Community Design Academy

The Community Design Academy (CDA) is a twelve-week, interactive course presented in Pinal County by the Sonoran Institute. The goals of the Community Design Academy are:

1) To give each city or town in Pinal County the necessary tools to be able to apply or implement their policy as a model.

2) To apply analytical techniques needed to create an understanding of the state of a community and the problem in question.

3) To gain experience in analyzing a development site within context consideration of the natural environment.

The objectives are to: balance future growth with conservation, utilize principles of southwest regional architecture, collaborative development efforts for State Trust Land, encourage sustainability and green building, recommend urban redevelopment, address infill and growth at the city's edge, implement local planning and zoning policies, and suggest leadership strategies for successful implementation. Open to all interested members of the community, the CDA encourages participation by those who have an interest in promoting quality design and development in the greater Tucson basin and in learning ways to positively influence the growth and future of our desert community.

The 12-week, interactive course is scheduled from March 4 through May 20, 2009. The 12 classes are being held at the recently rehabilitated Florence/Silver King Hotel from 6-8 p.m. each Wednesday.

Class Schedule:

Class 1 was held on March 4 with Jack Tomasik from Central Arizona Association of Governments and Jerry Stabley, Pinal County Planning Director covering the following topics: the geographic overview, physical and cultural landscapes, demographic analysis, trends, design advocates, and syllabus overview.

Class 2 was scheduled to be held on March 11 with former Supervisor Sandie Smith and the Florence Main Street Director, Jennifer Evans, covering the Architecture and History of Pinal County - Past, Present and Future.

Class 3 will be held on March 18 with the Sonoran Institute's Sun Corridor Policy Director, Dave Richins, and Ron Peters with BPLW Architects, giving an overview of the Sonoran Identity explaining Southwest Regionalism and design influences from other communities in our region such as Southern California and New Mexico.

Class 4 will be held on March 25 with Jamie Hogue, Deputy State Land Commissioner, and Susan Culp from the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy explaining State Trust Land policies.

Class 5 will be held on April 1 with Peggy Fiandaca from PSA explaining how the County's Comprehensive Plan can correlate with the cities' and towns' General Plans. She will also explain how these plans relate to both the Pima and Maricopa County Comprehensive Plans.

Classes 6 through 12 will cover Transportation and Urban Form; Sustainability and the Realities of Developing in the Desert; Master Planned Communities - Housing Needs; Economic Development -Creating Jobs in Pinal County; A Planning Charrette - Creating a Sustainable Community; and presenting the Charrette results.

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