La Avenida Community Streetscape
CommUniverCity expresses interest in working with the Alum Rock East Santa Clara Business Association on a Fall 2025 semester project led by Professor Gordon Douglas and his course in Urban Design in Planning (URBP 231) and Professor Rodney Knox’s course in Strategic Content Creation (PR 191) . The course studies urban design as part of the planning process. Additional topics include contemporary and historic urban design thought and ways of improving design quality in the urban environment. While this course is not a field-based capstone course, Professor Douglas will create course assignments focused on design projects related to the business district along the East Santa Clara St / Alum Rock Ave corridor, from 21st St to Capitol Ave. An example is the “Gateway project” that can help introduce residents and customers to the cultural district.
Project Deliverables
After the course concludes (in December 2025), Professor Douglas will assemble the student-produced content (approximately 15-20 project ideas) and provide his professional expertise, analysis, and insights on his students’ work. Afterwards, a report to the Board (for the Alum Rock Santa Clara Street Business Association) will be provided by the end of March 2026. Professor Douglas’s projects will include stakeholder analysis and community outreach, which includes site visits and analysis. If feasible, coordination with key stakeholders (e.g. TOPA Architecture, Community Strong Strategies, Board members, etc. would be ideal). The URBP 231 course will study the demographics and cultural character of the community, and apply what they are learning in his class to what it would mean for a locally-relevant and locally-conscious design.
This PDF is a compilation of student submissions from Fall 2025 URBP 151 / 231. If there are any errors in attribution to individual student submissions, please contact admin@cucsj.org
In addition, Professor Rodney Knox, who teaches Strategic Content Creation (Public Relations, PR 191) will use this real-world application as an assignment for Professor Knox’s Public Relations course to “Extend the Value of Content”. After the semester is over, Professor Knox will also provide a report to the Board based on his professional expertise, analysis, and insights of the assignment that was submitted by his students.
Timeline
Students will write a research paper on how the built environment influences the cultural character of a place (La Avenida Community).
Professor Knox will assign a Public Relations assignment on Extending the Value of Content for his students.
As part of Professor Douglas's assignment, each student will conduct their own on-site analysis of an area in E. Santa Clara St. or Alum Rock Corridor.
Both Professor Douglas and Professor Knox will provide their expert feedback, and analysis on the students' work.
Professor Knox and his student, Kanak, had a presentation pertaining to PR 191
Professor Douglas had a presentation pertaining to URBP 231
At the end of the project, a final report will be submitted by the professors to the Board of Alum Rock Santa Clara Street Business Association.
This course provides a graduate-level introduction to the ideas that have shaped the design of cities and the principles informing the practice of urban design. We will explore significant components of theory and practice across the disciplines of architecture, urban planning, and landscape urbanism, and consider how they are intertwined with social, environmental, and cultural factors. The course is mainly organized around the different scales or sites at which urban designers think and work today, but focuses also on important moments of urban design in history, major theories, concepts and critiques, and some key methods for research and practice.
This course covers the basics of creating and implementing a strategic content marketing plan and introduces students to the tools and techniques for delivering valuable, relevant, and measurably effective content on behalf of individuals, organizations and brands. The course guides students through the production of various marketing communication assets.
Alum Rock Santa Clara Street Business Association is a community organization dedicated to supporting local businesses, building a sense of community, and preserving the cultural heritage of the area along the East Santa Clara Street and Alum Rock Corridor in San José. Its impact includes building a culture district at La Avenida and implementing beautification projects such as murals symbolizing culture diversity, and improved trash removal services in the neighborhood. Link to official website
Project Vision
This project aligns closely with the Board’s five-year strategic plan and broader vision for revitalizing the Alum Rock Corridor under the emerging cultural identity of La Avenida cultural district. In collaboration with the board and Community Strong Strategies, our main goal is to bring together the academic creativity of Urban Design and Public Relation students at SJSU, and the San José community members to accomplish neighborhood-defined goals.
Throughout the semester, students will explore design ideas that celebrate the area’s cultural identity and support the community goals for revitalization. They will generate their own site plan and design illustrations. showcasing the interrelationship between streets, building uses, public space, transit and existing infrastructure. These student-generated designs, paired with professional analysis from our professors, could provide ideas that complements TOPA Architecture’s existing efforts and act as a model for attracting both public and private funding to support future capital improvements and beautification initiatives.
Faculty Lead
Gordon Douglas (URBP 231) and Rodney Knox (PR 191)