Keith Leonard gave the following interview to the entire group on April 9, 1998, while the group was putting the final touches on Channahon's village center design. The following questions were answered by individuals in some cases but all answers were agreed upon by the entire group.

Answer: A flyer announcing the competition was sent to Norm Tyler, Director of the Urban and Regional Planning Program at EMU. He requested an information packet from the organizers of the competition. 

Q: When did the group decide to work on the project?

A: Norm introduced students in his Site Planning Studio class to the competition, and presented participation as an alternative to the regular course project for the Winter 1998 semester. From this presentation, Sherrie, Ken and Joey showed the most interest, and decided to work as a team with Norm in preparing a proposal to submit by April.

Q: How did the group come up with design ideas?

A: We found inspiration from Peter Katz ("The New Urbanism"), Peter Calthorpe and other resources on new approaches to urban planning.

Q: When developing the proposal, did you work as a group or as separate individuals?

A: We started out by assigning individual projects to members. However, eventually a more team-oriented approach was adopted. Some of the sketches were worked on more by some than others, but it is fair to say that this was a true team effort.

Q: Did you begin to design by determining the lay of the buildings or the streets first?

A: The street pattern was determined first. It would be very difficult to lay out buildings first. We wanted to promote both traffic and pedestrian circulation which maximized the draw and visibility of the town center.

Q: So the goal of the group was to create street patterns that show off the town and all it has to offer?

A: Yes. We were required to create an entrance to the new town center from Highway 6. From this entrance, good accessibility to residential, commercial, and public green-spaces was key in the design. We also tried to create a traffic-calming environment to make the town a very pedestrian friendly environment. 

Q: The parking is located in the back of the commercial and public areas. Was this an attempt at to create a more pedestrian oriented environment?

A: Yes. The competition guidelines emphasized the need for the highest percentage of land area to be devoted to commercial uses. By putting parking behind, we tried to make the businesses the focus, as opposed to parking lots.

Q: How did you determine where to place commercial, residential, green-space, parking lots, etc.?

A: Since the land was being donated to the city by the Catholic Archdiocese, the centerpiece of the project became St. Ann's Parish Church, and this is reflected by its central position. The church is located with other public buildings, such as the library and arts center, around the town square. We also were striving to create higher density housing near the downtown to promote a healthy community environment.

Q: It seems a great deal of importance was placed on creating a mixed-use pedestrian friendly plan. Did the group have this concept in mind when the project originated?

A: Yes, not only did we have this concept in mind but this priority--a pedestrian friendly environment--was laid out as a requirement in the competition information.

Q: The pedestrian walkways and underpasses are a nice addition to the plan. How did the group decide on this design aspect?

A: We were trying to create an uninterrupted pedestrian greenway, and this is achieved in our plan by creating a below-grade tunnel underneath the roads in higher automobile traffic areas. These underpasses will be well lit and open to create a non-confining safe environment.

Q: Another interesting aspect of the plan is the Market Place. Can you describe how its design and location was decided on?

A: The Market Place was designed as a wonderful open space for a regular farmers' market, flea markets, and other community events and festivals. We wanted to place this near both the commercial end of town and the town center. This location was also close to the park bordering the town center and easily accessed by the foot path.

Q: The crown jewel and focus of the plan is the village center. What does the group think will draw people to this area?

A: In addition to the Market Place, the band shell, fountain, promenade, and open green area were designed to create life and community activity in the town center. During festivals, and any nice day, there will be a lot of activity there.

Q: How was the phasing of the project determined?

A: We wanted to establish a Phase I plan with a smaller, immediately viable, town center. The church, housing and commercial will be phased in first to immediately create life and activity in the village center.