dailypress.com January 10, 2011 Hampton University students help design Newport News neighborhood By Samieh Shalash HAMPTON — Architecture students at Hampton University are behind the master plan for revitalizing parts of the Jefferson Park neighborhood in Newport News. Students were commissioned by the city's Department of Planning and Redevelopment and Housing Authority to research, design and plan a strategy for improving the neighborhood. The partnership between the university and city is through an economic development initiative grant of about $600,000. Students are working on the southern portion of the neighborhood, from about 39th to 42nd streets, to create a plan for redeveloping the area, said Sheila McAllister, assistant director of the city's Department of Planning. HU students have been working on a plan since last fall, when they first visited the neighborhood and began analyzing it by walking through, interviewing residents and taking note of its architectural elements. Jefferson Park was first constructed in the early 1900s and had a mix of homes added in the 1940s, '60s and beyond, McAllister said. "You have a lot of ranchers, you have typical shotgun houses on 25-foot wide lots, two-story Victorian-style homes," she said. "It's just a mixture of homes." Students have studied the types of windows, rooflines, porches and other housing elements in an effort to reflect the neighborhood's current character in any new construction planned for the area, McAllister said. About nine graduate students in the architecture program have regularly met with city planners to plan design elements such new green spaces, increased on-street parking, and the look of new housing. A draft of the master plan as created by students was dropped off at the city's planning department in late December, said HU student Isiah White. It includes a park to be added between 39th and 40th streets, winding pedestrian paths through the neighborhood, and new housing with porches. White said students included porches to mimic current construction and ensure that neighbors have more opportunities to see and mingle with each other. The city plans to incorporate the students' design into redevelopment of Jefferson Park as much as possible, McAllister said. So far, Newport News has used grant money to buy dilapidated homes in the area to make way for revitalization. Robert Easter, chairman of HU's architecture department, said the opportunity for students to work on a real-life project with the city of Newport News gives them invaluable exposure to their field. "It's always good for students to be involved in community-related projects that help them understand how real their efforts can be, and how they can make a difference in improving communities," he said. SANDRA M. PHOENIX Program Director HBCU Library Alliance sphoenix@hbculibraries.org www.hbculibraries.org 404.592.4820 1438 West Peachtree Street NW Suite 200 Atlanta, GA 30309 Toll Free: 1.800.999.8558 (Lyrasis) Fax: 404.892.7879 www.lyrasis.org Honor the ancestors, honor the children.