Area Resources

The National Capital Area is home to both the first "planned" city from the 1930's developed as a cooperative in Greenbelt, Maryland, as well as two 1960's planned cities in Columbia, Maryland and Reston, Virginia. The issues of growing and adapting to multiple federal agencies, from the National Institutes of Health, the biotech coordinator along I-270 Corridor and NASA in Suburban Maryland to the Pentagon, the relocation of many military facilities to farther out locations in Virginia as well as the Tech boom in Northern Virginia, all demonstrating the need to grow smart wherever development is happening.

In Southern Maryland, just an hour and half from the campus, is Historic St. Mary's City, the capital of the 4^th colony in America and the location of many firsts in America. The first planned City of major proportions, the first Catholic Chapel in America, as well the first man of color to vote, the first woman attorney and the first official ordinance by a government requiring the separation of church and state in order to maintain a tolerant society.

LEAFHouse at the University of Maryland: The University of Maryland is proud to be a third-time participant in the Solar Decathlon, organized by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Born of the elegant marriage of biological knowledge and cutting-edge technology, LEAFHouse, our adaptable resource-efficient house, demonstrates what happens when bioinspired design savvy, traditional know-how, and cutting-edge technology join as integral parts of a sustainable lifestyle. Placing fourth in 2002, and winning the People's Choice Award in 2005, the Maryland team looks forward to the 2007 event. Check out the Solar Team's website.

Other resources on campus include a vast library, much of which is available on line, the Visual Resource Center at the School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, the archives of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the Burns Center for Leadership Development. Off-campus, there are always exciting exhibitions, bookstore and programs operated by the National Building Museum as well as the headquarters and programs of the National Association of Home Builders, the National Association of Industrial and Office Parks, and the Urban Land Institute. There are also a multitue of other smaller, focused associations in virtually all aspects of development, including the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials and the Housing and Development Law Institute. In Baltimore, there is a "Public Works Museum" about all the infrastructure that keeps the City moving, and houses the Reginald F. Lewis Maryland Museum of African American History and Culture, designed by faculty member Gary Bowden.

As part of the curriculum, students are required to join one organization at student rates as well as subscribe to a local business journal that highlights real estate development.