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Urban Design Workshop: Revitalizing a Rust-Belt Town: Canajoharie, NY

Contributors

  • Nathaniel Abel (B.S. URS '20)
  • Bryan Byun (B.S. URS '19)
  • Angela Chen (B.S. URS '20)
  • Peter de Lande Long (B.S. URS '20)
  • Doug Gensler (B.S. URS '20)
  • Adam Klier (B.S. URS '19)
  • Julianna Mangano (B.S. '21)
  • Eden Marek (M.R.P. '20)
  • Quinn Otto-Moudry (B.S. URS '21)
  • Kaitlin Piazza (M.A. HPP '20)
  • Cunqi Ren (B.A. '19)
  • Shruti Shah (B.Arch. '20)
  • Jacob Soley (B.S. URS '20)
  • Tingyue Tan (B.S. URS/B.L.A. '23)
  • Sara Tayara (B.S. URS '20)
  • Haoming Wu (M.S. AAD '19)
  • Cun Zhang (M.S. AAD '19)
  • Luyao Zhou (M.S. AAD '19)

Class

CRP 5850 Urban Design Workshop

Instructors

Canajoharie, New York is located on the Mohawk River in upstate New York. Long known for its most famous factory — the Beech-Nut baby food company, founded in 1890 — the town was changed when Beech-Nut moved their operations out of Canajoharie in 2011. Numerous proposals were suggested for the adaptive reuse of the Beech-Nut buildings, a complex of office and warehouse structures built over many decades and located in the heart of the town. Although none have come to fruition (2019) many are still being discussed as a way to adapt Canajoharie into a 21st century economy and future.

Students in the Cornell course in Spring 2019 worked collaboratively in teams to create conceptual urban design scenarios for the Village of Canajoharie and the Beech-Nut site. The class worked for and with the planning and economic development offices of Montgomery County and made presentations both internally at CRP and to the Montgomery County Legislature at key milestones. The course included a site visit to Canajoharie followed by detailed site and market analyses, conceptual idea formulation, land use alternatives, spatial design diagrams, and urban design and public space proposals. The project allowed students to engage with a real-world urban design problem regionally while testing urban design solutions for a specific client while building studio and presentation skills.

To view the report, please contact the Department of City and Regional Planning.

Photo rendering of a proposed building adjacent to a body of water.
Speculative view of former Beech-Nut Factory transformed into a regional food hub.
A group of people walk along a sidewalk with snow on the ground and a white building in the background.
CRP students visiting Town of Canajoharie near Beech-Nut Factory.
People gather in a circle on the side of a paved road next to a wire gate.
CRP students meeting with County Official near Beech-Nut Factory.
Aerial view of a waterfront neighborhood with an overlay depicting a new proposed set of buildings and gardens.
Team 1 site plan for adaptive re-use of former Beech-Nut Factory in Canajoharie, NY.
Black and white photograph of an industrial beachfront neighborhood with superimposed buildings in bright colors.
Team 1 zoning plan for adaptive re-use of former Beech-Nut Factory in Canajoharie, NY.
Rendering of a site plan depicting green space, mixed-use buildings, and manufacturing facilities.
Team 2 site plan for adaptive re-use of former Beech-Nut Factory in Canajoharie, NY.
Rendering of a site plan depicting green space, mixed-use buildings, and manufacturing facilities.
Team 3 site plan for adaptive re-use of former Beech-Nut Factory in Canajoharie, NY.
Rendering of a skating rink with billboards, trees, and people skating.
Speculative view of former Beech-Nut Factory transformed into a regional winter rec park.

More Student Work

View all

  • Aerial rendering of a landscape that includes a lake, forested regions, suburban areas, and dense industrial areas.
  • Colorful rendering of a plant-lined structure surrounded by a moat.
  • Artistic rendering of a building that has many arches and curved windows.
  • A person holds a book open, and the pages show photographs of landscapes.
  • Two moss sculptures sit on a gallery floor with a brightly colored rope painting hanging on the wall.
  • A rendering of a person looking out a window at a building that has text on it.
Urban Design Workshop: Lansing Village Center

Group Work

Work by Jenny Yi

Jenny Yi (B.Arch. '21)

San Francisco by the Data

Group Work

Work by Mia Brown-Seguin

Mia Brown-Seguin (B.F.A. '24)

Work by Giselle Hobbs

Giselle Hobbs (M.F.A. in Creative Visual Arts '23)

Work by Ami Mehta

Ami Mehta (B.Arch. '21)