The Cal Poly Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies (LAES), Architecture, and Computer Science programs are working with the Downtown Sacramento Partnership to redesign a pedestrian passageway connecting historical Sacramento California with modern Sacramento. The goal is to create an inviting space for visitors and locals that fills the passageway with interactive light displays celebrating the history and culture of Sacramento. This passageway will also provide a continually changing venue for engaging, family-friendly artworks connected to community festivals, fairs, and markets. 

 

 

This pedestrian passage has a long history of being associated with assault, robbery, homelessness and aggressive pan-handling. The city’s goal for many years has been to “clean up” this space, making it safe for tourists and locals. While there have indeed been a number of troubling incidents in the passageway in the past, the Cal Poly team discovered that this liminal space connecting two different downtown environments is defined by many urban myths that overshadow the reality of how the passageway is actually used. With this discovery, the Cal Poly team set an additional goal of helping the city see this transitionary space with a more welcoming light, changing its liminality from troubling to celebratory. Our presentation will discuss how a practical, project-based learning and development process in a complex urban environment can teach students the power that fact-based narrative and spatial re-invention can have on community planning and development.