Center for GIS and Spatial Analysis

Planning Studio  

A Green New Deal Approach: Imagining Community Gardens for the Historic East End Neighborhood 

Project Description

The project site for this studio was the East End neighborhood in the Borough of West Chester. This culturally-rich area has been home to African Americans for over 180 years. South of Market Street on the eastern edge of West Chester's downtown business district, the nearly 400-household East End has both an industrial and cultural heritage. Notably, civil rights activist Bayard Rustin was born and raised in the East End.

The area surrounding the Historic East End neighborhood has seen dramatic changes in recent years, as the area around it has been redeveloped with investment in sidewalks, street trees, and other urban infrastructure. More change is expected over the next 5-10 years as approved development projects begin to appear. The East End neighborhood itself, however, lags behind the rest of the Borough and surrounding neighborhoods in terms of economic, social, health and safety conditions of its residents. Notably, the neighborhood lacks green public space and is considered more vulnerable to extreme weather events such as flash floods.

This planning studio project adopted the spirit and theoretical framework of the "Green New Deal," core goals of which include justice (equity), jobs (economy), and decarbonization (environment). To address these goals, the studio project specifically focused on the development of a plan and design alternatives for community gardens in the neighborhood.

Studio Deliverables

See the final Studio Report here: A Green New Deal Approach: Imagining Community Gardens for the Historic East End Neighborhood