Core of the City

11.360 COMMUNITY GROWTH AND LAND USE PLANNING PRACTICUM M.I.T. DEPARTMENT OF URBAN STUDIES AND PLANNING FALL 2016

Terry S. Szold, Adjunct Professor, [email protected] Tuesday – Thursday 2:30 PM - 4:00 PM Minjee Kim, Instructor, [email protected] 3-0-9 (H) Units Carlos Alberto Sainz Caccia, TA, [email protected] Room 10-401 lectures/discussion Room studio space TBD

COURSE DESCRIPTION

“The successful city will be led not just by political and business leaders but by a host of concerned citizens who believe in the value of civic involvement. The developer, the planner, the architect, the lawyer, the preacher, the doctor, the banker, the broker, the baker, the seniors, the boomers and the X-ers will all practice the art of ‘city- ship’…. Those who answer the call that went out as long ago as the Tower of Babel—‘Come, let us build ourselves a city’—will hold the city in their hearts and their hands…. It may seem idealistic, in our hard-edged, competitive world, to discuss community building and participation in community affairs. But there seems to be a growing consensus that this indeed is important…. That applies to all professions… and especially to the talented individuals in the land use/built-environment business, where men and women make decisions day in and day out that affect the health, safety, welfare, and happiness of communities in this country.”

William H. Hudnut III, 1998

This class explores the techniques, processes, and personal and professional skills required to effectively manage growth and land use change. While primarily focused on planning practice in the United States, the principles and techniques reviewed and presented may have international application. This class is not for bystanders; it is designed for those who wish to become actively involved or exposed to the planning discipline and profession as it is practiced today, and as it may need to be practiced in the future.

The fundamentals of the land use planning and growth management system are explored. Discussion and review of both traditional and innovative approaches to land use planning and growth management will occur, with emphasis on participatory processes and performance-based systems. Examples of the tools and techniques utilized at the local, regional, and state level of government will also be presented and evaluated.

A major focus of the class involves student work on a client-based land use planning project. The project will enable students to draw upon and apply a variety of approaches and interventions explored in the classroom and readings. This year, the class study area will include MIT’s Northwest Campus, and the adjacent Cambridge neighborhood of Cambridgeport.

1 of 7 Class sessions employ lectures, discussions of readings, case materials, and student presentations. A reader (posted on the class Stellar web site) containing journal articles, papers, and other written works relevant to contemporary planning practice and the evolution of the discipline supplements class session topics and discussion. Where appropriate to specific topics, guest speakers will present to the class and join in our group discussion.

No prior training or experience in physical planning or urban design is assumed, although it is advantageous. Some exposure to imaging software and GIS is helpful. There is no final examination required for completion of the course. In addition to classwork, each student will be required to participate, as a project team member, in the preparation of a project for an actual client.

Student evaluations will be principally based upon their contributions to the community planning project, including the preparation of the final plan report, participation in mid-term and final presentations of the plan to the client and others, and submission of a short, individual “synthesis paper” about the planning project, and their specific contributions to the plan. Participation in class discussion will also be a significant factor in final grade evaluations.

Academic Integrity For information on MIT’s rules on academic integrity, also applicable to this class, please go to the MIT Website: http://web.mit.edu/academicintegrity.

Students with Disabilities This class follows the MIT rules on the accommodation for students with disabilities, details for which are at: http://studentlife.mit.edu/dso/students

Instructor Office Hours By appointment

2 of 7 CLASS OUTLINE AND SCHEDULE

Week 1: INTRODUCTION September 8. Course Introduction September 10. Saturday study area walking tour

Week 2: PROJECT INTRODUCTION AND START-UP September 13. Project Introduced – Office of Campus Planning (Client) and Dean Sarkis in class; Project teams formed September 15. Planning in Cambridge – staff from Cambridge Community Development Department and Cambridge Historical Commission (to share the study area’s planning context, history, and any relevant future plans/goals for the area)

Week 3: PROJECT START-UP/HISTORY OF PLANNING September 20. The Planner’s and Urban Designer’s Tools: Approaches and Principles September 22. Discussion of Project

Week 4: MAKING A PLAN: WHERE TO BEGIN? September 27. Guest Lecture – Viktorija Abolina (MCP’13, BRA Senior Planner, to talk about community-based visioning and how to develop an implementable plan from a vision) September 29. Teams Present Preliminary Analysis of Existing Conditions and Uses in class for discussion (Client invited)

Week 5: PLANNING FOR GROWTH AND ZONING CONTROLS October 4. Zoning Controls – The Basics October 6. Cambridge’s Zoning and Project Review Process (Discussion) – Jeff Roberts (MCP’03, Cambridge CDD, Zoning Project Planner), Suzannah Bigolin (Cambridge CDD, Urban Design Project Planner)

Week 6: CAMPUS PLANNING October 11 Holiday – Columbus Day October 13. Understanding MIT’s Future Program Needs (Interviews) – Dennis Swinford (MIT OCP), Sarah Gallop (MIT Government and Community Relations), Mike Owu (MITimco)

Week 7: CAMPUS PLANNING (continued) October 18. Guest Lecture – Mary Anne Ocampo (Principal, Sasaki Associates, to share her experience with campus planning for national and international universities) October 20. Understanding MIT’s Future Program Needs (Roundtable discussion with stakeholders that represent different program needs e.g., Housing, Academic and Research, Service, and Provost Office)

3 of 7 Week 8: CAMPUS PLANNING (continued) October 25. First Public Meeting Work Day October . Evening: Class Presents Project Overview (1st Public Meeting) October 27. Debriefing of Public Meeting

Week 9: DEVELOPING ALTERNATIVE GROWTH SCENARIOS November 1. Density, Bulk, and Height… How to Explore the Physical Infrastructure and Building Needs November 3. Project Work Day

Week 10: ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE PLANNING November 8. Guest Lecture – Larry Susskind to talk about Cambridge’s Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment Plan and climate change risks of the study area November 10. Project Work Day

Week 11: ENHANCING MOBILITY AND CONNECTIVITY November 15. Parking Design, Streetscape Design, Traffic Calming, and Complete Streets November 17. Project Work Day

Week 12: URBAN DESIGN AND PLACEMAKING November 22. Urban Design Guidelines, Placemaking, and Design of Public Spaces November 24. Holiday (Thanksgiving)

Week 13: FINAL PLAN PRODUCTION November 29. Client meeting with project teams December 1. Project Work Day

Week 14: FINAL PLAN PRODUCTION December 6. Final Public Meeting Work Day December. Evening: Class Presents Alternative Growth Scenarios for Northwest Campus (2nd Public Meeting) December 8. Debriefing of Public Meeting / The Role of Planning and the Planner in Society: Class Wrap-up and Synthesis

Week 15: FINAL PLAN PRODUCTION December 13. Final Plan Work Day – Report drafts discussed and edits underway

4 of 7 DUSP 11.360 Fall Practicum 2016: Creating a Vision for MIT’s Northwest Campus

Background Recently, MIT went through a significant planning process that will substantially transform the eastern end of the campus in the coming years. What the process also highlighted was the challenge of balancing various and sometimes-competing demands for space and the importance of a long- term vision in guiding such a balancing act. Particularly, the Northwest campus area, located west of Massachusetts Avenue and north of Vassar Street, presents untapped opportunities to house the ever growing and evolving spatial needs of the Institute. MIT’s Northwest Campus is poised to change in the very near future, and thus it will be extremely important for the Institute to prepare a vision and plan for the area to guide its growth.

Responding to the need to plan comprehensively for MIT’s Northwest Campus, the Office of Campus Planning (OCP) has engaged the Community Growth and Land Use Planning practicum workshop (11.360) in the MIT Department of Urban Studies and Planning to develop a vision for the area. The students will be asked to explore several scenarios for how the area could be used in the future, specify the physical infrastructure, regulatory standards, and Institute’s policies that can support the future scenarios, and submit a recommended plan and associated implementation strategies to make the vision a reality.

Project Goal The vision for Northwest Campus shall evolve from the fundamental goal of meeting the Institute’s future spatial needs, while ensuring a smooth transition to the historic residential neighborhood of Cambridgeport. Specifically, the Client would like the students to explore appropriate program mixes for the Northwest campus, to propose the amounts and types of spaces that will be needed to accommodate the program mix alternatives, and to investigate how and whether these programs could be reasonably fit into existing MIT land resources.

Based on the previous studies of the West campus area and the Client’s understanding of campus needs, the Client has provided a targeted list of programs that should be considered for Northwest Campus.

 Administration and Service – Relocation of administrative offices and campus facilities services such as Repair and Maintenance and Grounds.  Education and Research – Relocation or expansion of some research programs from Main Campus to create a more robust and attractive NW Research community. New academic maker and innovation spaces could also contribute to this community. Assess viability including floorplate size, challenge of historic preservation considerations, and existing uses.  Graduate Housing – Review recent study encouraging additional units and potential for new or converted family and single graduate student housing in the vicinity of existing graduate dorms. Determine the potential for sites in the northwest to fulfill this need.  Innovation Ecosystem – The Northwest area is an important part of the MIT-influenced start-up and innovation culture. There is MIT-owned property being used to house these enterprises, along with other private owners in the area. What opportunities are there to support this activity?

5 of 7  Public Realm – The Northwest area and the Grand Junction (railway) corridor that runs through MIT’s campus, particularly near the campus to the south, could be improved to support existing and new uses that might be proposed. Connectivity between the West and Northwest campus, streetscape improvements and open space opportunities could be explored. Assess the needed and desired uses of the Grand Junction corridor including transit, community path, service and utilities.

By focusing on these programs, the students will get a chance to engage various stakeholders both internal and external to the Institute to develop alternative growth scenarios for Northwest Campus. Among the questions that could be addressed:  Are the uses compatible with the neighboring uses, both MIT and non-MIT? Does the existing zoning allow the uses desired? What changes in the allowed uses would be recommended?  What kind of impact, positive and negative, might we expect from the proposed developments?  What kind of scale would be appropriate?  Could existing allowed densities absorb the amount of space contemplated? If not, what density would be appropriate and where might it best be located, given the surrounding neighborhood?  What about dimensional requirements, like height, setback, open space, or parking requirements? How might these constraints be altered to more reasonably support development, without adverse impacts on neighboring uses or the streetscape?  What kind of streetscape, transportation, parking and other infrastructure improvements would be needed or desired to support the alternative uses?  What kind of constraints might exist on the contemplated land: existing tenants and leases, Activity and Use Limitations (AULs), easements, historic resources, etc.  What has the City of Cambridge – as codified in public planning documents – envisioned for the area? Are these visions and recommendations still relevant? Do they adequately capture the community’s positions?  How will the project’s vision fit into the City of Cambridge’s comprehensive planning process currently underway?  Other issues that would be appropriate and useful for exploration: storm water management, open space, potential retail opportunities, etc.

Project Milestones / Deliverables The students will prepare for and conduct two public meetings during the course of the semester:

 Late October 2016: A project overview presentation and a forum to solicit ideas from the community members about the desired campus-neighborhood interface.  Early December 2016: A presentation of the alternative growth scenarios for Northwest Campus and a forum to solicit community feedback on the alternatives.

A Final Plan Report and plan consisting of text and graphic material reflecting the scope of work above, and the work and analysis performed by the students, shall be submitted at the conclusion of the semester. A brief executive summary of the final report will be submitted to the Client for

6 of 7 distribution and review before the final meeting described above. The report will outline a baseline vision, alternative program mix scenarios and the physical infrastructure that can support the suggested alternatives, and implementation strategies with respect to the potential growth scenarios.

A camera-ready copy of the final plan will be submitted to the Client, along with a (to be agreed-upon) number of printed copies. An electronic copy shall also be provided, in a format that allows for it to be posted to relevant websites at MIT.

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