People in cities such as Boston, New York or Chicago take mass transportation for granted. These cities have incorporated transportation systems into the city inrastructure for decades and thus, their use has become second nature to residents and commuters. Their daily expereince is relative based on living in New York, Boston, etc. when compared with say Cincinnati or Nashville, Tn. What I mean by this is that our current perception of transportation (and life in general) is molded by the geographic region we reside in. A person in Cincinnati might say, "I can't take the bus because the stop isn't by my house and I would have to drive 10 minutes to get there." Meanwhile, a person in New York may walk 10 minutes to get to a subway station or bus stop. It's all relative. Sure, New York residents might have to walk 5 blocks to get to a subway stop. Many also do not have car insurance costs, gas costs, maintenance costs, etc. But then the midewesterner will gladly drive 60 miles round trip every day at $3.40 a gallon because the nearest bus stop is "not convenient." Is spending $100 dollars a week on gas convenient? Does the American economy appear prepared to support millions of middle class workers at this rate? I doubt it.
Public transportation in Cincinnati and Ohio is a joke. It is not embraced nor endorsed except by those living within the urban city core. In 2009, Ohio rejected its share of President Obama's $8 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act fund, intended for high-speed rail development. So here we sit, the typical midwestern city, dependant upon the automobile for survival. To get suburbanites out of their cars and onto buses (and hopefully someday light rail) we need to promote a cultural change. We need to provide an experience that not only offers cost savings, but also adds value to the life of the commuter.
In looking at the sequence of approaching, entering and moving through the proposed site, I am looking at what spatial tools can be used to accent the journey. As stated, the site is wide open and can easily fall into a "big box" mentality. The site must be broken down into individuals pieces that are expereinces in an ordered path. When these pieces are linked together, they create an experience for the commuter. This is important and necessary because to change the culture and mideset of people, we must appeal beyond the cost or time savings aspect. The aesthetic must be present to create a space orseries of spaces that give the user a feeling of control, togetherness and ultimately community with their fellow commuters.
This series of vignettes looks at the spatial sequence of approaching, entering and moving through the site. PLEASE NOTE: These are preliminary forms, suggesting possibilities. I am more focused on the ideas of space and a connected experience. The final building forms, trees, benches, etc. will follow once the spatial ideas have been defined and understood.
Aerial of site looking West - Vignette markers listed in red
1. Approaching from the South
The immediate difficulty of the drosscape site is realzed when viewing the approach. The danger is creating an object that sinply exists in space as their is little surrounding context to relate to. However, there are several strategies to be used that can combat this. First, the bus access and pick-up is on the main road side, open to view to passing traffic. By making the primary building function visible, we provide the building context within the site. Likewise, as people drive by, they can see the buses and people waiting, boarding or departing. This creates a psychological clue that can be understood - similar to the idea of having the streetcar tracks as a permanent fixture within the community. A sign and a plastic shelter do not inspire faith in a transportation system. A structure with varied spaces does this.
2. Exiting the car
As mentioned in yesterday's post about site analysis, a key component to creating an experience for the traveler is to define paths of travel. Drive aisles and parking are for cars and cars alone. Pedestrian paths are provided on islands between the rows of parking. There are many possibilities to the aesthetic nature of this path. However, a key component is the addition of a vertical element to define the space in the "z" direction. This does not have to be completely covered and it would actually function best if natural light filtered through. The idea is not to provide actual protection, but the
feeling of protection. Also, the exterior pedestrian corridor is a unique and memorable experience for the user simialr to walking down the steps of a subway. Lighting, materials, function - all have changed when compared with the asphalt lot.
3. Moving down the pedestrian path
The forms here are simply a suggestion as to the aesthetic possibilties. The structure could be round, square, more linear, etc. The key is that a defined path and space have been created. A space that provides safety and function for the user. This path should relate to the building as well however. The difficulty will be in connecting this path with the building form so that they are seen as two interlocking pieces as opposed to seperate experiences. Another thing I wnt to point out is the view to the bus in the distance. Within the site, I feel this is a key component to a successful design. The building beyond has been separated into two interior forms with a central exterior connector between. The parking path leads to this exterior space and directly to the open air boarding area. The ability to visualize one's destination is a comfort to commuters. They may be rushing, late or walking in the rain. To be able to see the clearly see the destination is a comfort for the commuter.
4. Approaching the terminal
During the past feel weeks I have been looking at how space can dictate flow and use but also provide the user with a choice. As the commuter exits the pedestrian path and approaches the building, the path and destination is clearly defined, yet there there is a choice. The building to the left and right will house services for the commuters. A coffee shop/cafe, newspaper stand, ticket booth, lounge, business area...there are numerous programmatic possibilities. The commuter has the choice to head directly to he platform or stop and enter the building. Once inside, there is another sequence of space that occurs (yet to de defined)
5. Moving through the open air space
Similar to the pedestrian path in the parking lot, the open air intermediate space provide the feeling of shelter and allows natural light to filter down. This space would contain benches, landscape, etc. and also functions as the primary access to the boarding zone. Functions are mixed and commuters mingle together. This is the terminal or waiting area - a space where people can see and be seen, grab a coffee, read a book, etc. There is a community feel in our daily commute and this space is the gathering space for that community. Remember, the people who currently use this bus stop wait in their cars until the bus enters the lot and then exit their cars to get on. Here, there is a space which provides a service and brings people with a common goal and interest together. I truly believe that much of this is related to the psychology of how we treat commuting - just as much as it is important to create function space to serve our clients, we should understand the emotions that are evoked by the space we create. This terminal is a bookend to the "daily grind". A space where commuters will arrive early to grab coffee and catch up with a friend. A place where they may stay and talk in the plaza or perhaps grab a drink in the cafe. A space that we transition from home life to work life in the morning and back again in the evening.
I'll close this post with a quote from James Howard Kunstler's "
The Geography of Nowhere", where the author discusses the dangers of automobile transportation.
"
The costs of all this driving in terms of pollution, which includes everything from increased lung disease all the way up to global warming, are beyond calculation. The cost to society in terms of money spent building and maintaining roads and paying for traffic police, courts, accidents, insurance, is also titanic. The least understood cost-although probably the most keenly felt-has been the sacrifice of a sense of place: the idea that people and things exist in some sort of continuity, that we belong to the world physically and chronologically, and that we know where we are."
What do you mean by the "Big Box mentality?"
ReplyDeleteThis is good work, but I am curious about the approach and the spatial layering. Your initial assumption and sequence of events seems very serial (one-parking lot, two-path, three-waiting area, four bus loading). Is there another approach that is more complex and doesn't feel like a airport terminal?
Mike: Good point, and that is something that I am dealing with; how can the approach be varied when the building exists alone in space any the only means of accessing the site it via automobile? I think it is more than just varied directions of approach or entering. When does the "experience" When you visibly see the building? When you park and exit your car? Or is it when you get in your car back at home? In terms of layers, what is interesting is that with a "drosscape" site, there are no paramaters (other than zoning laws) that regulate what can be done. Within an urban setting, adjacent buildings, roads or open space may influence the height, size and orientation of a building or space. When the landscape is open and flat, layers can be added at random. what I am looking for now is a pattern or justification for adding layers or making space. The meaning needs to resonate beyond a simpe building form and functional space...
ReplyDeleteMike:
ReplyDeleteJust noticed your first question regarding "big box" mentality...what i mean by that is a site driven by zoning laws and setbacks where the building is a large square or rectangle surrounded by a sea of asphalt. Typical or walmart, home depot, etc. Cokie cutter design with no context, meaning or user experience beyond the automobile, parking lot and mass consumption of cheap goods.
We wanted to share our email to Dave so that everyone can help here....(here is Part 1)
ReplyDeleteWhat you have been posting has been interesting as a response to the competition. However, in some ways the way you are working is about solving a problem, rather than presenting a vision or a an idea that is being testing by your architecture design solution. We are finding the logic of the presented solution very reasonable and represent solid productive work, but the larger thesis ideas need a critical analysis for proper integration to your thesis process.
For example, you are designing a depot for commuter buses – the idea is that it serves as the transition area from car to bus in safe manner. In your blog you talk about this place as being part of the tangible system (like a streetcar). If this is the case, then it is critical that it has an identity that can be recognized as part of a larger system. What first comes to mind are things that are off highways – rest stops, fast food and gas stations. We have come to recognize them instantly and they become part of the fabric of transportation and highway architecture or infrastructure. This understanding would lead the exploration of a thesis in a different direction and explore what does a spatial identity mean within the drossscape … think about the larger implications of the sequence of highway, parking lot, empty lot, big box, landscape … there are scales of movement that have to do with speed and distance that you need to get a conceptual understanding of within the landscape.
Another way to think of this is to consider your pedestrian canopy detail, but think of this as kind of experience detail within a series of moments that may or may not add up to a coherent plan but speak about the vision behind the place. What this will require is that you create a compelling vision about the sequence of events – right now besides the pedestrian canopy the architecture is as bland and banal as everything else in the drossscape – if this is going to be different – you need to create vision that is authentic and spatially captivating to the experience.
What is it like to grab a coffee?
Newspaper?
What other services are there …dry cleaning? Takeout for the way home?
What is it like when the buss is late?
At the end of the day, what is the first thing someone sees as they get off the bus?
What is it like in the middle of the winter versus a beautiful spring day?
What about someone who doesn’t park there but is dropped off?
here is Part 2 (blogger has a maximum number of characters..)
ReplyDeleteThere are many ways to represent a vision, even in these early stages of conceptual design - we could send you some examples of what these kinds of representation are like if this is not clear to you.
After you do all of this – you need to do analysis and ask, what are the principles that make this all work?
One thing to consider is the transformation that the typical strip mall is beginning to undergo. The lifestyle center is a new commercial concept that attempts to create pedestrian environments within the suburban fabric. They are not great but you should be aware and have a critical understanding of them as a counterpoint to your work.
Here is a starting point:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kierland_Commons
http://www.woodbinedevelopment.com/properties/retail-mixed-use/kierland-commons/details/
Found this interesting blog, but you have to scroll down because he looks at a bunch of suburban malls that may be interesting to you. http://supafly.com/
In addition, it might be helpful for you to take pauses in your design work (once every two days or after several hours of a design push) to simply re-read the words that are circulating as your thesis idea and write a few sentences in your sketchbook explaining the current design work using these terms so that they become integrated into the thinking more through their presence as part of the work. When reading your blogs posts, it seems apparent that you stated your thesis idea intentions in one blog post and then moved onto design problem solving. It would be a good process to find a way to return in a disciplined and rigorous way to the ideas to get them at the forefront of your thinking and work and share this development with us and your peers.
Does any of this help?