east savannah gateway course charting

ideas and themes to unite esg area in to one.

creating a vision for wheaton street that will guide regulation and investment

setting the conceptual direction for hitch, wessels, and blackshear

introduction 2

chart 1: area 3

chart 2: corridor 5

chart 3: sites 8

EAST SAVANNAH GATEWAY | CHOICE NEIGHBORHOODS PLANNING INITIATIVEUrban Collage, Inc. | Quadel Consulting Corporation | The Communities Group | Housing Authority of Savannah | April 2013

East Savannah Gateway charting the course

EAST SAVANNAH GATEWAY | CHOICE NEIGHBORHOODS PLANNING INITIATIVEUrban Collage, Inc. | Quadel Consulting Corporation | The Communities Group | Housing Authority of Savannah | April 2013 2

East Savannah Gateway charting the course

On Friday March 22 2013, a group ofstakeholders was convened in the trainingroom of the Housing Authority of Savannahtodiscuss issuesand ideasrelatedtophysicalredevelopmentintheEastSavannahGateway.Thegoal of thework sessionwas tomapouta vision for the ESG that could inform thedirectionoftheTransformationPlan,andguideredevelopment / revitalization planning forstrategicHASpropertiesalongWheatonStreetincludingFredWesselsHomes,theHitchVillagesite,andtheEdgarBlackshearcommunity.Thesession lasted approximately four hours andculminated in the observations and thoughtscapturedbelow.

Participants Earline Davis, Housing Authority of Savannah

Rosalyn Truitt, Housing Authority of Savannah

Yolanda Fontaine, Housing Authority of Savannah

Monifa Johnson, Housing Authority of Savannah

Tammy Altizer Brawner, Housing Authority of Savannah

Shaun Vermilyea, Housing Authority of Savannah

Jermaine Durham, Housing Authority of Savannah

Michael Adams, Chatham County – Savannah MPC

Amanda Bunce, Chatham County – Savannah MPC

Jack Butler, Chatham County – Savannah MPC

Leah Michalak, Chatham County – Savannah MPC

Charlotte Moore, Chatham County – Savannah MPC

Martin Fretty, City of Savannah

Barry Baker, City of Savannah

Cristy Lawrence, City of Savannah

Julie McLean, City of Savannah

Peter Shonka, City of Savannah

Tom Stephens, City of Savannah

Taffanye Young, City of Savannah John Sawyer, City of Savannah

Shirley Smith, City of Savannah Gladys Turner, Ben Van Clark Neighborhood Association

Benjamin Green, Wessels Neighborhood Association

Michael Hughes, Thomas & Hutton

Melodee Melin, Quadel Consulting

Jaime Bordenave, The Communities Group

Bill Little, The Hunt Company

Bob Begle, Urban Collage

John Skach, Urban Collage


CHART 1: areastrateGic chaLLenGe:

The first conversation was set against the growing desire for Choice Neighborhoods to be identified as one unique place with an identity embraced by its residents, even if the planning covers several different local (sub) neighborhoods. ESG overlaps no less than ten Savannah neighborhoods; and so the group was encouraged to come up with a unifier that could transcend individual boundaries in a new construct.

• Gateway (All The Way)

The attraction to streets and natural features as neighborhoodidentifiers is not surprising given that the ESG historically was not adistinctplaceliketheOglethorpecity,butwasthemeetingoftwolargerlandscapes–theforest,andtheriverasembodiedbywetlandricefields.Wherethecenterisdrawnnowwasearlieranedge,tracedbythelineofwhatusedtobethe“RoadtoThunderbolt”.Today’sLiberty-Wheaton-Skidawaycorridoroverlaysthisroad,showninwhiteinthe1779mapabove.Throughdiscussion,thegroupintuitivelysensedtheanswer:thatthisroadcannolongeractassimplyaconduitbuthastoberemadeasaplace.

the group was able to better enunciate possible themes when thinking at a smaller scale or in more specifics:• Water/wetlands/river(boathornscanbeheardinESG)

• KeystreetsincludingWheaton-Liberty,President,andGwinnett

• Intensifieddevelopmentaround/nearSpencerElementary

• Asignature“destination”orparktoraisetheimageofWheaton

RESULTING CONCEPTS

COME UP WITH A THEME OR IDEA THAT CAN UNITE THE VARIOUS ESG NEIGHBORHOODS INTO ONE

• East Side • Center / Place

As a result of this, three conceptual areas were identified:


Urban Collage, Inc.Quadel Consulting Corporation

the Communities GroupHousing Authority of Savannah

March, 20130 150 300 600 feet NORtH

CONTEXT MAPEAST SAVANNAH GATEWAYCHOICE NEIGHBORHOODS PLANNING INITIATIVE

CHART 1: area

ParticipantsalsoidentifiedotherassetsthattheTransformationPlancouldbebuilton,aswellaschallengesthatneedtobe

addressedandmissingelementsthatmightbeconsidered:

• AtlasWastebrownfieldsite(nomoneyforremediation)

• Homelessencampments

• TrumanParkway(abarrier)

missing elements:FullyStockedLibrary:Systeminterestedinsatellitelocations.Operatingexpensesanissue

“Walkable”Grocery/Retail:OffWheatonStreettoservecommunity

RecreationalFacilities:i.e.:YMCA

Jobs:BigBoxRetailSites

ASSETS, CHALLENGES, & MISSING ELEMENTS

• CulturalResourcesincludinghistoricchurches

• NaturalResources-WithAmenitiesLikeBoardwalks

• SavannahGardens

• DFCSFacility • NeighborhoodResourceCenter

• SavannahGolfCourseMarketRateBuyer/RenterAmenity

• ExistingEnterpriseZone• Randy’sBBQ

• SavannahHighSchool

• ExistingParksIncludingLowPark

• RiverStreet/SavannahRiver

• SavannahRiverLandingButNeedsAffordableHousing

• W.W.LawCommunityCenterOpportunitytoexpandprograms

• FutureBikeConnectionsthroughESG

• HitchVillageSite

• SavannahEntrepreneurialCenter

• Trustee’sGardenArea

assets:

challenges:


• SavannahGolfCourseMarketRateBuyer/RenterAmenity

• SavannahHighSchool

• SavannahRiverLandingButNeedsAffordableHousing

• W.W.LawCommunityCenterOpportunitytoexpandprograms

• Trustee’sGardenArea

CHART 2: corriDor

• WagnerHeightsneighborhoodasrehab/infill

• HousingfocusforHAS“commercialsite”

• CatalystdevelopmentsiteeastofSpencerES(potentialnon-retaildestinationlikeIslandsYMCA)

• Cultural/tourismdestinationatoldricefields

• FuturebikefacilitiesalongWheaton,President,Gwinnett,Truman

• Possibletrailaccesstowetlandsat(CedarStreet)canal

• Citystreetscape/revitalizationinitiativeonWatersAvenue

• Potential(long-term)streetcaronWheaton,Waters

• NewTrumanParkwayinterchangeunlikely(orverylong-term)

• Threelanesfacilitatehorses(carriagetourtrade)withouttyinguptraffic

• Consistent,unifyingstreetscapewithpedestrian/trafficseparationneeded

• Newbikelanesneeded

**

key outcomes incluDe the following:

strateGic chaLLenGe:CREATE A PHYSICAL VISION FOR WHEATON STREET THAT WILL GUIDE REGULATION & INVESTMENT

• PreservationatBlackshearisimportant(popularwithfamilies,highoccupancy,goodreturn)

• SomeintensificationisappropriateatBlackshearalongWheaton

• PlanstorebuildcourtsatBlackshearbasketballcomplex

• Grocery/pharmacyneededsomewhereincorridor(ornearby)

• Liberty-Randolph-Wheatonareashouldevolveintoadestinationovertime

Wheaton Street has been a subject of revitalization initiatives for several years, but no comprehensive physical visioning has ever been undertaken. Choice Neighborhoods presents the opportunity to create this vision, particularly since the larger neighborhood narrative is also about reclaiming Wheaton Street as a center. The second conversation used the MPC’s recent work on the Unified Zoning Ordinance, and the 2007 President Street Concept Study, as points of departure in creating this vision. Three topics were discussed: future land use / development, corridor mobility, and the street section.

STREET SECTION

MOBILITYFUTURE LAND USE/ DEVELOPMENT


?•Conservation Area•Cultural Destination•Tourism Focus

•HAS ”Commercial Site”

•Blackshear See: Page 8

•Blackshear See: Page 8

•Hitch See: Pages 11-12

•Wessels See: Page 10

•Pending Improvements•Potential For Expansion?

•Streetscape•Bike Facilities•Long-Term Streetcar

REHABILITATED RICE FIELDS

EAST GATEWAY NODE

MIXED-USE “GATEWAY VILLAGE”

HOUSING FOCUS

CATALYST SITE

CATAYST SITE

CATALYST SITE

CATALYST SITE

“GATEWAY VILLAGE”

WHEATON STREET IMPROVEMENTS

WEST GATEWAY N0DE

Access Point / Canal Connection

Long-Term Use Change?

Blackshear Basketball Complex

Neighborhood BusinessEconomic Development Area

Waters StreetRevitalization Effort

Key Intersection• Pedestrian Crossing

?

Historic Commercial /Cultural Heritage Area

Possible Interpretive Trail?

Historic Resources /Neighborhood Landmarks

WHEATON STREET VISION / FRAMEWORK PLANThediagrambelowisthefirstcutatadevelopmentandpublicspaceframeworkthatseekstoreorientWheatonStreetawayfromatrafficconduitandintoaplace.Itfeaturesnewmixed-useandresidentialdevelopmentattwogatewaynodes,andinfillimprovementsthatmediatebetweenthewetlandconservationareaandtheEastSideneighborhood.

Thisconceptincorporatestheinputofthesessionparticipantsandtheideasofthedesignanddevelopmentteam.

CHART 2: corriDor


BROADER CONNECTIONSWhiletheWheatonStreetCorridor,theadjacentneighborhoodsandthewet-landareaarethedefiningelementsoftheEastSavannnahGatewayChoiceNeighborhood,theyoccupyonlythewesternhalfofthestudyarea.Therede-velopmentofSavannahGardensandongoinginvestmentalongPennsylvaniaAvenuemakesitimperativetostrengthenconnectionsbetweeneastandwest.PresidentStreet,GwinnettStreetandEastHenryStreetareallimportantlinks;butGwinnettisapriorityforpedestianimprovementsbecauseofitsdirectre-lationshipwiththeWheatondistrictandanemergingneighborhoodcommercialnodeatPennsylvania.

CHART 2: corriDor


ThisconceptualdiagramsuggeststhatrevitalizingthefrontagealongWheatonstreetcanmakewayforreplacementunitsthataddressthestreetwhilealsocreatingenoughspace

forthepotentialintroductionofnewunitsandroads.

blackshear Demolition strategy

RehabilitatedBuildings

SelectiveDemolition-18Units

new st. lukea. m. e. church

st. paulmissionarybaptistchurch

bunn memorialbaptistchurch2nD mt.

calvarybaptist church

5th streetmissionarybaptistchurch

wheaton st

note: this concept is strictly a study not a development proposal.

CHART 3: sites

BLACKSHEAR STRATEGY

strateGic chaLLenGe:SET THE CONCEPTUAL DIRECTION FOR THE HITCH, WESSELS, & BLACKSHEAR REVITALIZATIONS

The target sites stand as the most tangible

catalysts within the ESG area. The ideas for Hitch establish a fused language of connectivity

to the constitutional framework of the city and its natural assets while assisting in the “branding” of the Wheaton Street corridor. Subsequently, the Wessels and Blackshear revitalization visions

offer proposals for a longer term solution for further integration.


P

P

P

P

P

P

phase 1 infiLL: ±18 units|type: townhome

phase 2 infiLL: ±43 units|type: townhome

potentiaL new roadway

potentiaL parkinG area- requires further study

proposed streetscape improvement areas

rehabiLitated buiLdinGs

blackshear infill strategy

P

wheaton st

new st. lukea. m. e. church

st. paulmissionarybaptistchurch

bunn memorialbaptistchurch

2nD mt. calvarybaptist church

5th streetmissionarybaptistchurch


CHART 3: sites


ThisconceptsuggeststhattherevitalizationofWesselscancomeaboutwithstrategicsurgicalmoves.Byreplacingamini-

malamountofunitsandrehabiliatingtherest,itallowsforgreaterconnectivityandtheimplementationofnewunits.

wessels Demolition strategy

RehabilitatedBuildings

Selective±44Units+Demolition-Office/CommunityCntr.

e. oGLethorpe ave.

e. president st.

ran

do

Lph s

t.

hit

ch

sit

e


CHART 3: sites

WESSELS STRATEGY


P

P P

P

P

P

P

PP

P

P

P P

P

phase 1 infiLL: ±44 units|type: 2/3 story waLk-up

phase 2 infiLL: ±70 units|type: 3 story senior housinG

potentiaL new roadway

potentiaL parkinG area- requires further study

proposed streetscape improvement areas

rehabiLitated buiLdinGs

e. oGLethorpe ave. extension

e. perry street extension

wessels infill strategy

P

hit

ch

sit

e

ran

do

Lph s

t.


CHART 3: sites


Thisconceptstudiesthepossibilityofsmall,connectedblocksbyutilizing

offsitelandasthelocationforthecom-munitycenter/library.Thiscreatesan

openingfortwomorehousingblocksandgreaterconnectivitytothewest.

0 50 100 200 feet

offsitearchitecturaL controLsneeded on edGes

e. oGLethorpeavenueextension

WESSELS

WESSELS

unbuiLdabLe area±12 ft. beLow site Gradestormwater mitiGation open space asset

±36units

±40units

±38units

±24units

±24units

±48units

±46units

±24units

±24units

centraL missionarybaptist church

second ebenezerbaptist church

±80units

±28units

WHEATON ST.

EAST PERRY ST. (EXTENSION)

Option“A”TotalUnits:+/-388not incLudinG offsite

communityamenity center

“hitch square”at deveLopment Grade



CHART 3: sitesHITCH OPTION “A”


ThisconceptfollowsthesamenotionofOption“A”butmaintainsalldevelopmentonsite.Inordertoachieveaunitcount

closetothefirstoption,twoblocksmustbeconsolidated.

HITCH OPTION “B”

offsitearchitecturaL controLsneeded on edGes

communityamenity center

WESSELS

WESSELS


±100units

±38units

±24units

±24units

±46units

±24units

±100units

±28units

WHEATON ST.

EAST PERRY ST. (EXTENSION)

0 50 100 200 feet

Option“B”TotalUnits:+/-384



“hitch square”at deveLopment Grade

e. oGLethorpeavenueextension

centraL missionarybaptist church

second ebenezerbaptist church

CHART 3: sites


0 15 30 60 feet

0 15 30 60 feet

HALF BLOCK LAYOUT

FULL BLOCK LAYOUT

SAMPLE DENSITY TESTS

CHART 3: sites

east savannah gateway course charting

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