Provided

Six Mile Creek in its current state.

When Gary Ferguson, director of the Downtown Ithaca Alliance, hatched plans to extend the Six Mile Creek walk, he called on Cornell. His appeal was not made to administrators or instructors, but to students.

From recreational trails to shopping malls, aspiring designers and planners are making their marks on communities through a novel student-run organization.

DesignConnect brings together graduate and undergraduate students who work in interdisciplinary teams and collaborate with communities in upstate New York.

Ferguson asked the students to help create a concept and visuals that will energize the community into backing the Six Mile Creek project, which appears in the 2020 Downtown Strategic Plan.

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Rendering of renovations to Six Mile Creek.

"It's going to be a fantastic, and very important, transportation link and recreational amenity for our community, and that's why I thought it would be a great project for the students to help us get started," Ferguson said.

The Collegetown Neighborhood Council has also enlisted student help to bring a grocery store to College Avenue. DesignConnect students will survey the community, assess its needs, develop designs and assist in the planning process.

In the town of DeWitt, on the outskirts of Syracuse, they are aiding in the restoration of a staple of the local economy to its former glory. Shoppingtown Mall is getting a makeover, and DesignConnect members are contributing their ideas about how to redesign the space and rejuvenate the mall, including use of sustainable and mixed-use materials.

In Spencer, village and town officials are looking to the students for guidance on how to approach a new joint comprehensive plan, a project that could involve tackling tricky zoning issues and gas drilling.

They also have been called on to help assess the historical significance of buildings in the main business district of Elmira Heights. There, they may draft architectural guidelines and a redevelopment plan, and design new streetscapes.

"We are really excited about the projects this semester," said DesignConnect co-chair Gilad Meron '12. "The deliverables we produce are going to really have a big impact."

Formed in the spring of 2008 and established as an independent student organization in 2010, DesignConnect gives students the "opportunity for real-world experience, while also serving communities in need," said Alyson Fletcher, a member of the group's administrative board and a graduate student in regional planning and landscape architecture.

Apart from a sense of social justice, the group is also motivated by a desire to increase sustainability and promote green design, she said.

Nomoya Hall, a junior in urban and regional studies who participated in projects last semester, said she appreciated the opportunity for hands-on learning. "You could see how things we learned in the classroom came into play," she said.

"It provides a good opportunity to experience public participation and politics in a way you might not experience even in 'real world' class projects," Fletcher added.

The collaborative aspect of DesignConnect is also an important part of the group's mission. Members primarily hail from the departments of Landscape Architecture, City and Regional Planning, and Architecture, but students from all interests are welcome, and Meron would like to see more novel collaborations evolve this semester. Students from nutrition would be a great addition to the Collegetown grocery store team, for instance, and human development students are invaluable when it comes to community outreach, he said.

The group will hold an information session Feb. 2 at 5 p.m. in 466 Kennedy Hall.

Hannah Stamler '12 is a student writer for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.