❮ Projects page Community Design Collaborative

Spatial Analysis Project:

This spatial analysis will serve to identify and prioritize play spaces and schoolyards in particular, helping to determine prime candidates to receive our design grants. This work would allow us to:

• Map all Philadelphia schoolyards, parks and playgrounds, denoting the sites for which we have already created designs
• Prioritize the remaining schoolyards based on
  • Neighborhood characteristics, including income level (focusing on low to moderate) and age of population
  • Size of school population
  • Potential for stormwater management based on area of impervious surfaces on the site
  • Proximity to existing green spaces (focusing on students that do not have nearby access to greenspaces, be it a public park, etc.)
  • Additional factors we would be interested in exploring include district plans, public and local investments, and Headstart locations
• Identify specific sites or neighborhoods in which our services are most likely to have the most impact on the students, the environment, and the neighborhood community as a whole

Data available:

• Community Design Collaborative schoolyard and green space projects already completed, with complete address data
• Philadelphia Water Department stormwater projects (via our contract with Philadelphia Water Department, Open Data Philly)
• Impervious surface data (via our contract with Philadelphia Water Department, Open Data Philly: Philadelphia Water Department Stormwater Billing Parcels)
• School data (via School District of Philadelphia, Open Data Initiative, Open Data Philly)
• US census data including income and age
• Philadelphia parks (via Parks and Recreation, Open Data Philly)

Maps and Reports that will be created:

The map of schoolyards and green spaces along with the characteristics mentioned will visualize the quantity and dispersal of schoolyards and green spaces, revealing the neighborhoods that are underserved with regard to outdoor play space. We expect the accompanying report would suggest strategies for using the spatial analysis to assist with prioritization and potentially identify specific sites or neighborhoods for future projects.

How the maps and reports will be used:

The maps and reports will primarily be used to inform strategic site selection for future projects, assisting us in focusing our efforts and leveraging our volunteers for projects that will have the most impact. The maps will help us communicate the need for and potential of this work to funders, specifically in the childhood and education realm, a topic particularly relevant in Philadelphia right now. They will also serve as a model that we can use when examining other topic areas in the future.