Introducing a group of 16 avatars meant to represent the people who live, work, and play in downtown Toronto.
The planners behind the ongoing TOCore downtown planning process recently introduced a group of "avatars," created from demographic data about the city.
Introducing the #TOcore Avatars. Read their stories and share yours. Visit https://t.co/lLkzG5exuC #TOpoli pic.twitter.com/tLTqhReAbK
— CityPlanTO (@CityPlanTO) May 11, 2016
The TOCore website explains the reasoning behind the avatars:
Businesses create customer profiles all the time to ensure they are thinking about the needs of their customers, like when they are designing new products. This is the same thing, but we're taking our Avatars one step further and making them public.
The website lists 16 such avatars, covering such demographic categories as refugee, homeless, special needs, trans youth, and lots more.
The Regional Plan Association created a similar group of avatars for the purposes of creating the Fourth Regional Plan in 2014.
As for TOCore, the downtown planning effort launched a second phase in April 2016. More information can be found at the plan's website and with #TOCore.
FULL STORY: Downtown Stories: Planning for Many Perspectives
How Fictional Characters Can Give Real Perspective to Planners
Eric Jaffe reports on a simulation method used by the Regional Plan Association to bridge gaps in community engagement while developing the Fourth Regional Plan.
Are Movie Studios 'Highest and Best Use' During a Housing Affordability Crisis?
Toronto's answer to the question posed in the headline is, "yes." One columnist wonders if the city can do more to balance its priorities.
Toronto Reconsidering its Parking Requirements
Parking reform is reaching new frontiers.
What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities
How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.
‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge
Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.
Downtown Los Angeles on the Rise: A Promising 2025
Fueled by new developments, cultural investments, and a growing dining scene, downtown Los Angeles is poised for significant growth in 2025, despite challenges from recent wildfires and economic uncertainties.
A Plan to Expand Tree Canopy Across Dayton
Dayton is developing an urban forest master plan, using a $2 million grant to expand its tree canopy, address decades of tree loss, and enhance environmental equity across the city.
Decarbonizing Homes: The Case for Electrifying Residential Heating
A new MIT study finds that transitioning residential heating from natural gas to electric heat pumps can significantly reduce carbon emissions and operational costs.
Preserving Altadena’s Trees: A Community Effort to Save a Fire-Damaged Landscape
In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena Green is working to preserve fire-damaged but recoverable trees, advocating for better assessment processes, educating homeowners, and protecting the community’s urban canopy from unnecessary removal.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Economic & Planning Systems, Inc.
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research