A different angle

I've approached the design problem of a commuter hub within the suburbs from a different angle.  Rather than focusing on the site itself, I have been looking at the highway corridor between the site and the downtown Cincinnati core.  Creating a solution that speaks to connection is impossible without exploring factors and influences external to the site.

The urban core of Cincinnati follows a traditional, rigid, geometrical pattern of streets, buildings and neighborhoods.  Major thoroughfares intersect these grids and offer more direct and convenient passage to other areas of the city.  As one moves North, and land begis to open up, the pattern and grid begin to break down and disassemble.  Major roads serve as a trunk for mini-development branches rather than an avenue for travel.  As we move even further North, the grid completely disappears.  Major roads meander in random directions.  Most residential roads also follow a curvilinear path, typically leading to cul-de-sacs or dead end streets.

There are several goals.  First, I must analyze and understand how the grid begins to deconstruct and what the factors are that cause this.  Second, I must prove that this break down of the grid is detrimental to us, the general public.  Ultimately, I hope that in understanding the forms within the structured and unstructured environment, I can begin to make some connections between the downtown commuter hub and the suburban commuter hub.  It should be noted that there are 4 or 5 other highways entering Cincinnati that share the same components as the I-71 corridor shown below.  Thus, the connection made here have the potential to extend east-west as well and create a truly "connected" infrastructure.

This is a map of the I-71 corridor from the site in the suburbs to the downtown area.  (FYI – NORTH IS ALWAYS UP)

I know it's hard to see, on an overall scale, but i have been analyzing pockets along the path that are identified as being key to the grid and its transformation (or elimination).

1. DOWNTOWN

The downtown grid follows a traditional city plan.  Streets are arranged geometrically and larger, more prominent boulevards intersect to temporarily break the pattern.  While we know that within the city neighborhoods change, from this view, we can visualize and understand how districts become connected by paths and nodes.  The repetition of a given pattern is a unifying theme...something to keep in mind as we move further North.  This view encompasses approximately 3 miles and while the topography and highway force the grid to rotate, the general uniformity is maintained.

2. OAKLEY

Moving about 6 miles further North, we come to the Oakley / Norwood neighborhood.  The grid here is still present, however we also see the formalized break down for the first time.  The street grid shown here is over 100 years old and has been a part of the city fabric; thus the grid is maintained.  Ironically, the first break down is caused by the Norwood Lateral to the West.  What is ironic is that the Cincinnati subway was originally intended to run on the right-of-way where the lateral sits.  This intersection of the lateral and 71 also is a hub or rail traffic and manufacturing which has been existent for many years as well as workers lived in the adjacent neighborhoods.  However, the warehouses and factories in this area have struggled and in their place, big box stores such as kmart and home depot have opened up.

3. KENWOOD

Just a few miles North of Norwood/Oakley, we encounter our first golf course and a landscape that can be classified as “suburban.”  The identifiable city grid and pattern is already eliminated, less than 13 miles from the city center.  The mall has become the focal point and for the first time we see the new standard for residential accommodations.  Streets that meander, curve and typically lead to nowhere; one way in, one way out.  The neighborhood has disappeared and only developments remain.  The area in view here is about 50 to 60 years old and expanded in the post WW2 exodus from the city core.  This is the “new” American dream in full display.

4. BLUE ASH

2 miles North, we see the continuation of the suburban design.  What surprised me was the number of dead end streets and street that double back to themselves and typically lead to nowhere.  While the residents here may feel a neighborhood has created, a true community is absent.  There is little to know connection as each space is buffered and separated.  Zoning laws force all interactions to begin and end with the automobile.

5. MASON

5 to 6 miles further we find more of the same.  Any cohesive pattern has long been eliminated and all function has been separated into distinct zones, all accessible solely by automobile.  It should also be noted that the downtown core is flanked on all sides by high bluffs and rolling hills, and of course the Ohio River to the South.  The varied topography gives the grid a natural variation and unexpectedness at times.  However, within the suburban landscape, there is little in the way of topographical variation and thus little for the designer to directly relate to.

6. KINGS MILLS - SITE

Arriving at the site, we are now approximately 27 miles from the Ohio River; not that far when you think about it.

Below is an excerpt from my sketchbook at identifying the current condition and problem, and identifying a solution and a method to achieve that solution.  This is what I will be testing in depth this weekend.