Old Goucher Vision Plan – Public Mechanics / experiential design, public art, placemaking, creative strategy

Collaborating on the planning and design of this comprehensive vision for a central Baltimore neighborhood.

In 2013 residents and community leaders in the historic Old Goucher neighborhood in Baltimore joined together develop a vision for the neighborhood’s future and formulate the steps required to achieve that vision. We worked with the Neighborhood Design Center (NDC) to develop a neighborhood master plan that addresses some of the pressing concerns and future concerns that impact our community’s development.

Location map page in the Old Goucher Vision Plan, neighborhood master plan document

Old Goucher Today page Old Goucher Vision Plan, neighborhood master plan document

A big part of the project included mapping existing conditions, neighborhood assets, and all of the plan’s great recommendations. In addition to a broad color palette, map template, and publication design, we had the opportunity to create a few expressive map graphics such as this perception map of the neighborhood.

Perception map of the Old Goucher neighborhood, an expressive map design created for the Old Goucher Vision Plan

Neighborhood landmarks page and map from Old Goucher Vision Plan, neighborhood master plan document

Tree canopy map and page from Old Goucher Vision Plan, neighborhood master plan document

Building use map from Old Goucher Vision Plan, neighborhood master plan document

Open space and voids map from Old Goucher Vision Plan, neighborhood master plan document

The final structure of recommendations follow the “heart, cross, and two L’s” — roughly corresponding to shapes of four distinct sections of the neighborhood. These evocative descriptors naturally suggest a graphic language and iconography, which was carried through all of the Recommendations and Implementation Table sections.

Hear, cross, and two Ls recommendations framework for the Old Goucher neighborhood in the Old Goucher Vision Plan document

Recommendations map and framework for the Old Goucher neighborhood, an expressive map design created for the Old Goucher Vision Plan

Green space and infill map page from Old Goucher Vision Plan, neighborhood master plan document

alley recommendations map and community history sidebar from Old Goucher Vision Plan, neighborhood master plan document

View the full plan

The planning process was led by the Neighborhood Design Center and Jennifer Goold with heavy lifting from architect Jay Orr. Additional design and layout by Frazer & Co. with mapping and research assistance from Timmy Aziz’s class at MICA and Michele Lamprakos’ UMD Historic Preservation Studio. Plus dozens of other neighborhood volunteers who shared their ideas, feedback, and resources that fed into this 100+ page plan.