"Downtown Belmont" Courtesy of Belmont Reality
The Central & Main Redevelopment Plan is part of the ongoing progress for Dillon's Preservation Design Undergraduate Capstone. Entitled, The Preservation of Civic Well-Being & Urban Beauty: Designing Gates of Place for Main Streets in Historic Downtowns, the Capstone addresses an important phenomenon afflicting nearly every small town in America. Even in the most successfully revitalized downtowns, the surrounding edges may often form acontextual gateways that ultimately detract from a viewer’s experience. At this encounter of opposing aesthetics, a sense of place is lost. This research examines the restoration and perpetuation of place through aesthetically cohesive vernacular and Classical urban form.
"Capstone Focus Area" Taken by James Dillon Yeager
Applying Postmodern and New Urbanist theories where Modernist principles have failed, this research aims to propose a methodology of infill redevelopment including streetscaping, public space, and commercial architecture that will foster well-being. Looking at Belmont, North Carolina, this project proposes a design solution to stylistically, functionally, and experientially connect its historic downtown with nearby vehicular and pedestrian transportation nodes. Dillon believes such places collectively belong to communities, and this research encourages that their gateways also reflect a similar “image” through the built environment. The Capstone research and design proposal will be completed at the end of April 2023, and Dillon plans to submit his abstract to the 2023 Annual Conference of the Association for Preservation Technology International.
Presentation Boards
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