PROJECT A Plan for Salisbury, MD: Urban Design Transformations in Response to Sea Level Rise
LOCATION Salisbury, Maryland
PROJECT COMPLETION DATE 12/18/2015
PROJECT CATEGORY Graduate / Upper Level Design
PROJECT TYPE Studio
ENTRANT Daniel Moreno-Holt
TEAM MEMBERS
SCHOOL University of Maryland, College Park
FACULTY SPONSOR Garth Rockcastle, FAIA, Professor, Thesis Coordinator / School of Architecture
SUMMARY DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT
This master plan for Salisbury, MD has four primary goals - improve street connectivity, create distinct neighborhoods, develop transformative responses to sea rise, and propose a catalytic first phase of development.
Downtown is in an island condition, disconnected from surrounding neighborhoods. The proposed design improves street and pedestrian networks, reconnecting Salisbury.
The city’s center lacks a distinct sense of place. By building on existing economic, historic, and cultural assets this proposal creates distinct neighborhoods and vibrant destinations.
Sea rise is a significant threat to the city, affecting different parts of downtown in diverse ways. This project explores transformative solutions that turn this threat into an ecological, economic, and cultural asset.
Downtown has struggled to develop due to low rents and a lack of incentives. A first phase which includes a new library and University Performing Arts center engages the city’s economic stakeholders, creating a waterfront destination and reducing development risk.
STUDENT'S STATEMENT
This project started with the intent of producing a master plan for Salisbury. The analysis began by preparing lots of diagrams of existing conditions, including (but not limited to) impervious surface, underground utilities, a traffic analysis, FEMA flood map, and uses. Stakeholders and experts, which included the current and former mayor, president of Salisbury University, local developers, sea rise urban design experts, and traffic engineers, shared their opinions and knowledge on the city and its challenges.
This process revealed that sea rise is one of the most significant threats facing the city. Thus, while more traditional master plan goals such as improving connectivity were maintained, responses to sea rise became the project’s research and design focus, yielding unique and innovative urban forms.
A mix of plan, section, perspective, and type study drawings were utilized to analyze and develop solutions to sea level rise. This threat varies in different parts of downtown, presenting the opportunity to explore unique and diverse strategies. For example, the east end of Main Street, which lies along the south prong, is a low lying area that was formerly a lake for a mill dam. This is a dense, historic neighborhood already prone to flooding, which needs aggressive protection from rising tides. In contrast, the north prong is a large, underdeveloped lowland that can embrace and adapt to sea rise.
The project engages landscape architecture, urban design, and architecture to develop sustainable solutions to sea rise. Through design thinking, this threat is transformed into an asset that improves the culture, ecology, and economy of downtown Salisbury.
IMAGE CAPTIONS & CREDITS
IMAGE 1: A Plan for Salisbury MD_high res image 1, Master Plan, Daniel Moreno-Holt
IMAGE 2: A Plan for Salisbury MD_high res image 2, S.U. Performance Center, Daniel Moreno-Holt
IMAGE 3: A Plan for Salisbury MD_low res image 3, S.U. Performance Center & Library, Daniel Moreno-Holt
IMAGE 4: A Plan for Salisbury MD_low res image 4, Riverwalk Plaza & Dining, Daniel Moreno-Holt
IMAGE 5: A Plan for Salisbury MD_low res image 5, North Prong Playing Fields, Daniel Moreno-Holt
IMAGE 6: A Plan for Salisbury MD_low res image 6, North Prong Aerial, Daniel Moreno-Holt
IMAGE 7: A Plan for Salisbury MD_low res image 7, South Prong Aerial, Daniel Moreno-Holt
MEDIA FOR DOWNLOAD
A Plan for Salisbury, MD: Urban Design Transformations in Response to Sea Level Rise
Category
AIA Maryland Student Design Awards > Graduate > Graduate / Upper Level Design
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