Site Planning Dorf Solutions Summary

Read and took notes on 3/19 between 4:15pm-6pm for 1.75 hours



- Three vignettes:
o Site Design – First section, 90 minutes then mandatory 15 minute break
o Site Zoning – Second section, 60 minutes
o Site Grading – Second section, 30 minutes
o You may not switch between vignettes in the first section but you may switch between the two vignettes in the second section as you wish

- Site design tests your understanding of general site planning principals, vehicular and pedestrian movement and safety, design logic, zoning and technical reqt’s to produce a cohesive and competent design. DON’T EXPECT TO ARRIVE AT A “BEAUTIFUL” SOLUTION WITHIN THE TIME LIMITS….. BUT YOU MUST MEET THE PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS!
o You are given a program, a site plan and conceptual footprints for 2 or 3 buildings and other site elements such as sidewalks, roads, plazas, trees and parking.
o From these you must produce a schematic site plan.
o Parking with drive-through circulation is a part of this problem, includes ADA spaces.
o Considerations to take into account
§ Easements, utilities, rights of way
§ Building limit lines
§ Trees, vegetation, rock outcroppings, wetlands, water & setbacks
§ Winter (or Summer) prevailing winds
§ Adjacent residential (quiet areas), academic and/or commercial uses.
§ Views
§ Setbacks from site elements
§ Primary and/or secondary road systems
§ Existing structures
§ Sun angles
§ Shadows from existing, or new, site elements
§ Curb cut(s)
§ Service drive(s)
§ Passenger drop-off
§ Pedestrian circulation
§ Vehicular / pedestrian conflicts
§ Special relationships between new elements or existing conditions

o Recommendations
§ Zoom in on existing site plan provided, verify notes, critical dimensions, site features and the nature of surrounding properties and streets
§ Use sketch tool to draw setbacks or other restrictions
§ Place all new programmed elements on screen to gain a sense of scale.
§ Let the program and site constraints “work” for you; follow the program exactly’ take “advantage” of the site restrictions, views, wind direction, solar needs, and so forth. There is no one correct answer on this vignette, many ways to solve, don’t fight the program, don’t try to be a great designer.
§ Use appropriate trees for blocking views and winds (conifers/evergreens), or for shading (deciduous/broad leaf/ seasonal).
§ Keep solution efficient, obvious and cost effective.
· Separate “service” drives from the parking lot access immediately.
· Design a simple, safe roadway system; don’t abuse the site with unnecessary roads, i.e. Save grass
· Keep noisy service trucks away from quiet residential areas if possible.
· Design parking lots with double loaded perpendicular parking to keep size to a minimum
· Design an obvious and simple pedestrian walkway system from existing sidewalks or between building elements
· If an element requires sun at NOON, then it must face SOUTH. Be direct if site conditions permit.

o Scoring issues
§ ALL program required elements are shown
§ Sizes of elements meet program requirements (within tolerances)
§ Relationships between elements reflect program needs
§ Programmed views or screens are provided effectively
§ Setbacks, easements and building limit lines are respected
§ Entrances to buildings are oriented properly
§ No more trees are removed than permitted by the Program
§ Accurately reflect sun or shading requirements
§ Effectively block prevailing winds where necessary

o Code
§ Parking, drives, buildings or building expansion do not infringe upon or overlap any legal easements or setbacks
§ Site improvements are not located on sloped areas, or where otherwise prohibited from construction

o Design logic
§ Programmed adjacencies are met (building to building, parking to entrances, service to service entry, etc.)
§ Entrances are viewed (or blocked) per program.
§ Programmed elements do not overlap
§ Vehicular circulation system is efficient and safe
§ Pedestrian walkways are accurately provided between elements
§ Safe pedestrian circulation
§ Curb cuts logically located
§ Efficient parking (double-load) when possible, safe, and drawn to an appropriate size and configuration. Avoid dead-end parking, allow for drive-through circulation
§ Only 90d parking indicated
§ Access to parking is not blocked by service vehicles
§ Handicapped spaces are located closest to entry and do not require crossing traffic aisles to reach entries
§ Use enough trees to solve the program issues, not too many

o General Site Planning tips
§ Conifer trees block wind and views; avoid placing in front of required views.
§ Deciduous trees do not block wind or views, use for shading only
§ Do not over plant, use new trees only to meet program requirements
§ All new elements “kill” existing trees including sidewalks
§ Use a double row of conifers to block wind only when perpendicular to the wind direction
§ Service drive should be at least 20 feet long
§ No elements may violate setbacks, not even sidewalks
§ Use tree profiles in program to determine sun angle and shading
§ Trees may be planted in plaza if needed to meet program
§ The words “close to” and “near” should be considered within 10%-20% of site dimension
§ Avoid violating easements
§ Conifers blocking wind of a specific element should be placed near rather than farther away
§ Stay within 5% - 10% for square footage requirements
§ Only plant tees required for program, not to enhance design.
§ Minimize roads and walkways
§ Even avoid new trees in setback areas
§ Plaza shape is not rigid, just meet the SF requirements and all others

o General Parking tips
§ Do not provide walks from parking to the street unless specifically required.
§ Walks not required around parking lot, only at Handicap spaces.
§ Locate Handicap spaces closest to entrances
§ Locate handicap spaces adjacent to walkway and DO NOT cross driveways
§ Drive through circulation means loop, no dead ends
§ Measure 90d angle requirement at existing road by “eye” but don’t be sloppy.
§ Adjusting new access roads is difficult in the software, try
· Drawing roads in several separate segments
· Use sketch circles to locate centerlines of required road locations
§ Roads kill trees, avoid drip lines
§ Single loaded parking is permitted but avoid due to inefficiency
§ Only 90d parking spaces are acceptable, no angled or parallel
§ If drop off required, road does not need to be widened, but note that they are provided that passengers are dropped off onto curb
§ Again, no dead end parking is permitted
§ Service trucks may NOT use parking lot to gain access to service entry!! Parking lot is for passenger vehicles only
§ Being short or providing 1 or 2 more stalls most likely will not receive a fail
§ Follow program for curb cuts, usually only one per program