Design of the Built Environment

MUP Concentration

Design of the Built Environment addresses the architecture of the city, viewed not as a series of individual buildings, but as a set of visual and functional connections between buildings on a street front or in a district. In contemporary settings, planning and construction do not begin with a blank slate. Rather, new structures are inserted into an existing built environment, which must be respected for its historical heritage and its contributions to the new. Students in this concentration are encouraged to draw from courses related to landscape architecture and historic preservation in the School of Architecture.

Suggested courses for students selecting this concentration include:

• Community Development and Site Planning (PPD 623)
• Geographic Information Systems for Policy, Planning, and Development (PPD 631)
• Public Space: Theory, Policy and Design (PPDE 631)
• Housing and Land Use in Rapidly Urbanizing Regions (PPDE 635)
• Land Use and Transportation (PPDE 644)
• Historical Analysis of Urban Form and Planning Practice (PPD 530)
• Comparative Urbanization, Development, and Inequality (PPD 615)
• Housing Facilities and Community Development (PPD 618)
• Smart Growth and Urban Sprawl: Policy Debates and Planning Solutions (PPD 619)
• Fundamentals of Heritage Conservation (ARCH 549)
• Heritage Conservation Policy and Planning (ARCH 550)

Gateway Course:

• Shaping the Built Environment (PPD 644)

Concentration Methodology Course:

• Design Skills for Urban Planners (PPD 627)