HomeProgress-Index, 07/02/2006
What is r/udat? Program may create community plans in Petersburg
Urban design team offers advice in effort to revitalize downtown, harbor areas
By Julie Buchanan, Staff Writer
PETERSBURG — The word “R/UDAT” has been heard around the city an awful lot in the last few months.
Members of Downtown Petersburg Inc. — the nonprofit group dedicated to revitalizing the downtown area — are working to bring a R/UDAT to the city this fall as part of the Downtown Harbor Initiative.
“What is a R/UDAT?” you might ask.
R/UDAT stands for Regional/Urban Design Assistance Team. It’s a special planning program that was developed by the American Institute of Architects in the 1960s. Despite its age, officials from the AIA say the program is highly effective because it gives all voices in a community — large or small — a fair hearing in the planning process.
To date, 138 R/UDATs have been completed for cities and towns nationwide. The most recent was in Cambridge, Md.
“Part of what makes [the R/UDAT] so successful is that we do engage the community from the beginning,” said Ann Livingston, director of the AIA’s Center for Communities by Design. “It’s not all business interests or all environmental interests. It’s a very broad base from the community.”
DPI plans to submit its R/UDAT application this month. If approved, a team of six to 10 AIA professionals in multiple disciplines would visit the city for an intense, week-long design session. They would use citizen feedback, concerns and ideas gathered through public meetings to prepare a report of both short- and long-term goals for the designated area.
The report would be presented in a public format on the final day of the team’s visit.
Soren Simonsen, a member of the AIA’s Regional/Urban Design Committee, said the final outcome of the R/UDAT design session is a “vision plan” for the area of focus. Some of the long-term plans could be decades in the future.
“Sometimes, these recommendations could include special projects like the development of a light rail system, hotels or an arts and entertainment district,” he said. “ ... It could also mean changes in public policy, zoning codes or ordinances.”
Because the team members are all volunteers and hail from out of the state, Livingston said they are able to approach the R/UDAT process without bias.
“They have no economic ties or political ties to the region,” she said. “They really come in with a fresh perspective.”
According to the AIA’s Web site, past R/UDATs have not only brought about new development and construction, they have also enabled a better quality of life in the communities that have implemented their recommendations.
It will cost about $55,000 to bring an R/UDAT to Petersburg, according to DPI. The organization hopes to raise two-thirds of the funding in September.
One of the first steps in the application process is to designate the R/UDAT project area. Petersburg’s inner harbor along the Appomattox River is a key part of the project because it’s anticipated that major development will occur there once the river is dredged — a project that is decades in the making and expected to recommence in the next few years.
At a public meeting on the R/UDAT held last week at the Petersburg Regional Art Center, Petersburg architect Terry Ammons, vice chairman of the Downtown Harbor Initiative steering committee, said the group plans to speak with community groups and other local organizations to garner support and obtain feedback for a plan.
About 115 people came to that meeting — the third public meeting for the project since January.
“We’re thinking if we can maintain 100 people at each meeting, we’re doing pretty good,” Ammons said. “We want to get a diverse audience and work to inform people.”
On the Net: www.petersburgharbor.org.
• Julie Buchanan may be reached at 722-5155.
