The Craft of Placemaking: Neighborhood Creation at Assembly Row

Additional fee, registration required.

Assembly Row in Somerville, Massachusetts, is a remarkable example of transformative urban development, seamlessly blending the location''s industrial past with a modern mixed-use environment.

The formerly blighted industrial zone, once the site of a Ford Assembly plant, has been revitalized into a vibrant neighborhood through a meticulous transit-oriented development (TOD) masterplan integrating residential, retail, commercial, and hospitality spaces. Join us to delve into the rich history and innovative design visions that shaped this project. Plus, explore open spaces like the six-acre riverfront park along with key buildings housing everything from retail and office space to apartments and a boutique hotel.

Learning Objectives

1. Examine planning methods of active neighborhood creation within a mixed-use community.
2. Analyze regulatory and development challenges to this project and other large-scale TODs.
3. Review varieties of construction types used at the buildings on site, and compare their pros and cons.
4. Discuss collaborations among interdisciplinary design professions and their importance to building a cohesive vision for a complex and vibrant community.

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