Real Estate Field Study: East Chicago

Instructor: Rick Peiser
In this field study course, the students worked with both The Community Builders  and City Officials to create a development plan for three areas in the city, a new education district, and the waterfront.  East Chicago (In.), located 30 miles south of Chicago, is an industrial town that has suffered recent decades through de-industrialization and disinvestment. The students’ plan proposed creating high-quality affordable housing, attracting new businesses, and revitalizing the city’s downtown and waterfront. The project involved heavy coordination with the client—including a site visit, and several visits to Harvard by city officials— with the end result being a pragmatic development plan that looks to re-envision the city’s future.
The project was covered in the Northwest Indiana Times and the Chicago Tribune.

Young Ae Chung (MUP 2015), Christopher Colley (MUP 2014), Wei Li (MUP 2014), Yani Li (MUP 2015), Zhiping Liu (MDes 2015), Susan Nguyen (MUP 2014), Ning Pei (MUP 2015), Thomas Skwierawski (MUP 2014), Simon Willet (MAUD 2014), Tianyi Yang (MUP 2014)

Spring 2014