Urban Technical Assistance
Project (UTAP)
FY 1996 $158,000
FY 1997 $158,000 |
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Project Description and Goals: In July 1995 the
Urban Technical Assistance
Project (UTAP) was established within Columbia University’s Graduate
School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation under the auspices
of the Graduate Program in Urban Planning. UTAP’s mission is to provide
urban planning technical assistance to inner city communities. UTAP’s immediate
focus is its work with the neighborhoods of Harlem to assist efforts toward
revitalization. UTAP uses the resources of its Geographic Information System
and the Columbia research community at large to aid New York City planning
efforts related to community development and other activities. Types of
technical assistance include project development, advanced GIS research,
and in-service support (client training, survey implementation, and planning
workshops, etc.) Student interns as well as faculty are employed by UTAP
to work on projects that contribute to their professional training. UTAP’s
clients include community organizations in Harlem, Washington Heights,
Inwood and the South Bronx, as well as in other areas within and outside
the region such as Camden, New Jersey; Vieques, Puerto Rico; and Port-au-Prince,
Haiti.
Status and Accomplishments
FY 1995: In the Fall of 1995, UTAP began renovations
to establish an off-campus office at 131st Street, between Broadway and
12th Avenue. The office is staffed by faculty, student interns, and a project
manager. Projects and activities conducted by the project in FY 1995 include
the following:
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Earth Engineering
Center Support: In the Fall of 1995, UTAP
supported the design of a three-dimensional model of Northern Manhattan
for Columbia University’s Earth Engineering Center, a joint effort of the
School of Engineering and Applied
Science and Lamont-Doherty
Earth Observatory.
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Community Outreach Partnership Project Support: UTAP
supplied trained interns to provide technical assistance to City College-Columbia
University Community Outreach Partnership Center, to support a planning
assessment of East Harlem for the James Weldon Johnson Houses Tenant Association.
The information package was completed in the Summer of 1995.
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Proposal Writing: In April 1995, a proposal for $450,000
was submitted to the NTIA’s Telecommunications
Information Infrastructure Assistance Program (TIIAP) for a survey
and mapping project in Upper Manhattan. The proposal was not funded.
FY 1996: In 1996, UTAP completed its relocation to
West 131st Street offices, expanded its GIS facilities and increased the
involvement of graduate interns, faculty and expert consultants in various
areas of community development including the application of planning technologies.
UTAP maintained an interdisciplinary commitment to community-based organizations
in Harlem, Northern Manhattan and the Caribbean. Specific activities include
the following:
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Worked with the Audubon Partnership for Economic Development
to refine its UMEZDC proposal
to revitalize commercial activity in Northern Manhattan. The proposal was
prepared in 1996 and funded in the spring of 1996 for $375,000. The project
is to begin in fall 1997. UTAP also sponsored an urban design studio focused
on the economic revitalization of Washington Heights. The studio engaged
community representatives, urban design graduate students and planners
and addressed issues of commerce, transportation and demography.
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Prepared an inventory and assessment of retail activity in
Southern Washington Heights to support the initiative of the Community
League of West 159th Street to establish a Business Improvement District
(BID) on Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue in Northern Manhattan. Further technical
assistance included the preparation of the BID application on behalf of
the League. This project was supported by a $35,000 grant from the Enterprise
Foundation.
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Prepared a physical assessment of South Central Harlem and
a strategic planning proposal for the United Tenant Interim Lease Coalition
of Harlem (UTILCH). UTILCH’s proposal was approved and funded by the Edna
McConnell Clark Foundation, $70,000. UTAP is currently engaged in various
aspects of the plan’s implementation. Also, under the same support from
Clark, UTAP worked to prepare a physical and demographic assessment of
the Mount Morris area for Community Pride a service organization of the
Rheedlen Center for Children
and Families. UTAP’s work was funded by the Clark Foundation for $162,000
in FY 1996.
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Sponsored an urban planning studio in Vieques, Puerto Rico
to develop a land use proposal for 8,000 acres of land that may be relinquished
by the U.S. Navy. Initial research for the development proposal was done
by graduate students in the Urban Planning Program. UTAP followed through
with the completion of the document in the Fall 1996. Continued support
to the Committee for the Rescue and Development of Vieques, Puerto Rico
includes participation in planning sessions and proposal collaborations.
The project was sponsored by Economists
Allied for Arms Reduction (ECAAR), and funded for $5,000 by the Miranda
Foundation.
FY 1997: The Neighborhood Partners Initiative of the
Edna McConnell Clark Foundation further strengthened UTAP’s relationship
with community-based organizations in Harlem and the South Bronx with a
grant for $162,000. UTAP was also involved with planning initiatives outside
of New York as a partner with Rowan University’s
Institute for Public Policy
conducting a study of the Camden, NJ waterfront. UTAP continued its program
training workshops in computer applications for community development.
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Prepared neighborhood assessments and planning information
for five project sites located in Harlem and the South Bronx that are participating
in the Neighborhood Partners Initiative (NPI) of the Edna McConnell Clark
Foundation. UTAP implemented site surveys, planning workshops, training
sessions, data transfers and other technical assistance to help community-based
organizations formulate community building strategies and to develop capacity
to sustain its participation in the NPI. Clark has granted UTAP an additional
$230,000 to continue with the initiative through spring 1998.
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Arranged additional support to Harlem-based community organizations
by making available assignments that engaged Community Impact Americorps
volunteers in organizations’ planning efforts. With the Community Vision
Project of the Abyssinian Development Corporation, volunteers conducted
a resident opinion survey of neighborhood conditions and local service
provision. Also, volunteers surveyed merchants in Washington Heights for
the Community League of West 159th Street to support their Business Improvement
District initiative.
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Completed Phase I of Camden economic and physical development
strategy with Urban Planning Studio engaging planning graduate students.
The second Phase of the project has assembled a team of planning and policy
experts to prepare a comprehensive economic land-use study for Camden in
context of its region. Final reports will be completed by December 1997.
The study was funded through a HUD grant
for $98,280.
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Sponsored an urban planning studio focusing on waterfront
conditions and land use issues at the Croix des Bossales site in Port-au-Prince,
Haiti. Initial research for the development proposal was done by graduate
students in the Urban Planning Program. UTAP followed through with the
completion of the document in the Spring 1997. Research and the development
proposal are currently in use as part of national planning efforts to redevelop
the capitol city’s waterfront. Funding for project expenses were covered
by the President’s Office for Planning and Infrastructure.
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Trained four project managers from the United Nation’s Habitat
for Humanity Project in Haiti in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technologies
and other computer applications for community development under a contract
for $6,000. Under a separate contract, UTAP has since trained a Planning
Director from the Haitian President’s Office for Planning and Infrastructure
in a similar capacity. A fee of $1,500 was collected to support instruction
and materials.
Project Leader: Lionel
McIntyre, Director, Graduate Program in Urban Planning