District 21 Urban Resilience Strategy
2025
Status
Completed, December 2025
Location
Queens, New York
Client
NYC Council District 21, Council Member Shanel Thomas Henry
Focus
District-scale resilience strategy, spatial analysis, and community-centered planning
In September 2025, GROUND3D partnered with NYC Council Member Shanel Thomas Henry’s office to develop an integrated district-scale resilience strategy addressing overlapping climate, environmental justice, and economic development challenges in District 21.
The strategy combined field observation, spatial analysis, and stakeholder engagement to translate neighborhood conditions into actionable recommendations structured for direct use within public-sector workflows.
Working across Corona, East Elmhurst, and surrounding district corridors, the project identified opportunities to improve environmental monitoring, reduce corridor-level flooding, assess housing and development pressures, and support more inclusive economic and cultural activation of the public realm.
- A community air quality monitoring network to address data gaps and strengthen environmental accountability.
- Schematic designs and siting strategies for green infrastructure to mitigate corridor-level flooding.
- An assessment of affordable housing capacity and development pressure.
- Inclusive economic and cultural activation strategies for the public realm.