The University of Miami School of Architecture has been assisting communities with planning, urban design and development projects through public workshops, charrettes, studies and analyses for nearly three decades through the Center for Urban and Community Design, the Knight Program in Community Building, the Suburb and Town Design Program, architecture studios and projects led by faculty members. This tradition of community outreach has now been extended through the creation of the interdisciplinary Community Development and Design (CDD) Workshop that combines the School’s expertise in livable community planning and design with our new graduate program in Real Estate Development and Urbanism (MRED+U).
The CDD Workshop assists communities with visioning, planning, design and development challenges through the combined resources of faculty and graduate students in real estate, urban design and architecture. MRED+U faculty and graduate students contribute unbiased, pragmatic advice on real estate, financing, market analysis, potential public-private partnerships and tools, and regulatory issues related to development expanding the community planning, urban design, architecture and civic engagement capacities of the School’s outreach programs in support of a community initiative.
The UM CDD Workshop is similar to a "charrette" in terms of intensity and engaging citizens, community leaders and stakeholders. However, it includes a much stronger emphasis on the real estate and feasibility aspect of development. Our program will put graduate students experienced in real estate, urban design and architecture to work for a community as part of their capstone course in which they will apply all of the knowledge gained during their graduate studies.
The program is particularly geared for situations involving a wide range of urban infill, redevelopment, and mixed-use, including: repositioning of underused or vacant properties, preservation, transit-oriented development, greyfield and brownfield development, waterfronts, downtowns, town centers, main street and urban neighborhoods. We will define the scope of the work in conjunction with the needs of the community, but it can encompass any of the areas of expertise and training they have received at UM, including:
- evaluating sites and properties by looking for opportunities and constraints for development (physical as
- well as land use, real estate, policy, management and other topics),
- conducting market analyses by examining the potential for redevelopment or repositioning of properties
- performing financial studies and preparing pro formas,
- evaluating existing codes, plans and regulations,
- advising on preservation-oriented development, and
- providing planning, architecture and urban design services.
If you are interested in sponsoring and hosting the UM CDD Workshop in your community please contact Dr. Charles Bohl, Director, Master of Real Estate Development + Urbanism (MRED+U) at 305-284-4420 or nbixby@miami.edu.
