Designing for Human Needs
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DESIGNING FOR HUMAN NEEDS: A NEW MODEL FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD OPEN-AIR CENTER by SARA FIORE (Under the Direction of David Spooner) ABSTRACT The open-air center is one of the most common forms of development found in the American landscape. These developments, however, typically are designed to accommodate automobiles at the expense of the needs of humans and, in particular, pedestrians. In order to address this issue, this thesis identifies the effect of current open- air center designs on human needs and explains how designers can improve upon the current model. An exploration of general human needs theory and, specifically, literature that defines the relationship between human needs and the built environment help to create of a set of eight “theorems” that address human needs specifically within a neighborhood open-air center. Current case study models are examined with a focus on human needs. These findings are applied to a redesign of the Barnett Shoals corridor in Athens, GA. The goal of the thesis is to generate a new form and function for the neighborhood open-air center to serve as a model for future development. INDEX WORDS: Human Needs Theory, Maslow, Neighborhood Open-Air Center, Strip Mall, Retrofit, Suburbia DESIGNING FOR HUMAN NEEDS: A NEW MODEL FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD OPEN-AIR CENTER by SARA FIORE B.A., Boston College, 2003 A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE ATHENS, GEORGIA 2009 © 2009 Sara Fiore All Rights Reserved DESIGNING FOR HUMAN NEEDS: A NEW MODEL FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD OPEN-AIR CENTER by SARA FIORE Major Professor: David Spooner Committee: Danny Bivins Andrew Fox Lara Mathes Electronic Version Approved: Maureen Grasso Dean of the Graduate School The University of Georgia August 2009 iv DEDICATION This work is dedicated to my Grandpa Rocco, who passed down his love of nature, art, and creativity to me. If it were not for him, I may have never found Landscape Architecture in the first place. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many thanks to my major professor, David Spooner, as well as the members of my committee: Danny Bivins, Andy Fox, and Lara Mathes. I would also like to thank my fellow classmates who accompanied me on this journey, my parents who supported me on this journey, and Mike, who not only helped edit my thesis, but encouraged me to do my best. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................ v LIST OF TABLES. .......................................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................1 Problem .........................................................................................................1 Purpose ..........................................................................................................3 Argument and Questions ...............................................................................4 Methodology .................................................................................................4 Process ...........................................................................................................5 Definition of “Neighborhood Open-Air Center” ...........................................5 2 HUMAN NEEDS...............................................................................................9 Introduction ...................................................................................................9 Human Needs Theory ....................................................................................9 Human Needs in the Built Environment .....................................................18 Conclusion ...................................................................................................23 3 HISTORY ........................................................................................................24 Introduction .................................................................................................24 History of the Open-Air Center ...................................................................24 vii Conclusion ...................................................................................................37 4 THEOREMS ....................................................................................................38 Introduction .................................................................................................38 Neighborhood Open-Air Center Theorems .................................................40 Conclusion ...................................................................................................83 5 CASE STUDIES AND ANALYSIS ...............................................................84 Introduction .................................................................................................84 Mashpee Commons, Cape Cod, Massachusetts ..........................................85 Saffron, Sammamish, Washington ..............................................................94 The Uptown District, San Diego, California .............................................101 Santana Row, San Jose, California ............................................................110 Conclusion .................................................................................................120 6 DESIGN APPLICATION ..............................................................................123 Introduction ...............................................................................................123 Site Background ........................................................................................123 Design ........................................................................................................127 Conclusion .................................................................................................150 7 CONCLUSIONS............................................................................................152 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................156 viii LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1-1: Shopping Center Definitions for the U.S. ......................................................... 8 Table 2-1: Matrix of Human Needs Models ..................................................................... 17 ix LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1-1: Typical Strip Corridor Filled with Open-Air Centers ...................................... 2 Figure 1-2: Sketch and Images of a Typical Strip Mall/Open-Air Center .......................... 6 Figure 2-1: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Human Needs ........................................................... 11 Figure 2-2: Lang’s Hierarchy of Human Needs and Design Concerns ............................ 22 Figure 3-1: Taxpayer Strip in Detroit, 1921 ..................................................................... 27 Figure 3-2: J.C. Nichol's Country Club Plaza .................................................................. 29 Figure 3-3: J.C. Nichol's Country Club Plaza ................................................................... 29 Figure 3-4: Grandview Avenue Shopping Center ............................................................ 31 Figure 3-5: Typical Neighborhood Open-Air Center ....................................................... 33 Figure 3-6: Visual Clutter ................................................................................................. 34 Figure 5-1: New Seabury Shopping Center ...................................................................... 85 Figure 5-2: Master Plan of Mashpee Commons ............................................................... 87 Figure 5-3: Liner buildings at Mashpee Commons ......................................................... 88 Figure 5-4: 1985 Figure-Field Diagram ............................................................................ 89 Figure 5-5: 2005 Figure-Field Diagram ............................................................................ 90 Figure 5-6: 2025 Figure-Field Diagram ............................................................................ 90 Figure 5-7: Downtownt Mashpee Commons .................................................................... 93 Figure 5-8: Site plan of Saffron ........................................................................................ 96 Figure 5-9: Sidewalk of Saffron ....................................................................................... 99 x Figure 5-10: Signage for Automobiles ........................................................................... 101 Figure 5-11: Uptown District Before and After .............................................................. 102 Figure 5-12: Uptown District Site Plan .......................................................................... 103 Figure 5-13: Ralph's Grocery Store ................................................................................ 104 Figure 5-14: Uptown District .......................................................................................... 107 Figure 5-15: Uptown District Master Plan ....................................................................