University of Pennsylvania's campus stretches across University City.
But ever since the redevelopment of
Locust Walk five years ago, the
walk's endpoint at 40th and Walnut has been the undisputed hub of Quaker
campus life. With gathering points like the Bridge movie theater and
Marathon Grill, seminal college establishments like
Smokey Joes, and
massive grocery store the Fresh Grocer, the block has everything a
college student could want. But with a new design competition hitting
the streets this week, Penn students have the chance to give something
back to everybody's favorite block.
In partnership with the
University of Pennsylvania,
University City District brings four design
teams from the Design School and the School of Engineering to square off
for the
40th Street Sustainability Smackdown. Each team has been
assigned a business and must design a sustainability plan that will add
renewable energy, reduce stormwater and air pollution, and work with
alternative building materials. These efforts will culminate in an
energy audit and creation of a comprehensive proposal for one of the
participating buildings. The final review of plans and awards ceremony is set for Nov. 19.
"They are all very different," says UCD
Project Manager Carolyn Hewson. "The Fresh Grocer is a larger structure
that contains a garage, Marathon is a restaurant, Metropolitan Bakery
is a historic building so they all come with their own challenges."
Efforts
to make local buildings more sustainable are part of the design and
engineering programs at Penn and part of a concerted effort to continue
development at the campus' hub. After partnering with Penn, Hewson sent
e-mails to neighborhood businesses and even went door-to-door to create a
buzz around the program. But if her instincts are correct, the
competition will create a buzz all its own.
"Its a popular thing
to do right now to have competitions to get greater interest and energy
behind something," says Hewson. "And competitions within the design
world yield great results and draw funding behind the winning team."
Source: Carolyn Hewson, UCD
Writer: John Steele