Imagining the Connective Corridor
In coordination with the vision of Scholarship In Action, Syracuse University launched Imagining The Connective Corridor in Spring 2006. The academic-based program was designed to engage students in developing ideas and identifying issues in the Connective Corridor project. Imagining The Connective Corridor involved six interdisciplinary courses, bringing students together to explore different areas of the Corridor’s development. Though the program is now officially over, student input continues to be a driving force in the growth of the Connective Corridor.
Imagining The Connective Corridor was inspired by student work conducted during the Fall 2005 semester, in which students in the fields of design, engineering, geography and architecture examined issues in transportation and community relationships. The projects included:
- Developing ideas for transportation improvements, amenities and products that could be offered along the Connective Corridor;
- Developing a public relations strategy to share information about cultural opportunities in Syracuse;
- Developing a plan for integrating broadband Internet access and other information technologies on the Connective Corridor; and
- Assisting a congregation in developing a historical preservation plan for their church.
College of Visual and Performing Arts
Students in the studio class in the Department of Industrial and Interactive Design developed concepts for the amenities that could be offered along the Corridor. Working in collaboration with students in the Whitman School of Management and School of Information Studies, they developed models of the concepts discussed in each of the classes. Click the links below to see their PowerPoint presentations.
- Pedagogy (pps*, 5.88mb)
- Student Work (pps*, 4.46mb)
For a DVD with additional information on these projects and videos of student interviews, contact Denise Heckman, associate professor, Industrial Interaction Design Program.
*NOTE: These files require PowerPoint or PowerPoint Viewer. A download for PowerPoint Viewer can be found here.
L.C. Smith College of Engineering and Computer Science
In Fall 2005, students in Professor Dawit Negussey’s Transportation Planning class conducted various exercises to test research methods in measuring vehicle traffic, driver behavior and other conditions on area roadways. Their findings and recommendations included:
- Synchronizing traffic lights along East Genesee Street to improve the flow of traffic;
- The single-lane capacity of Irving Avenue between Waverly Avenue and Harrison Street is not sufficient, given the proximity to I-81, the SU main campus and hospitals on the University Hill;
- Buses and large vehicles can obstruct traffic on Harrison Street at Irving Avenue because of curb placements and the grade of the University Hill at that location;
- Low levels of carpooling could contribute to congestion along the Corridor; and
- Compliance with “No Turn on Red” is important, given pedestrian and vehicle traffic on the University Hill.
The Martin J. Whitman School of Management
Student teams in two classes taught by Professor Sumitro Banerjee in the Marketing Department assessed potential demand for various aspects of the Connective Corridor project, as well as prospects for new products or services that could be offered along the Corridor route.
In Marketing Research Methods, students conducted surveys, primarily within the campus community, and found that the greatest challenges to developing the Connective Corridor project are issues of awareness and perceptions and the lack of information concerning cultural opportunities in the city. Their surveys discovered that:
- More people would visit various cultural venues along the Corridor if they knew more about them.
- Connective Corridor designers should focus on increasing promotion and establishing an identity for the City of Syracuse and Syracuse University.
- There was an interest in the potential for student housing along the Corridor.
- Corridor planners should focus on safety, a major concern expressed by potential users of the Corridor.
- User-friendly, touch-screen kiosks should be developed for pedestrians and be free of charge. In surveying potential users of kiosks, students found that people wanted more information about opportunities and events in the city, as well as the ability to purchase tickets to those events.
In New Product Management, students developed innovative concepts for the Corridor, including:
- A “Connecting Card”-a special card shoppers can use at various locations along the Corridor route;
- Developing the area surrounding the I-81 overpass into a mixed-use plaza, with areas for shopping, food and entertainment; and
- A food store designed specifically for Corridor commuters.
The Newhouse School for Public Communications
Two teams of students in Professor Dennis Kinsey’s Public Relations Research course studied public perceptions for opportunities along the Corridor, and how information about cultural opportunities is distributed. Their findings expand upon the issues of awareness and lack of information that the marketing students discovered.
The students found that survey respondents expressed a strong interest in the Corridor area. However, lack of information about cultural venues and concerns for safety, parking and finding locations prevented people from exploring opportunities along its route. For the full reports, click the links below:
The Renée Crown University Honors Program
Professor Gary Radke from the College of Arts and Sciences and Professor Elet Callahan of the Whitman School of Management teamed to teach the course Building with a Conscience: The Synergies of Historic Preservation and Sustainable Design. Students worked with members of Grace Episcopal Church on University Avenue to trace its history and develop a sustainable energy plan for the church. For the full report, click the link below:
School of Architecture/ The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs
Professor Lori Brown of the School of Architecture and Professor Allison Mountz of the Maxwell School teamed to teach the Fall 2005 course Boundaries in Syracuse: Gender Architecture Geography. Among the questions and issues they examined were:
- What boundaries are at work in city residents’ daily lives that inhibit and enable mobility?
- Where and how do these boundaries manifest in the urban landscape, and how do we negotiate them?
- How do our identities influence our engagement with the city?
- How has the City of Syracuse been represented, sold, and consumed? What alternative representations are possible, and how can these be mobilized to effect social change?
- What role do governments (city, county, state, federal) play in cities? What kinds of boundaries do they construct and deconstruct and why? How do these shape the identities of neighborhoods and experiences of urban residents?
The class drew members of the SU campus into the broader community and welcomed public input through collaborative projects with local organizations. Their projects included:
- Gathering information on the health care needs of recent immigrants and refugees to Syracuse for Planned Parenthood to improve access and outreach;
- Assessing five potential sites for the Community Folk Art Center for an after-school program on the South Side;
- Assisting the SU Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Resource Center to survey single stall bathrooms accessible to transgendered people on campus. They also interviewed other students about safe and unsafe social spaces in the City of Syracuse;
- Studying the Sacred Heart Community to help Home Headquarters create a resident-driven plan for neighborhood improvement; and
- Working with the CYO Refugee Resettlement Agency and a group of Liberian women to understand their barriers to mobility around the city.
Community geographer Jonnell Allen in the Maxwell School’s Department of Geography compiled maps of the Connective Corridor, which show the residential composition of Connective Corridor neighborhoods. To view the maps, click the link below.
[pdf]
School of Information Studies
In a senior capstone course taught by Professor Murali Venkatesh, three student teams examined the options for Internet connectivity along the Corridor that would allow wireless access and information gathering and sharing, such as bus arrival times. They also explored options for using IT to develop a system of security along the Corridor route, should the community decide that is an appropriate option for the project. The projects were conducted in coordination with the Syracuse University Office of Information Technologies and Services. For more information about these projects, contact Jenny Gluck, senior network project manager for ITS, by e-mail at jsgluck@syr.edu.
