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Culture, Community Development, and Sustainability in a Post-Freeway City

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Freeways that once tore through the urban fabric are now reaching the end of their lifespan and raising the question as to whether it is time to rebuild or remove. The Interstate system has revolutionized transportation, connecting cities nationwide, but at the same time has slashed through the existing urban fabric. The very land from which hundreds of Fox Point residents were evicted due to the construction of Interstate 195 through Providence, Rhode Island, now lies barren as a result of the interstate's realignment. The surplus land has been rezoned as the East Side Overlay District (ESOD), and is awaiting development. This presents an opportunity to redefine sustainable community development and Fox Point's connection to the waterfront. Sustainable redevelopment of the East Side Overlay District (ESOD) requires culture as a framework for supporting environmental, economic, and social vitality in a post-urban freeway community. This project utilizes Google Earth as a medium for community collaboration in creating a cultural infrastructure. The web blog Invisible City: Fox Point Providence provides a virtual portal for residents to share stories, memories, and experiences that have shaped the ESOD area of Fox Point. This project provides digital models of the buildings from 1920 and 1956, obtained through Sanborn Maps, as a means of collecting oral histories in a physical context. Residents will be able to attach images, text, audio, or links to digital models, revealing the invisible acts that shape cities. In addition, a proposal for the ESOD is submitted as a digital model for residents to visualize in the context of their cultural infrastructure. This may serve as an ensuing medium for community engagement in planning and design. The post-freeway city has an opportunity to rebuild sustainable communities through cultural infrastructure. KEYWORDS: Culture, community development, sustainability, urban freeway, urban renewal, urban waterfront redevelopment
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Masters Project
Date
2011-05
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