We saw Mantua as neighborhood ripe with possibility, stemming from its strong arts culture and community spirit. Our proposal aims to lift Mantua from within, forging a self-sufficient community connected to the rest of the city. Wayfinding strategies serve a literal as well as figurative purpose, helping residents connect to facilities and civic services they may not have been able to otherwise use. While originally derived out of structural considerations, our “tulip” structures serve as urban placemakers in the neighborhood. Consideration of wayfinding and transportation networks led us to develop three separate nodes, together connecting the far points of the neighborhood to each other, as well as to Center City. Our chosen nodes IDENTIFY the Mantua neighborhood, ACTIVATE previously underutilized land, and CONNECT the residents of Mantua with the rest of the city. 

Other project documentation can be found at: https://www.behance.net/ColleenKorp