Volunteer Spotlight: University of Maryland Senior Studio in Landscape Architecture

For the past several years the Neighborhood Design Center has partnered with the Landscape Architecture Program at the University of Maryland, College Park on their Senior Community Design Studio.  In the Spring of 2008, professors Dennis Nola, Brian Kane and Jack Sullivan and the Senior Studio class in Landscape Architecture provided tremendous volunteer support for the ongoing Central Kenilworth Avenue Revitalization Project (click here to read more about the study).  There were fifteen students in the class who worked together as a team on initial site inventory, interviews, and analysis, then individually to develop specific designs for portions of the study area:

Mary Augostosky * Andrew Benanti * Joe Fahey * Nina Fulkoski * Catherine Jones * Lauren Kovach * John Lightle * Rich Mai * Mary Marcinko * Allison Poirier * John Prothro * Lauren Richter * Sean Robinson * Robert Tjaden * Clark Zurowski

Beginning with site visits to the study area in early February 2008, the students quickly got up to speed by interviewing key community members and town officials.  Census data was analyzed and current conditions in the study area carefully documented.

In late February the students took part in a Community Workshop organized by NDC and the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission to hear feedback from residents, businesses, and civic leaders as issues and potential solutions to problems were discussed.  Subsequently, the class conducted two additional workshops with young people in the area to discuss what types of improvements they would like to see.

After the community had given their ideas about potential priority development projects, the students were given two months to explore these ideas in more detail.  In May, the students presented 15 design projects to a gathering of community residents, administrators and elected officials.  Projects dealt with:

* Streetscape revitalization on Kenilworth Avenue to address safety issues, beautify the corridor, and create a proper Gateway to the University of Maryland Research Park (M Square).

* The redevelopment of two major shopping centers.

* Exploring transit-oriented development (TOD) in response to the possibility of the Purple Line having a station in the area:

* Plans for new housing and mixed-use developments; and

* Improvements to parks and open space in the community, including converting a storm water ditch into a water treatment/wetland/stream project that would be an asset in the heart of the community.


Several projects have already sparked interest from developers and government agencies (to download the entire 160 page document by the students click here).  When the final report for CKAR is published, the design projects will be included as an appendix and will be featured on the M-NCPPC website. 

NDC would like to thank these dedicated professors and students for the tremendous amount of hard work, and we look forward to continuing to work with the Landscape Architecture program at UMCP in years to come!