Background




The International Plaza, located on N. Clinton Ave. in downtown Rochester, opened in Fall 2020. The IADC (Ibero American Development Corporation), aims to use the plaza to develop the El Camino neighborhood’s community and economy.
Unsafe driving, poor pedestrian infrastructure, and communication challenges limit the number of visitors attending plaza events. 
Our team created street and plaza designs to address these issues.
I worked on the project 2020-2022 but the project has continued and is constantly improving. 

Project Requirements

We defined issues we needed to address by site observation, interviews with stakeholders, and surveying the traffic in the area. 

Shared requirements of the different customer groups which included; IADC, IBERO, El Camino residents and City of Rochester.

The team and I went in person to talk to government officials and locals about their concerns and came up with a concise list of project objectives.  

Street:

●Safe crossing infrastructure ● Pedestrians feel safe crossing ● Drivers are moving at a manageable speed ● Clearance for emergency vehicles and snowplows 

Plaza:

● Increased number of vendors and visitors ● Shading ● Seating ● Aesthetic appeal ● Appeal to youth

Design Ideation

While Ideating I helped the team with visualizing concepts. 

Eleanor Green and I led the team in rapid paper prototyping and digitally sketched design options over maps of the location.

2022 Conclusions 

Manders. 2022. Information Post. Fusion Modeled + Keyshot

Manders. 2022. Stage. Fusion Modeled +Keyshot 

RIT 2022 Imagine RIT Presentation

Manders. 2022. Imagine RIT Exhibit, Foam Core + 3D Print

The Team

From left to right:

Emma Jung, Eleanor Green, Margaret Manders, Alex Grande, Soluchi Okoye, & Jessica Wagner. 

Not pictured:

Anusha Holvanali, Shannon Nosal, Annie Huang, William Key, & Sarah Brownell. 

Next Project Suggestions