Master planning UC San Diego’s Seventh College with public life in mind

A network of spaces for student life

The UC San Diego South Gateway Planning Study envisions a vibrant, multi-purpose neighborhood that respects the environment, strengthens the public realm, and transforms the campus-community interface. This unique location is a nexus for UC San Diego’s residential, academic, research, and community-oriented programs.

To inform the desired public life outcomes, Gehl conducted a Public Space & Public Life (PSPL) study, assisted by nearly 30 students, staff, and faculty. The assessment focused on the study area and benchmark sites, establishing a public life vision that became the backbone of the new college neighborhood master plan.

Using observation, intercept surveys, and “favorite places” exercises, Gehl identified successful connections and spaces, as well as those needing improvement. Key PSPL insights strongly informing the planning study included:

• Active Mobility: Potential is high, but spatial constraints stress interactions between cyclists, pedestrians, and other modes.
• Changing Patterns: Counts pinpointed existing pedestrian and bike gateways from the south, informing the design concept for this area, where public life will change dramatically with the new college.
• Scale: Public life thrives in appropriately-scaled spaces but languishes where the scale is too large.
• Amenities: Students crave a wider variety of food offerings and programming.
• Activation: Active building edges are crucial for public space activation.
  

These PSPL insights drove the ambitions and objectives of the South Gateway Plan, helping the team coalesce around a holistic vision and providing UC San Diego with measurable performance criteria for implementation.