Community Design + Architecture, Inc. is a planning, urban design, and architecture firm with a focus on integrated transportation/land use planning, mixed-use and pedestrian-friendly community design, and sustainable development. The goal of the firm is to shape development and public policy to create regions, cities, neighborhoods, and a built environment that are sustainable in terms of —
the linkages between land use patterns, urban design, transportation infrastructure and environmental systems;
the economics of both the public and private sectors;
building technologies and infrastructure;
integration of natural and built environments;
short-term as well as long-term goals and needs; and
support for community and social welfare.
Community Design + Architecture was formed by Philip Erickson, AIA, in September, 1997, following his 15 prior years of practice with several planning, urban design, and architecture firms in the Bay Area. Timothy Rood AICP joined the firm as a partner in 2006, following his 12 prior years of urban planning and architectural practice. The firm and its principals have experience working throughout the Western United States (California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Idaho, and Colorado), Florida, Minnesota, Virginia, New York, and internationally in the Philippines, Indonesia, Australia, Dubai and Japan. Community Design + Architecture has expertise ranging from regional planning to the construction detailing of a mixed-use building or pedestrian-friendly street. We focus on integrated land use, transportation, and economic planning; design of districts and neighborhoods that complement their context; design of multi-modal corridors and streetscapes that support vibrant communities; creating sustainable built projects that reduce their impact on the environment; and achieving consensus among project stakeholders to lead toward successful implementation in our work for both private and public clients.
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EPA Greening America’s Capitals Greening Last Chance Gulch
Helena, Montana US Environmental Protection Agency
Green Streets Lead Consultant 2013 Project Description Community Design + Architecture (CD+A) led a team to assist Helena, Montana in providing green streets and multi-modal design and policy concepts as part of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Greening America’s Capitals program. This program provides technical assistance to state’s capital cities to serve as case study projects emphasizing strategies to implement green infrastructure elements to manage stormwater and improve water quality. The CD+A team identified opportunities and developed customized Green and Complete Streets designs for a portion of Last Chance Gulch Avenue, which travels through the center of town along an existing and expanding commercial main street district. CD+A proposed Green and Complete Streets strategies to implement green infrastructure and pedestrian, bicycle, and vehicular facility improvements. In addition, near-, mid-, and long-term implementation strategies and measures were suggested. The CD+A design team, along with EPA staff, conducted a site assessment of existing conditions and met with city staff to select the focused locations for further design concept development, understand current policies and parameters, and begin discussions of identifying the opportunities and challenges the design concepts must address. Two street blocks and two intersections, including a five-point intersection, of Last Chance Gulch were selected for these focused studies. During the site analysis and design process, the Team identified a few other sites that warranted redesign consideration to improve safety and take advantage of green infrastructure opportunities, and so also generated design concepts for these areas. A series of public workshops were held with members of the general public, stakeholders, city staff, and elected officials over three days in which the design team presented alternative design concepts and addressed community concerns including stormwater management and water quality elements, safe pedestrian crossings, appropriate provision of vehicular access, parking and loading, maintenance, and bicycle safety. Six focus group meetings on business and economic development; green infrastructure and landscape; multimodal circulation and transportation; social services and public health; historic preservation, art, and culture; and implementation provided a venue for local stakeholders to voice their opinions and give suggestions for further study or refinement of design concepts. Design concepts receiving favorable comments from the workshop included a possible extension of the Last Chance Gulch pedestrian mall character into the 6th and Last Chance Gulch intersection; improved pedestrian, bicycle, and vehicular circulation and facilities through the inclusion of bike lanes and sharrows, bike pavement markings, widened sidewalks, curb extensions, and intersection redesigns; and inclusion of green infrastructure strategies- especially those suited to the character and climate of Helena.
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Green Street and Multi-modal Improvements Greening Last Chance Gulch
1. Section illustrating green street and multi-modal improvements along Neil Avenue between Front Street and Fuller Avenue
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2. Concept for two-way cycle track and green infrastructure on Last Chance Gulch
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2. Proposed green street, pedestrian and bike improvements
Illustrative plan showing sustainable transportation network
3. Pedestrian Plaza through intersection connecting Last Chance Gulch to existing pedestrian mall
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EPA Green Streets Implementation and Technical Assistance Projects
Various Cities, North America US Environmental Protection Agency
Green Streets Lead Consultant 2012-13
Project Description Community Design + Architecture (CD+A) was part of a multi-disciplinary team working on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Sustainable Communities Building Blocks Technical Assistance program. CD+A worked to enhance the building block tool that is used to assists cities in developing and implementing Green Streets strategies. EPA selected five cities across the United States - Dayton, Ohio; Bellevue, Nebraska; Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Maui, Hawaii; and Lynchburg, Virginia - to receive this technical assistance. CD+A worked to revise the existing tool—a Green Streets community audit, a workshop process and PowerPoint presentations, and a next steps and process summary memorandum. The tool was revised to include a focus on the integration of complete streets and green streets design concepts for the creation of sustainable streets and on the need for interdepartmental coordination and revisions to city practices, and funding for the operations and maintenance of green streets. CD+A then led one to two day workshops in each of the communities, provided them with next steps memoranda, and finalized the revisions to the tool based on lessons learned from the workshops. Several of the workshops also included development of sustainable streets design concepts for case study sites in the communities, and customization of the tool to address storm surge issues in Fort Lauderdale and watershed scale erosion issues in Maui that are degrading coral reefs. The goal of the work was to achieve nationally applicable guidance for a variety of physical and regulatory contexts. This was accomplished by contributing to a master Workbook in which the how, what, who, when and why are explained to prospective project coordinators and communities that will utilize the tool in the future. In addition, CD+A developed master and example Green Streets Strategy Community Audits; master PowerPoint presentations for a Staff and Stakeholder Policy Working Session, Key Leadership Session, and Public Presentation Session; as well as master agendas and schedules. CD+A’s work included developing implementation-focused tools to facilitate interdepartmental cooperation and coordination; defining the comprehensive range of community benefits; stressing the importance of policy maker education and commitment; furnishing an overview of life-cycle maintenance costs and savings, and providing case studies and references for the design, construction, and maintenance of Green Streets implementation.
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LEED for Neighborhood Development Certification Reviews
Washington, DC US Green Building Council
Lead Consultant 2007 - Present
Project Description Community Design + Architecture is leading one of two teams contracted with the US Green Building Council to do certification reviews for the 238 pilot submittals for LEED® for Neighborhood Development (LEED®-ND). The US Green Building Council (USGBC) administers the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED®, family of rating systems for green sustainable design and construction of buildings and development. LEED® is an internationally recognized standard for benchmarking sustainable design and construction that relies on third-party reviewers for expert and equitable analysis of the complex rating system criteria. The LEED®–ND system is a collaboration of the USGBC, The Congress for the New Urbanism, and the Natural Resources Defense Council designed to assess and reward innovative and environmentally outstanding development practices at scales ranging from the individual building to the campus, neighborhood, district, and city. CD+A’s staff has analyzed the sustainable features of numerous pilot proposals, for developments ranging from urban centers to suburban neighborhoods and from infill and redevelopment to new greenfield development, in locations across the United States as well as international. Our ability to review and rate these developments draws on and builds our expertlevel familiarity with the diverse array of sustainable practices addressing the built environment at all scales. Specifically, our expertise in pedestrian-oriented design, infill and redevelopment, and integrated transportation and land use planning, as well as our technical capabilities with GIS and Auto-CAD analysis tools have been critical to our ability to assess the array of different credits. The LEED-ND system’s pilot phase has been closed. The initial components of the post-pilot version were released in late 2009, which CD+A has been using to review post-pilot projects since that time.
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Grant Road Stormwater Harvesting
Tucson, Arizona City of Tucson Regional Transportation Authority (RTA)
Sub-consultant to Kimley Horn Associates 2007 - Present Project Description CD+A is part of a multidisciplinary team redesigning a major regional street in Tucson, Arizona, to accommodate improved access and mobility for vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians, and transit and to support revitalization of adjacent properties. The Grant Road Improvement Plan is part of a regional transportation plan approved by voters in 2006 that mandated widening of Grant Road from two lanes to three in each direction. Tucson decided to undertake the project using Context-Sensitive Solutions, in which the social, land use, urban design and other contextual factors of surrounding areas are the basis for designing a transportation facility that fits its environment. CD+A is the land use team leader and as such has helped define the alignment and cross sections, and has designed the streetscape improvements. The team began by conducting extensive analysis of the study area’s existing conditions and policies, synthesizing key aspects for the public. CD+A worked with the citizen task force to create a project vision statement and a set of guiding principles, used to evaluate design and alignment options. The team prepared a set of corridor-wide design concepts, including cross sections, pedestrian and bicycle crossings, water harvesting infrastructure, enhanced transit shelters, and special intersections using an indirect left turn to minimize right-of-way acquisition, pedestrian crossing distance and traffic backups. A series of public workshops allowed the public to view and comment on the analysis material, vision and guiding principles, draft design concepts, and potential revitalization concepts. CD+A and the team worked with the Task Force to design a draft alignment for Grant Road that incorporated the technical analysis, design, and public input to date. The alignment was presented in a series of public open houses, which resulted in more than 400 public comments. Based on these comments, a Task Force Recommended Alignment was prepared, and was then approved by the Tucson Mayor and City Council in January 2009. The approved alignment provided the framework for CD+A’s development of a landscape and streetscape concept for Grant Road, which defined a palette of trees indicating different street context zones, “skyline” trees at major intersections, rainwater harvesting areas, and pedestrian-supportive elements such as lighting, seating, and special paving at locations of high pedestrian activity. CD+A refined the streetscape design for a Design Concept Report and 30% design construction documents for the corridor. CD+A is continuing the revitalization planning process with the Task Force to develop a Community Character and Vitality Plan that will complement the alignment. The team is also working on the construction documents for the Phase 1 improvement project around the Oracle Road intersection, which will begin construction in the fall of 2011.
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Development Workshops
Vignettes used in workshops to illustrate small-scale, adaptive changes to better connect existing businesses with the new Grant Road alignment. Strategies include new street-facing building frontages, public spaces, and parking configurations.
Public workshop to gather citizen input on proposed strategies for connecting the new Grant Road with adjacent businesses and housing.
Development Types “game pieces� used during a community planning workshop:
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Stormwater Design Guidelines for San Francisco
San Francisco, California Port of San Francisco and SF Public Utilities Commission
Subconsultant to Hydroconsult Engineers 2006 - 2008
Project Description Community Design + Architecture worked with hydrologists Hydroconsult Engineers and regulatory specialists from the San Francisco Port and Public Utilities Commission to develop Stormwater Design Guidelines for San Francisco. The Stormwater Design Guidelines provides guidance on regional stormwater discharge permit compliance and use this regulatory driver to foster better building and public space design in San Francisco. The guidance approaches stormwater management from a perspective of land-use specific multi-functional design. Stormwater management tools are selected and integrated into appropriate land-uses based not only on stormwater management performance criteria, but also on their contribution to the built environment and the larger design and sustainability goals of the City. Greening of City streets, provision of more public space and usable open space, improvement of urban wildlife habitat and habitat corridors, reduction of potable water demand, and other broader environmental goals are addressed through the design approach elaborated in the document. In addition to CD+A’s role as a content contributor based on our nationally recognized expertise in innovative stormwater guidance, CD+A’s responsibilities included creation of a graphic-intensive implementation-oriented guidebook that is visually appealing and easy to understand and use. Additionally, CD+A was responsible for developing a palette of appropriate vegetation and guidance on facility management and maintenance. A public review draft of the document is currently available for review.
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Stormwater Design Guidelines for San Francisco
CD+A explored commercial/residential mixed use development that included eco roofs, permeable paving, parking lot swales, cistern water storage, bio-retention/ infiltration planters, rain screens, and dry wells.
Open spaces provided locations for active and passive recreation, wildlife habitat, and environmental protection as well as contributing to air and water protection.
Stormwater runoff from industrial land was addressed through water cisterns, planter beds, vortex/swirl separators, and vegetated buffer strips.
The Stormwater Design guidelines also addressed San Francisco’s Former Shipyards and their opportunities for innovative and comprehensive stormwater management.
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Green Redevelopment Guidelines
Emeryville, CA City of Emeryville
Lead Consultant 2004 - 2006
Project Description In the past decade, the City of Emeryville has earned a national reputation as a pioneer in reclaiming, remediating, and redeveloping its decaying industrial lands. A massive brownfields pilot program has resulted in a dramatic economic turnaround for the City, which has succeeded in attracting high-tech firms such as Chiron and Pixar to locate in the City. Through an EPA grant, the City is now addressing its next challenge – to meet new standards for water quality and improve the general environmental sustainability of continued revitalization efforts. To realize this goal, CD+A, along with a local hydrology firm and transportation consultants, have created Design Guidelines for Green Dense Redevelopment. The guidelines, geared specifically to developers and designers, integrate green stormwater treatment into the site planning and building design of new development. Additional efficiencies in development will also be gained from pedestrian-friendly parking strategies. The parking and green design solutions range from shared district parking facilities to green roofs to containerized rain gardens; all are tailored for Emeryville’s unique context: heavily urbanized sites with little extra room for large detention facilities, often with compacted or even contaminated soils and a high water table. The guidelines document, which includes a thorough numeric sizing methodology for various facility types, will enable City staff, planners, designers, and developers to implement sustainable design on many scales throughout Emeryville. Implementation of the guidelines will allow Emeryville to attract research and knowledge-based businesses and to develop additional housing opportunities for those interested in Emeryville’s urban lifestyle. In 2006, the guidelines document was awarded a Northern California Chapter APA and a California Chapter APA Award in the area of “Focused Issue Planning.”
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Green Redevelopment Guidelines Emeryville
Design solutions applied to a redevelopment project at the block scale
Parking Solutions
Sizing Exercise included in Guidelines
Stormwater Solutions
Structural Soil
Permeable Parking
Bio-retention
Water Storage
Green Roofs
Infiltration
Bio-filtration
Tree Preservation and Planting
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Green Streets: Environmental Designs for Transportation
Metro Portland Region, Oregon Metro Regional Services
Lead Consultant 2000 - 2001
Project Description CD+A led a multi-disciplinary team of urban designers, hydrologists, transportation planners and environmental consultants in developing a “Green Streets” Best Management Practices Handbook for the Portland Metro Region. The project was funded through an Oregon DOT Transportation and Growth Management grant. The Handbook is ultimately intended to be used as a threshold requirement for projects nominated for regional funding, and used to address 4(d) “taking” provisions of the Endangered Species Act in relation to Coho Salmon and Steelhead Trout. The project expands upon CD+A’s expertise in the linkages between land use and transportation to examine the integration of man-made and natural systems. The Handbook directly addresses the water quality implications of overlaying a well-connected street pattern onto an existing stream system within the Region’s urban land reserve. The Handbook begins with an educational component that introduces the reader to various concepts and precedents related to both stormwater management issues and street design. But beyond being an educational tool, the Handbook includes detailed design solutions, and a methodology of how to match a particular solution to specific site conditions such as topography, soil type, street type, as well as to political and public will. Also, the Handbook proposes new street connectivity provisions, for adoption into regional and local plans that address tradeoffs between stream protection and an efficient, multi-modal transportation system. CD+A met monthly with a technical advisory committee comprised of representatives from local jurisdictions, state and federal agencies, service providers, and environmental advocates. In addition three monthly sessions were held specifically with local traffic and stormwater engineers to listen to their concerns and gather their advice. Near the end of the project CD+A participated in a Green Streets Summit attended by 150 regional policy-makers where the project results were presented. Throughout the project CD+A maintained an excellent rapport with Metro staff through open lines of communication.
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Principles for Stormwater Treatment Green Streets: Environmental Designs for Transportation
The “Big Picture� approach to a Green Streets community
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Detail Design Solutions Green Streets: Environmental Designs for Transportation
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Creating Streets and Places Green Streets: Environmental Designs for Transportation