Browsing by Author "Burg, Gardner"
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- Clinch River Valley Regional Visitor Center Conceptual DesignGilboy, Elizabeth; Schellhammer, Christopher; Black, Kenneth Allan; Burg, Gardner; Houck, Chris; Saeidi-Rizi, Fatemeh; Walker, Harley (Virginia Tech. Community Design Assistance Center, 2013-06)St. Paul is a small but vibrant town in southwestern Virginia with a rich history. Situated along the Clinch River and holding land in both Russell and Wise Counties, it is strategically located and poised to serve as a gateway to the region’s natural assets. The Clinch River is internationally renowned for its biological diversity and is a regional asset. Thus, the Clinch River and other complimentary assets (existing trail systems, Wetlands Estonoa, etc.) are a primary focus for a new creative economy dealing with tourism.
To enrich the new plan for economic development and to communicate the ecological and tourism potential of Southwest Virginia, the region’s advocates are exploring the concept of an entry gateway. This gateway would serve four counties and the City of Norton and act as a regional visitor center.
The Town and Russell County received permission from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) to develop an entry gateway along US 58 on a piece of property bound by US 58, St. Paul Road, and County Road 640 (Frosty Road) and recently conveyed the site to Russell County. Elements envisioned for the space include a LEED certified regional visitor center that highlights the four counties along the Clinch River in Southwest Virginia, enhanced plantings, signage, parking, an informational kiosk, and possibly a small covered shelter. Vehicular entry to the site will be provided from County Road 640. The site and structure would highlight and respond to the Clinch River, offering views to the nearby river as well as educational and recreational information about the Clinch.The Town and Russell County received permission from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) to develop an entry gateway along US 58 on a piece of property bound by US 58, St. Paul Road, and County Road 640 (Frosty Road) and recently conveyed the site to Russell County. Elements envisioned for the space include a LEED certified regional visitor center that highlights the four counties along the Clinch River in Southwest Virginia, enhanced plantings, signage, parking, an informational kiosk, and possibly a small covered shelter. Vehicular entry to the site will be provided from County Road 640. The site and structure would highlight and respond to the Clinch River, offering views to the nearby river as well as educational and recreational information about the Clinch.
Funding for this project has been provided by a USDA Forest Service (Region 8) Competitive Grant through the Southern Group of State Foresters in partnership with the Virginia Department of Forestry. In the spirit of this partnership, the project will build awareness of regional forestry-related industries through the thoughtful design, specification and implementation of landscape architecture material, architectural material and construction practices. The Community Design Assistance Center (CDAC) was asked to assist the Town of St. Paul and St. Paul Tomorrow, Inc. with a conceptual master plan for this entry gateway. CDAC worked with St. Paul Tomorrow, Inc., Town Council, VDOT, and the local community to refine the program and develop a concept for the visitor center. This report is a compilation of these design concepts. - Deep Run bike and pedestrian trail design and alignment studyGilboy, Elizabeth; Browning, Lara; Burg, Gardner; Walker, Harley (Virginia Tech. Community Design Assistance Center, 2012-11)The Community Design Assistance Center (CDAC), approached by Spotsylvania County and the Spotsylvania Greenway Initiative (SGI), was tasked to lead a collection of regional stakeholders in a project to highlight the cultural heritage of the area and re-engage the local community through opportunities for recreation and alternative transportation. The purpose of this project was to create a conceptual layout for a trail system that would connect Fredericksburg to these cultural and historic assets related to its involvement in the Civil War. This trail would also provide opportunities to connect to existing trail networks, as well as, a number of developing economic resources and outdoor recreational opportunities. The details of these design considerations will be discussed in more detail in the following pages.
Throughout the design process, the CDAC team and community stakeholders worked collaboratively to develop design goals and strategies for achieving those goals. After presenting a preliminary concept to a number of Spotsylvania County representatives at a community meeting, suggestions received were used to develop the concept and create final route options. The final concept, as presented in this document, is meant to provide a number of route choices. While some routes are presented as more ideal than others, the flexibility of the final proposal will aid in its adaptive implementation. With this in mind, the success of this project relies not only on presenting a desirable trail routing concept, but ensuring that the final concept is firmly rooted in community interest and practical understandings of the limits of the project. - Learning center at Fishburn Forest concept design : Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VAGilboy, Elizabeth; Korkuti, Arian; Steika, Kim; Rogers, Robin; Smith, Liam; Wan, Milo; Burg, Gardner; Dunne, Peter; Jessup, Jennifer; Pieri, Gray; Poteet, Tish (Virginia Tech. Community Design Assistance Center, 2014-03)The Fishburn property is a site of about 1,400 acres located about 6 miles west of the Virginia Tech Blacksburg campus. It was donated to Virginia Tech by Junius B. Fishburn, former president of the Southwest Virginia Trust Co. and former owner of the Roanoke Times. Approximately 1,350 acres is owned by Virginia Tech and the remaining 53 acres by the Virginia Tech Foundation. The Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation (Dept of FREC) manages the property and uses it as a living lab for a variety of classes that require field work.
The Department of FREC would like to build a learning center that could serve a variety of uses including supporting the educational activities of the Department; renting the facility to other groups for meetings, conferences, weddings, and community functions; and opening the site more formally to the public. Two possible locations for the facility were selected by FREC representatives for consideration.
Preliminary programing elements for the building include a meeting hall for approximately 50 people, a kitchen, restrooms, offices, and a caretaker’s facility.
The Fishburn project began with an initial site visit to the property, guided by Dr. Mike Aust, Forestry Professor. During that visit, Dr. Aust shared some of the site’s past and more contemporary history with the CDAC design team. Two potential locations were identified for the learning center’s concept design. Qualities of each site were discussed with Dr. Aust as well as current uses by the College of Natural Resources and the university at large. The CDAC team photographed each site and conducted an inventory and analysis. Additional visits to the site were made to gather and confirm site analysis information.
After completing inventory and analysis for each site, the CDAC team prepared four preliminary design ideas for the learning center - two for each site. These design ideas were presented to faculty, staff, and administration in the College of Natural Resources and the Environment (CNRE). Additionally, a short survey was prepared. This survey along with 11x17 drawings of the design ideas were distributed to faculty for review and comment.
Based on comments received from faculty and staff as well as guidance from Dr. Janaki Alavapati, the CDAC team narrowed the design focus to what was termed “Site 2” and developed two conceptual design options for that site. Conceptual designs were presented to Joshua Galloway (Community Housing Partners) and Mark McConel (Summit Studio), architects on the CDAC Design Review Panel. Refinements were made based on their feedback. The designs were presented in November 2013 to the client group. Slight revisions were made based on comments from this presentation and one final conceptual design for the structure and caretaker’s residence and one final site master plan were prepared for the learning center.
This short supporting report was prepared to document the design process and describe the design concepts prepared by the Community Design Assistance Center. - Radford Comprehensive Plan Updates: Radford Village Center and Foundry Industrial Area Conceptual Master PlansGilboy, Elizabeth; Browning, Lara; Alsaiari, Hamad; Burg, Gardner; Kim, Kyunghee; Rosenberger, Jack (Virginia Tech. Community Design Assistance Center, 2015-06)The City of Radford is in the process of updating their 2009 Comprehensive Plan. As part of this process, several conceptual sketches that convey practical, yet visionary ideas for future development and redevelopment were needed. The city requested the Community Design Assistance Center’s help with this. The areas in need of conceptual sketches included the Radford Village Center and the Foundry Industrial Area, both located in the west end of the city.
The Radford Village Center is located roughly parallel to the Norfolk and Western Railway, Bisset Park, and the New River. The Village Center area consists of several blocks southwest of the Memorial Bridge and contains the West End Downtown Historic District. Currently the area contains some vacant/underutilized lots. Many of these lots are located between the West Main Street businesses and the rail line.
The city sees an opportunity to utilize this space to create a more usable open space for pedestrians and shop patrons as well as for limited infill development where appropriate. It is envisioned that the rear facades of these existing businesses will serve as “back porches” to a pedestrian friendly open space. The city requested that CDAC develop a master plan that takes advantage of the topography and river views. CDAC also looked at the potential for updating current parking in the area.
The Foundry Industrial Area consists of approximately 140 acres situated between Bolling and Denby Streets along the New River. Historically, the area has been used for heavy industrial manufacturing. The site may soon be open for redevelopment and the city is considering the opportunity for a light industrial business park. The Design Center worked with the city to develop a master plan of this area that included conceptual building layout and character, proposed trails, sidewalk/streetscaping elements along Main Street, and a potential pedestrian connection from the site to a trail along the river.
The following context map shows the locations of the two sites within the City of Radford, in relation to the New River, and Radford Village Center’s location near Bisset Park. - Re: Reflections and explorations : Essays on politics, public policy, and governanceStephenson, Max O. Jr.; Kirakosyan, Lyusyena (Virginia Tech Institute for Policy and Governance, 2015)We have organized the essays that follow in this volume into nine themes or broad topical foci based on the subjects our RE: Reflections and Explorations authors selected for their efforts during 2013-2014. A brief overview of our contributors’ organizing issues follows. Part 1 contains six essays that address the role(s) of the academy in society. Part 2 offers six essays that address questions central to the relationships among art, culture and politics. Part 3’s five essays treat issues linked to community building. Part 4 includes five essays that explore the challenges of public leadership at multiple scales and in a variety of contexts. Part 5’s eight essays examine a variety of concerns central to the characteristics and fundamentals of democratic citizenship and ethics. Part 6 consists of six essays that explore different dimensions of international politics. Part 7 of the volume comprises seven essays that directly or indirectly illuminate alternate facets of local and international development dynamics. Part 8 includes six essays that together analyze several manifestations or implications of neoliberalism, the current dominant public imaginary or frame in American and indeed, Western, politics. Part 9’s seven essays each afford readers alternate lenses into the dynamics and vicissitudes of change processes, as conceptualized at alternate analytical levels. The 56 essays together address a variety of concerns central to democratic politics and self-governance. The topics are as varied as our contributor’s substantive interests and perspectives, and that diversity yields a complex array of analytical insights. We hope you enjoy reading this richly textured collection as much as we have enjoyed assembling it.
- Stecoah Valley Center Conceptual Site Master PlanGilboy, Elizabeth; Browning, Lara; Burg, Gardner; Behbahani, Armaghan Behzad; VanNoy, Jess; Alsaiari, Hamad; Eliason, Amy; Gresham, Carter (Virginia Tech. Community Design Assistance Center, 2015-06)The Stecoah Valley Center is located in Stecoah, NC within Graham County. The Center was built in 1926 and served the community as the Stecoah Union School until it was closed in 1994 and converted into a cultural center. The Center now serves the community as a place for after school arts programs, a performance space, an art gallery, a museum for Cherokee history, and an event space to celebrate local arts and agriculture. The Center sits on 10 acres of land currently comprised of a fitness trail that surrounds the extent of the property, a playground, an azalea garden, a pavilion, a separate gymnasium building, and a creek. The majority of the grounds consists of open space to provide ample room for the many cultural events the Center hosts in the summer and fall seasons.
The Community Design Assistance Center (CDAC) was tasked with developing a conceptual master plan to enhance the cultural and environmental quality of the grounds. The proposed master plan includes a half-basketball court that also serves as an outdoor performance space, outdoor restrooms, a wind garden, a story circle, a creek-side reading area, an interpretive walking trail with a variety of stations, and stormwater management all of which are Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible. In addition, open space was preserved to support the many events that the Center hosts every year.
The Stecoah Valley Center also wanted CDAC to enhance the fitness trail and convert it to an interpretive walking trail, so 5 interpretive stations were proposed. These stations reflect the history, culture, art, and geology of the region. - Wise County nature and fitness trail, Wise County, VirginiaGilboy, Elizabeth; Browning, Lara; Burg, Gardner; Cooper, Kyle; Davis, Brad; Dunne, Peter (Virginia Tech. Community Design Assistance Center, 2013-06)Approximately 40 acres of land and a house located in the Town of Wise were bequeathed to the Wise County Industrial Development Authority by Carol Buchanan with the understanding and intent that it be used as a sanctuary park for animals and birds and would be open to the public to enjoy nature along the paths and trails. The current vision for the site is to develop a series of nature trails on the property that are of varying degrees of difficulty. Additionally, in order to provide opportunities to combat the problem of obesity in the area, exercise stations along the pathways and an outdoor classroom for educational sessions and presentations were desired. Parking and a picnic area were desired as well.
The Community Design Assistance Center worked with a team of stakeholders including the Wise County Health Department, Wise County Litter Control Department, Keep Wise Beautiful, Keep Southwest Virginia Beautiful, and the Upper Tennessee River Roundtable to develop a conceptual master plan for the site. The team also prepared focus area designs as needed for areas, such as the parking lot, and supporting sketches to visually convey ideas for various areas within the park (i.e. outdoor classrooms, exercise stations, etc).