Growth and Structure of Cities (Bryn Mawr)

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    The Limits of Cooperation: Inclusion and Exclusion in the Interactions of Food Co-ops and Their Evolving Neighborhoods
    (2024) Kline, Curtis; McDonogh, Gary W.
    In my one semester thesis project, I was interested in the relationships between consumer food cooperatives and the neighborhoods their locate themselves in. Through two Philadelphia case studies, Weavers Way and Kensington Community Food Co-op, I explore factors that have lead to each group's successes and shortcomings with inclusion.
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    Creating Community: Italian and Southeast Asian Placemaking in South Philadelphia
    (2024) Mabrouk, Tasneem; McDonogh, Gary W.
    My thesis explores how the Italian and Southeast Asian communities in South Philadelphia utilized physical spaces to create a meaningful identity and sense of belonging for themselves in a new city. Given the significance of ethnic enclaves to immigrant communities, I wanted to explore what hindered immigrant placemaking efforts and how these issues could be remediated. My research synthesized scholarly work, field visits, and personal narratives from community members to gain insight into the histories and meanings engrained in ethnic enclaves in South Philadelphia, and to then identify the threats they were facing, such as gentrification and predatory development. By comparing the more established Italian Market to the newer Southeast Asian spaces that the community is still fighting to create, my research sheds light on how the city’s cultural and political landscape has shifted over the last century, further marginalizing its immigrant communities and making it more difficult for them to carve a place for themselves.Through these insights, I highlight the continued importance of physical space to urban immigrants, serving as a platform through which they can assert themselves as active citizens, find joy in community, and create sites that cater to their needs and reflect their identities.
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    Envisioning a “Better Philadelphia”: The Evolution of Role and Methodology of Philadelphia City Planners
    (2024) Plimack, Maya; Hurley, Jennifer
    Through the analysis of the history of city planning in Philadelphia, this research adds to the discussion of how planners’ self-conception of role has changed over time
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    Pastoral Fantasies, Urban Realities: A Study of Campus Expansions at New York City Universities
    (2023) Gonen, Deniz; McDonogh, Gary W.
    The college campus is a uniquely American place. Often designed in the style of neoclassical academic and residential buildings surrounding green quads that are meant to emulate a sense of peace and admiration from its students, it was largely considered a “pastoral retreat” for elite young men until the later half of the 20th century. When both city and university space began to expand greatly, universities had to grapple with the reality of being located in urban centers and became “total worlds” to their students by sheltering them in a closed campus environment. This thesis looks at Columbia University and New York University (NYU), both located in New York City, to understand how university expansion projects lead to emulating a secluded campus within an already thriving urban framework. These institutions are contrasted to the City College of New York, part of the city’s main public university system, which has historically served more local populations and preserves a certain degree of openness within its campus. Ultimately, these university expansions show the desire to control land at the expense of usable public city space, and the resulting prestige attached to creating a cohesive campus image. The possibility of forming a college without a campus is explored in the conclusion as a way of imagining higher education in a more community-oriented and inclusive way.
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    Practices of Social Regulation and Informal Formalization: A Case Study of America’s Homeless Encampments
    (2023) Martin, Erin; Restrepo, Lauren Hansen
    Using prior literature on homeless encampments as well as applying scholarship on informal settlements in the Global South, this thesis explores the factors that have allowed homeless encampments to endure over the course of decades and examines the formalization processes, both official and unofficial, of these encampments. In addition, this paper studies the formalization of homeless encampments, physically -- evolving from temporary, informal campsites to formal settlements with permanent structures – as well as socially and politically, as the homeless encampment residents form communities, establish forms of self-governance and gain political support and power. Furthermore, this paper examines how these homelessness encampments are shaped by the local political and social environment.