The Blue Ball Properties Project was initiated based on an agreement by the state of Delaware with the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca to bring its North American headquarters to the Blue Ball area. This article describes how context-sensitive design principles were incorporated into all phases of project development and construction. A context-sensitive design approach permeated nearly every aspect of the process, including: the use of traffic criteria consistent with a congested urban area and local desires; extensive public involvement; avoidance and/or enhancement of environmental features from the earliest planning stages; reserving large tracts of land, serving the dual purposes of providing a recreational area while eliminating more intense development; reasonable adjustments to roadway design standards given the area context; incorporating multimodal features; incorporating strategies to minimize construction impacts; and integrating aesthetic features.
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