Arizona Planning Association Conference Awards Luncheon (We Won!!!)

[Azndragon837]

For those who did not know, a gathering of planners occured this past week at the new Renaissance Hotel at Westgate in Glendale. The annual Arizona Planning Association Conference (a chapter of the national American Planning Association) was held on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. It's a gathering of state private and municipal planners (a couple hundred) at a event filled with workshops, tours, good food, networking opportunities and an awards ceremony.

You can see the workshops and events here:
http://www.azplanning.org/2007/default.htm

I attended Thursday's events, including the awards luncheon, a workshop on adaptive re-use by two community leaders of the Evans-Churchill Neighborhood (Kimber Lanning & Greg Esser), and the Planner's Bazaar (a networking evening event with booths setup by cities and private firms, alcohol and hor'devours....I volunteered with the City of Scottsdale booth, since I obviously work for the city).

Anyways, our undergraduate senior studio project before we graduated in May was to produce a Master Plan for the Evans-Churchill District, the historic Downtown Phoenix district where First Friday's is held monthly. With the help of community leaders, Phoenix planners and input from local residents, we produced a 75-page document addressing the next 20 years of development for the district in 4 months during the course of our spring semester studio (normally a general plan takes several years to facilitate).

As a result, we submitted for the AZPA Best Student Planning Project Award for 2007 and won. Below are 2 photos from the ceremony, and highlights from the Master Plan itself. We got to meet Terry Goddard, our AZ attorney general, and eat delicious catered food.

http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd127/asuazn837/DSC_5672.jpg
At the awards luncheon with Nabil Kamel (Professor), Ken Brooks (Director of the ASU School of Planning), and ASU graduates Bren, Matt, Katie and Me

http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd127/asuazn837/DSC_5689.jpg
On stage to receive our award with fellow Democrat and Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard. He is one tall man.

http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd127/asuazn837/MasterPlan1.jpg
The cover of our Master Plan Document

http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd127/asuazn837/MasterPlan2.jpg
Our final Master Plan map for the Evans-Churchill District

http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd127/asuazn837/MasterPlan3.jpg
Renderings (those sketches took hours to do!) I had to overlay a sheet of paper over photos of streetscapes and then draw what we want the place to look like 20 years from now.

http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd127/asuazn837/MasterPlan4.jpg
More renderings


I just wanted to showcase something that I am proud of. It puts the icing on the cake on top of graduating from the School of Planning. I am proud of what our group as done and will eventually use the talents and skills we used to advance our future planning careers.

For those who are interested in the planning profession, the conference is held every fall in a different Arizona city. Next year it's in Yuma, last year it was in Mesa. Thanks guys. :banana: :cheers:

-Andrew

[HooverDam]

Looks pretty cool, if half of what you guys came up with comes to pass, I'd be thrilled. I remember when you called me for I believe it was this project, I hope my stupid comments were somewhat useful. Also, Katie Ford is cute.

[Azndragon837]

^Yes, thank you so much for your input....it wasn't stupid. Katie is a pretty lady.

[Vicelord John]

Looks pretty cool, if half of what you guys came up with comes to pass, I'd be thrilled. I remember when you called me for I believe it was this project, I hope my stupid comments were somewhat useful. Also, Katie Ford is cute.

I'd put it in her butt

And congratulations andrew. The feeling of acclomplishment must be incredible.

[Upward]

Congratulations! Your plan looks awesome! It seems you put in Seattle's Columbia Center in the first one there. ;)

I will add to those commenting that Katie is hot, and also that I have a feeling I know her from somewhere. Where's she from?

[Don B.]

Congrats! :D

--don

[atl2phx]

congrats! excellent job andrew. as already mentioned, it would be amazing if just half of the master plan was implemented.

I'd put it in her butt


:previous: what a jackass, idiotic, classless comment. you're such a stud.

[tempedude]

Right on way to go! Congratulations. :cool:

[Vicelord John]

congrats! excellent job andrew. as already mentioned, it would be amazing if just half of the master plan was implemented.



:previous: what a jackass, idiotic, classless comment. you're such a stud.

taking life seriously today eh?:banana:

[atl2phx]

taking life seriously today eh?:banana:

yeah, i take every day serious.

you must be a big man to feel so good about making middle school playground sexually degrading comments about a person who's name and picture are included in an online internet post, and yet, that person isn't here to defend her dignity.

you, who wined like a little kid when people called out your own internet pictures online. :tup:

[Vicelord John]

nah actually if you ask around i laughed with it. Life is too short to have a stick up your ass all the time.

Now lets give Andrew his thread back.

[Azndragon837]

Okay everyone, calm down here. Katie is a classy lady, that's all I am going to say. I'm not offended, don't worry.

Chrsi....yes, I was inspired by my trip to Seattle, Portland and Vancouver to slap some renderings of uber-cool buildings in the sketches.

I gave the plan to Dean Brennan (Principal Planner for the City of Phoenix), and the idea is to incorporate elements of the Master Plan to the actual one that was never adopted by the City Council. I can't wait! The most exciting part about the neighborhood is the potential to develop the vacant lots into something big. Now if we can only get the owners of the lots to build....that's the challenge.

Thanks everyone.

-Andrew

[andrewkfromaz]

Congratulations, you guys!
Wow, I haven't seen Bren since graduation, that guy without his hair looks completely different.

[loftlovr]

Andrew- Congrats- awesome awesome awesome....
Your plan kicks some serious ass....
I hope there is weight to it.

The Linear Park reminds me of 16th street mall in Denver.
Let's hope the City can make it happen.

Anyways- great work.
Tell Katie "What up!" :haha:

[NIXPHX77]

congratulations Andrew! good work! i hope you get a job with the city of Phx so those plans can be implemented!

also, if it's ok to ask here, why did Tempe OK that CVS at Univ and Mill?
i know you were on the inside...

[HooverDam]

Do you have the entire project in a PDF by chance? If so and you get time, you should upload it, I'd love to look at it.