Great, Green Neighborhoods
In the summer of 2013, Boulder's community planning and sustainability staff asked us to help them consider what child-friendly, dense, affordable housing would look like in Boulder. As part of this exploration, GUB partnered with the University of Colorado to examine Athen's Court, a housing site in need of renovation, flood protection, and increased density. GUB partnered with 3 3rd-grade classes at Whittier International Elementary School and Boulder High School's AVID class in the fall of 2013. During this time, Boulder was hit by a severe flood which resulted in evacuation of the residents of Athens Court. The imperative for flood protection became very real in this project! Some of the Whittier students live in this housing site and experienced the evacuation first hand. In the spring semester, GUB students presented their ideas to a CU Environmental Design class that was focusing on the same space and questions for a design studio and seminar. This course brought together many of GUB's partners: elementary and high school students, CU architects and planners, and city staff to consider Boulder's future in sustainable, dense, affordable housing.
GUB Program Coordinators Mara Mintzer and Tori Derr and ENVD students Grayson O'Roark, Ivan Patino and Emily Tarantini presented the results of the "Great, Green Neighborhoods" Project in order to inform Boulder's Comprehensive Housing Strategy. More than 35 city staff and decision-makers attended the presentation from the Boulder's planning board, design advisory board, community planning, housing division, housing authority, and from local non-profits.
GUB Program Coordinators Mara Mintzer and Tori Derr and ENVD students Grayson O'Roark, Ivan Patino and Emily Tarantini presented the results of the "Great, Green Neighborhoods" Project in order to inform Boulder's Comprehensive Housing Strategy. More than 35 city staff and decision-makers attended the presentation from the Boulder's planning board, design advisory board, community planning, housing division, housing authority, and from local non-profits.
Whittier Elementary SchoolGUB introduced many diverse methods to Whittier students through this project including:
In general, Whittier students wanted to see a variety of natural and play spaces woven throughout the housing site, gathering spaces for families and picnics, wanted cars to be separated from kids and play spaces, and wanted a diversity of sustainable features, such as green roofs and solar panels. They also wanted to see mixed use areas integrated into the site, including ice cream shops and pet services. |
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Boulder High SchoolBoulder High students also participated in field trips, learned about sustainable housing design and flood mitigation, and developed presentations for city officials, CU architects, and the ENVD students.
Boulder High students wanted many gathering spaces, natural and play spaces, affordable food spots and "hang-out" spaces at the edge of the housing site, adjacent to Boulder High. They expressed concern for personal safety and wanted to see more lighting and car safety features. They also wanted to see cars parked on ground or basement levels. Most felt that housing 3-4 stories high was most appropriate along the creek. |
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Collaboration with ENVD's Praxis ClassIn the spring of 2014, GUB’s work transitioned into an undergraduate praxis semester focused on green neighborhood design. In this context, undergraduate students reflected on the sustainable, dense, affordable housing, producing master plans and design details for the site. The twist in this project was that not only did design students present their work to clients such as city staff and campus architects, but they also engaged in a dialogue with the children and youth during several presentations and design reviews. ENVD students integrated child-friendly principles in a diversity of ways. Student-written design guidelines and designs are shown below.
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Click on the summary of the Great, Green Neighborhood findings below:
