oak hill community design 2005 - charrette report

8/9/2019 Oak Hill Community Design 2005 - Charrette Report

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COMMUNITY DESIGN CHARRETTE

Youngstown, Ohio

O A K H I L L


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OAK HILL COMMUNITY DESIGN CHARRETTE

Youngstown, Ohio

Prepared for

Te City of Youngstown Planning Department

City Hall, 6th Floor

26 S. Phelps Street

Youngstown, OH 44503

(330) 742-8842

by the

Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative

Kent State University

820 Prospect Avenue

Cleveland, OH 44115

(216) 357-3434

February 2006

Kent State Universitys

C levelandUrbanD esignCollaborative


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1 Summary

2 Shrinking Cities

3 Te Community Design Charrette Process

4 Existing Conditions: Oak Hill Neighborhood

6 Design Methodology

11 Key Concepts and Policy Framework

15 Design Alternatives for Oak Hill

Concept A: Central Park...................16

Concept B: Seeds of Change...........19

Concept C: Linking Greens............24

Concept D: Finding Ground.........26

30 Next Steps

31 Acknowledgements

C O N T E N T S


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2 OAK HILLCommunity Design Charrette

SHRINKING CITIES

Te model for American cities has historically been about continuous growth anddevelopment. But the reality is that not all cities are growing. In fact, according to theUnited Nations, for every two cities in the world that are growing, three are decliningin population. More than 59 US cities with populations above 100,000 have lost 10

percent or more of their populations since 1950so Youngstown is by no means alone indealing with population decline. Kent State Universitys Shrinking Cities Institute seeksto explore alternatives to the prevailing growth agenda and develop land use and designstrategies for places where significant new growth is unlikely.

Youngstown is unique because its 2010 plan officially acknowledges that the City issmaller today than in was in the past and unlikely to return to its peak population. Inaccepting the reality of population decline, the City can begin to move forward with thehopeful and quietly revolutionary idea that smaller can be better if decline is planned for

and occurs in ways that makes Youngstown a cleaner, more attractive, and more sustain-able place.

Te Youngstown 2010 Plan was a partnership between the City and Youngstown StateUniversity (YSU) in a town-and-gown union, coinciding with YSUs update of its Cam-pus Master Plan. One of the key precepts of the Youngstown plan is that the City canafford to be generous with our urban land, and this became one of the guiding forces ofthe Oak Hill charrette.

Vacancy in urban areas can have a blighting effect, but the Oak Hill charrette looked

at ways that unused land could be converted into a meaningful neighborhood asset.Te charrette was an effort to understand the impacts of urban shrinkage and developstrategies for smart decline. Troughout the charrette process, the CUDC explored thefollowing questions:

What does the opposite of growth look like?

How will people who live in shrinking places respond to strategies for smart decline ifit impacts their neighborhood, their street, or even their house?

Can redundant or unneeded infrastructure be eliminated?

Are there ways to put vacant land into productive use?


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OAK HILLCommunity Design Charrette 3

THE COMMUNITY DESIGN CHARRETTE PROCESS

A charrette is a community-based design workshop, typically held over a two to four dayperiod. Charrettes are intentionally short in duration and this brief, intense design exerciseis a way to begin developing consensus around images and design ideas for a neighbor-hoods future. Te outcome of a charrette is not a plan, but rather a collection of ideas thatmay inform a future planning process.

Te Oak Hill Community Design Charrette was held in Youngstown from October1-3, 2005. Prior to the charrette, the CUDC worked with city staff to identify the studyarea, define the desired outcomes, and collect background information and base datafor the neighborhood. Te event began with a tour of the neighborhood on Saturdaymorning, followed by a series of community meetings and stakeholder interviews toidentify neighborhood strengths, needs, and priorities. Te design team then spent time

in the neighborhood, documenting existing conditions, analyzing opportunities andconstraints, and speaking directly with residents about their hopes and concerns for theneighborhood. Using this information, the CUDC developed a series of preliminarydesign recommendations and reviewed them with the community at a public forum heldon Monday night, October 3, 2005.


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EXISTING CONDITIONS

Te Oak Hill neighborhood provides an ideal opportunity to begin to understand andaddress the impacts of long-term population decline in an urban setting. Te neighbor-hood has experienced on-going out-migration, tax foreclosure, and property abandon-ment. Approximately 60% of the parcels in the neighborhood are vacant.

Despite the high degree of vacancy and a general lack of market demand for housingin the neighborhood, Oak Hill has a remarkable range of assets. Te neighborhood iswell situated, overlooking Downtown Youngstown and with convenient access to I-680.Mill Creek Park, a major regional recreation facility and natural amenity, is located at thewestern edge of the neighborhood. Te historic and well-maintained Oak Hill Cemeteryis located at the northeastern corner of the neighborhood. Oakhill Renaissance Place,a complex of social service and community-based organizations, anchors the neighbor-hoods eastern edge and serves as a link between Oak Hill and Downtown Youngstown.

Te area is enhanced by its natural topography, which provides great views of the sur-rounding city. Dramatic rock outcroppings occur at the northwest corner of the neigh-borhood. Much of the housing in Oak Hill dates from the 1890s through the early 20thcentury, providing a distinctive architectural character.

Although demand for housing in the neighborhood is weak, two non-profit organiza-tions, Community Housing Involving Cooperative Efforts (CHOICE) and Jubilee, haveconstructed 75 new tax credit houses in the area in recent years. Tese houses are dispersedthroughout Oak Hill, although there is a concentration between Ridge and West Wood-

land Avenues. Another new housing development, Oak Hill errace, is planned for a 15-acre site just west of Oak Hill cemetery. Te development plan is being prepared by StrolloArchitects and will include some market-rate houses. CHOICE has purchased propertyliens in the area in preparation for the implementation of the plan.

Vacant properties indicated in purple


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DESIGN METHODOLOGY

Four teams of students worked on design alternatives forthe neighborhood, with the guidance of Kent State facultyand CUDC staff. Although Youngstown State Universityprovided extensive base maps and data on existing condi-

tions in the neighborhood, each team conducted extensivefield surveys to verify existing conditions and identifyaspects of the areas landscape structure that could guidethe design process. Te students documented vacancy andbuilding conditions, the road network, natural featuresof the area, view sheds, and drainage. Te students thenprepared a series of analytical maps to better understandthese conditions and clarify the central design issues andopportunities for the neighborhood.

Building condition and vacancyTe teams went blockby block through the neighborhood, identifying the condi-tion and occupancy of each building and parcel. One keyfinding is that the vacancy rate in neighborhood is actuallywell in excess of 60%, when vacant and seriously deterio-rated buildings are factored into the total. Te adjacentmap shows viable buildings in shades of green. Vacant lotsand deteriorated buildings are shown in shades of orange.

Troughout the charrette process, the teams made every ef-fort to avoid disturbing the viable buildings and the peoplewho live in them. Vacant and deteriorated properties wereidentified as opportunities for intervention in the neighbor-hood. Blue properties indicate institutional uses and otherneighborhood anchors.

High

Glenw

ood

Hillman

OakHill

Marke

t

Falls

Edwards

Overland

Vacant lots/deteriorated buildings

Viable existing buildings

Institutions/neighborhood anchors


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Open LandVacant land and deteriorated buildings createopportunities for new development as well as un-develop-ment alternatives, such as returning excess land to a naturalstate or promoting agricultural uses. Te adjacent mapidentifies all of the land within the neighborhood that isvacant, or land that could be cleared through the demolition

of abandoned and deteriorated buildings.

High

Glenwood

Hillman

OakHi

ll

Marke

t

Falls

Edward

s

Overland

Vacant land/deteriorated buildingsac


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Circulation and connectionsPopulation decline couldprovide opportunities to reduce existing infrastructure,such as roads and sewer lines that no longer serve a con-centrated residential population. Eliminating infrastructurein Oak Hill is a possibility, as long as a logical network ofstreets would remain so that residents are connected to the

surrounding city and access within and through the neigh-borhood is maintained.

Oak Hill has a number of brick streets which contributeto neighborhood character and identity. Te design teamsdocumented the location of these existing streets with thehope that they will be preserved.

Glenwood

H

illman

O

akHill

M

arket

Falls

Ed

wards

Overland

High

Brick Streets


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Landform and ViewshedsTe neighborhoods dramat-ic topography provides views of downtown Youngstown,Mill Creek Park, and the Mahoning River Valley. In theadjacent diagram, parks and green spaces are indicatedin green, including Mill Creek Park at the western edgeand Oak Hill Cemetery at the northeastern corner of the

neighborhood. Vista points are shown in blue and slopesare defined in brown.

View sheds

Top of ridge


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Drainage and Existing VegetationTe tops of theridges shown in the previous diagram define the naturaldrainage areas within the neighborhood. A major ridgedivides the area from the east to the west, establishing twoseparate drainage patterns. Te trees and vegetation inresidents backyards align, for the most part, in an east/west

direction, until these vegetation areas meet the slopes ofridges that run through the neighborhood. Tese vegeta-tion corridors have become functional natural areas thatassist in collecting stormwater runoff within the area.

Drainage direction

Existing vegetation


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KEY CONCEPTS AND POLICY FRAMEWORK

In meetings with residents, several neighborhood priorities emerged:

Code enforcementMany Oak Hill residents maintain their properties and take greatpride in their homes. But their efforts and investments in the neighborhood are under-mined by nearby properties that have been allowed to decline. Residents would like tosee more rigorous and uniform code enforcement in the neighborhood so that problemproperties are not allowed to contribute to a sense of abandonment and deterioration inthe neighborhood.

Convenience retailResidents would like some convenient shopping within the neigh-borhood. Large-scale retail development would be unrealistic given the size of the existingpopulation and the growing regional retail concentration along the I-224 corridor. Butresidents would like some convenient local shopping and this retail could also serve thosewho are in the neighborhood to use the Mill Creek recreational facility.

Parks. Tere are more than 800 residents under the age of 18 in the neighborhood. Parks,playgrounds, and other recreational facilities in the neighborhood are needed to providethese children with something to do, as well as to enhance the quality of life for residentsof all ages.


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Ownership of adjacent vacant lotsTis was a powerful, recurring theme. Numerousresidents made the same direct request: they would like to take title to the vacant property(or properties) adjacent to their homes. Many expressed an appreciation of the sense ofopen space in Oak Hill and the current residential densities that allow for some distancebetween houses.

Vacant lot inventoryAs a first step in addressing vacancy issues in Oak Hill and elsewherein the City, a detailed inventory of vacant lots should be developed. Te US Census collectsdata on unused residential buildings, but not on vacant land. Te Census also does not mea-sure abandonment. However, much information on vacancy in Youngstown exists in Cityrecords and data prepared by YSU. Compiling all of the relevant information about vacantlots (including acreage, ownership, condition, environmental issues, tax liens, bank liens, etc.)in a central, easily accessible database would allow residents, government officials, local non-profit organizations, and private sector developers to make more informed decisions aboutthe disposition of vacant land. Standardized designations for vacant properties could be used

to distinguish derelict, blighted properties from those which are being maintained and con-tribute to the green, open character of the neighborhood. Definitions could be establishedfor usable, unused, and under-used land, as well as for preserved green space.

Landbanking property for green space networkTrough the use of landbankingand conservation easements, the City can identify opportunities to create an integratedgreen space network for Oak Hill that serves as a neighborhood amenity and links theneighborhood with other green spaces in Youngstown and elsewhere in the region. Tefirst step is to identify the key parcels in the neighborhood that can collectively provide aunifying green space for the neighborhood, one that gives definition to the neighborhoods

physical form, preserves ecologically significant land, and makes key connections to greenspaces such as Mill Creek Park, Oak Hill cemetery, and other open spaces and recreationopportunities in the city and the region.

Existing vacant lots form a link between Oak Hill cemetery and Mill Creek Park. A greenlinkage could be created in this area without removing any viable, existing houses.

Glenwood

Hillman

OakHill

Market

Falls

High


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General approachCensus projections anticipate a popu-lation loss of 54,000 people in Mahoning and rumbullCounties by 2030. Since much of this loss is expected tooccur in the City of Youngstown, one main objective forOak Hill is to stabilize the current population and avoidfurther decline.

Te overarching question addressed through the charretteis how can Youngstownand Oak Hill in particularbeginto function as a smaller, better place. Each of the followingdesign alternatives, therefore, look at:

building an appealing, viable neighborhood aroundnewly constructed housing units, as well as older, exist-ing housing;

identifying possibilities for restoring natural systemsthat take maximum advantage of the high percentageof vacant land in the neighborhood;

envisioning other uses for vacant parcels, beyond infillresidential and commercial uses for which there is littlemarket demand; and

reducing and removing existing infrastructure, whereappropriate.

Diagram of varying, flexible densities within the neighborhood, where vacant land provides larger lots for some houses,helps to establish a network of connections within the neighborhood via bicycle and pedestrian paths, or is converted tosmall parks or other recreational uses


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DESIGN ALTERNATIVES FOR OAKHILL

One underlying assumption that the charrette team brought to the design process wasthat population decline could lead to urban shrinkage in a very literal sense, meaning thatresidents could somehow be clustered into dense and vibrant urban nodes, surrounded bya vast, interlinked network of parks and green spaces. Tis, however, was not the vision of

many neighborhood residents. Te residents who participated in the charrette said thatthey value the low density of the neighborhood. Rather than feeling isolated, they likehaving space between their homes and neighboring properties. So instead of trying to forceurban densities on a neighborhood that has evolved away from this kind of configuration,the CUDC team began to think about how a neighborhood could function in the heart ofthe city with suburban, or even semi-rural densities. Although this is clearly not the onlydevelopment alternative for Oak Hill, a low density neighborhood with proximity to natu-ral areas and cultural amenities could stimulate new market demand by offering housingtypes and lifestyle choices not typically found in urban settings.

Te Youngstown 2010 plan states that the City should be generous with our urban landand the Oak Hill neighborhood could be the test case for implementing this idea. Eachof the four design alternatives on the following pages follows the same frameworkthat acentral public space or natural area provides structure to the neighborhood, while allowingindividual residents to have great flexibility in determining the configuration and use ofthe property they own. None of the design alternatives preclude the possibility of futuregrowth in Oak Hill, but they also do not rely on growth for successful implementation.

Selective demolition of deteriorated and abandoned housing could create opportunities forremediative landscaping. In this image, sunflowerswhich have the ability to draw lead and other

toxins from the soilare planted within the foundation of a demolished house on Falls Avenue.

Each of the design alternatives seeks to preserve natural featuresof the area, like this rock outcropping on Granite Street


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CONCEPT A: CENTRAL PARK

Te Central Park plan establishes a large green space alongwhat is now West Woodland Avenue. Tere are numer-ous vacant properties in this part of the neighborhood thatcould be consolidated to create this green space. Central

Park would connect Oak Hill Cemetery with Mill CreekPark through a pedestrian boulevard and a network of me-andering paths. Te new green space would include a skatepark to provide recreational opportunities for young peoplein the neighborhood. A new senior center is proposed forthe western end of the park.

Existing retail uses within the neighborhood would berelocated in a concentrated area along Market Street. All fourof the design concepts recognize Market Street as the front

door of the neighborhood, since this street is the main non-freeway connection between Downtown Youngstown andsuburban Boardman. Te former GE building on MarketStreet could become a mixed use complex with ground floorretail and loft housing above. Te building, dubbed ElectricSquare, could be rehabilitated using green building tech-niques and would serve as the anchor for a small neighbor-hood retail district.

Glen

wood

Hillman

OakHill

Market

Falls

Edwards

Overland

Ridge

Lakewood


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Detailed view of proposed Central Park

Seating areas along the main pedestrian boulevardwithin the park

Meandering pathways would have canopies of foliage

Possible skate park configuration

Proposed landscape for Central Park

Glenwood

Hillman

Lakewood

Ridge


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Te rehabilitated GE building on Market Street becomesElectric Square

Links between the neighborhood and Mill Creek Park alreadyexist, but could be improved by rebuilding deteriorated stairs

and adding lighting. landscaping, and signage.


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CONCEPT B: SEEDS OF CHANGE Tis alterna-tive aims to use the resources and energy of the neighbor-hood to return vacant land to productive use. Te planwas begun by taking a look at where vacant land currentlyexists, and how this land can be re-worked for the benefit ofthe neighborhood.

One of the bolder ideas of this plan is to remove the I-680interchange at the northern edge of the neighborhood.A new green space proposed for the site of the currentoverpass.

Te Oak Hill neighborhood, as part of the larger city and region.

422

I-680

OAK HILL

Downtown


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Te plan stems from the documentation and assessment of vacant land in the neighborhood, rep-resented in green on this drawing. Te natural topography and ridge lines of the area are used toestablish a series of paths and pocket parks on vacant land.

Market Street, Falls Avenue, and Hillman Street are theprimary linkages within and through the neighborhood. Teintersection of Falls and Hillman is a potential development sitethat would create a focal point within the neighborhood.

Existing and potential green spaces are identified on the diagramabove, linked by a network of bicycle and pedestrian paths,indicated by the dashed green lines.

Glenwood

Hillman

Oa

kHill

Market

High

Falls

Falls

Hillman

Market


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Hillman Park Te intersection of Hillman Street and FallsAvenue, site of the existing Hillman Park, could be en-hanced as the gateway to the neighborhood and as a settingfor some small-scale new development. Tis is consistent

with the Citys 2010 Plan, which designates Hillman as afuture green boulevard. Te drawings indicate the loca-tions of existing brick streets which could be retained andrepaired, adding to the character of the area.

Falls

Hillm

an


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Orchard Hill Tere is a site on High Street, currently occupied by the deterioratedbuilding shown above, that has wonderful views of downtown. Te site could be ac-quired, the deteriorated building demolished, and overgrown vegetation removed. Tiswould provide an ideal setting for a community center that would also be a link along

the park trail that connects Oak Hill to the surrounding city.

Example of a pocket park that could be part of the trail system.Surrounding homeowners could become the stewards of small

parks like these, which are intentionally left in a natural state toreduce maintenance needs.


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CONCEPT C: LINKING GREENS Te LinkingGreens plan recognizes the inherent appeal of vacant landin the neighborhood and the sense of openness it providesfor residents. In the plan, vacant land is used to provide anatural link between the cemetery and Mill Creek Park byconsolidating parcels between these two features and creat-ing a pedestrian trail through this new linear green space.Te main features of the plan are:

Vacant lots are combined to create links within theneighborhood and to the surrounding city with bikeand pedestrian paths.

Vacant corners are activated through community ac-tivities. Te intersection of Falls and Hillman provides

a key opportunity to create this type of communityspace.

Falls Avenue received greater emphasis as a major cor-ridor through the neighborhood.

Te plan allows for the expansion of the cemetery tothe west.

Oakhill Renaissance Place becomes the trailhead forthe pedestrian and bike path and green corridor.

Glenwood

Hillman

OakHill

Market

Ridge

Falls

Edwards

Overland


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Bike path and basketballBike connection to downtown

Bike path and bocci courts

Intersection of Falls and Hillman: Parkimprovements and possible new pavilion/marketarea across the street

Vacant lots frequently occur at all four corners of an intersection, creating an opportunity forlandscaping and programmed activities to serve neighborhood residents. Tese interventions can berelatively simple and inexpensive, while still adding value to their surroundings.


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CONCEPT D: FINDING GROUND Te popula-tion in Oak Hill has been steadily falling for the last 40years, and a question remains as to where the populationwill stabilize. Without knowing, specifically, what a sustain-able population is for this neighborhood, it is difficult tocreate a plan for the future. In response to this challenge,the plan proposes two distinct approaches so that it doesnot preclude future growth, but also does not depend on

growth for successful implementation.

As a first step, abandoned land must be cleaned up andblighted properties torn down. Improving its visual appear-ance will change perceptions of the area.Te plan proposesan expansion of the Youngstown Community Schoolproperty to create an identifiable front door for the schoolon Oak Hill Avenue. Falls Avenue is emphasized as a linkbetween Mill Creek Park and Market Street.

Te plan also addresses the northern part of the neighbor-hood, which has significant tree coverage and forested areas,as well as extraordinary views. In this area, the plan looksat the interaction of forest, infrastructure, and the streetgrid, and proposes letting the natural landscape dictate thestructure of the neighborhood by adapting the street gridto natural configurations. Hillman Street is extended andcurved to link with Plum Street, creating a new intersectionthat will serve a clearing at the center of the neighborhood.

Falls

Plum

Hillman M

arke

t

OakHill

Falls

Market

Hillman

Hawthorne

Glenwood


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If Oak Hills population continues to decline, the neigh-borhood will eventually have a village-like character withnearly rural densities, despite being only about twelveblocks from Downtown Youngstown. In this scenario, oneapproach might be to clean up the land and let nature takeover in parts of the neighborhood. Te resulting physical

character of the area could be very appealing, as a low den-sity, green, and peaceful place in the heart of an urban area.

OakHill

Falls

Market

Hillman

Hawthorne


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If instead, population in Oak Hill increases, other configurations become possible. If the popu-lation were to grow by a third, the neighborhood would begin to experience re-investment. Inthis scenario, the intersection of Falls and Market Street would provide an ideal opportunityfor development at the front door to the neighborhood.

A roundabout at the intersection of Falls and Market wouldhelp to structure proposed development and create a signatureentry element for the neighborhood in a highly visible location.

Hawthorne

OakHill

Falls

Market

Hillman

Glenw

ood

Falls

Market


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A natural plateau occurs where an extended Hillman Street would intersect withHawthorne Street. Tis plateau could be preserved as a pristine natural area, a wild spacedefined by a formal intersection.


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NEXT STEPS

Te outcome of a charrette is not a planinstead, a char-rette is intended to generate ideas and provoke discussion.One possible next step would be to create a more specificand detailed plan for Oak Hillon that might combinesome of the ideas from the four alternatives discussed onthe previous pages.

Understanding the availability and condition of existingvacant land is especially critical in Oak Hill, where vacancyrates are so high. Once the full extent of vacancy is under-stood, the opportunities for retaining some of this land inpublic ownership, and transferring the rest to individualowners might be more clear. In order to proceed in thisdirection, it would be useful to survey community resi-

dents and local real estate professionals to gauge potentialdemand for larger residential lots in this area. It would alsobe interesting to explore the political and administrativeaspects of land use controls in Youngstown to determinewhether a more flexible approach to zoning could producepositive impacts in Oak Hill.


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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

City of Youngstown William DAvignon, DirectorAnthony Kobak, Chief Planner Ian Beniston, Intern

Neighborhood AssistanceAdrian Byrne, Southside

Community Development Corporation Arnie Clebone,Community Housing Options Involving CooperativeEfforts (CHOICE) Janet Yaniglos, Oakhill RenaissancePlace Jubilee Urban Renewal Corporation POGOBlock Group Hope for Youngstown Strollo Architects

Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative

Sean Burkholder, Urban Designer Bryan Evans,

Landscape Designer Charles Frederick, AssistantProfessor Frank Popper, Rutgers University David

Reed, Senior Urban Designer Steve Rugare, ProgramsAssociate erry Schwarz, Senior Planner Gauri

orgalkar, Urban Designer Paul Vernon, Architect

Kent State University Graduate StudentsMike

Bartos Melanie Buzgan Ryan Denker Rob DowerAmy Florian Mark Hensler odd HutchinsonDavid Jurca Rucha Khanderia Jim Pinter SupriyaRao Mirjana Siljanoska Divya Sridhar MichaelStirling Jason Weisman Adam Yaracs


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Funding provided byTe City of Youngstown TeNortheast Ohio Research Consortium Te National

Association of Industrial and Office Properties TeRaymond John Wean Foundation Te Ohio PlanningConference, Cleveland Section

Technical assistance om Finerty, Te Center for UrbanStudies, Youngstown State University Bill Barlow,

Eastgate Regional Council of Governments

Special thanks toJeremiah Blaylock and the crew fromPBS 45 & 49

oak hill community design 2005 - charrette report

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