UNDERSTANDING DENSITY
Real-Time, Metrics-Based, Neighborhood Design App
Plan Your Neighborhood
Test neighborhood configurations to create the most walkable, sustainable, and equitable future for your community.
Hawai‘i Housing Lab was ignited by a collaboration between the Hawai‘i Public Housing Authority and the University of Hawai‘i through the UH Community Design Center
© 2023 Karla Sierralta & Brian StrawnIn this set:
• Digital App Instructions
• Variables include: Density, Clustering, Street Grid, Street Width, Transit.
• Attributes include: Walkability, Outdoor Comfort, Views to Ocean, Potential Solar Energy, Shade on Facades
PLAN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
2
Hawai'i Housing Lab's Holistic Housing Design Toolkit
At a glance
Variables and Impact
Walkability, outdoor comfort, shade and amenities increase with density, while ample space for solar energy generation may decrease.
Increasing clustering optimizes space and provides opportunities from reduced car trips for frequent errands or expanding or conserving open spaces such as parks and plazas.
Block and street orientation affect the way people move, but also how buildings occupy space mainly impacting view corridors.
The width of the street may influence activities and patterns such as providing space for bike lanes or parking. This dimension mainly affects walkability and shading.
Transit stops increase mobility, amenities and support density clusters.
PLAN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD Hawai'i Housing Lab's Holistic Housing Design Toolkit 3
1 Density
2 Clustering
3 Street Grid
4 Street Width
5 Transit
At a glance
Attributes and
Walkability is related to proximity of structures, amenities available, shade and street design.
Comfort is based on an assessment of air temperature, humidity, wind speed, and solar radiation using the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI). It is directly related to shading and orientation of buildings.
View corridors are dependent on building orientation and heights of surrounding structures.
The potential of generating solar energy depends of area available on rooftops for photovoltaic panels (PV).
Shade is impacted by orientation of buildings and surrounding elements. The amount of shade on a facade can determine if a people can walk in the shade or if a room in a building receives enough natural light.
PLAN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD Hawai'i
Lab's
Housing Design Toolkit 4 1
Housing
Holistic
Walkability
2
Outdoor Comfort
3
Views to Ocean
4
Potential Solar Energy
5
Shade on Facades
Impact
What’s on the App?
Attributes
See resulting trade-offs including:
- Walkability
- Outdoor comfort
- Views of ocean
- Solar energy
- Shade
Variables
Adjust five interrelated variables and their settings to see changes in massing and attribute trade-offs
PLAN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD Hawai'i Housing Lab's Holistic Housing Design Toolkit 5
Think about:
Which neighborhood configurations work best for your future walkable, sustainable and equitable community?
PLAN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD Hawai'i Housing Lab's Holistic Housing Design Toolkit 6
PLAN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD Hawai'i Housing Lab's Holistic Housing Design Toolkit 7 To Access App Visit:
www.hawaiihousinglab.org Pair with:
Density Alphabet Cards Compare to:
Imagine Your Community Cards The Plan Your Neighborhood App was developed by KPF Urban Interface.
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