Charter students design city models based on green concepts

What would a city designed by middle school students look like? Not as unrealistic and idealistic as you might imagine.

Eighty-six seventh- and eighth-graders from Wissahickon Charter School spent Friday with Mayor Michael Nutter and a group of sustainability advocates at the Sustainable Cities Summit.

NewsWorks’ Yara Simon and Bas Slabbers were at the event, where the students reviewed their plans with representatives from RecycleBank, the Trolley Car Diner and Mt. Airy USA gave tips on creating well-planned cities.

But the students didn’t need too much guidance. Mixed-use neighborhoods and public transportation were key elements of most designs.