1. Rachel Lindt // Portfolio
Master in Urban and Regional Planning Candidate 2015
UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs
2. TABLE OF CONTENTS
Spring 2015
Figure 1: Poster for Master’s Capstone Project for Client, The Trust for Public Land 3
Fall 2014
Site Planning
Figure 1: Layers of the Fashion District Conceptual Diagram 5
Figure 2: Fashion District as Latino Plaza Conceptual Diagram 6
Figure 3: Green Alley Proposal 7
Spring 2014
Transportation and Land Use: Transit-Oriented Development Studio
Figure 4: Grand Station Intervention 9
Figure 5: Design Strategy Conceptual Diagram 10
Winter 2014
Introduction to Physical Planning
Figure 6: Palms Neighborhood:
Return to Rail + Architecture Transformation 12
Figure 7: User Groups and Teen Place Preference:
Cheviot Farms Market on National Boulevard 13
Figure 8: Pedestrian and Cyclist Amenities Proposal for
the Intersection of Motor Boulevard and National Boulevard
in the Palms Neighborhood 14
Fall 2013
Graphics + Urban Information
Figure 8: Photoshop Panorama Rendering After Intervention (Left-Side) 16
Figure 9: Photoshop Panorama Rendering After Intervention (Right-Side) 17
Figure 10: Sketch-up Rendering After Intervention, Looking West 18
Figure 11: Sketch-up Rendering After Intervention, Plan View 19
3. Spring 2015
Master’s Capstone Project
My Master’s capstone is an applied-research project for The Trust for Public
Land, a national non-profit organization focused on land preservation for
people. The research focuses on understanding the challenges and barriers to
standardizing green alleys citywide in Los Angeles and other cities. Throughout
this academic-year process, I have developed the following skills:
• Creating an interviewing instrument, recruiting interviewees, and conducting
interviews
• Analyzing data sets and visualizing findings
• Organizing and writing an academic research project
• Developing a research methodology
• Communicating and working with a client
The following figure is the poster for the exhibition held in April 2015.
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4. W
Assessing the Potential to Implement
Green Alleys Citywide
Alleys have been utilized for many purposes throughout history,
including housing, waste, and business. Yet, alleys are associated
with unsightly and unsafe activities. Today, cities are revisiting alleys
as opportunities for providing multiple benefits within increasing
urbanization.
Green alleys expand upon single-purpose infrastructure of alleys
and convert underutilized alleyways into community assets and
resources for environmental, economic and social benefits.
water recharge + reuse
design of permeable pavers
maintenance + liability of
permeable pavers
design of stormwater BMPs
bulky item,
garbage +
recycling pick-up
water quality
landscaping/greenery
Avalon Green Alley Network Demonstration Project
>> Standardization of green
alleys is context sensitive
and can range from a city-
developed and implemented
program to a public-private
partnership
>> Alleys in Los Angeles have
overlapping ownership
among city agencies and
regulations, which creates
challenges, barriers and
opportunities
BENEFITS OF GREEN ALLEYS
Los Angeles’s
UNTAPPED RESOURCES
WHAT IS A GREEN ALLEY?
CASE STUDY MODELS
INITIAL FINDINGS
RESEARCH DESIGN
maintenance of stormwater BMPs
East Cahuenga Alley Revitalization ProjectChicago Green Alley Program Seattle Alley Network Project
WHY GREEN ALLEYS FOR LOS ANGELES?
Chicago Seattle Los Angeles Hollywood
Bureau of Street Services
Department of Water and Power
Non-city entity
3838
Park space is
below national
recommendation
%
Bureau of Sanitation
Bureau of Sanitation
Non-city entity
Bureau of Street Services
asphalt
Bureau of Engineering
Bureau of Engineering
Adjacent Landowner
>> Review of academic literature +
planning documents surrounding green
alleys that discuss best practices, case
studies, and research findings
>> Interviews with personnel from
City of LosAngeles agencies
>> Case studies of four green alley
models with various objectives
POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS
Rachel Lindt, UCLA MURP ‘15 | Advisor: Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris | Client: The Trust for Public Land | Los Angeles Sustainability Collaborative
$
Creates functional
public, open and
social space
Stormwater
management;
provision of green
space; supports active
transport
Beautification that
promotes local
economic development
>> Create a broad vision for green
alleys in the City of LosAngeles
>> Foster a city-wide recognition of
the benefits of green alleys through:
>> Piloting projects
>> Streamlining the development
and implementation process
>> Piloting a program
>> Developing a green alley toolkit
>> Weaving into existing and future
planning documents
>> Establishing an official program
>> Change zoning to allow secondary
building frontage onto alleys and
incentive through policy
>> Name alleys to give identity and
promote placemaking, investment and
development
land
Over
900900linear
miles
of alleys
& approx. 7,500 center line
miles of streets
5656
Approx.
Billion
gallons
of average
annualurbanrunoff
entersourwatersheds
Research Questions
(1) What are the best practices for standardizing green alleys at the city level?
(2) What is the institutional capacity for green alley implementation at the city level?
Client_Project_Poster_Version_5.indd 1 4/2/2015 9:02:14 AM
5. Fall 2014
Site Planning
This course was a field-based urban design class organized in a studio format
with the primary purpose of developing the knowledge and skills required to
analyze, propose and present urban design plans and interventions. The key
deliverable for the studio was a series of strategic action plans for my team’s
assigned study area, the Fashion District in Downtown Los Angeles. My team’s
plan included a physical planning proposal, design actions, and institutional and
policy guidelines for implementation. In this course, I applied and developed the
following skills:
• Hands-on physical planning experience through individual and group
assignments focusing on the following elements:
• Location and accessibility, topography, land use, street network,
block size configurations and plot layouts, set-backs and build-to-
lines, built form and massing, density and floor area ratio, identity
and architectural character, historical heritage, landmarks, open
space, pedestrian circulation, parking, street furniture, signage, etc.
• Outreach and collaboration with stakeholders, particularly the Fashion
District Business Improvement District
The following figures are selected individual works from a group-based final
presentation and report.
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6. PHOTO CREDIT: BENJAMIN J. COLEMANLOOKING EAST ONTO E. 12TH ST FROM SANTEE STREET
EMERGENT
CANOPY
UNDERSTORY
FLOOR
LAYERS OF THE LOS ANGELES FASHION DISTRICT
VERTICAL LAYERS
USERS
SHOPPER
BUYER
MERCHANT
PARKING ATTEN-
DANT
FOOD VEDOR
RECYCLER
USERS
MERCHANT
TAILOR
SHOPPER
BUYER
ACTIVITIES
SHOPPING
BUYING
SELLING
COLLECTING
ACTIVITIES
CREATING
PARKING
STORING
ACTIVITIES
SHOPPING
BUYING
SELLING
CREATING
SHOWING
STORING
USERS
GARMENT WORKER
PARKING ATTENDANT
ACTIVITIES
STORING
USERS
MERCHANT
INTENSITYOFUSE
9. Spring 2014
Transportation and Land Use: Transit
Oriented Development Studio
This studio class brought together students of different backgrounds and
interests within Urban Planning to individually and collaboratively analyze,
evaluate and propose solutions for transit stations in Los Angeles County. My
team focused on the Metro Blue Line Grand Station, located south of the I-10
freeway in Downtown Los Angeles. In this course I applied and developed the
following skills:
• Synthesis of transportation planning data and projections
• Design and physical planning skills (visualizing scale, density, and the
physical dimensions of different built structure and the spaces between
structures, as well as transportation system needs and infrastructure
requirements)
• Data analysis, graphic representation and design communication
The following figures are selected individual works from the group-based final
presentation and report.
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12. Winter 2014
Introduction to Physical Planning
This course was an introductory overview of physical planning concepts,
mechanisms, issues and practices. The assignments focused on developing
user groups and needs, behavioral design, and cultural, social and
environmental objectives. In this course, I chose and analyzed the Palms
neighborhood for 10-weeks, in which I developed the following skills:
• Map-making skills (land use, zoning)
• Synthesis of complicated concepts into a diagram form
• Participant observation
• Built form and urban design analysis
• Understanding of zoning, land use and various municipal plans
The following figures are excerpts from an individually developed and designed
final booklet titled [RE]Generation, which is a compiled and final version of the
assignments completed throughout the quarter.
11
13. UU!
RENDERING OF PALMS STATION OF METRO EXPO LINE EXTENSION
PALMS DEPOT MOVES TO HERITAGE SQUARE, MONTECITO HEIGHTS
PALMS SOUTHERN-PACIFIC RAILROAD DEPOT ON MOTOR AVE. RED LINE RAIL DEPARTING FROM PALMS DEPOT HEADING EAST
PALMS POSITONED ON SOUTHERN PACIFIC RAIL LINE
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EARLY PALMS AS AGRICULTURAL COMMUNITY WITH RAIL
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rachel lindt
PALMS NEIGHBORHOOD: RETURN TO RAIL + ARCHITECTURE TRANSFORMATION
15. Fall 2013
Graphics + Urban Information
This course focused on developing introductory skills in drafting, Sketch-up and
Photoshop by analyzing the built form of a Los Angeles-based city block. For
this course, I chose Venice Boulevard between Cardiff Avenue and Watseka
Avenue in Los Angeles. After producing several graphic forms of this city block,
I recommended and rendered a context-specific design intervention. In this
course, I developed the following skills:
• Introductory drafting skills
• Rendering of the built environment in 3-D form through Sketch-Up
• Developing a context specific design intervention for Venice Boulevard
(High visibility mid-block, continental crosswalk with flashing pedestrian
beacon and landscaped median)
• Rendering of design intervention through several tools within Photoshop
The following graphics are excerpts from the final project.
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