DANI WELTY

A classmate and I researched the Downtown Historic Marion district in Grant County, Indiana. We decided to begin our research by walking both sides of every street in the historic downtown district until we knew exactly what was on every corner and block in the area. We then created a map categorizing vacancies, businesses, residencies, restaurants, government associations, churches, parking, greenery, and transportation stations. We found many problems in the district but the lack of public gathering space sparked attention as the source of many of those problems. In response to these issues, our concept was to create sustainable community involvement by designating gathering spaces to bring the Historic Downtown Marion together. We then went back to our map and found areas and businesses to connect with to implement gathering spaces in the district. We then looked to nature to start innovating what those spaces would look like. We focused on watering holes, bioluminescence, and coral reefs to design gathering spaces from. Our concepts included a community table, pop-up parks, and a basketball court with a smoothie shop business run by The Crossing.