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Assisting a community to
address change was the focus of the fifth-year, spring semester Urban
Design Studio. The Eastwood Neighborhood, located on the eastern boundary
of Syracuse, NY, has been challenged with a changing population base, and
an increase of development types that threaten its historic and pedestrian
character.
The students worked closely with area
residents, nonprofit organizations and elected officials to conduct an
in-depth analyses which included the neighborhood's history, land use,
open spaces, circulation, and architectural character, in order to develop
guidelines for future development and strategies that address specific
economic and community goals.
An independent village before its
incorporation by Syracuse in the 1920s, Eastwood retains its strong sense
of community identity. Students were able to generate a unique design
vocabulary through resident involvement and extensive research into the
area's history. Site details were an important component of the proposal,
a family of site furniture that draws on the area's prominent role in the
Arts and Crafts Movement--the early Stickley Furniture Factory was located
in Eastwood, and the Eastwood Chair was one of Stickley's most popular
designs.
This project generated so much excitement evidenced in
the way the residents have engaged the project and carried it forward into
implementation. Two of the design proposals were submitted for funding
from the Syracuse Neighborhood Initiative, the Eastwood signage proposal
received $25,000. The proposed James Street Corridor Zoning Overlay
ordinance was approved and adopted by the City of Syracuse. The
neighborhood even adopted the above logo, designed by the students, as
their own.
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