TACONIC FELLOWSHIP PROPOSAL 2013

Allen SpectorStudent, Grad ComD, Pratt Institute, MS

David FriscoProfessor, Grad ComD, Pratt Institute

New York City Council Member Brad LanderClient, 39th Council District, Brooklyn

GOWANUSCANALCOMMUNITY ENGAGEMENTAND REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT

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SUMMARYThe Gowanus Canal, after decades of being polluted, has been designated an EPA superfund site, and is scheduled to be cleaned and decontaminated in the next 10 years. During the cleanup of the 1.8 mile canal, different community groups have been competing to control the redevelopment of the surrounding neighborhood. The neighborhood, dating back to the 1860’s, has been a mixture of industrial buildings and residences.

The redevelopment project is challenged to bring together the diverse community groups and create an action plan. Ideally, the plan will have the consensus of the community groups and their support for the construction of new parks and businesses.

The office of New York Council Member Brad Lander is already involved in this ongoing community-building project. They began working with The Gowanus Canal Conservancy and The Gowanus Business Alliance to learn about the needs of the community. They have proposed creating a website and online feedback form where stakeholders can express their point of view.

I bring design thinking and strategy to the project. I will go beyond the feedback from the website by engaging the community and performing ethnographic research. I will talk with business owners and employees, community leaders, and people who live in the neighborhood to learn what they believe are the greatest needs for Gowanus. I will engage these people and get the best ideas for the community.

When the research is completed, I will compile the findings, looking for trends and common ideas. I will synthesize the results into an action plan. I will design the action plan so it is easy to understand and I will distribute it through out the community to inspire people and keep the project moving forward.

A birdhouse, installed by The Gowanus Canal Conservancy

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INTRODUCTIONI remember the first time I saw the Gowanus Canal. I was riding my bike in Brooklyn from Park Slope to Smith Street. As I rode west on Degraw Street, the landscape started changing. The vibrant tree-lined streets of Park Slope transformed into desolate warehouses and abandoned cars. The street suddenly came to an end with a metal barricade blocking my way. On the other side of the barricade was a dark haunted body of stagnant water. I remember feeling unwelcome and alone and for safety’s sake, I rode the other way.

The Gowanus Canal, built in the late 1860’s, was one of the world’s busiest shipping ports. The building materials used to make houses in the surrounding neighborhoods came through the canal. As that part of Brooklyn became more developed, the canal became more polluted. Sewage and industrial waste began to accumulate in the canal because water in the Gowanus doesn’t circulate. The only water movement is from the tides and a small circulating tunnel located at the north end of the canal. So things that go into the canal tend to settle to the bottom and stagnate.

Today, residents of the Gowanus neighborhood are faced with two main concerns. The first is over the past 150 years the amount of pollution dumped into the Gowanus Canal has made it one of the most polluted bodies of water in the United States. In 2010 the canal was declared an EPA superfund site, meaning that over the next 10 years the canal will be cleaned and decontaminated. According to the EPA, the Gowanus contains PCBs, coal tar wastes, heavy metals and volatile organics (diseases). This is what gives the Gowanus its ‘black mayonnaise’ texture and offensive smell.

The second concern is the flooding damage from hurricane Sandy in 2012. When the water levels rose, due to the storm surge, many businesses around the Gowanus were flooded. The water was measured 30 inches above the deck of the Carroll Street bridge. 9th Street was underwater from 3rd Avenue to Smith Street. Flooded businesses lost valuable equipment and inventory. In some buildings the basements were filled with 6 feet of seawater. To make matters worse, much of the water was mixed with sewage from the Red Hook water treatment plant.

Despite the superfund designation, the rebirth of the Gowanus has already started. Most of the large developers are hesitant to break ground on a superfund site because of its uncertain future. But, a Whole Foods grocery store, being built on 3rd Street and 3rd Avenue, is scheduled to open by Thanksgiving 2013. Art galleries, bakeries, and TV production studio have moved into some of the old warehouses. Plans for parks and recreational areas are also in the works. Sponge Park, a $1.5 million natural wetland area, is scheduled to be built on the Carroll Gardens side of 2nd Street starting in 2014.

With the development of the Gowanus neighborhood, comes the challenge of finding a balance of public space and private industry. Organizations like The Gowanus Canal Conservancy are advocating for a greener and more natural use of the canal and are concerned with flooding and wastewater runoff issues. Gowanus Canal Community Development Corporation is an advocacy group that supports the improvement of local infrastructure, and economic opportunity. Finding a balance of the many points of view of the redevelopment effort is proving to be complicated.

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CLIENT

I came to the issue of the redevelopment of the Gowanus Canal through my thesis research at Pratt Institute. I am in my third semester in the Graduate Communications Design department, specializing in digital media. My thesis involves working with a local community. They were facing a social issue and their voice was not being heard. My goal was to empower the community to change their circumstances. The plan incorporates a public awareness campaign to both help solve the issue and give the community the tools to help them transform their lives. This project has inspired me to start volunteering at City Council Member Brad Lander’s office.

Brad Lander was elected to the City Council in 2009, to represent the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens, Columbia Waterfront, Gowanus, Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, Borough Park, and Kensington. He ran on running on the Democratic and Working Families Parties platforms. Brad chairs the Council’s Land Use Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting & Maritime Uses. Under his leadership, the committee has designated dozens of individual landmarks and historic districts in all five boroughs. He is also a member of the Economic Development, Environmental Protection, General Welfare, Land Use, Housing and Buildings, and Waterfronts committees.

In a meeting with Mr. Lander’s District Director, Catherine Zinnel, I learned about the Gowanus redevelopment and their need for a website that would act as a forum for local organizations, community leaders, and concerned citizens could express their opinion. This tool would give Council Member Lander a clear direction of action to take for redevelopment, based on his constituents’ feedback.

Brad Lander and Errol Louis discussed the state of the Gowanus Canal and the Participatory Budgeting Compost Facility at the Salt Lot, July 2013. Photo: The Gowanus Canal Conservancy

GOALSThe goal of this project is to learn more about the needs of the people living and working in the Gowanus neighborhood. We plan to engage the community to gain insights into their needs. Ethnographic research will be an essential component of the project. Getting to know the people of Gowanus is an important part of the process. Their oppinions will influence the actions we take after the research is done.

We plan to learn the local community’s needs is with an online forum. Another way to bring people together is with a networking event and participatory planning workshop. The event will be held at a local storefront, community center or art gallery, which would be located where residents could talk informally about the future of Gowanus.

After learning the community’s needs, I will develop an action plan. The plan will inform developers and community organizations how best to serve the neighborhood, and will result in a better Gowanus for everybody. After we have given the people in the neighborhood a way to express their needs, the action plan will help them realize their goals. I will develop their feedback into a coherent set of plans, to be championed by Council Member Brad Lander to serve as a model for future projects.

Ultimately, I want Gowanus to develop into a safe, sustainable, and vibrant community that people will feel proud to have helped transform. I think that giving people the ability to express what they want, will help us achieve our goal.

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New York City’s waterfront is a valuable but still untapped resource. Decades of declining maritime activity have left much of the city’s waterfront dormant. Today, after years of neglect and revitalization attempts stalled by the clash of competing interests, New Yorkers are coming together to fulfill the public’s claim to productive use and increased enjoyment of this resource.

The Comprehensive Waterfront Plan proposed by the Department of City Planning responds to this extraordinary planning opportunity. For the first time in the city’s history, it provides a framework to guide land use along the city’s entire 578-mile shoreline in a way that recognizes its value as a natural resource and celebrates its diversity. The plan presents a long-range vision that balances the needs of environmentally sensitive areas and the working port with opportunities for waterside public access, open space, housing and commercial activity.

The plan envisions a 21st century waterfront where:• parks and open spaces with a lively mix of activities are

within easy reach of communities throughout the city• people once again swim, fish and boat in clean waters• natural habitats are restored and well cared for• maritime and other industries, though reduced in size

from their heyday, thrive in locations with adequate infrastructure support

• ferries crisscrossing the city’s harbor and rivers, and interconnected systems of bikeways and pedestrian pathways help lessen traffic congestion and air pollution

• panoramic water views of great beauty are preserved or created

• the city’s needs for new housing and jobs for people of diverse income levels are satisfied in attractive and safe surroundings.

Fortunately, all of these needs and opportunities can be accommodated in suitable locations on what is arguably the longest and most diverse municipal waterfront in the nation.

RELEVANCE OF THE ISSUE

After this project is complete, it will live on through the Tool Kit. This feature will contain detailed instructions for engaging a community to learn exactly what they need and want in a neighborhood. The Tool Kit will contain the ethnographic research techniques we used and will discuss in detail what worked and what did not. It will also describe how we found trends in the research results and how we synthesized them into an action plan.

The process described in the Tool Kit can be applied to other waterfront communities. Many cities, towns, and neighborhoods in the United States do not have access to their waterfront. Often highways or warehouses block the access. Moreover, if access is available, there may not enough infrastructure to make the waterfront usable.

Newtown Creek in Queens, NY is an example of a waterfront community that could benefit from this project. Recently the Newtown Creek wastewater treatment plant constructed a nature walk that gives people access to the waterfront. But, the builders did not seek community feedback on the project. Unfortunately, the constructed nature walk is mostly made of concrete and has very few trees for shade and no benches for sitting. A comprehensive analysis of the project would have resulted in a nature walk that would better serve the community.

Making the Tool Kit available to the public will help communities develop in the future.

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the Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment that have partnered with community groups throughout New York City, or in the Transformation Design studio he leads in the Communications Design MFA program, his aim as an instructor is to involve students in meaningful, purposeful, and collaborative work that challenges the conventional notions of a designer’s purvey.

Recently, David formed IntraCollaborative a design collective comprised of his former Pratt MFA students. They are 2013 recipients of CUP Making Policy Public commission and have been selected for the Center for Architecture’s 2013 Graphic Designer Shortlist.

The name IntraCollaborative speaks to their unique working relationship and history of mutual collaboration in many different contexts, both professionally and academically. Together, they are a collective of individual designers and educators who integrate one another in each other’s work whenever possible. They are a team of instinctive collaborators sharing a deep-seated interest in design and its relevance to the social sector.

Graduate Planning StudentTo better serve Council Member Lander, Professor Frisco and I are exploring a partnership with another student from the Pratt PSPD (Programs for Sustainable Planning and Development) department. This cross-disciplinary approach would result in a more comprehensive action plan. We are aware that our team might grow, and our funds would then have to be reallocated.

Allen Spector is a second year student in the Graduate Communications Design Department of Pratt Institute, specializing in digital design. This semester he began working on his thesis on the topic of social change and community empowerment. He holds a BA in Biology from University of North Carolina at Greensboro and an Associates Degree from FIT in Communication Design. Before going to graduate school, he worked as a graphic designer for 8 years for a diverse range of clients including the non-profit organizations Safe Horizon and The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and the luxury brands Clinique and Moët Hennessy. He has experience as an event designer, most recently producing the Just Art gallery opening and fundraiser event for the ADL in 2011.

David Frisco a designer and educator working in New York City, and an alum of Yale’s Graphic Design MFA program. He is the principal of DFD: David Frisco Design, a small design practice with an emphasis on the art, architectural, educational, cultural and non-profit sectors.

David is an Adjunct Associate Professor in both the Undergraduate and Graduate Communications Design department at Pratt Institute, and teaches in the BFA, MS and MFA programs.

As an educator, David has worked towards breaking down disciplinary and institutional boundaries, opening up the classroom to include more innovative, real-world and service-based learning. Whether through Design Corps, a student-run studio at Pratt that provides pro-bono design services to non-profit organizations, or through the cross-disciplinary studios with the School of Architecture and

THE TEAM

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METHODOLOGY

DELIVERABLES

Our approach to the redevelopment is inspired by the Project for Public Spaces’ (PPS) idea of Placemaking.According to their website www.pps.org Placemaking is a multi-faceted approach to the planning, design and management of public spaces. To discover the needs and aspirations of the people who live, work and play in a particular space, it looks at the situation, asks pertinent questions, and listens carefully. This information is used to create a common vision for that place. The vision can evolve quickly into an implementation strategy, beginning with small-scale, do-able improvements that can immediately bring benefits to public spaces and the people who use them. Placemaking capitalizes on a local community’s assets, inspiration, and potential, ultimately creating good public spaces that promote health, happiness, and wellbeing. In working with the communities of the Gowanus, we hope to encourage all the interested parties to participate in the planning process. Based on their input, we will make an action plan that will detail the future development of the neighborhood. want. This ensures the neighborhood residents are invested in the success of the revitalization of Gowanus.

1. Building the website

When building the online forum that invites community feedback, I will be working closely with the office of Council Member Lander. Their current involvement with the Gowanus community will inform the design and user experience of the website.

2. Getting feedback from the community / community engagement

This is the most involved phase, because it is the most crucial to the success of the project. Once the website is complete, we have to get the community to use it. I will be seeking feedback from community members. This includes community leaders, long-term, residents, and business leaders. However feedback from individuals and families who live near the canal is equally important.

Advertising and promoting the online forum is essential for getting the best feedback from the widest range of people. The more people who are aware of the website, the better the feedback will be.

In addition to the online feedback, I will seek feedback from the community at large by doing ethnographic research. This will involve speaking with and interviewing as wide a range of community members as possible. I will be interviewing business owners, pedestrians in the neighborhood, and going door-to-door to speak with residents.

Phase two will also include an community engagement event at a local art gallery. The event will be a place where stakeholders can gather and share their vision for the future of the canal. There will be a fundraising component to the event as well as a launch for the new branding identity package.

3. Analyzing the feedback

When the research phase is complete, I will work with Council Member Lander’s office to create a report on the findings. In this phase I will group all of the feedback together and try and find consistencies and trends. These findings will be organized and put into the report.

1. A website where community members can post their vision and learn about the redevelopment project.

2. Ethnography research, including interviews of stakeholders and community members.

3. A community building event in the Gowanus neighborhood.

4. A comprehensive branding and identity campaign.

5. A detailed Action Plan for the next steps in the development process, distributed through out the community.

6. A Tool Kit for other communities to use.

SCOPE OF WORK

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Also maps and info graphics will be included in the report to further explain the findings.

4. Designing a plan of action

The final phase of the project will involve digesting the findings from phase three and creating a plan of action for the Gowanus Canal. This plan will be comprehensive to the needs of the community. One goal of the plan of action is to attract the attention of high-ranking officials, including the next New York City Mayor.

Most of the scope of work will be included in my graduate thesis here at Pratt. Especially the work during phase two because of the research and ethnographic studies. Also phase two creates the most opportunity for graphic design. I will need to design a consistent look and feel to all of the communication materials and design all the materials surrounding the art gallery event, including the invitation, event program, wall signage, and any online components. Professor Frisco will be my Thesis Resource advisor for both semesters of the project.

I intend to work closely with Brad Lander’s office to track the impact of the project through website traffic, foot traffic and political traffic. I will be documenting this process through video, photographs, and surveys and posting the results to my blog www.allenspector.com/thesis

The pace of this project will move quickly. Council Member Brad Lander is interested in completing the website by the end of October, giving us about 6 weeks until it launches. The research portion of phase two will last until December 2013. Then in the spring, complete phases three and four.

I feel that all this work can be completed by the end of next semester (May 2014). I will be working with a great team of people, Professor David Frisco, and the office of Council Member Brad Lander.

October 2013 Complete website

November 2013 Finish ethnographic research

December 2013 Synthesize research findings

February 2014 Begin work on Action Plan

April 2014 Finalize Action Plan and Tool Kit

May 2014 Present Council Member Lander with final Action Plan and Tool Kit

The budget for this project, is $XXXX, and will be devided evenly between myself and Professor Frisco.

Fall 2013$XXXX David Frisco$XXXX Allen Spector

SCOPE OF WORK

STRUCTURE

PROJECT ASSESSMENT

BUDGET

TIMEFRAMECONTINUED

Spring 2014$XXXX David Frisco$XXXX Allen Spector

http://www.allenspector.com/thesis

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CONCLUSION

The Gowanus Canal has been treated poorly for the past 150 years. It is severely polluted and underutilized. However, the surrounding community is committed to transforming the canal. They see its potential. Families could stroll along its banks and observe the natural habitat. Businesses could thrive and residents could feel safe.

I am proud to be a part of the revitalization of the Gowanus Canal. It’s a neighborhood I care about and feel that I can contribute to its transformation. Professor David Frisco has a reputation of success with his student and client projects. In addition, my personal experience working with underserved communities at Safe Horizon and The Anti-Defamation League will help this project succeed.

Bringing together a diverse group of people to reach a consensus on the redevelopment of Gowanus will not be easy. However, the future of the neighborhood development depends on sustained effort and interest. I believe the different communities will reach a consensus because they will be an integral part of the process and will strongly support a successful redevelopment project.