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FALL 2015 COASTAL STUDIO

CONTENTS

EXISTING CONDITIONS

INTRODUCTION

GEODESIGN

2 3 4 5

Existing Conditions................................ 6 Site Visit............................................... 7

Geodesign Workshop............................ 8 Process Summary.................................. 9

Contents.............................................. Studio Team......................................... Statement of Purpose............................ Study Area...........................................

TEAM PROPOSALS Residential Development.......................11 Industrial/Commercial Development......17 Cultural Resources and Tourism............ 21 Ecological Connectivity......................... 24

CONCLUSION Summary............................................ 28

APPENDICES Sources................................................

01 INTRODUCTION

TEAM MEMBERS

EXISTING CONDITIONS

Mackenzie Battista

Mark Beatty

Olivia Bigner

Johnita Daniel

Vineet Date

BA History, Middle Georgia State University

BS Applied Environmental and Spatial Analysis, University of North Georgia

BS Biology, Gordon State College

BLA, University of Georgia

BA Political Science, Georgia Southern University

BArch, Mumbai University MLA, Clemson University MHP, University of Georgia

03 GEODESIGN

James Anderson

Jordan Dowdy

Rachel Haddon

Aron Hall

Lacy Jones

Evelyn Mera

Robin Osindele

BA Anthropology, University of North Carolina

BS Nursing, Emory University MHP, University of Georgia

BA Sociology and Philosophy, University of Georgia MA Sociology, University of West Georgia

BS Geography, University of North Alabama

BS Environmental Science, Nova Southeastern University

BS Environmental Health Science, University of Georgia

TEAM PROPOSALS

CONCLUSION

Christopher Stebbins

Andrew Stern

Shuang Xi

Rosanna Rivero

BA Anthropology, University of Georgia

BA Anthropology and Geography, UCSB MLA, UGA

BA History, Portland State University MHP, University of Georgia

BLA, Northeast Agricultural University, China

Professor UGA College of Environment + Design

06 APPENDICES

Victoria Sorokina

01 INTRODUCTION

STUDY AREA STUDY AREA

EXISTING CONDITIONS

280

§ ¦ ¨

Pembroke

§ ¦ ¨ 95

Port Wentworth Garden Pooler City

£ ¤

Savannah

H R IV E R

§ ¦ ¨

£ ¤

516

119

V U

CR EE

K IVE R EE C H EE R A NO O C

V U

Tybee Island

Richmond Hill

144

Flemington

£ ¤ 17

E CHE

ER IV E R

Midway

Hinesville CHATHAM COUNTY

Wassaw Island

TEAM PROPOSALS

V U

EFFINGHAM COUNTY

Ossabaw Island

V U 119

Riceboro

§ ¦ ¨ 95

LIBERTY COUNTY

ATLANTIC OCEAN

CONCLUSION

BRYAN COUNTY

GEODESIGN

£ ¤

Savannah and the region surrounding the coastal city including Bryan, Chatham and Liberty counties will face a multitude of challenges in the upcoming years. There will be continued environmental issues as the region struggles to protect its many natural resources. There will also be rising social issues as well-established communities face displacement both from climate change and from growing inequities. Thus far economic factors seem to have driven the overall planning process for the area without much regard for the ecological or societal needs. As a major source of economic revenue the port of Savannah has been allowed to take certain liberties when it comes to the environmental health of the region.

The city also heavily relies on tourism and the military base, Ft. Stewart, for economic gains. Additionally, Savannah is located near the major Interstate 95 which runs the length of the entire eastern seaboard from Miami Florida to the Canadian border in Maine. This interstate paired with a very active port system allows for an exponential amount of goods and services to be widely dispersed through the eastern portion

of the country. Downtown Savannah generates a substantial number of tourists throughout the year with historical and cultural events. To the east of downtown Savannah and roughly twenty miles is Tybee Island. The island houses an abundance of salt marshes that create a thriving coastal ecosystem that becomes more threatened as the region continues to grow.

In 1733, the city of Savannah became the capital of Georgia due to its strategic location as a port city and buffer to the Carolinas during the Revolutionary and Civil wars. James Oglethorpe took advantage of the city’s location and resurrected a town plan around the Yamacraw Bluff looking over the Savannah River. Today that river is one of the biggest allies for the well-being of the city of Savannah due to its extremely active port system. The thirty-eight miles inland from the ocean to the port will be deepened to forty-eight feet to allow the passage of Post-PanAm cargo ships. This project is endangering the already vulnerable ecosystems along coastal Georgia and threatening the safety and wellbeing of human inhabitants.

St Catherines Island

LONG COUNTY ATLANTIC OCEAN

APPENDICES

06 ATLANTIC OCEAN

STUDY AREA CONTEXT

Miles 10

INTRODUCTION

SITE VISIT

EXISTING CONDITIONS

GEODESIGN

TEAM PROPOSALS

CONCLUSION

06 APPENDICES

This map contains a representative sample of sites visited during the studio trip to the study area in September of 2015. Group members explored the area and spoke with local stakeholders about pertinent issues to our project.

APPENDICES

CONCLUSION

TEAM PROPOSALS

GEODESIGN

EXISTING CONDITIONS

INTRODUCTION

GEODESIGN SUMMARY 01

INTRODUCTION

01 RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT OLIVIA BIGNER JOHNITA DANIEL LACY JONES VICTORIA SOROKINA SHUANG XI

EXISTING CONDITIONS

GEODESIGN

TEAM PROPOSALS

TEAM PROPOSALS Drawing upon the results of the Geodesign workshop, each change team selected certain policies and projects to focus their research and proposals. Each team further developed their proposals, expanding their ideas with additional data and mapping. The proposals in this section are ideas generated during the Geodesign workshop, as groups worked at a regional scale to solve issues using a collaborative framework. Many of the proposals overlap in some way, whether it is geographic location or response to a problem. However, while they may overlap, the proposals each contain unique elements that are responding to issues that are omnipresent in the study area, and thus knit together each groupâ€™s specific focus.

CONCLUSION

APPENDICES

INDUSTRIAL AND COMMERICIAL DEVELOPMENT

JAMES ANDERSON VINEET DATE

CULTURAL RESOURCES AND TOURISM

ECOLOGICAL CONNECTIVITY

RACHEL HADDON ARON HALL ROBIN OSINDELE ANDREW STERN

MACKENZIE BATTISTA MARK BEATTY JORDAN DOWDY EVELYN MERA CHRISTOPHER STEBBINS

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As the region grows there are a number of threats facing these resources. Population growth will put development pressure on sensitive areas around these resources. This will most strongly be felt along the coastal resources, at Centennial Farms of Georgia, and near protected forested areas. Climate change will also have an effect on a number of resources. Sea level rise will most directly affect resources in low-lying areas and those directly along the coast. Other resources could be threatened by the increase in extreme weather events associated with climate change.

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EXISTING CONDITIONS

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03 GEODESIGN

04 TEAM PROPOSALS

The three-county region of Chatham, Liberty, and Bryan Counties along the North Georgia coast contain many cultural resources important on the local, state, and national level. These resources help to tell the story of the development of the region, from pre-Civil War agricultural lands, to important freed African American cultural traditions, to mid20th century development. The resources in the region include Revolutionary and Civil War sites, Gullah Geechee cultural locations, archeological locations, stunning architectural examples, and sensitive coastal wetlands. These resources have varying degrees of protections associated with them. Individual, privately owned properties on the National Register of Historic Places have virtually no restrictions in place assuring their protection. However, properties in local historically designated historic districts and those owned publically by the state of National Park Service do have varying levels of protection in place.

CHALLENGES

RESOURCE SUMMARY

05 CONCLUSION

National Register Individual Properties !

National Register Listed Districts ! !

Legend

Local Historic Districts

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National Register Individual Properties National Register Districts Local Historic Districts

State Parks

National Park or Forest

Moon River District

Â°

National park or forest

0.5

Miles 1

06 APPENDICES

EXISTING RESOURCES

INTRODUCTION

CULTURAL RESOURCES

State park or forest

01 INTRODUCTION

ECOVILLAGES SENSITIVE DEVELOPMENT Ecovillages, or conservation villages, provide a unique opportunity for sensitive development in areas that have a large amount of conservable land. Village Habitat Design, an Atlanta-based firm, has been designing conservation villages since 1989, creating community- oriented spaces that are environmentally minded. The firm delineates three goals in planning conservation villages: reducing environmental degradation, improving the quality of life, and strengthening the community. In achieving these goals, the villages aim to conserve up to 95% of the buildable land and allot housing to only 5% of the area.

EXISTING CONDITIONS

GEODESIGN

Ecovillages contain both residential and agricultural areas, creating an opportunity for farming on the site. Ecovillages also offer an element of ecotourism, as visitors to the site can learn about sustainable living and agriculture.

TEAM PROPOSALS

CONCLUSION

APPENDICES

PROPOSAL An opportunity exists along the Georgia Coast to implement the idea of ecovillages or conservation villages. These developments provide high density housing with low impacts to the environment, and could offer a solution for development in areas that are environmentally sensitive. While the Ecovillage at Ithaca is a smaller community, this model can be used at larger scales, and can also include multi-family housing options. There are several locations that would be suitable for this type of development including but not limited to: • Midway • Richmond Hill • Cay Creek Area • Riceboro • Keller • Georgetown

CASE EXAMPLE: ECOVILLAGE AT ITHACA

founded in 1991

located in Ithaca, NY

reduced average irrigation needs by 95% for turf

residences built to use 90% less energy than US average

175 acres total

100 homes on 15 acres of land

over 15,000 visitors since opening

opportunity for affordable housing and aging in place

15 acre organic farm onsite

organic farm has annual revenue of around $233,000

retains 100% of stormwater runoff on site

farm creates 7 full time jobs during growing season

CONNECTING THE PAST TO THE FUTURE been broken for construction. Construction will not begin, according to Nathaniel Panther, Senior Transportation Engineer, until 2017. This certainly does not mean that plans and construction could not simultaneously be made for the proposed Moon River Extension. The Moon River Extension proposal will connect the Truman Greenway to Pin Point and the University of Georgia Aquarium. The Georgia Coastal Greenway, which is only partially built, has many miles of trail that are still being sought. Though the plan is in place, there are land acquisitions and land easements to be gained. The final spur that we propose is the Midway Spur. The spur off of the Georgia Coastal Greenway will give direct access from Savannah to the cultural and ecologically significant Cay Creek Interpretive Park.

EXISTING CONDITIONS

03 GEODESIGN

While there are many bikeways throughout the study area, there continues to be a disconnection between cultural and ecological sites. There are four main greenways whose potentiality for connectivity is very promising, which we pay special attention. The greenways being studied are the McQueen’s Island Greenway, Georgia Coastal Greenway (an Extension of the East Coast Greenway), Midway Spur, and the Truman Greenway Extension (Moon River Extension). Only the McQueen’s Island Greenway is fully finished; therefore, we are proposing an extension connecting the already existing six-mile long greenway with the remainder of Tybee Island. This extension creates an ecological corridor with a tourism node at the end of the island. The Truman Greenway is fully funded, but ground has not

INTRODUCTION

GREENWAY NETWORK

04 TEAM PROPOSALS

PATH MILEAGE

East Coast Greenway

McQueen’s Island Greenway

ATLANTIC OCEAN

CONCLUSION

Truman Greenway

Built Proposed Midway Spur

Legend

Proposed Greenways

Miles 10

Existing Greenways

APPENDICES

Moon River Extension

Each represents 2 miles

01 INTRODUCTION

CONCLUSION In moving forward, the coastal region of Georgia has many factors to compensate for. Sea level rise and the increase in population, tourism, and industrial activity all create the need for complex, dynamic planning in order to responsibly grow and maintain a productive future. With the goal of creating a comprehensive regional plan for the coastal region of Georgia, the four designated groups worked to address each major topic to meet residential and economic needs as well as the needs of local wildlife.

EXISTING CONDITIONS

GEODESIGN

Each group focused on specific localized areas depending on each of their respective interests. In order to compensate for the increased population projections, the residential group focused on Pooler, Garden City, Port Wentworth, and Richmond Hill. Three main goals are designated based on city location in relation to current trends and employment distribution. Densification and transit-oriented development for the city of Pooler, affordable workforce housing for Garden City and Port Wentworth, and development focused for an aging-in-place residential market in Richmond Hill. To stay within accepted trends of the market base, a 60% focus of four units per acre and a 40% focus of 10 units per acre is the objective.

TEAM PROPOSALS

05 CONCLUSION

Savannah itself currently contains a major concentration of commercial and industrial

APPENDICES

presence. Therefore, to meet the need for a growing market an allocation of attention has been focused in Bryan County. Lying adjacent to Chatham County, this would provide a nearby easement on resources for the city of Savannah. Three main proposals are used with the intent of attracting larger employment opportunities such as small scale industry, medical offices, and corporate divisions. The addition of an Amtrak stop in order to provide commuting alternatives, the development of a town center with a design which promotes various modes of transportation and densification, and the creation of greenway trails for functional and leisurely residential use are the factors proposed for future commercial and industrial growth in the region. The focus for tourism and cultural resources included Midway, Richmond Hill, Cay Creek, Riceboro, Keller, Georgetown, and various other locations throughout the region. Environmentally responsible development is encouraged in order to preserve the vast natural resources of the area. The concept of an eco-village is used to implement a reduction of sprawling land use for residential and commercial purposes. Also, an extension of the current greenway network to provide eco-tourism and a commuting source to residents could be a source for the growing region to mitigate habitat destruction.

In providing the native wildlife with a sanctuary from habitat destruction, the ecological connectivity group focused on the extending the largest source of conserved lands within the region, Fort Stewart. Currently, the Natural Resources Division of Fort Stewart is interested in establishing an ecological connection to Hunter Army Airfield. In the process of deciding an achievable land acquisition land value, current ecological status, and restrictions due to fragmentation were evaluated. Two options were determined, one north and one south, which could provide an ecological buffer for the two military bases as well as a relatively uninterrupted pathway for local wildlife to traverse. This conglomeration of proposals join together to provide a variety of growth options for the coastal region of Georgia. Overall the focus of environmentally responsible development, as opposed to the seemingly endless sprawl, reigns supreme among the groups participating in this project. With the population expected to grow by 50% by 2050, building resilient and sustainable communities is essential and effective planning such as this could facilitate successful growth for the following decades. As time moves forward the issues of climate change will become an increasingly large element in the decisions of local and regional planning commissions and long-term comprehensive planning can serve as a useful tool in mitigating its effects.