Stanfield Senior Capstone

CURRENT GATEWAY STATE + NEEDED IMPROVEMENTS

Along the corridor that is the Indiana Dunes National Park system that streams along Lake Michigan as a symbol to Northwest Indiana, the power structures of Power Plants and the culture built along the shoreline has worked to develop processes that have polluted, segregates neighborhoods that diminishes any idea of growth economically of the community members within those neighborhoods. Specifically in Michigan City, Indiana where the NIPSCO Generation Station lies, encompassing coal ash residue resulting in downstream pollution to the citizens of Michigan City that extends to Mount Baldy (a sand dune belonging to the IDNP) as well as the generation station creating harmful air pollutants having direct implications to the adjacent neighborhood, has gone into a state of disrepair and with it, the future of the shoreline becomes a hopeful entity for the people the West Side Neighborhood within Michigan City.

Outside of the NIPSCO Site, the Indiana State Prison has as well gone into a stage of redevelopment with attempts of moving to a different location in hopes that the Michigan City space can operate as a reimaging of the site giving back to the people of the West Side Neighborhood. The two entities leaving in terms of land ownership has given rise to redevelopment opportunities in hopes of developing an aesthetic and successful growth opportunity as a gateway to the National Park system as there is not a current meaningful and engaging visitors’ opportunity that bridges an urban jurisdiction and the National Park itself.

Creating A National Park Vision For A Changing Culture Through Closures of City Defining Infrastructure

STAKEHOLDER GUIDANCE + RESEARCH AQUISITION

Working with the Indiana Dunes National Park and my partner Rafi Wilkerson, their idea was to create a gateway experience for the Indiana Dunes National Park within Michigan City that allows for developmental and ecological restoration opportunities of diminished community resources and amenities through industrial and institutional means. Thinking of how to make improvements to the system such as trail improvements, shuttle buses that lead people to one amenity to another that lead people from train station to train station leading to the park itself as well. With that, understanding that there may be disturbance of natural resources within the boundary of Mount Baldy, how we can take social pressure off and take it to new spaces. Thinking of seasonal use, how we bring multi-seasonal interaction to the area that allows for multiple user groups to take over the space at different times. Creating new rail stops for the South Shore Line from Chicago was spoken of while meeting with the group to allow users not to singularly rely on their cars for interaction to the site as well.

Using Vibrant Michigan City, identifying from community engagement a need for economic growth within the community of West Side, Michigan City where the Indiana State Prison site is. Ecological restoration through remediation of the NIPSCO site that is along Lake Michigan. Through that, I could discern developmental need and patterns within Michigan City as well as the National Park Boundary informing the choosing of a specific scope via the need of community resources. Looking at various developmental plans such as the TDD Implementation Strategy has done the same especially in speaking with Aaron Kowalski in guiding to look deeper into the National Park system in story telling to discern why we need an Eastern Gateway to the IDNP. Understanding the data and how it is related to the opportunities that arise from regional analysis and city analysis, can develop site goals and opportunities that are going to relate to the regional need.

Julian Stanfield

INDIANA DUNES NATIONAL

POWER PLANT IMPACT: COMMUNITY REPORT LAKESHORE DEVELOPMENTAL OPPORTUNITIES

RECLAMATION OPPORTUNITY

Due to there being a power plant retirement (seen from the Power Plants and Neighboring Communities Map, provided by the EPA) provides an opportunity to restore the areas that power plants inhabited whether it is within a disadvantaged community or outside, giving more reason for a giveback to struggling communities and jurisdictions. Specifically Michigan City, Indiana being right along the edge of the IDNP, raises questions of the best techniques of cleaning the area and a deeper look into the area surrounding the features and the status of the neighborhood to see if other penetrating infrastructure is in need of change for a give back method to the city of Michigan City, Indiana.

RECLAMATION CONSTRAINT

All throughout the lakeshore area has experienced heavy industrial generation that has systemically led to disadvantaged communities via economic placement, disinvestment of community because of image of downstream effects of having a power plant in conjoining neighborhoods. Gary, Indiana without a retirement of a power plant and a city revitalization plan as well as others right along the lakeshore, are going to continue to live within the disadvantaged communities listing. We see the National Park external forces have an impact on it itself as a reclamation measure for retirement, but constant pressure on the national park without economic development through power plant retirement and restoration is going leave communities in back of decision maker’s mind.

URBAN DOMINATED OPPORTUNITY

In 2021, a Northwest Indiana TOD Strategic Implementation Plan was put into place that identified areas along the South Shore Line that had economic development within cities in Northwest Indiana as a prime point. With that, discovering areas that are conjoining to IDNP features and adjacencies that are going to arise city development for pressure to be placed off of natural resources that people at IDNP worry that will be overtaken and over utilized without suspicion of development of surrounding urban centers that directly penetrate a national park. The three stations within the urban dominated opportunities happen to be close to one another in proximity to the rest of the opportunities which questions the opportunities to the national park itself as well to connecting features that connect urban centers.

ECOLOGICAL OPPORTUNITY

As well as the urban dominated opportunities to the South Shore Line that connect people from South Bend to Chicago, are ecological opportunities that lead people from the transit station straight to the national park without many economic resources that arise pressure directly to the national park. Although having the two differing adjacent opportunities is favorable for diversity of use within the national park system, yet this is an opportunity for the future while today, most of the use is being done during summer months within this ecological opportunity space where there is not pressure being taken from the park being the urban opportunity being developed. Moving East of the opportunity leaves an edge that is going to need to be developed within the transit district that can lead the ecological opportunity as a middle point.

INDIANA DUNES EXISTING AMENITIES

HUMAN FOCUS AMENITIES

Looking at the Indiana Dunes Park Guide, as well as analyzing the park in relation to urban life around the site that the site is going to cater to during certain months of the year to then think about yearly visitors/community visitors that inhabit the site, we see that near cities like Gary and Portage, there is a more human focus activity scene then just the ecological resource viewing and trails although that opportunity arises within these spaces. Near the state park rather than the national park itself is going to have less sensitive resources for restoration from industrial adjacencies, gives opportunity to cater to the public with visitors centers, ways to interact with people via history in the landscape, although the motive is for economic development within the site itself that allows for more human use and interaction.

ECOLOGICAL FOCUS AMENITIES

Near rural land and other resource detrimental areas, are going to be spaces for restoration and opportunities for learning about migration patterns, wildlife viewing and longer stays at the park rather than a city view into a national park where visitors are coming from neighboring urban existence. Here are our trails, hunting, restoration spaces that give rise to an ecological focus justification away from the urban existence we see on the western edge of the national park system. The density of the park system as well as its dynamic penetration to the east gives rise to a gateway focus area that combines elements of ecological opportunity as well as human interaction through ecological opportunities provided from the national park system within this area of amenity.

LAKESHORE MOBILITY CONNECTIONS

URBAN CONNECTION

With everything being studied within the area of the whole national parks system, there is some connection within conjoining spaces within the Northwestern conjoining cities. There’s connection, there’s resources within the neighborhoods that are penetrating the lakefront, but there is not any proof in demographics that allow for proper access to resources leading such to be disadvantaged neighborhoods. Being said, we see trials, bus lines and the South Shore line having connection points where the urban connection is going to be developed, proving that there is a need for people to inhabit these areas from an access standpoint to use the amenities to these areas to spread infrastructure to neighboring typologies of space and place.

RURAL CONNECTION

From the idea of rural life in america, a domination of car use is going to be what is driving connection to spaces, but to the large site, small connection point that is the South Shore line connecting to the National Park, we do see a multi-modal connection to the larger national park system to these spaces. The idea that this way, and this area is not necessarily a disadvantaged area according to the EPA, raises a larger question of connection to other natural resources and industry growth in the rural areas having farming be a dominating growth pattern during the time of industry growth in the urban centers. A direct connection without breakage as well as conjoining natural resources calls as a catalyst for urban centers that as well has a national park in its backyard.

Julian Stanfield

Research obtained from: Vibrant Michigan City: Economic Prosperity For All. (n.d.). https://vibrantmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Brookings-Playbook.pdf

ParkServeforMichiganCity,In- TPL. Trust for Public Land. (2022, August 2). https://www.tpl.org/city/michigan-city-indiana

Julian Stanfield

WHAT ARE POSSIBLE RISKS TO THE CURRENT WEST SIDE NEIGHBORHOOD?

Michigan City historically has been home to the NISPCO Generation Station that has taken away the once loved Hoosier Slide and worked to own the Lakeshore. With its growth via infrastructure and harmful materials that function to diminish soil and the health of the community members, reimagining a remediated lakeshore is a purpose of design.

With the West Side Neighborhood being adjacent to the Generation Station, for years, residents have found themselves having health issues due to the air emissions from the NIPSCO site that has led to legal implications, protests and community groups in revolt of what has been positioned in their neighborhood to change the power dynamic that the Generation Station has on the community. Property value is lowered in communities, health is diminished that leaves a daunting future for the community unless closure applications arise for the Generation Station that works in relativity to remediation on the site and proper giveback of resources to West Side.

Research obtained from: Bowman, S. (2022, March 10). Indianatownwasbuiltoncontaminatedcoalash.now,NIPSCOmustpay$12mtocleanitup.The Indianapolis Star. https://www.indystar.com/story/news/environment/2022/03/10/ nipsco-paying-millions-clean-coal-ash-contaminated-indiana-town-pines/9410858002/ Blumberg, N. (n.d.). AdvocatessaycleanupofcoalashatNorthwestIndianaPowerPlantLeavesRegionalWaterSupplyatRisk.WTTW News. https://news.wttw.com/2022/09/26/advocates-say-cleanup-coal-ashnorthwest-indiana-power-plant-leaves-regional-water-supply Hopkins, A. (2020, June 20). Coalition-Supplemental-comments-on-MCGS-coal-ash-...

and

Michigan City Generating Station. https://www.hecweb.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Coalition-Supplemental-Comments-on-MCGS-Coal-Ash-Closure-with-appendices.pdf

Julian Stanfield

MICHIGAN CITY GROWTH ECONOMICALLY + DEVELPMENTALLY + CULTURALLY

Michigan City, Indiana has developed in the eyes of industry first. With that, companies have made very strong monopolies of what is created and who has the resources within the jurisdiction to have the strong hand. Although that is the case, there is a strong community image in Michigan City that has been diminished through land use with the Hoosier Slide being once a city amenity, now a detriment to the community through the gathering of the NIPSCO Generation station that has historically led to shifting in subsequent dunes within the IDNP. With the Great Depression having national implications, Michigan City was not allergic to the oppressive qualities of the depression leading to businesses leaving and land ownership changing to fit with the times of the change leading to a more stabilized system in terms of the city population. Since stabilization, the city has experienced an exodus of residents periodically and the mission within the project is to have growth be determined by successful and sustainable qualities of development for future generations.

Julian Stanfield

INDIANA DUNES NATIONAL PARK: EASTERN GATEWAY

PROJECT GOAL+ PRECEDENTS OF CHOICE

Julian Stanfield

INDIANA DUNES

EXISTING CONDITIONS

The current state of the site has a street moving through it that disconnects the IDNP to the city of Michigan city but does have a South Shore line opportunity of a connection that can bring people directly to the site. Also, a trail that moves through the IDNP to varying connections that can bring users in and out of the site.

OPPORTUNITY + CONSTRAINTS CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

With the current sight having been aligned with industry growth with electrical lines blocking connection to the National Park, serves as a constraint to remove as opportunities of rail improvement and connection having been desired for the IDNP constituents when thinking of a direct connection to the National Park.

SITE GOALS

SITE IMPLEMENTATION

As we delve deeper into the site specifics and what the people of the National Park desire, we can idealize a way to realize specific site impacts to create with the opportunities that have risen while ridding of the line blockages and realigning US 12 to allow for a larger and more equitable site generation.

SITE OUTCOMES

INDIANA DUNES NATIONAL PARK: EASTERN

IDNP GATEWAY SITE: MASTER PLAN

GATEWAY SITE MASTER PLAN

A fitting gateway site for the Indiana Dunes National Park that commits to the mission of cleaning the area that was once tarnished by Industry that has served to diminish property value of the neighborhood of West Side, Michigan City. Connect adjacencies to the current site as well as through the site that allows for community growth and continuing the national park image that has been held. Grow the image, stature and health of the once diminished community through proper space management and amenity acquisition.

Julian Stanfield

1”=120’ N

COMMUNITY CONNECTION SPACE

Our IDNP Community Connection Space is functional to enliven the human experience within a botanic masterpiece so that our senses can be found and have us to identify our spirits within the landscape from the landscape. Users of the space can find themselves in a sense of relaxation whether they take haven within tree canopy, or above grade where they interact with the landscape elements provided for human interaction but as well social capital for those that live within the community. This is a place for opportunistic growth in terms of personal development as well as a foreground for what users shall partake while walking within and through the IDNP Gateway Site as well as through such to get to the National Park entirely.

INDIANA DUNES

IDNP GATEWAY SITE: COMMUNITY CONNECTION SPACE

Understanding the function of the site connection to the landscape in terms of actual elements that people can identify with themselves through what the landscape has to provide for them. Moving through the site, is going to enliven various types of interaction with the landscape, to that, users will find the dynamic style of element use as truly experimental in design.

The site specifically broke up into various styles of programming, making a place for multiple user groups to inhabit and interact with one another in various ways is the objective within this space. To cater to the users coming to and from the National Park is to appeal to their stay quality, they’re more than likely attempting to have a deeper connection to the site through introspective landscape interaction. To cater to the community members would be to have additional land space to have events, for parents to have spaces to watch their children and connect with other parents for deeper social capital within the space.

Julian Stanfield

VEGETATION + WILDLIFE

Allowing for species of plants and wildlife to interact with one another creates a level of symbiosis in the space that biodiversity can be achieved. Planting that is not only connected to similar families in the Northwest Indiana Region specific but also highlights plants that are commonly found in the IDNP as a highlight realm. Wildlife is one that can allow for pollination and functionality that allows for plants and wildlife to act on their own without much human influence within a wetland.

VEGETATION + HUMANS

Understanding the time of year specific to human activity can we align species planting for comfort, interaction and selfidentification within the highly prevalent areas within the site. We can discern where most people will likely identify and when that area will be dominated and with that information, looking at where the plants of choice and interaction can be properly placed within the site. Indoor activation occurs outside of plant thinking but is useful to connect the variation and domination of use for all user groups that will inhabit the site.

IDNP GATEWAY SITE: SEASONAL SECTION

Julian Stanfield

INDIANA DUNES NATIONAL PARK: EASTERN GATEWAY

IDNP GATEWAY SITE: MULTIPLE ENTRY SPACES

Julian Stanfield

INDIANA DUNES NATIONAL PARK:

INDIANA STATE PRISON SITE CONCEPT GENERATION

EXISTING CONDITIONS

The prison site is currently isolated within the West Side Neighborhood. Without direct access to city resources and without a reason to go to this area currently is an opportunity to bring amenity to this space and allow for this area to have sustainable reach to the National Park and the city of Michigan City through the trail moving through the site in terms of corridor growth.

OPPORTUNITY + CONSTRAINTS CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

Zoning wise, this area is surrounded by residential edges on the North and South, leading to an opportunity to bridge the two together through a greenway opportunity that can the funnel into a dominant developmental opportunity that the people within the community can take heed of and make their own. We acknowledge that there are adjacent connections that can leak into the site, but first creating a reason for the closed prison to come alive is a mission.

SITE GOALS

SITE IMPLEMENTATION

Zooming into the developmental opportunity, we see there is architecture that is significant to the site and can be used for additional museum growth and urban district attractions to be had within the area that can be a middle point for outside forces to dominate in the future. Understanding that a main objective is to create a city amenity that can soon delve into the National Park is one that is under great consideration when developmental thinking occurs.

MULTI-MODAL OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN AND OUT OF SITE

EDGE CONNECTION TOWARD MOUNT BALDY

CONSTRUCTED WETLAND GENERATION MIXED USE DEVELOPMENT

INFRASTRUCTURE + ENERGY SEQUESTRATION RETROFIT OF CURRENT ARCHITECTURAL CULTURE

TRAIL CONNECTION TO ADJACENT EDGES ESTABLISH GREEN + BLUE INFRASTRUCTURE PRACTICES PARK DEVELOPMENT FOR ADJACENT CONNECTION

ADDITION OF PARKING AND SHUTTLE OPPORTUNITIES TO IDNP

CULTURAL EXPANSION OF RAILROAD MUSEUM

SITE OUTCOMES

CONNECTION OF EDGE TO RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITIES

OF URBAN CANOPY

CORRIDOR ESTABLISHMENT FROM MOUNT BALDY

ESTABLISHING A COMMUNITY ANCHOR WILDLIFE INTERACTION TO URBAN LIFE

GIVEBACK OF IMAGE TO MICHIGAN CITY

TO NATURAL RESOURCES

FLOOD STORAGE + STORMWATER SEQUESTRATION

NATURE BASED HUMAN ACTIVITY

PRISON GIVEBACK MASTER PLAN

Creating a place for Michigan City that allows for multiple district level designs to come alive through entertainment and play districts to properly bridge residential and office life in the idea of live, work, play. Having a healthy level of multi-use mixed development allows for a variety of user groups to come through and use as talented businesses come to town and provide within the West Side Neighborhood.

Within urban development, there shall be an emphasis on air quality management through green roof acquisition and urban canopy growth for human comfort, stormwater management as well as wildlife connection for humans. A function of that is having people to spend more time outdoors and leading to larger levels of social capital and community growth within the new giveback to the West Side Neighborhood.

Using this area as a through point and a pressure reliever from the ecological side of the IDNP, this can be an urban opportunity within the IDNP as adding transit lines as a bridge from Michigan City amenities to IDNP amenities. Allowing for trails, parking garages and shuttles to penetrate the site and access the IDNP for proper connection and allowing for this site to act as a historic place that allows for community growth for the West Side Neighborhood.

Julian Stanfield

NIPSCO SITE CONCEPT GENERATION

EXISTING CONDITIONS

Learning that the NIPSCO site is in current closure and disarray in terms of what they are desiring to do with the site, we can see that there are city system adjacencies to the site. The need for connection from the Amtrak, another rail line amenity line that has potential to grow in the future is important to note when thinking of site generation.

OPPORTUNITY + CONSTRAINTS CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

According to Earthjustice, we can discern our opportunities of closure for the NIPSCO site and possible outcomes to clean such is going to come out of that. Items like phytoremediation tactics for the coal ash ponds, moving the ponds vertically so that they don’t infiltrate the groundwater systems.

SITE GOALS

SITE IMPLEMENTATION

Concept development of infrastructure is contingent upon the decision making on May 9th on the future of the whole site. If there is positive movement on closure and cleaning of the site, after remediation has occurred can there be thoughts of waterfront development where the current Generation Station lies.

STATION IMPROVEMENT

+ LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

OF COAL ASH PONDS

SITE OUTCOMES

OFF + NIPSCO SITE TAKEBACK URBAN HEAT ISLAND MITIGATION CREEK DISTRICT EMPOWERMENT COMMUNITY ANCHOR ESTABLISHED

Julian Stanfield