Figure 1:
The map I chose for assignment 1.2 was the bottom half of my neighborhood development known as Timberbrook (purple box). Figure 1 shows the suburban and commercial area around Timberbrook, which is part of the Hilliard district. The boundaries of this area are Roberts rd to the north, the i270 outer belt to the east, i70 to the south, and the tree line to the west, which marks the beginning of rural Ohio west of Columbus. Major roads that connect these boundaries are Spindler, Hilliard-Rome, Walcutt, Renner, and Trabue. I will discuss how these roads delineate different areas more in Section 2.
I chose this scale because, when I cross these boundaries, I lose the sense of neighborhood in relation to Timberbrook, and I always mentally position myself as being more a part of another area/neighborhood. For example, when I cross over i270 via Trabue road, I consider myself as more a part of Valleyview (my former neighborhood) than I do Hilliard.
The public spaces shown on the map include the Spindler sports complex, which has several soccer fields used for youth soccer tournaments, and the Spindler dog park (Green). There are no monuments, but there is a small memorial at the mailbox of 5511 Roberts Road with flowers and pinwheels (Pink). I am not sure who it is memorializing. The semi-public spaces with frequent foot traffic are the parking lots of the commercial shopping plazas, including Westpointe, Tanglewood, and the Market at Hilliard, and along the major connector roads. There are several massive industrial warehousing and commerce centers, including the Buckeye Rail Yard (Red) and the USPS/Amazon distribution center (Orange). There is no public space in these areas, and the semi-public space is again limited to foot traffic walking to and from work (particularly along Trabue).
Figure 2:
Key: Purple - Residential; Dark Green - Public Park; Light Green - Shopping Commercial; Orange - Indust./Distr.; Red - School/Church; Light Blue Dotted - Major Roads
The urban divisions of this map are residential, schooling, commercial shopping, and industrial/distribution, which are all separated primarily by the major roads that run within my map (dotted light blue). The north-south Spindler road (farthest west) runs between Roberts and Renner, and connects several suburbs and apartment complexes as well as provides access to the public parks and the elementary school. The north-south Hilliard-Rome road (center) also connects Roberts to the southern boundary, but because of its commercial area, it marks the separation between Renner and Trabue and their associated areas. I intend to look further into my area’s local history in preparation for 1.5, but my guess is that one side of the road (probably Renner) came before the other, hence the different names and the clear distinction between residential and commercial. Continuing eastward, north-south Walcutt road separates the commercial shopping from the distribution centers including the train yard and the Amazon warehouse. Finally, the east-west Trabue road has the most variety of urban spaces around it because it runs straight through all these divisions.
One social division that I have observed is people walking along these main roads versus the automobile traffic that uses them. Although the commercial shopping areas have many kinds of services that are close together, the lack of cohesive sidewalks combined with how busy these main roads are deter most people from walking. The people that I do see walking are either young (10-18 years old), homeless, or most likely employed in a manual-labor job (they wear sweatpants and hoodies, rather than business casual clothes). These markers indicate lack of the necessary social or financial means to have and use their own vehicle. I also know that Hilliard-Rome and Trabue roads are regular routes of the Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) busing, and those routes travel through many of the industrial and distribution centers. This socially indicates that if one can drive, one should drive, but if one cannot, then they can walk to the store or walk to the COTA bus. However, this again indicates fewer socio-economic means. Thinking about this emphasis on the automobile despite accessibility by foot reminds me of Hayden’s discussion of how suburbs are separate, private entities, and therefore require separate transportation for private tasks.
My part of Timberbrook is located at the intersection of two edges: i70 and the western tree line. The neighborhood is accessible by automobile and by sidewalks via Renner road from the east and Spindler road from the north. Timberbrook is also about a 1 mile walk (via those same sidewalks) to/from several COTA bus stops, as well as about 1 mile from Tanglewood Plaza and 2 miles from the Market at Hilliard. Because the neighborhood itself does not connect to any other main roads, I would not consider it to be a node. It is also socially understood that not everybody is allowed to use Timberbrook’s roads. The people and cars that I see in the residential streets are either residents of Timberbrook or facilities workers from Aqua or AEP. However, it is understood that Timberbrook residents can freely interact with their surroundings, including utilizing the elementary school and playground, the Spindler parks, and the commercial shopping areas. Essentially, it is exclusive as to who can be in Timberbrook, but its residents take full advantage of the surrounding amenities and commercial developments. Young children can walk to the elementary school, and this is made even more accessible because there are faculty on-duty for the Spindler/Renner crosswalk at peak traffic hours (when there is in-person schooling), but the middle and high schools are only accessible by school bus or by car. The location of the elementary school is similar to Perry’s neighborhood model in that the school is surrounded by residential areas with less traffic than the main roads and walking accommodations.