City extensions : the revitalization of Denver Colorado's Platte River Valley

Abstract

This thesis examines a process for future city growth in Denver, Colorado. Its objective is to develop a model by which future expansion of the city might build qualities of continuity and identity between adjacent sections of the city and the Platte River through the revitalization and extension of network edges. Present growth trends in Denver have altered traditional city network relationships. The exchange between movement systems, building forms and landscape has deteriorated resulting in the isolation of the pedestrian edges which once made Denver a city of vitality. This thesis begins with observations of a specific problem of discontinuity within Denver's Platte River Valley. It then outlines goals for future growth. The third section defines the task of seaming together valley districts. The fourth section documents a method for analysis and extension. The last section includes strategies and design projections to illustrate how districts of the city might grow, with examples of extensions from a regional size, to examinations in more detail of landscape network and building relationships.