Criteria for Evaluation

1. Criteria for Evaluation • Design exploration capabilities • Visualization capabilities • “Scoreboard” for performance measures and scenario evaluation • Usability and viability for the technician • Usefulness and benefit for broad audience

2. 1. Design Exploration Capabilities • Iterative scenario development: design or plan alternatives can be added, modified. • The tested software uses different design approaches, CityCAD is liner, • CommunityVIZ is iterative Scenario 1 To Scenario 2t

3. 1. Design Exploration Capabilities CommunityVIZ uses existing spatial data to create 3D representations of existing conditions • Compare scenario alternatives to existing landscape, environment allowing side by side comparison between existing conditions and new scenario/proposals

4. 1. Design Exploration Capabilities • Applicable to context of neighborhood-level design and planning. • All programs use 3D modeling software to augment detailed site-level scenario visualization. Google SketchUp succeeded at providing sufficient detail to demonstrate the character of station and neighborhood level design scenarios while CityCAD creates scenarios with acceptable detail for early sketch planning.

5. 1. Design Exploration Capabilities • Fast performance creating and exploring design or plan scenarios. • CityCAD is a rapid sketch-planning tool

6. 2. Visualization Capabilities • Generate 3-D visualization for land use and development. • Powerful modeling programs have a clear advantage.

7. 2. Visualization Capabilities • Able to show phased development, change over time CC

8. 2. Visualization Capabilities • Adequate realism and detail in representing the landscape.

9. 2. Visualization Capabilities • Demonstrates spatial arrangement, proximity to amenities. CityCAD’s proximity measurement

10. 3. “Scoreboard” for performance measures and scenario evaluation • Composite scoring of indicators, determined by users’ goals • Envision Tomorrow, although extremely data hungry, provides nearly limitless impact measures. • Environmental • Economic • Infrastructure • Resources • Planning Measures • By land use or building type • CityCAD & CommunityVIZ are also customizable and comprehensive in impact measures.

11. 3. “Scoreboard” for performance measures and scenario evaluation • Measures and scoring enable comparison of plan scenarios • Envision Tomorrow and CommunityVIZ allow for side by side comparison of five scenarios simultaneously. • CityCAD works in a more linear, step-by-step modification process were you see impacts only to what has just been modified or created. It is possible to create scenarios independently of one another and compare that way.

12. 3. “Scoreboard” for performance measures and scenario evaluation • Tool can model land use and produce indicators of outcomes • All can perform this function at some level, but Envision Tomorrow’s flexibility, level of detail, and easy of use make it the clear front runner in this category. • CityCAD is the most ‘black box’ in this category, with the calculations based on information about local conditions and internalized formulas, resulting in limited capacity for modification.

13. 3. “Scoreboard” for performance measures and scenario evaluation • Tool can model fiscal and infrastructure impacts and outcomes . • Infrastructure: • Envision and works on assumptions about infrastructure based on land use. • CommunityVIZ and CityCAD can calculate construction and maintenance costs as they relate directly to the street/road type. • Fiscal: • Envision tomorrow has the finest level of detail in this category, assessing fiscal impacts down to the building level.