by Nicole DePalma, Lance Green, and Shannon Vanderhill

We set out to present a history of the buildings in downtown Mart, focusing primarily on unoccupied spaces, what they were and have become. After researching the unused commercial spaces on Texas Avenue we drew an outline using satellite images from Google Maps to ensure precise geographic locations and building sizes. Buildings deemed active were illustrated in a pale green color while the inactive buildings were portrayed in grayscale. A person could use this map to identify how the buildings in town are being used, whether they are a working business, if the spaces are used for storage, and how much material is filling the space. A second, more dramatic version of our map shows simply the unused commercial spaces. This suggests that empty or disused buildings creative a negative impression to visitors and would-be investors or developers coming to Mart.