Exploring Urban Forestry's Effect on Climate Change in Chicago's Englewood Neighborhood
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Exploring Urban Forestry’s Effect on Climate Change in Chicago’s Englewood Neighborhood Terminal Project Master of Landscape Architecture University of Florida Monica Sabato Roche 2020 October 01 Committee Chair: Dave Hulse Committee Members: Yi Luo & Kathryn Frank Table of Contents Cover page Approval page Abstract Table of Contents Figures, Tables, and Images List 01 Introduction 10 1.1 Inspiration 1.2 Project Summary Literature & Gaps 1.3 Goals & Objectives 1.4 Project Scope and Significance 1.5 Researchable Topic 1.6 Overview of Chapters 02 Methodology 29 2.1 Neighborhood and Block Selection 2.2 Process Diagram 2.3 ENVI-met Input Data Requirements 2.4 Why ENVI-met? 2.5 Materials, Trees, and Plants 2.6 Weather Data July 2019 - 2050 03 Results 41 3.1 ENVI-met 2019 Leonardo 2D Microclimate Simulation Base Model 3.2 ENVI-met 2050 Leonardo 2D Microclimate Simulation ROW Street Tree 3.3 ENVI-met 2050 Leonardo 2D Microclimate Simulation Vacant Residential 3.4 Comparison of Leonardo 2D 2050 Microclimate Models - M2/M3, M3/M2 3.5 Assessment of Outcomes 2 04 Block Canopy Planting Design 46 4.1 Considerations 4.2 Street Tree Selection 4.3 ROW/Street Tree Selection 4.4 Vacant Residential and Legacy Tree Planting 4.5 Community Level Outcomes and Benefits 4.6 Shadow calculation 4.7 ROW Street Tree Planting Design 4.8 Materials 4.10 Study Area Tree Siting 05 Observations and Conclusion 54 5.1 Observations 5.2 Limitations 5.3 Conclusion 06 Appendix 64 A. Splash Pad Design B. RCP – Representative Concentrated Pathway C. Measurement of Surface/Area Method 3 Figures, Tables, and Images Figure 1.1 State of IL Cook County Figure 1.2 Chicago’s 77 neighborhoods Figure 1.3 Englewood IL Figure 1.4 Englewood Available Planting Area Figure 1.5 Chicago urban plume scale over Lake Michigan west to east Figure 1.6 Tree Failure rates West Oakland study Figure 1.7. Urban Forest Outcomes Figure 1.8 Prospective street tree planting patterns Figure 1.9 Six pattern simulations of tree size and planting space Figure 1.10 ENVI-met Microclimate cross section outcomes Figure 1.11 City of Savannah public squares Figure 1.12 Chicago Summer Nights Figure 1.13 Chicago Summer Days Figure 2.1 Study area on map of Englewood Figure 2.2 Process Diagram Figure 2.3 Month of July 2019 MDW Wind Rose Figure 2.4 ENVI-met M1: 2019 Study Area Base Block Plan Figure 2.5 Site Map Study Area Figure 2.6 ENVI-met M1: 2019 Study Area Base Block Isometric Figure 2.7 ENVI-met M2: 2050 Study Area ROW/Street Tree Block Plan Model / 45% Canopy Figure 2.8 ENVI-met M2: 2050 Study Area ROW/Street Tree Block Isometric 45% Canopy Figure 2.9 ENVI-met M3: 2050 Englewood Vacant Residential Diagonal Tree Plan≥ Model 50% Figure 2.10 ENVI-met M3: 2050 Englewood Vacant Residential Diagonal Tree Isometric≥ 50 Figure 3.1 M1: 2019 Study Area Base Microclimate Simulation 15:00 EDT, 82.35°F – 87.71°F≥ Figure 3.2 M1: 2019 Study Area Base Microclimate Simulation 3:00 am EDT, 72.88°F – 74.46°F≥ Figure 3.3 M2: 2050 ROW Street Tree Microclimate Simulation 15:00 EDT, 84.47°F – 89.42°F Figure 3.4 M2: 2050 ROW Street Tree Microclimate Simulation 3:00 am EDT, 76.35°F – 77.92°F Figure 3.5 M3: 2050 Vacant Residential Diagonal Microclimate 15:00 EDT, 84.4°F – 89.73°F Figure 3.6 M3: 2050 Vacant Residential Diagonal Microclimate 3:00 am EDT, 76.35°F – 77.97°F Figure 3.7 2050 M2/M3 15:00 EDT Figure 3.8 2050 M3/M2 15:00 EDT Figure 4.1 Study Area Canopy Tree Site Design 4 Table 1.1 Englewood Land Use Types classifications and land cover Table 2.1 Study Area Homes and Apartment Building Inventory Table 4.1 Selected Site Street/Parkway/Alley/ Legacy Trees Table 4.2 City of Chicago Bureau of Forestry Tree Planting Diversity Requirements Cover Image Isometric of Englewood Study Area Image 1.1 Aerial Map of Englewood Image 1.2 North view 6100 block S. May St., Englewood Image 1.3 South view 6100 block S. Aberdeen St., Englewood Image 1.4 NASA map of Chicago Englewood Lake Michigan Image 2.1 Study area location image Image 2.3 Street View S. May St. Image 2.4 Street View S. Aberdeen St. Image 4.1 Sun Direction and Angle July 17, 2019 10:00 am EDT– Sunseeker app Image 4.2 Sun Direction and Angle July 17, 2019 3:00 pm EDT- Sunseeker app Image 4.3 Alley Power lines W 62nd/S May St. N view Image 4.4 Alley Power lines W 62nd/S Aberdeen St. N view 5 Acronyms DBH Diameter at Breast Height UHI Urban Heat Island ROW Right of Way RCP Representative Concentration Pathway LBF Lake-Breeze Front Abstract Englewood is one of Chicago’s 77 neighborhoods located on the far Southwest side of Chicago, Garfield Blvd. to the north, Racine Ave to the west, 75th Street to the south, and the Metra, commuter rail system, Red Line tracks to the east. At its peak in 1960, Englewood was fully developed and home to over 90,000 residents. Today the population of Englewood is 25,000 and well over half of the 3.07 mi2 area is now vacant residential zoned land. A 1995 Chicago summer heat wave took the lives of over 700 residents, the majority of whom lived in Englewood. With the existing plethora of vacant land in Englewood, over 1386 city-owned vacant lots (data.cityofchicago.org), and climate change underway, this neighborhood provides both the space and opportunity to research the temperature effects of increased tree canopy in a two-block study area over a 30-year period with the intent of exploring potential summer high temperature relief to the residents of Englewood and other similar urban spaces. 6 This study found that street trees planted ≥40% along the right of way, without spacing between mature tree projected canopy diameter, provided similar climate mitigation as vacant lot tree planting ≥70% in study area. Due to time and space constraints what is not contained in this research are current socio-economic issues and any real or projected socio-economic benefits derived from the outcome of the study. Figure 1.1 State of IL Cook County Figure 1.2 Chicago’s 77 neighborhoods Figure 1.3 Englewood IL Study Block 7 Copyright Page Monica Sabato Roche © 8 Acknowledgements Committee Chair - David Hulse & Committee Members - Yi Luo and Kathryn Frank for your diligence and encouragement. John Mariani of LandServe LLC, Brendan Daley of Chicago Park District, and The “A” Team. 9 01 Introduction 1.1 Inspiration The death of 739 Chicago residents, the vast majority living in Englewood, during the July 1995 Heat Wave in Chicago caught my attention and inspired me to look more critically into a)why hundreds of people succumbed to the heat and b)if the establishment of a greater tree canopy can mitigate the summer heat. On a satellite map, Englewood appears very green with plenty of open land. Over 50% of the residential land in Englewood is vacant (Figure 1.4). The City of Chicago owns, mows, and maintains over 1300 vacant lots in Englewood. An additional 481 vacant lots have been sold to local Englewood residents since 2014, through the $1 Large Lots program, the vast majority 10 remaining vacant. As homes and multi-family residences were vacated and fell into disrepair, the City of Chicago razed the structures, 800 in 2018 alone. Englewood’s neighbors are few and far between with some blocks having only a few homes remaining. Very little new construction and renovation has occurred in the Englewood neighborhood since the 1990’s, with the exception of a renewed retail and commercial zone in Englewood’s core. What remains is block after block of grassy vacant lots, some trees, and the few remaining homes. The outline of many basement walls protrudes, revealing the footprint of the former structure. As reported by Chicago Regional Tree Initiative (chicagorti.org), Englewood has a 24.5% tree canopy coverage and 51% impervious surface overall, with more than 864 acres of available planting space (Figure 1.4, Table 1.1). Tree canopy coverage in the City of Chicago ranges from 7% to 40% (Chicagorti.org) and currently averages 19% overall (Chicago Sun Times, 2020). Englewood has great potential for planting trees and enhancing the tree canopy, providing more summer shade and keeping the streets, sidewalks, and people cooler, now and in the future. 11 Image 1.1 Aerial Google Map of Englewood Image 1.2 North view 6100 block S. May St., Englewood Image 1.3 South view 6100 block S. Aberdeen St., Englewood 12 Figure 1.4 Englewood Available Planting Area (Chicagorti.org) 13 Table 1.1 Englewood Land use type classifications and land cover, (Chicagorti.org) Chicago and its Southwest side Englewood neighborhood experience Urban Heat Island Effect (UHI), the condition that describes higher temperatures in urban areas than surrounding rural areas. UHI is caused by covering once permeable surfaces with impermeable surfaces. In the city this includes housing, sidewalks, driveways, and streets. Indicators of UHI include higher overnight low temperatures, a result of the homes, streets, and impervious surfaces retaining daytime heat and releasing it in the evening. The location of the city core is about 9 miles northeast and with Lake Michigan 3.7 miles directly to the east of Englewood and less developed communities farther west from Chicago (Image 1.4).