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UBC Theses and Dissertations
Sustainability comes to the mall : rethinking the Eastwood Towne Center Smar, Matt
Abstract
The plans for a shopping mall under construction on a 192-acre site in Lansing Township, Ingham County, Michigan, United States were used as the basis of a design exploration into ways for improving the environmental and social sustainability of conventional malls. The exploration focused on four themes, specifically: Native plant materials; stormwater management^experiential qualities; and biodiversity. Literature on the use of these four themes to achieve sustainability goals was reviewed, and design precedents and projects that employed native plant materials, stormwater management, place experiential qualities, and biodiversity to improve environmental and social sustainability were examined. The literature on plant species native to the Ingham County area was researched to determine which species are suitable as landscape plant materials for shopping mall environments. A variety of interventions were proposed for managing stormwater runoff on the site, with an emphasis on soil infiltration as a management technique. Interventions were proposed to provide a pleasurable and comfortable experience for mall visitors, most notably summer shade for people and parked cars, ease of navigation and movement through the site for pedestrians and vehicles, and aesthetically pleasing plantings and architecture. Planted areas were designed to provide food and cover for wildlife common in the Ingham County area. The layout of the buildings and parking lots was designed to facilitate the future transformation of the shopping mall into a residential neighborhood, as a means of recycling developed land and limiting urban sprawl. Many of the interventions proposed were designed with the intention of revealing natural processes operating in the landscape, in the manner of the Eco-Revelatory design movement. This exploration demonstrated that it is possible to redesign a conventional shopping mall to make it a greater social asset to the community and less of an environmental liability.
Item Metadata
Title |
Sustainability comes to the mall : rethinking the Eastwood Towne Center
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Creator | |
Publisher |
University of British Columbia
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Date Issued |
2003
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Description |
The plans for a shopping mall under construction on a 192-acre site in Lansing Township, Ingham
County, Michigan, United States were used as the basis of a design exploration into ways for improving
the environmental and social sustainability of conventional malls. The exploration focused on four
themes, specifically: Native plant materials; stormwater management^experiential qualities; and
biodiversity. Literature on the use of these four themes to achieve sustainability goals was reviewed, and
design precedents and projects that employed native plant materials, stormwater management, place
experiential qualities, and biodiversity to improve environmental and social sustainability were
examined.
The literature on plant species native to the Ingham County area was researched to determine which
species are suitable as landscape plant materials for shopping mall environments. A variety of
interventions were proposed for managing stormwater runoff on the site, with an emphasis on soil
infiltration as a management technique. Interventions were proposed to provide a pleasurable and
comfortable experience for mall visitors, most notably summer shade for people and parked cars, ease of
navigation and movement through the site for pedestrians and vehicles, and aesthetically pleasing
plantings and architecture. Planted areas were designed to provide food and cover for wildlife common
in the Ingham County area.
The layout of the buildings and parking lots was designed to facilitate the future transformation of the
shopping mall into a residential neighborhood, as a means of recycling developed land and limiting
urban sprawl. Many of the interventions proposed were designed with the intention of revealing natural
processes operating in the landscape, in the manner of the Eco-Revelatory design movement.
This exploration demonstrated that it is possible to redesign a conventional shopping mall to make it a
greater social asset to the community and less of an environmental liability.
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Extent |
8541065 bytes
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Genre | |
Type | |
File Format |
application/pdf
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Language |
eng
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Date Available |
2009-10-29
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Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
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Rights |
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.
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DOI |
10.14288/1.0091057
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URI | |
Degree | |
Program | |
Affiliation | |
Degree Grantor |
University of British Columbia
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Graduation Date |
2003-11
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Campus | |
Scholarly Level |
Graduate
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Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
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Item Media
Item Citations and Data
Rights
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.