大象传媒

A relatively young city with an abundance of natural assets, affordable housing, and located between Greater Phoenix and the rugged Tonto National Forest, is a crucible for prosperity. City officials eagerly wanted to catalyze each element into a profitable city worthy of the acclaim given to cities such as Flagstaff, Scottsdale, and Sedona.  

A member of the 大象传媒, Arizona State University鈥檚 (ASU) Project Cities 鈥渃onnects higher education with local communities鈥� (from ASU Project Cities site) to co-create sustainable solutions which progress cities toward a better future. ASU courses and students were invited by Apache Junction to participate and engage with the research and development of community projects concerned with creating suitable and sustainable urban land use.

The goal of ASU鈥檚 involvement was to 鈥渃reate overarching visions for Apache Junction鈥� regarding all Project Cities projects and to 鈥済enerate landscape architecture ideas鈥� (from ASU PC Fall 2017 Guide) that would inspire and implement future city development.

ASU students from a mixed graduate-, undergraduate-level Landscape Architecture course conducted various forms of research to aid and improve Apache Junction鈥檚 current projects, which included:

• Inventorying and analyzing data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and more to understand the human and natural factors on local land use.
• Interacting onsite with the urban and natural land to study 鈥渢he truth of the place from the ground鈥�.
• Attending and participating in community events where, using the Socratic questioning method, they would ask open-ended questions to induce enlightening conversations which would lead to insightful responses.

ASU students observed numerous characteristics within Apache Junction that could be utilized toward development that reflected the values of its citizens while remaining mindful of sustainability best practices. In particular, students were most interested in creating projects that wouldn鈥檛 鈥渂ifurcate the city into the 鈥渙ld鈥� and 鈥渘ew鈥� Apache Junction鈥� (PC Fall 2017 Guide).

Recommendations for land-development projects focused on the theme of 鈥渟ustainability, active and healthy living, and a strong community identity,鈥� (PC Guide) which could be fostered by bringing attention to the city鈥檚 natural assets while marrying urban and natural land, creating communal spaces which celebrate Western culture and history with modernity, and reinvigorating the city as a health and recreation district by encouraging foot and bike traffic thanks to improved transportation pathways.

ASU鈥檚 courses and students helped Apache Junction calibrate their view on future developments that could generate communal growth within the city, from leveraging its natural assets to induce a reformation of health and recreation to designing city spaces that incorporate the city鈥檚 Western roots while imparting a sense of place. Through these and other ASU recommendations, Apache Junction can effectively provide residents and visitors with notable benefits to bestow the positive perceptions and acclaim onto the city that they have sought to foster.

CONTACT INFO

Project Cities
Steven Russell
Program Manager
steven.russell@asu.edu
480-727-2698

Arizona State University Faculty
Ken Brooks
Kevin Kellogg
Course Title: Landscape Architecture Design Studio, 361

Apache Junction
Larry Kirch
Director
Development Services
City of Apache Junction
lkirch@ajcity.net
480-474-5082

Read the full story of the partnership.

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