On June 9th, the Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA) awarded the CUDC its 2018 Great Places Award for work on the Cleveland Public Library’s CPL150: Community Vision Plan.From 2014 to 2017, CUDC staff, alongside the Cleveland Public Library, engaged 13 of the City’s 27 branch libraries. Named for the upcoming 150th anniversary of the Cleveland Public Library, the CPL150 Community Vision Plan approached library design from the perspective that every neighborhood is fundamentally different, and will need custom-tailored strategies to meet their needs. CPL150 was the combined strategy for determining these neighborhood-specific needs, identifying opportunities, and building consensus among disparate user groups around what their local libraries can and should become.
Taking cues from the field of Experience Design, the design team envisioned the branch experience in totality: building; grounds; neighborhood; and services. Each of these four experience levels have a significant impact on the overall experience patrons encounter when visiting their local branch. A wide range of engagement tools were developed in order to ensure all community members could find points of entry to suit their comfort level. For each branch the design team held public meetings, open houses, and advisory committee meetings, in addition to targeted focus groups with youth and seniors and a widely distributed multilingual survey. Final recommendations spanned design scales, including ideas for interior reconfiguration, architectural improvements, neighborhood connectivity, and system-wide services. In all, CPL150 engaged over 1500 residents and stakeholders across approximately half of Cleveland’s geography.
The EDRA Great Places Award recognizes interdisciplinary projects that engage the relationship between people and their environment. Four projects are awarded each year; this year CPL150 was awarded in the Planning category. CUDC Associate Director, David Jurca, was on hand to accept the award in Oklahoma City. Thanks to EDRA for the recognition and to the Cleveland Public Library for partnering on the CPL150 plan!For more information on the project, check out the video below, or visit the project website: www.cpl150.org
Cleveland Housing Issues & Opportunities: A Panel Discussion | Jan 23
The Cleveland Public Library will moderate a panel discussion on Cleveland Housing Issues & Opportunities on Tuesday, January 23rd at 5:00 PM. Community housing leaders from around Cleveland including the CUDC, Thriving Communities, CMHA, Third Federal and Slavic Village Development will discuss local successes in demolishing blighted properties and renovating, reusing, restoring, and rehabilitating older buildings to serve as houses for local residents. The conversation is part of the One Community Reads program focused in 2018 on the book Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond.CUDC Urban Designer, Kristen Zeiber, will be there to discuss the design/REbuild house and New Life for Old Homes: Design Guide for the Low-Cost Rehab of Vacant & Abandoned Housing. New Life for Old Homes is a guidebook of low-cost, high impact ideas for the rehabilitation of vacant and abandoned houses that would otherwise be demolished.
Cleveland Housing Issues & Opportunities: A Panel DiscussionTuesday, January 23, 20185:00 PMCleveland Public Library - Fleet Branch7224 Broadway Ave, Cleveland, OH 44105