Urban Collage » Media Coverage

Gainesville Gears Up for its Third Community Workshop

Niti Gajjar — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 13:49:45 +0000

The City of Gainesville and the planning team led by Urban Collage is gearing up for the third of the four community workshops for the Gainesville 2030 Comprehensive Plan on August 11th, at the Fair Street Neighborhood Center. The main focus of this meeting will be the Downtown/Midtown Core and the intown neighborhoods. For local news coverage on the completed second workshop please click here…

John Skach, the Principal-in-Charge of this project and Senior Associate at Urban Collage, was interviewed by Gainesville local channel TV-18, along with Rusty Ligon, the City’s Community Development Director. “This is our Gainesville” interview was part of the program – Eye on Gainesville led by Catiel Felts. The interview focused on discussing the purpose, process, and early highlights of the comprehensive plan. Please click here to view the complete interview.

Public Kick-off Open House for the 2030 Gainesville Comprehensive Plan

Niti Gajjar — Wed, 25 May 2011 18:56:08 +0000

As the first step towards creating a community vision for the 2030 Gainesville Comprehensive Plan, Urban Collage and the planning team along with the City of Gainesville conducted a public kick-off open house at the Georgia Mountains Center on May 21. This three-hour event was well attended by city stakeholders and residents, and the open house format gave plenty of opportunities for input at various planning stations related to economic development, transportation, community facilities, natural and historic resources, and future development. The suggestions will become a platform for further visioning at three workshops planned for July and August.

UC’s Butler Park Revitalization Plan featured in Parks & Recreation Magazine

Soumi Basu — Mon, 16 May 2011 22:09:27 +0000

For the last year or so, Associate Matt Cherry has been working collaboratively with the City of Atlanta and the Atlanta Housing Authority to gather input from community stakeholders and conceptualize a new Butler Park in the aftermath of severe damage caused by a 2008 tornado. Capitalizing on momentum from the ongoing adjacent Auburn Pointe (formerly Grady Homes) Hope VI Redevelopment, the new Butler Park will open in November, adding exciting new recreational and gathering spaces while simultaneously commemorating the legacy of Selena S. Butler and her contributions to educational issues and the civil rights movement.

To read the article in the Parks & Recreation Magazine click here.

Arena, Arts & Entertainment District Task Force in Action

Soumi Basu — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 22:05:14 +0000

Lexington Mayor Jim Gray has appointed an Arena, Arts & Entertainment Task Force to conduct a comprehensive study on the Lexington Center, Rupp Arena, and its immediate context. The task force held its first organizational meeting on April 14, 2011 with the main objective to introduce the four Committees – Planning & Design, Need, Use & Benefit, Finance and Technical Advisory Group; and discuss the process, tasks and products of each Committee. Urban Collage has been engaged to provide staff support and help facilitate this ten-month process. The Committees are now in the process of gathering and analyzing existing studies and information, along with identifying potential case studies for the district.

For more information and presentations visit the Task Force website and for the local news article click here…

UC part of team picked to develop Multi-Modal Terminal

Stanford Harvey — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 13:27:04 +0000

The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) recently announced that a team led by Forest City Enterprises, Cousins Properties and The Integral Group had been selected to plan, design and develop one of the largest transit-oriented projects in the country, the Atlanta Multi-Modal Terminal. Urban Collage is part of a talented design team that includes FXFowle, Cooper Carry, Parsons Brinckerhoff and Kimley-Horn. Work will include design of the central station for Georgia’s transit and commuter system and associated mixed use development of the “gulch” in Downtown Atlanta.

For more information click here...

The City of Dunwoody moves forward with its Implementation Plan

Eric Bosman — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 18:37:58 +0000

The Georgetown/North Shallowford Community Area Master Plan is scheduled to go before Dunwoody City Council for adoption on March 28^th. However, the City isn’t waiting to implement some of the plan’s major recommendations. Last week, the City of Dunwoody concluded negotiations with Wells Fargo Bank and will acquire a 16.18 acre parcel to create a new community green space.

The parcel is the site of a failed multi-family development bounded by Chamblee Dunwoody Road, North Shallowford Road, Dunwoody Park Drive and three multi-family residential buildings and was one of the major focal points of the Master Plan effort.

Please see the City of Dunwoody press release and local news video regarding the property acquisition for more information.

UC initiates the Gainesville Comprehensive Planning Effort

John Skach — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 19:42:30 +0000

Urban Collage is beginning a year-long process to work with the citizens and stakeholders of Gainesville to plan comprehensively for the sustainable growth of the city over the next 20 years. The process will include several hands-on workshops focusing on character area improvements, including a number of new Opportunity Zones.

For more information see here…

The City of Dunwoody welcomes community input during their open houses

Eric Bosman — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 19:11:00 +0000

Following a series of public workshops, the City of Dunwoody, GA recently held three additional open houses to provide an opportunity for community members to provide input into preliminary plans for the Dunwoody Village and the Georgetown/North Shallowford Community Area. The two Master Plans are being developed concurrently by Urban Collage in cooperation with RCLCo, Houseal Lavigne, and Kimley-Horn and Associates.

The recent open houses were covered in detail by online periodical Dunwoody Patch. Click here to read the article. A fourth round of public meetings on the plans will be held in January, with their completion anticipated in February 2011.

Town Branch Trail Momentum Builds

Stanford Harvey — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 21:08:07 +0000

The Feasibility Study and next phases of construction for the Town Branch Trail will be discussed at a final public meeting on December 6, 2010. Urban Collage was a subconsultant for the Feasibility Study, which explored conceptual trail alignments and corresponding development opportunities in this historic, but challenging, corridor running west from Downtown Lexington. Urban Collage has worked with Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, a local development entity, Lexington Distillery District, LLC, and a local non-profit, Town Branch Trail, to help define and implement comprehensive improvements along Town Branch Creek through innovative design that celebrates Lexington’s historic roots.

For more information click here

Madison initiates the process to develop its Growth Plan

Eric Bosman — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 21:49:11 +0000

The City of Madison, Alabama hosted the first of three public meetings on Thursday, November 4th to develop a Growth Plan for the City of 40,000. Several hundred community members came to the New Craig and Steven Hogan Family YMCA to learn about the planning effort and begin providing input that will shape Madison’s growth and development over the next 20 years. The Madison Growth Plan is being developed by the City of Madison with Urban Collage, Inc., Market + Main, and Sain Engineering Associates, Inc.

For more information click here…