“Harnessing the Potential of Urban Rooftops”

The Fall 2014 issue of Esri’s ArcNews published an article by PlaceWorks’ David Early and Sarah Sutton about the Rooftops Resources Project, which developed a way to assess urban rooftops for their capacity to grow food, capture rainwater, and generate electricity. Not surprisingly, the methodology relied heavily on GIS tools, and it was tested in the Eastlake neighborhood of Oakland. The article explains the process of developing the methodology as well as the criteria that had to be considered and factored into the model. This project was recognized by the American Society of Landscape Architects, the American Planning Association, and the Association of Environmental Professionals. See the full article here on page 18.