New Communities (TND)
Redevelopment and Reurbanisation
Transit Oriented Development (TOD)
Restructuring Rural Settlement
Resort Villages and Hill Towns
Form-Based Codes and Transect Calibrations
Mixed Use Centres and Block Scale Design
Design Charrettes and Public Process
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Although all of our projects are based on sound principles of urban design and sustainable urbanism, our "solutions" define commonly accepted industry terms, and then describe how our services are uniquely suited to each.
New Communities (TND)
T-Six employs the principal of the complete neighbourhood: walkable, compact, and mixed use places that form the building blocks for a sustainable region. Throughout the history and across the world, neighborhoods have emerged with a finite edge and centre, roughly delimited by a 5-minute walk from centre to edge. This unit is compact (there is little wasted space), walkable (a connected network of walkable streets serve pedestrians first), mixed use (as apposed as strictly segregating uses like zoning), and complete (a neighborhood includes components to live, work, shop, and play). A neighborhood freestanding in the country side is a village; a few connected neighborhoods make a town; and numerous neighborhoods make a city or metropolis.
The Traditional Neighbourhood Development, or TND, has emerged as a modern term to describe this time tested pattern. The TND forms a fundamental basis for New Urbanist design and implementation; the policy of Smart Growth and regional planning; and the LEEDND rating system. And finally, the TND exists at a range of scales (from rural villages to dense urban cores) and is not tied to any one architectural aesthetic or character.
T-Six provides TND design in two important ways: the re-establishment of neighborhood form as the basis for greyfield (suburban, suburbanized) and brownfield (formally industrial) redevelopment; and the establishment of new neighbourhoods, villages, and towns.
Redevelopment and Re-Urbanisation
As municipalities throughout North America pursue more sustainable ways to grow, one of the most important and most difficult challenges will be redeveloping underutilized and inefficient automobile-oriented development patterns (patterns that often dominate the built form of many municipalities). One of the largest opportunities presented by these patterns are the extensive commercial corridors found throughout the post WWII portions of out cities and towns. In terms of sustainability, these cores offer the opportunity to densify while reusing existing infrastructure, take pressure off greenfield expansion, and are usually ideally sited to plug into a multi-modal regional transportation system. These opportunities are matched by their challenges: multiple land owners, concerns from established residents and business owners, and zoning and transportation regulations that pose barriers to sound redevelopment practices and value recapture.
T-Six has had demonstrated success with these places through a three-pronged approach: A “charrette” public process that breaks through the many barriers within a collaborative conflict-resolution environment, a comprehensive design solution, and the establishment of proper regulatory and policy instruments to realize the vision.
Transit Oriented Development (TOD)
Undervalued and ignored for decades, transit stations have once again been realized for the tremendous value they add to their local neighborhoods and to the region as a whole. TOD is the conception of the complete neighborhood (TND) anchored by a significant mass transit station. Transit Oriented Development can apply to both new growth areas and redevelopment areas, and is founded on the principles of a walkable, mixed use, compact neighborhood form. TODs are typically complex challenges, places at the intersection of serving local and regional needs, each with their unique challenges and opportunities. T-six provides comprehensive design and expertise ideally suited to TOD development, and matches this demonstrated success with our unique public charrette design process and implementation strategies.
The Restructuring of Rural and Urban Settlement
Regional growth presents one of the most significant challenges in the broader context of urban and rural sustainability. Just as urban municipalities struggle with reforming automobile-dominate development patterns, so must the rural municipalities at their edge. Our approach takes studied inspiration from the time tested sustainability of rural Europe - places that have existed for centuries with an integrated & mutually supportive relationship between rural villages and towns - and the countrysides that support them.
“Restructuring Rural and Urban Settlement” is our approach that realizes the reestablishment of compact and walkable rural hamlets, villages, and towns as a means to preserve rural lifestyle and sustainable agriculture practices. As we continue to develop and test this approach with our work in rural Alberta, we look forward to contributing a body of projects and literature to further this important and challenging work.
Resort Villages and Hill Towns
There are thousands and thousands of resorts throughout the world, and hundreds more built every year. But what makes one different form another? Often, resort developers rely solely on their setting: views and nature, proximity to beaches and ski hills. Creating a simple “getaway”, or borrowing from suburban forms is sometimes enough. But is there more value to be had? The emergence of the resort village takes its inspiration from the charm and character of European villages and towns. Their success recognizes not only the importance of setting, but the considerable value of creating "place." Through a creative, well-studied design approach, T-Six has the expertise to comprehensively design resort villages of enduring value, charm, and character; to create people-places that honour their unique setting, inspire their visitors and residents, and build a valuable legacy for their founders.
Form-Based codes, SmartCode calibrations
Too often, visionary plans, a well-meaning broad policy are not given the tools for on-the ground implementation and are soon replaced by convention and business-as-usual. Tied to the principles of the Charter for the New Urbanism, and LEEDND, and other urban/natural sustainability initiatives, the SmartCode provides unified land use and public works standards that regulate and permit sustainable urbanism by-right. The SmartCode is the result of over 20 years of progressive professionals tackling entrenched separated-use zoning bylaws and automobile dominated land use practices. The SmartCode unifies land use, transportation, environmental standards, accessibility, landscape standards, and others such as stormwater and architectural standards to allow protection of natural areas, and complete, diverse, and compact urban form.
(From SmartCodeComplete.com:) “The SmartCode is a blueprint for places where true community, in all its complexity, can prosper. A product of Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company (DPZ), it efficiently delivers what municipalities, planners and developers are increasingly searching for -- the means to maximize choice, quality-of-life, economic opportunity, environmental stewardship and adaptability over time -- providing a truly practical solution to the challenges of municipal growth. But it’s not business as usual and, like anything unfamiliar, it has its own set of tools and best practices for successful implementation.”
T-Six is an expert in the development and implementation of Form Based Codes. Our continued work with the Transect and the SmartCode represent the cutting-edge of widespread municipal land-use and transportation reform. As integrated with Placemakers LLC, our work is demonstrated in jurisdictions throughout Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida, Idaho, Georgia, New Mexico, Kansas, California, and Alberta Canada. We invite you to visit www.smartcodecomplete.com to find out more about the SmartCode. We are also regular contributors to the bi-annual SmartCode workshop hosted by Placemakers LLC. You can find out about our next workshop at www.placemakers.com.
Mixed Use Centres and Block Scaled Design
The demand for mixed use centres has dramatically increased over the past few years. These multifaceted places require the fine-grained integration of housing, retail, public space, parking, transit and a host of other complications. Largely a task for Urban Design, within the conventional realm of planning and architecture, developers and municipalities often turn immediately to architectural design to commence these complex mixed use plans. While some architectural firms do possess training in urban design, T-Six offers a core competency in Urban Design. This is an attention not only to individual building design, but how the public spaces and streets bind the buildings together to build value through character and the creation of “place”. Through our international level work, we are experts in the current state of the art growing design niche of mixed use centres.
With Urban Design as its basis, T-Six is ideally suited to develop mixed use design plans and then coordinate with architectural teams to effectively integrate building design. Our plans include street and parking layouts, streetscape details, public space design, building placement and general programming, and (if desired) aesthetic character. Our attention to character and experience is demonstrated in our well illustrated 3-dimensional approach. We are also suited to similar non-mixed use projects at the scale of the block and building.
Charrettes and Public Process
In order to match progressive planning techniques with process, T-Six employs a unique ‘charrette’ process that links various stakeholders to a common vision. Although often used to mean “workshop” or “visioning session”, a ‘charrette’ is an intensive, interdisciplinary, and publicly inclusive design session of a specified length of time (ideally four days at a minimum - often lasting a week or more), and set within a defined work program. The process is facilitated by an interdisciplinary core “design team” that works on-site with public officials, consultants, stakeholders, landowners, and the public to produce a vision for development. Multiple days allows for immediate public and stakeholder feedback that insures a well-conceived and feasible plan. Some of the main advantages are:
- Allows for an effective and efficient design process within a short timeline
- Short duration compacts otherwise disconnected meetings into a collaborative design process
- Provides pragmatic solutions by linking varied interests and site constraints to a central design process
- A fully collaborative, public process invites broad-based by-in and shared authorship
- Uncovers latent opportunities and issues
- Better deals with contentious issues by connecting required interests and consultants directly into the design process
- Is a proven process with demonstrated success
With Civic Design Group as its predecessor, T-Six has had extensive experience facilitating and participating in charrettes throughout North America. Principal Geoff Dyer is certified by the National Charrette Institute (www.charretteinstitute.org).
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