Work in Progress: Warren Park – Northwest Arkansas Newest Mixed-Use Neighborhood

An integrated stormwater canal within the North neighborhood of Warren Park. Dover, Kohl & Partners, 2022

Warren Park Illustrative Plan

A subtle slough wandering through the hay bales, a vast and dancing meadow of wildflowers, and a perfectly pale blue Arkansas midday sky met the Dover, Kohl & Partners team as they first started laying out the future for 197 acres of Northwest Arkansas pastureland. The Warren Family farm’s natural charms and connectivity to Rogers, Bentonville, and the Razorback Greenway together make for fertile grounds in planning the next great NWA community.

The Dover, Kohl & Partners-led design is essentially two, five-minute neighborhoods large – one North and one South – taking advantage of the existing topography and canopy to create accessible urbanism for a wide variety of households and businesses interlinked through public space.  This “Village of Gardens” is inspired by the many great historic American planned neighborhoods of the early 20th Century and their European originations. Places like Mariemont in Ohio and Forest Hills Gardens in New York with their view-framing street deflections and grand public greens or the classic architecture of the Cotswolds and Bath that inspired them in turn. These examples create the foundation for settling a town in the rolling foothills of the Ozarks and are just as relevant to Bentonville as they are Bruges with a strong organization around site context and architectural regionalism.

View from the boutique hotel balcony toward the canal biergarten and event space

Both neighborhoods of Warren Park are centered around public spaces framed with fine-grained building fabric. The northern neighborhood features the more active and commercial areas of the mixed-use program bikeable via the Razorback Greenway and a separated cycletrack. This new Main Street runs a block away and parallel to the existing shallow stream now activated and compressed with canal-front restaurants and boutique hotel rooms while expanded on either end with floodable, passive stormwater parks. The larger of the two stormwater parks lies uphill and when dry serves as a commons for the nearby community center and crescent units on its perimeter.

Grand estate lots are set near the southern neighborhood edges in Warren Park, coupling with long views in public park spaces

Curbside cycletrack along the new mixed use Main Street section of Pinnacle Hills Parkway

The southern neighborhood is centered on a traditional square – complete with a site for a place of worship, grand estate homes, and “missing middle” cottages. The central square and the church project just enough into incoming streets and the network of green spaces to be seen from several blocks away in many different directions. Estate lots on both sides of the neighborhood contain a variety of outbuildings, and on the west side of the neighborhood, face a perimeter trail. Where both the South and the North neighborhood meet, they are joined by West Street, which is designed with a third line of canopy trees shading a multi-user trail; deep front porches will face towards the bikeway.

The Dover, Kohl & Partners team is proud to introduce the plan and some of the inspiration behind it.

Several public spaces will offer unique addresses in the northern neighborhood of Warren Park

A view looking east down West Drive shows its shaded trail, a key connection to the Razorback Greenway

Chattanooga Reimagines Broad Street

How can Chattanooga change the region’s most important street from auto-oriented to pedestrian-friendly?  Broad Street has a wide right-of-way, a historic legacy of architecture and city-building, and many folks want a "reconnected" Downtown. In this short work-in-progress briefing, Mayor Kelly and the Dover-Kohl team explain the challenge, show the public participation process in action, and present bold designs for a better Broad Street.

 

From January 9 – 13, 2023 a team of urban designers and town planners from Dover, Kohl & Partners worked on-site in Downtown Chattanooga gathering input, creating visualizations, and testing design ideas for Reimagining Broad Street. Centered on the themes of safer, greener, and livelier, three draft options emerged highlighting possibilities for the future of Broad Street.  Each option reduces the amount of space used for moving and storing automobiles, while presenting a range of options for enhancing the pedestrian space. 

 

Option A features a Promenade Street where much of the walking space is in the center of the street, down a shaded allée of trees, as seen in Las Ramblas in Barcelona.  Option B features an opportunity to recapture the pedestrian-realm by right sizing the number of vehicle travel lanes and parking spaces, resulting in Broad(er) Sidewalks flanking both sides of the street.  The centerpiece of Option C, a Park Street, features moving cars all to one side of the street, allowing for the super-sizing of the sidewalk on one side of the street and the preservation of existing trees. 

 

Dover, Kohl & Partners is proud to partner with River City Company, Chattanooga Design Studio, and the City of Chattanooga on this important project. 

 

Want to learn more about the possibilities for transforming a wide, auto-oriented street into a pedestrian-friendly great street?  Visit broadstreetcha.com.

Broad Street, Existing Conditions.

Broad Street, Option A: Promenade Street

Broad Street, Option B: Broader Sidewalks

Broad Street, Option C: Park Street

DK&P Chats with WUTC About the Future of Broad Street

“Every city is looking at rebalancing the relationship from motoring and all the other things we do in a public space, like walking, biking, using transit, or just having a great address for your business or your home.” – Victor Dover, Principal, Dover, Kohl & Partners

Downtown Chattanooga is shifting the focus of its most important street from auto-oriented to more pedestrian-friendly. Listen in as the team from River City Company and Dover, Kohl & Partners chat with Ray Bassett of WUTC’s Scenic Roots about the transformation of this premier public space.

Could Broad Street become a park with a street running through it?  Is there a way to shift the amount of space dedicated to moving and storing vehicles to a more pedestrian oriented space, with wider sidewalks, street trees that provide shade and beauty, and safer cycling options?  The time is now to figure out, what’s next?  What should this street be?

On January 10, 2023 over 150 community members gathered at the Tennessee Aquarium, working in small groups, sharing ideas for the future of Broad Street, and designing the street together.  It was an evening marked with civic enthusiasm and pride. “For me, it was a confirmation that Broad Street is as important as I thought it was to the people in Chattanooga, it looks to me… like the most important street in the region, and yet an unfinished work-in-progress,” explained Victor Dover.

Reimagining Broad Street is the direct result of community input, technical analysis, and visualizing change.  Emily Mack, President and CEO of River City Company shared that “this initiative was something that our community articulated, that they really wanted to see a more active, thriving, robust Broad Street.”

For more information, visit broadstreetcha.com.

Panama City Unanimously Passes Complete Streets Resolution

Work has begun on Panama City's main street, Harrison Ave, to make it safer and more comfortable for all users.

Source: City of Panama City, FL

This week, the City of Panama City, Florida unanimously passed a Complete Streets resolution as called for in the Long Term Recovery Planning Project the City undertook in the wake of Category 5 Hurricane Michael. The Panama City Neighborhood Plans Strategic Vision, which Dover, Kohl & Partners designed in 2020, laid out a framework for recovery based on the community's vision for an equitable and resilient future post-Hurricane Michael. As part of this resolution, the City mapped out context classifications for all of its streets which will help get the City and State on the same page when it comes to designing streets for everyone, not just cars. Congratulations to the City of Panama City!

We're growing!!!!!!

Job Opening: Urban Designer & Town Planner.

Salary: $70,000 to $80,000 DOQ

Job Description
Dover, Kohl & Partners Town Planning works nationwide in the fascinating intersection of planning, architecture, real estate development, street design, preservation, sustainability, equity, and housing policy. We are seeking a new full-time team member to work in our Miami-area studio as an urban designer, planner, and Project Director. You will be involved with urban design projects, master plan documents, drawing, writing, participating in public events and client meetings, project administration, GIS and illustrative mapping, 3D modeling, research, promotion, and graphic design. This position is suited to individuals deeply interested in more walkable, inspiring, inclusive communities. This is an ideal job for a person that enjoys people-centered, citizen-driven planning processes.

Experience & Qualifications
This next-level position is suited to an individual with 5-10 years of experience and academic background in a field related to the built environment. Credentials such as advanced degrees, CNU accreditation, AICP certification, Form-Based Codes Institute and/or National Charrette Institute training, Climate Reality Leadership Corps training, or LEED accreditation are helpful.

Travel
Your job will likely involve travel responsibilities from time to time, to work on-location with communities and clients in charrettes or similar events.

Location
We are open to hiring for an in-person position for someone working in our Coral Gables studio, or a remote-worker position, or a hybrid of the two, all depending on the strengths and experience level of the individual.

Salary & Benefits
Starting base salary for this position will range from $70,000 to $80,000 per year, depending on experience and qualifications, and will be re-evaluated within six months. You can anticipate that occasional extra pay for certain out-of-town design charrettes (“charrette pay”) will add to your salary. Your benefits will include full major medical health insurance and a gap insurance policy, paid in their entirety by the company, if you choose to join our group plan. Our company also has a pension plan with employer-match contribution; you will become eligible for the pension plan after two years of employment. You will be entitled to eighteen personal days and paid holidays each year. Benefits may also include reimbursement for moving expenses and a signing bonus to be paid on your first day at work. Florida residents do not pay state income taxes.

Open to All
Dover, Kohl & Partners is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We do not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of national origin, religion, race, color, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, status as a veteran, or disability.
Prospective interviewees should send resumes, and links to online work samples, to info@doverkohl.com.

Onward Alameda Unanimously Approved by El Paso City Council

Onward Alameda, the plan for the Alameda Avenue Corridor in El Paso was unanimously approved by the El Paso City Council on June 22, 2022. Dover, Kohl & Partners presented on behalf of a multi-disciplinary consultant team that included Gallinar Planning, CEA Group, and Street Plans Collaborative. The Alameda Corridor has historically been one of El Paso’s most vital corridors but it has seen years of decline. Alameda Avenue connects downtown El Paso to the Mission Valley and then continues beyond the City to communities further along the Rio Grande River. The City of El Paso grew east along Alameda. Today the corridor hosts one of Sun Metro’s Brio Rapid Transit System routes and it is time to build new Transit Oriented Development which adds to the quality of life of East Side residents.

Amherst, NY Boulevard Central District Plan Wins 2022 WNY APA Outstanding Planning Award

Dover, Kohl & Partners is proud to announce that the Boulevard Central District Plan in Amherst, New York is the recent recipient of the 2022 Planning Award for Comprehensive Planning from the Western New York section of the American Planning Association. The award recognizes the project as contributing to the elevation and advancement of planning in the Western New York region and as a step to making communities stronger and more resilient. Congratulations to the Town of Amherst and for all those involved in the planning process -- it is an honor to be a partner in such an important transformation in the life of the town.

DK&P worked with the Town and community stakeholders in 2020 to create an Action Plan for the retrofit and redevelopment of the district. The area exhibits characteristics typical of suburban development found throughout New York and the United States. Commercial areas have been developed with primarily single-use office or retail uses, surrounded by surface parking lots. The Town of Amherst envisions the Boulevard Central District as a walkable, mixed-use, transit-oriented area, with its existing suburban commercial areas retrofitted incrementally over time; a Mixed Use Zoning Code was adopted to shape future development.

The DK&P team created plans and illustrations to test the code, demonstrating how the area can transform with a new network of streets and public spaces and future mixed-use development on key sites. An expanded street network framed by building frontages creates smaller, walkable blocks to provide interconnectivity among residents, businesses, and surrounding areas. Enhanced transit travels along tree-lined, multimodal, complete streets. Parks and community gathering areas are integrated into the overall pattern of development. The Action Plan identifies public and private action steps to realize this vision, and transform the once retail dominant space into a true mixed-use district, creating great addresses and vibrant center for all to enjoy.

DK&P Returns to East Winter Garden, FL to Work on an Equity-Focused Plan

Urban planners from Dover, Kohl & Partners met with East Winter Garden residents, business owners, and community leaders over three days to get input about their visions for community revitalization. The City of Winter Garden revisited The East Winter Garden Plan (2017), a community-directed, city-funded, 20-year plan that was begun in 2017. The City’s Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) has pledged to spend 75 percent of its funds on the historically African-American community and that could mean between $20m and $40m of public investment over the ten-year life of the CRA.

THANK YOU TO OUR 2021 INTERNS [Now accepting applications for 2022]

Thank you to our 2021 interns for their incredible work and flexibility over the last year. While we all wished to be physically in the Coral Gables studio the full length of the internship, you managed to produce high-quality, professional-grade work virtually and geographically distanced. To say we’re impressed would be an understatement.

We at Dover, Kohl & Partners answered the challenge of hosting interns amidst a pandemic by organizing a series of virtual trainings and educational sessions. We also provided hands-on experience with real-world clients. For those that were able to join us physically toward summer’s end, DK&P led walking tours throughout South Florida where we analyzed historic neighborhood designs, critiqued an ongoing rails-to-trails project, and imagined a brighter future for the Commodore Trail.

Now, we’re accepting applications for 2022. Each year, we welcome a limited number of student interns into our interdisciplinary studio to join in on the work of making better cities and towns. Coming from varied hometowns and academic backgrounds—and from numerous fields of study related to urbanism—our interns tackle challenging real-world design, development, research, public outreach and communications tasks. Interns do creative work, sit in on client meetings, and help run designing-in-public events right alongside our fulltime staff. It's not unpaid work; our interns earn a modest beginner salary while getting firsthand experience with a dynamic, fast-paced wing of the planning and urban design professions. Many of our fulltime staff members first began working at DK&P as student interns.

Between now and December 1, 2021, we'll be reviewing student portfolios and begin notifying interns selected to work in our Coral Gables studio for 2022.

 

Submit your letter of interest, dates of availability, and examples of your recent work to

info@doverkohl.com

 

Work in Progress: New Oaks Pocket Neighborhood

We’re working on the zoning for a new “pocket neighborhood” in Lake Wales, Florida. More info coming soon.

New Oaks is intended as a model for revitalization of Lake Wales via human-scaled, people-centered investments in buildings, shared space, and placemaking. The property will be developed very gradually, allowing for incremental transitions rather than abrupt change, for architectural experimentation, and adaptation to the market.

New Oaks is intended as a model for revitalization of Lake Wales via human-scaled, people-centered investments in buildings, shared space, and placemaking. The property will be developed very gradually, allowing for incremental transitions rather than abrupt change, for architectural experimentation, and adaptation to the market.