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Applied Research Papers & Master’s Theses

Applied Research Papers & Master’s Theses

Applied research papers are completed by MCRP students as practice-oriented alternatives to theses. These papers utilize practical skills and draw conclusions related to professional planning practice.

The following applied research papers and theses were completed in the last five years. For a complete archive, please visit the SmarTech collection hosted by the Georgia Tech Library.

Applied Research Papers

As-Salaam, Kamau. "Neighborhood Security and Resiliency: Reviving East Washington." 2020. Supervised by Catherine Ross.

Corrao, Laurel. "Perspective on Planning for Sea Level Rise." 2020. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Dervarics, Kelly. "Staying Afloat in Affordable Housing Production: An Initial Examination and Framework of Cost Savings for Mercy Housing Southeast." 2020. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Ferreira, Andrea. "A Tale of Two (Modern) Cities: A Comparison of the Attempts to Regulate Airbnb in San Francisco and Boston." 2020. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Haley, Victor. "The Impact of Eviction on Student Displacement: An Atlanta Case Study." 2020. Supervised by Elora Raymond.

Hart, Haley. "Combating Food Insecurity within Universities." 2020. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Jerath, Shikha. "Racial Discrimination in the Atlanta Mortgage Market, 2012 - 2017." 2020. Supervised by Elora Raymond.

Macbeth, Joshua. "Affordable Atlanta." 2020. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Martin, Katherine. "Leveraging Technology as a Community Engagement Strategy." 2020. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Orsini, Callie. "In the Mix: Middle Housing and Income Diversity in Atlanta." 2020. Supervised by Elora Raymond.

Pimentel, Ruth. "Funding Parks for Community Interests." 2020. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Prendergast, Kyla. "The Influence of Transit - Oriented Developments on Housing Cost and Ridership in Denver, Colorado." 2020. Supervised by Elora Raymond.

Jiang, Qian. "The Impact of Traffic Density on Lane-Changing Frequency." 2020. 

Seidenberg, Alex. "Bridging the Affordability Gap: How Can Faith Based Organizations Leverage Their Real Estate Assets?" 2020. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Staley, Rachel. "Historic Preservation and Downtown Revitalization: How Does the Georgia Main Street Program Affect the Population Size, Racial Makeup, Median Household Income, and Retail Sales of Designated Cities?" 2020. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Zakas, Chelsea. "Climate Mitigation Planning: Are Plans with Policy Tools Measurably More Effective?" 2020. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Zhen, Shuhui. "Increasing Bicycles’ Share of Commuter Trips in Atlanta through Improved Trip Routing Methodologies." 2020. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Baggett, Anna. "Combatting the Urban Heat Island Effect: What Trees Are Suitable for Atlanta’s Current and Future Climate?" 2019. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Bleckley, Claire. "Georgia’s Regional Planning System: An Evaluation of the State’s 12 Regional Development Commissions.” 2019. Supervised by Nancey Green Leigh.

Brice, Paul-Emile. "Resort Towns: Making a Case Study of Montego Bay and Bavaro Punta Cana.” 2019. Supervised by Alberto Fuentes.

Carpenter, Sophia. "Planning for Blue and Green: A Case for Green Infrastructure.” 2019. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Carter, Melody. "Federal Opportunity Zones: The newest gentrification tool?” 2019. Supervised by Nancey Green Leigh.

Cooper, Carson. "Does distributed green infrastructure or centralized green infrastructure have a greater effect on urban stormwater flow & pollutant loads?” 2019. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Coyle, Tyler. "Houston Townhomes & Affordability: Relative townhome prices 2005-2018.” 2019. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Davison, Brianna. "A Case for Expanding Heritage Tourism in Atlanta, Georgia by Exploring Sites From the Negro Motorist Green Book.” 2019. Supervised by Nancey Green Leigh.

Denison, John. " The Determinants and Implications of Local Minimum Wage Adoption.” 2019. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Everhart, Justina. "Coastal Wetlands and Sea-Level Rise: A Case for Climate Adaptation Zones in Coastal Georgia.” 2019. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Friedman, Mirit. "Promoting the Economic Mobility of Clients Through Identifying Leverage Points in the Atlanta Community Food Bank Partner Network.” 2019. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey​

Gao, Meng. "Bike Infrastructure Evaluation of Midtown Atlanta, A GIS and Statistics Based Study.” 2019. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Geronimo, Laura. "Sea Level Rise and Storm Surge: Incorporating Uncertainty and Equity into Transportation Planning for the San Juan Metropolitan Area, Puerto Rico.” 2019. Supervised by Catherine Ross.

Graszer, Grace. "Closing Peachtree and Pine: Evaluating Homeless Strategies in Atlanta, Georgia.” 2019. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Healy, Clare. "Middle Ground: Market Demand and the Housing Supply Mismatch for Middle Housing in the United States.” 2019. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Huffman, Leigh. "The Impact of Urbanization on Biodiversity in the Asheville-Brevard Combined Statistical Area.” 2019. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Johnson, Nicholas. "Expanding Equity in Sustainability Projects Through Community Engagement: Can Organizations Adapt?” 2019. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Johnson, Jennifer. "Using K-12 Schools to Promote Sustainable Communities.” 2019. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

McCoy, Trevor. “Reallocating Food Waste: Evaluating Food Waste Management Options for Atlanta” 2019. Supervised by Michael Elliott.

Pang, Jian. "A Review on The Concept of Transit-dependency And The Research on The Multidimensional Transit-dependency Index.” 2019. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Schlom, Ryan. "How Has U+2 Enforcement Affected Housing Affordability in Fort Collins? Using the Synthetic Control Method to Analyze the Affordability Implications of Residential Occupancy Regulation.” 2019. Supervised by Thom Malone.

Scott, Eric. "Parking at Megachurches - Managing accessibility, hospitality and stewardship: A Case Study of Peachtree Presbyterian Church.” 2019. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Sherman, Andrea. "Rural Mobility for Older Adults: Matching Georgia’s Future Needs with Potential Capacity for Volunteer Driver Programs.” 2019. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Sherman, Jonathan. " A Flood Resilience Policy Analysis: New York City.” 2019. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Smith, Andrew. "Envisioning a Complete Streets Prioritization Scheme for Georgia’s Small and Medium-Sized Cities.” 2019. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Stephens, Nicholas. "Toward a Complete Park: Pursuing ideals of social equity, ecological enrichment and economic empowerment for the Westside Park at Bellwood Quarry, a regional-scale park in Atlanta, Georgia.” 2019. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Tyger, Curtis. "Church-Based Transportation: A New Shared Mobility Service That Converts Church Parking Lots into Transportation Hubs for Metro Atlanta Communities.” 2019. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Applied Research Papers

Agnew, Darian. "Extending homeownership opportunities to prospective borrowers burdened by student loan debt." 2018. Supervised by Anna Kim.

Browne, Samantha. " The Causes and Effects of Environmental Gentrification: An Examination of the Impacts of the Trinity River Balanced Vision Plan on West Dallas, TX." 2018. Supervised by Thomas Debo.

Dieg, Melanie. "Is Columbia a Different Neighbor? A Comparative Analysis of University Real Estate Acquisition Practices." 2018. Supervised by Anna Kim.

Diwangkari, Andyan. "Urban Form and Neighborhood Vulnerability to Climate Change Case Study: Jakarta, Indonesia." 2018. Supervised by Perry Yang.

Dodson, Christy. "Neighborhood Diversity and Middle Housing in an Atlanta Context." 2018. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Duncan, Dorraine. "Participatory Solid Waste Management A Proposal for Jamaica's Informal Settlements." 2018. Supervised by Michael Elliott.

Dutt, Florina. "Reclaiming Public Realm to Improve Human Heatlh and Enviornment in Indian Cities." 2018. Supervised by Subhro Guhathakurta.

Erwin, Lexi. "Working Moms and Economic Development Policy: Are We Planning for Women?" 2018. Supervised by Anna Kim.

French, Megan. "Accuracy of a Heat Vulnerability Index for Estimating Heat Mortality in Dallas, Texas." 2018. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Galloway, Allison. "Slow Urbanism as a Sprawl Antidote Winning the Race on Foot Borrowing from Slow Urbanism's Place-Based Sustainable Practices." 2018. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Hirt, Mary. "Homeownership and Racial Wealth Disparity in the Southeast: Factor Ratio Reweighting Analysis of Homeownership in Six Southeast States and the Importance of Race-Conscious Housing Policies." 2018. Supervised by Anna Kim.

Ijaz, Mishele. "Growth versus Development: The Case of China Pakistan Economic Corridor." 2018. Supervised by Nancey Green Leigh.

Lancaster, Zachary. "Information Theory as a Measure of Sociodemographic Change." 2018. Supervised by Perry Yang.

Marinelli, Abigail. "Curbing Zombie Cars: Implementing a VMT Tax on Zero-Occupant AVs to Discourage Unnecessary Trips." 2018. Supervised by Catherine Ross.

Meng, Chao. "Evaluation of the Equity of Bikeshare System Accessibility: A Case Study of Chicago." 2018. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Mildner, Caitlin. "Planning for Local Agency Transportation Asset Management An Analysis of Knowledge and Resource Shortcomings within Local Georgia Agencies." 2018. Supervised by Subhro Guhathakurta.

Morrison, Marc. "Atlanta's Urban Ecosystem Services: A Neighborhood Comparison Analysis." 2018. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Rao, Pooja. "Transit fare structure and equity: Case of MARTA, Atlanta." 2018. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Rogers, Ian Michael. "Historic Preservation & Progress in Atlanta: Zoning Strategies for Adaptive Reuse and Revitalization." 2018. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Saxton, John. "A High-Injury Network for Atlanta." 2018. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Sepkowitz, Isabel. "The Great Retail Metamorphosis: How Americans Shop is How Americans Live Metro Atlanta Case Study." 2018. Supervised by Subhro Guhathakurta.

Thayer, Chris. "Contesting Conventional Wisdom: The Link Between Subsidy Layering and Legal Expenses in the LIHTC Program." 2018. Supervised by Anna Kim.

Van Dyke, Rebecca. "The Impact of Gender, Race, and Income on Transit Travel Behavior in Boston and Atlanta." 2018. Supervised by Michael Elliott.

Veriah, Revathi. "Classification of Informal Settlements Based on their Susceptibility to Climate Change." 2018. Supervised by Michael Elliott.

Waidhas, Kelsey. "An Academic Addendum for the Sandy Springs Wayfinding System: An Option Paper Report." 2018. Supervised by William Drummond.

Woods, Gloria. "Resilient Black Neighborhoods in Urban Environments Through Effective Community Planning." 2018. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Wu, Yanlin. "Modifying and Extending the Geodesign Framework for Eco Campus Design Project." 2018. Supervised by Perry Yang.

Anand, Spandana. "The Future of Transportation: Autonomous Vehicles." 2017. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Barrow, Megan. "As Sea Level Rise in the Southeast, Are Transportation Planners on Board with Climate Justice?" 2017. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Bedsole, Matthew. "Developing a Charitable and Targeted Property Tax Relief Fund: An Anti-Displacement Initiative for Atlanta’s Westside Neighborhoods." 2017. Supervised by Mike Dobbins. 

Boyd, Nicholas. "The Urban Forest and Environmental Justice: A Review of the Literature." 2017. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Bozarth, Ashley. "Permanent Supportive Housing in the City of Atlanta: Transitioning to a Comprehensive Housing First Approach." 2017. Supervised by Dan Immergluck.

Burnette, Caroline. "Predicting Revitalization: a descriptive narrative and predictive analysis of neighborhood revitalization in Atlanta, Georgia." 2017. Supervised by Subhro Guhathakurta.

Butler, Catherine. "Green Development Assessing Opportunities for the City of Atlanta." 2017. Supervised by Dan Immergluck.

Day, Anna. "In Favor of Farm to Fork: An assessment of the local food system in metropolitan Atlanta." 2017. Supervised by Michael Elliot.

De Leon, David. "Bridging the Gap: an Analysis of the Spatial Mismatch Hypothesis and Social Service and Affordable Housing Accessibility in Atlanta." 2017. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Duckworth, Richard. "Preparing for Light Rail in the Purple Line Corridor." 2017. Supervised by Alex Karner. 

Estes, Emily. "Do Young Children Affect Travel Behavior for Parents in Atlanta?" 2017. Supervised by Anna Kim.

Fleming, Ryan. "Strip Clubs in Portland, Oregon and Atlanta, Georgia: The Tension between First Amendment Free Speech & Crime-related Secondary Effects." 2017. Supervised Nancey Green Leigh.

French, Emma. "People-centered Planning for Smart Cities: Exploring the Use of Smart Cities Technologies in Efforts to Engage the Public in Planning in and around Proctor Creek Watershed." 2017. Supervised by Anna Kim.

Hanson, Alex. "Measuring the Impact of Complete Streets Projects on Bicyclist and Pedestrian Safety in Sacramento County, California." 2017. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Hashemi Toroghi, Shahaboddin. "Toward a Sustainable Neighborhood: Examining the Impact of the Mixed-use Development on Neighborhood Energy Consumption." 2017. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Haston, Joshua. "Planning the Next BRAC: Redevelopment Alternatives for Dobbins Air Reserve Base and Air Force Plant No. 6." 2017. Supervised by Brian Stone. 

Kent, Margaret. "Prioritizing Low-Stress Bicycle Accessibility in Baltimore." 2017. Supervised by Alex Karner.

Kong, Jing. "Impact Analysis of the Built Environment on Quality of Life." 2017. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Mara, Kevin. "Large-Scale Mixed-Use Developments as Catalytic Real Estate Projects: Evaluating the Narrative of Neighborhood Revitalization." 2017. Supervised by Dan Immergluck.

Mayor, Phoebe. "Striking the Balance between Neighborhood Change and Income Diversity Lessons from Metropolitan Atlanta." 2017. Supervised by Anna Kim.

Metal, Melanie. "Tailoring Green Stormwater Infrastructure to Hawiian Lansdcapes." 2017. Supervised by William Drummond.

Patterson, Grant. "Arts-Based Neighborhood Revitalization Engaging Artists & Creative Entrepreneurs to Identify Policy Recommendations to Support Arts-Based Revitalization in South Downtown, Atlanta." 2017. Supervised by Anna Kim.

Shelton, Austin. "This Place Matters: Exploring Rural Planning through Funding a Rail-Trail in Harris County, Georgia." 2017. Supervised by William Drummond.

Yang, Wenhui. "Analysis on Social Impacts of Atlanta Streetcar Systems Emissions." 2017. Supervised by TIm Welch.

Zeng, Tianran. "Transit as Solution for Spatial Mismatch." 2017. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Bonn, Sara Jane. "Digital Media and the Built Environment: the Potential Impact of Digital Devices on Public Space." 2016. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Boyd, Joseph. "Walkability, Pedestrian Infrastructure, & Transit Access in Atlanta: A Case Study on Ashby, Inman Park/Reynoldstown, and Lindbergh MARTA Stations." 2016. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Buker, Allison. "Mapping the Morphological History of Westside Savannah." 2016. Supervised by Richard Dagenhart. 

Collot, Adeline. "A Culture of High Speeds and Accumulating Debt: A Case Study of French High-Speed Rail Financing Practices." 2016. Supervised by Time Welch.

Date, Chirag. "Virtual and Fantastic Urban Perceptions through Cinema and Their Relation to Contemporary Cities." 2016. Supervised by Mike Dobbins.

McKinney, Mia. "A Dream Deferred? Utilizing the Limited-Equity Housing Cooperative Model as a Solution to Atlanta's Affordable Housing Issue." 2016. Supervised by Mike Dobbins.

Kao, Mindy. "Creating Fair Housing Metrics and Milestones Using Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) Data" 2016. Supervised by Dan Immergluck. .

Lueders, Abram. "Jane Jacobs, Quantified: Exploring the Legacy of the 20th Century’s Most Provocative Urban Theorist." 2016. Supervised by Dan Immergluck.

Maines, Katherine. "How Observation Can Enhance Understanding of Walkability and Bikability around Transit Stations." 2016. Supervised by Brian Stone. 

Martin, Tyler. "Assessing the Influence of Policy Factors on Alternative Fuel Vehicle Adoption in Georgia." 2016. Supervised by Catherine Ross. 

Price, Shelley. "Enhancing National Parks for Visitors with Disabilities through Customer-Experience-Based Decision Making." 2016. Supervised by Michael Elliott.

Reeves, William. "Activating the Alleys of Austin." 2016. Supervised by Mike Dobbins.

Sanker, Rishi Raghav. "Urban Tourism and Transportation: A Lesson For Atlanta." 2016. Supervised by Catherine Ross. 

Smith, Stephanie."An Evaluation of the Physical and Demographic Characteristics Contributing to On-Site Sewage Management System Failure in Metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia." 2016. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Yanten, Angelica. "School Closures and Their Impact on Local Communities." 2016. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Ashdown, Marcus. “Alternative Intersection Design Strategies: How Georgia and the US are Changing Outdated Transportation Design Techniques.” 2015. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Auguin, Corentin. "Toward Financially Sustainable Public Transportation Systems-Type of Service Impacts on Cost Efficiency." 2015. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Bowman, Ryan. “Planning and Policy Implementation Strategies for Green Stormwater Best Management Practices in the Proctor Creek Watershed, Atlanta, Ga.” 2015. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Bustin, Allison. “Zoning For Obesity: Incorporating Context-Based Strategies For Improved Health In Municipal Zoning Codes.”2015. Supervised by Michael Dobbins.

Cook, Kirsten. “Planning Through the Shared Use of Resources: A Case Study of DeKalb County, Georgia.”2015. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Davis, Khaliff. “Can Pop-Up Shops Improve My Community? An Analysis of the Linkages between Tactical Urbanism and Community Development.”2015.  Supervised by Dan Immergluck.

Grimes, Jennifer. “The Atlanta Beeline: Invertebrate Pollinator Corridor Suitability Analysis of the Metropolitan Atlanta Region.”2015. Supervised by Bill Drummond.

Guthart, Robert. “Analysis of Transportation Accessibility to Hospitals in Jacksonville, Florida.”2015. Supervised by Perry Yang.

Ingram, Carlton. “An Infill Station in Atlanta: Evaluating a MARTA rail stop at Hulsey Yard.” 2015. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Mingus, Charlene Deanne. “Bicyclist Perceived Level of Traffic Stress: A Quality-of-Service Measure.”2015. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Novsam, Jason. “The Decline and Asymmetrical Resurgence of American Transit: A Case Study of Seattle.”2015. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Perumbeti, Katherine. “An Assessment of Social and Health Equity in Atlanta Streets Alive Events.”2015. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Plante, Jessica. “LIHTC Developments in Atlanta and Neighborhood Effects.” 2015. Supervised by Dan Immergluck.

Rindge, Brianna. “Sustainable Development for Professional Sports Stadiums.”2015. Supervised by Bill Drummond.

Shields, Madelyn. “Women's Participation in Seattle's High-Tech Economy.”2015. Supervised by Anna Kim. 

Theses

Arias, Daniel Fernando. "Estimating the Effects of Vehicle Speeds on Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety on the Georgia Arterial Roadway Network." 2020.

Jiang, Qian. " Transit-Oriented Development Parking Demand Analysis: A Case Study of MARTA." 2020.

Rose, Jessica. "The Application of Ecosystem Services in Higher Education Planning." 2020.

Postma, Deborah E. "The Future of Streets in an Age of Pandemics." 2020.

Todd, Kara Grace. "Evaluating the Costs and Benefits of Implementing a MARTA Youth Fare." 2020.

Tucker, William. "Measuring Climate Resilience in the Built Environment Around the Atlanta Beltline." 2020.

Boddupalli, Sreekar-Shashank. “Estimating Demand for an Electric Vertical Landing Takeoff (eVTOL) Air Taxi Service Using Discrete Choice Modeling” 2019. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Borsch, Adam. “Analyzing the Difference Between Bike Share Trips Made on Regular and Electric Bicycles” 2019. Supervised by Catherine Ross.

Chang, Chia-Huai. “Estimating Managed Lanes Door-to-door Travel Timesavings using Shortest Path Algorithms” 2019. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Greenwald, Jeremy. “It Takes Green to Go Green: An Atlanta-Based Evolution of Employer-Provided Commuting Incentives as a Method to Overcome  Worksite Car-Dependency” 2019. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Patel, Deep. “Economic and Social Sustainability of Sidewalk Infrastructure” 2019. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Douglass, Sara. "Federal Transit Funding Implications of Urbanization: A Nationwide Assessment" 2018. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Dyess, Chelsea. "An Assessment of Pedestrian Infrastructure Quality and the Effect on Travel Time and Mobility for Users with Physical Limitations." 2018. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Nord, Anna. " A Statewide Assessment of Trending Urban Areas in Georgia and the Implications on Rural Public Transit Funding." 2018. Supervised by Catherine Ross.

Senthilkumar, Sanjay. "Making Bike Share Transit Compatible." 2018. Supervised by Timothy Welch.

Tobey, Michael. "Linking MPBN and System of Systems Thinking: To Improve Outcomes in Urban Environments." 2018. Supervised by Perry Yang.

Koo, Bonwoo. "Spatio-temporal Patterns of Urban Tree Canopy and Environmental Equity in Atlanta." 2017. Supervised by Nisha Botchwey.

Sperling, Elliot. "Advancing Strategic Focuses through Performance-based Evaluation – the Growth of State DOT Approaches." 2017. Supervised by Catherine Ross.

Martin, Tyler. "Assessing the Influence of Policy Factors on Alternative Fuel Vehicle Adoption in Georgia." 2016. Supervised by Catherine Ross.

Smith, Stephanie. "An Evaluation of the Physical and Demographic Characteristics Contributing to On-Site Sewage Management System Failure in Metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia." 2016. Supervised by Brian Stone.

Bearn, Cary. "Measuring Low Stress Bike access to MARTA." 2015. Supervised by Catherine Ross.

Maier, George. "Forecasting Ridership Impacts of Transit Oriented Development at MARTA Rail Stations." 2015. Supervised by Tim Welch.

Plummer, Audrey. "Retroffiting Closed Golf Courses." 2015. Supervised by Richard Dagenhart.

Prabhakar, Niranjani. "Measuring Cost-Effectiveness of Idle Reduction Technologies in Heavy Duty Trucks." 2015. Supervised by Catherine Ross.

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