Students win VAPA award
Students from Virginia Tech’s Urban Affairs and Planning program in the National Capital Region has earned the 2005 Outstanding Student Project Award from the Virginia Chapter of the American Planning Association (VAPA).
Brian Canepa, of Arlington, Va., Jennie Geisner, of Alexandria, Rob Mandle, of Arlington, Megan Schilling, of Arlington, and Darren Smith, of Alexandria, worked on the winning East Falls Church Metro Area Plan, which lays the groundwork to revitalize the area surrounding the Metro station. The plan also outlines market-feasible land use and transportation treatments reflecting community goals that include compatible density, pedestrian orientation with human scale, central public places, a gateway creating community identity, connectivity among residential areas, efficient land use near transit facilities, non-motorized vehicle options, and economic development with diverse opportunities and affordable housing.
According to VAPA, the approaches developed in this studio plan are transferable to similar communities around the Washington area and the nation.
The VAPA Awards Program is an annual competitive awards program that recognizes excellence in Virginia planning. Winners are selected from among nominations reviewed by a jury of association members. The Outstanding Student Project Award recognizes a student or group of students for an outstanding paper, planned activity, or class project. Plan quality, originality, transferability and education are the evaluation criteria.
Virginia Tech’s College of Architecture and Urban Studies is one of the largest of its type in the nation. CAUS is composed of two schools and the departments of landscape architecture, building construction, and art and art history. The School of Public and International Affairs includes programs in urban affairs and planning, public administration and policy, and government and international affairs. The School of Architecture + Design includes programs in architecture, industrial design and interior design.
Virginia Tech has fostered a growing partnership with the greater metropolitan Washington D.C. community since 1969. Today, the university’s presence in the National Capital Region includes graduate programs and research centers in Alexandria, Falls Church, Leesburg, Manassas and Middleburg. In addition to supporting the university’s teaching and research mission, Virginia Tech’s National Capital Region has established collaborations with local and federal agencies, businesses, and other institutions of higher education.
