Architecture students, towns team up for improvements

In an airy, naturally lit room on the top floor of Drury University's Hammons School of Architecture, fourth-year students in the five-year architecture program dream of new ways for cities and nonprofits to capitalize on their assets.

The dreams go far beyond beautification projects, though these projects remain a part of what the students do. They envision new green spaces, gathering spots that promote community interaction and ways of improving commerce for the cities that seek their help - and in exchange, the students gain real-world applications.

The exchange of design skills for work experience is orchestrated through the Center for Community Studies program, a requirement in Drury's five-year Master of Architecture program.

Professor Jay Garrott, CCS director, said the process starts with communities or nonprofit organizations outlining their needs for the school. If Drury accepts the project, a group of students begins the process of getting a firm understanding of the community or entity involved and the challenges it faces.

"Community, history, culture, place - all these aspects come out as a part of understanding your community," Garrott said.

Affordable investment

The students' work, while relatively inexpensive, isn't free, as the communities and entities reimburse the school for related expenses.

For a project in Warsaw, for example, 12 students spent a collective 3,600 hours envisioning a new waterfront and downtown for the city nestled between Truman Reservoir and Lake of the Ozarks. The cost to the city for the expertise: $5,400.

"If you had an engineer do that for you, it would cost tens of thousands of dollars," said Warsaw City Administrator and Planner Randy Pogue.

The center also helps connect the communities with sources of funding, many of which come through the state's Downtown Revitalization and Economic Assistance for Missouri, or DREAM initiative, which offers grants and other backing.

While the center's most recent projects are in Warsaw and Appleton City, Drury students have worked with three cities that have received DREAM funding: Brookfield, Lamar and Webb City.

Main Street on the waterfront

As a half-dozen students gathered near the end of the fall 2009 semester to discuss their projects in Warsaw and Appleton City, their enthusiasm is obvious.

Students John Renner and Laura Gaska talk about capitalizing on wetland areas for the Warsaw project by creating a more attractive connection from U.S. Highway 65 to the city's heart.

Pogue, who first sought Drury's help four years ago with the development of Warsaw's riverfront trail system, turned to the school again when the city decided to proceed with a Main Street redevelopment project.

Campgrounds and hotels, a marina development, new retail outlets including a farmer's market that could feature locally grown organic produce from a nearby religious community, and a visitors center would greet travelers as they exited Highway 65, allowing them immediately to see all there is to do in this waterfront town.

Keeping in mind the ecologically sensitive nature of the area, the students worked to make their vision as green as possible. Suggesting southern-facing buildings to maximize solar energy, they also were intent on conserving the wetlands, Gaska said.

A book outlining the students' vision is finished, and Pogue said the plan they devised would be rolled out in phases.

"Some of this stuff that isn't realistic right now may be five years from now," he added. The city is most excited about the prospect of a marina, and he plans to use the students' plans to recruit a developer for the project, he said.

Economy and education

In Appleton City, the challenges were vastly different. Many of the city's young people have to leave the town for education or a job, said student Drew Reap. Garrott noted that some Appleton City residents commute as far as 80 miles to work.

Thus, the students' vision centered on changes that could keep people in town.

"It starts with the economy," Reap said. "One of the big things we focused on was education."

At the core of the plan crafted for Appleton City is an educational mall, where the city could tailor offerings based on need. Various schools - Drury, Missouri State University or Ozarks Technical Community College, for example - could lease space from the city to provide courses in the community. The mall's reach would extend to economic growth. For example, Garrott said, local interest could lead to organic farming courses at the mall.

"There could be public gardens where you could grow organic foods as part of that class, courses where you could look at culinary arts," he said, noting that as an offshoot of the culinary arts program, perhaps a café would open in the mall.

"You get people engaged and learning these skills they can apply and work in the town (and) it's renewal on a larger scale," Reap said.

Pogue said the professional results he's received through collaborating with the students on Warsaw's projects have helped him solicit grants and outline a vision for the city as it continues to grow.

"It's well worth any of the communities getting involved with it," he said.