USP 524 Site Planning

This course introduces the fundamentals of site planning in an urban context, as well as contemporary urban design theory and practice. Students will learn the principles of site planning and urban design at the scale of urban centers and specific sites, as well as the synthesis of multiple design decisions made by different actors, at different times, about different properties. The course will explore these topics from various perspectives, including planners and designers, developers and regulators, and others. Slideshow lectures, downtown walking tours, and a term project will use Portland as a living laboratory for how the principles of urban design and site planning are played out in public and private development projects. Students will work in teams to apply class principles to a specific site that is currently slated for redevelopment.