, Abby; Gonzalez, Carlos; Hargrove, Cierra; Jeon, Ryan; Mohan, Madison; Ourand, Matthew; Shelton, Gabrielle; Steuernagle, Emmeline; Thomas-Cogar, Kennedy; Yang, Charlotte; Cakil, Yasemin; Kweon, Byoung-Suk; Seiz, Audrey
    Wilmer’s Park is a “80-acre parcel containing the ruins of a dance hall, motel, ranch house, covered stage, baseball and football fields. As a major stop on the Chitlin Circuit, Wilmer’s Park opened its doors to African-American musicians, entertainers, athletes and fans from the early 1950s through the late 1960s. Arthur Wilmer used his experience and connections developed as the owner of a night club in Washington, D. C. to bring both popular acts and up-and-coming performers to rural Prince George’s County; the bandstand at Wilmer’s Park showcased everyone from Duke Ellington and Otis Redding to the Temptations, Patti La Belle, and a young Stevie Wonder. The former tobacco farm played an important role in exposing emerging musicians to local African Americans during a time of segregation.” The park has been closed for 10+ years and the purpose of this project is to transform Wilmer’s Park for the residents of Brandywine or nearby communities. For this project, students work in teams of three to design a master plan along with an individual detailed site plan. The design program for these plans came from the residents’ comments from community engagement workshops, notes from Councilman Harrison’s interview, important stakeholders, the field trip, and guest lectures. The master plan does not include all 80 acres of the park and often identifies a phasing plan for the entire project.
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    Scenario Planning for Restorative Justice in Lakeland
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2022) Abban, John; Abe, Danielle; Asamoah, Heather; Dyson, Katharine; Farieta, Maria; Hackman, Michael; Jett, Connor; Kaku, Upasana; Kaushik, Redowan; Madden, Maureen; Mekonnen, Elizabeth; Mitchell, Caitlyn; Nkwantabisah, Pamela Owusu; Ripley, Benjamin; Spaniol, Matthew; Whiteheart, Rachel; Irazabal, Clara; Cameron, Hannah
    This report begins with a discussion of the concept of restorative justice and the three themes that guided and organized our work — community infrastructure, housing and land use, and climate change adaptation and mitigation. Following this introduction of the three guiding themes, the report contains a summary of our analysis of existing conditions, including a review of different planning sectors, a brief history of Lakeland, and a summary of plans and policies that have influenced the course of Lakeland. The next section of the report is a summary of the findings of our various community engagement approaches, including recommendations for future best practices for the city and the Restorative Justice Commission as they continue this work. Finally, we present the three planning scenarios — Status Quo, Reform, and Revolutionary — that envision various alternative futures for Lakeland.
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    Solar Microgrid Implementation in Prince George’s County, Maryland
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2022) French, Chase; Van Kirk, Jack; Messick, Andrew; Megale Sanders, Martin
    This paper discusses the benefits associated with developing a solar microgrid in a low-income community in Prince George’s County, Maryland. The benefits include reduced air pollution in the community, reduced adverse health impacts from air pollution, reduced spending on utility bills, as well as increased energy security and a more equitable distribution of renewable energy. Using various sources including reports, academic articles, and case studies, this study proves installation of a microgrid in the County would benefit the community and the surrounding area. An in-depth cost-benefit analysis proves the economic feasibility of a microgrid, and the social benefits provide a sound argument for the benefits of installation. Barriers to implementation are also discussed, focusing on problems related to the source of initial funding. The study concludes with two recommendations for implementing resilient solar photovoltaic systems in Prince George’s County. First, finding alternative funding for a microgrid such as federal grants, public partnership, private sector involvement, and community-based funding. Second, the County should consider using community solar rather than a microgrid based on case studies that indicate the cost-effectiveness and increased feasibility of community solar compared to a solar microgrid.
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    Neighborhood Perceptions and Biking in the Port Towns of Prince George’s County, Maryland
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2022) Friel, Andrew; Goldscher, Paige; Ortiz, Cristian; Solan, Jennifer; Sorensen, Jacob; Cooper-Jean, Ebonie
    The relationship between biking and gentrification in the Port Towns has yet to be fully understood. While working with the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, students from the University of Maryland sought to identify barriers to biking access in the Port Towns of Prince George’s County, Maryland, and how Port Towns residents perceive development, gentrification, and biking.
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    Non-Traditional Maryland Mainstreets
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability, 2022) Kim, Tae; Simeen, Afia; Singh, Udai; Yu, Jiaxin; Hoang, Ryan; Garchitorena, Arvyn; Lin, Arthur; Alale, Oreoluwa; Farshchi, Nima
    In Prince George's county, there are many communities and towns that have a main road lined with unique businesses that are central for local residents, but the structure of these places does not fall within the classical definition of a "main street.” What financial and cultural resources can municipalities with non-traditional mainstreets use to grow these small business corridors?
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    Oxford 2100: Adapting to Climatic Changes
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2021) Ada, Micaela; Callahan, Erin; Reise, Matthew; Shah, Jainee; Sandknop, Erin; Bentley, Daniel; Seiz, Audrey; Mejias, Aliya; Shteinberg, Debrah; Smith, Marci Anne; Myers, David
    This project, supported by the National Center for Smarth Growth’s Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), provides the Oxford community with a visual glimpse of their newly-imagined port town in the year 2100. Students responded to projected sea level rise of 3.5 feet as identified by the Town of Oxford and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Coastal Planners. In addition to a change in mean sea level, students considered mean higher high water (MHHW) above sea level to explore planning and design-scale interventions to inform Oxford’s strategies on climate-sensitive development. The design of this hypothetical intervention focused on sea level rise, as well related factors such as pluvial hydrology, saltwater intrusion, and storm surge.
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    Developing a Bicycle Network Map for Prince George's County
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2022) Abban, John; Luna, Alondra; Gaunaurd, Pierre; Bardsley, Jesse; DelMonico, Jeffrey; Franklin, Kristen; Johnson, Nicholas; Mitchell, Caitlyn; Woldu, Marta; Spaniol, Matthew; Bernish, Andrew
    A class of Urban Planning and Geography students use county data to categorize every road in Prince George's county and assign it a stress value for bikers. Working with PG Planning and the local Vision Zero team, the GIS application depicts every county road color-coated with bike difficulty.
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    Analysis and Scenario Planning for Fairland and Briggs Chaney, Maryland
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2021) Van Allen, Max; Gaunaurd, Pierre; Johnson, Nicholas; Kotzker, Sophie; Luna, Alondra; Reitman, Carter; Trowell, Khayla; von Stetten, Tim; Woldu, Marta; Irazabal, Clara
    This report is the output of the Fall 2021 Urban Studies and Planning studio at the University of Maryland, College Park. Through the Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), our class partnered with Montgomery County’s Planning Department to provide a planning sector analysis and scenario plans to aid in the development of the new Fairland and Briggs Chaney Master Plan, which is organized and guided by the draft general plan for the county, Thrive Montgomery 2050. The scope of work included analysis of existing conditions within the plan boundaries and the provision of three scenario plans ranging from no change to high levels of change. We concentrated our attention within three thematic areas of emphasis: climate change adaptation and mitigation, economic and community development, and housing. Moreover, our central guiding principle for this project was justice; it informs everything we present here, and we hope that our work will contribute to its achievement. The report is organized into two major parts. In part I, in analysis of existing conditions, we cover a wide range of planning topics, including the history of the plan-area and special considerations related to our thematic areas of emphasis. In Part II, we present three scenarios of alternative futures for the plan-area: status quo, reform, and revolution.
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    Greater Baybrook Green Network Plan: A community vision plan for increasing connectivity and enhancing green assets
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2022) Stokes, Bridget; Kweon, Byoung-Suk; Kweon, Byoung-Suk
    The Green Network Plan was designed by determining ongoing investment strategies in the neighborhood, evaluating opportunities and constraints, and analyzing demographics, park equity, environmental justice, and other current site conditions. This green network plan can be used as a guide for creating community priorities for short-term and long-term development related to economic and environmental sustainability. The goal of this Green Network Plan is to enhance and strengthen the community of the Greater Baybrook by connecting the area’s green infrastructure into a unified network of safe and vibrant neighborhoods. It is a Vision Plan for how the neighborhood can enhance its existing natural resources and grow its infrastructure to improve the health and well-being of residents. It has been widely researched that communities with green infrastructure have increased economic, environmental, and social benefits (EPA, 2014). This increased exposure to the natural environment promotes physical health (McCurdy, 2010), mental well-being (Kaplan, 1995), and social connectivity (Jennings, 2019).
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    GIS Youth Sports Facilities Map Application
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2021) Bardsley, Jesse; Johnson, Nicholas; Luna, Alondra; Jones, Asia; Gaunaurd, Pierre; Nkwantabisah, Pamela Owusu; Whiteheart, Rachel; Abban, John; Bernish, Andrew
    A class of Urban Planning and Geography students comb through county data to create a GIS application that maps all baseball and softball fields in Prince George's County.