1. The site got a little wider.
The reality of the existing site is that the lots along McDowell St. are too wide functionally to be used for any sort of development.
As seen below the lots running East-West along the left side of the image are 170' Deep. I am reducing them to 100' Deep in my scheme and claiming the remainder for some site circulation at the perimeter of the site:
With the site reduced there is a focus of how from a vechicular and pedestrian standpoint one accesses the site and why would you do this to begin with.
By switching the position of the transit and the grocery (market) in the original parti to locate the transit in the center, a reason for crossing the site is created. Additionally the market becomes referential not just to the site, but to the community & neighborhood beyond.
Shown with more detail the following sketch illustrates how and where the transit links to the rail viaduct above and crosses the site diagonally to thrust pedestrian traffic deep into the center of the site.
By sliding in at an angle odd shaped pockets occur between the buildings (none too large - deliberately) which can serve as a focus of human gathering or can be utilized for outdoor market space.
Steve,
ReplyDeleteClarify what the second "main thing" is. Just to be clear.
To follow up my previous comment from yesterday: I would like to see your site strategies as they relate to conditions off the site; both on the next block, and at a district scale. Can you summarize in a site analysis diagram what is shaping your design proposals?
I do appreciate seeing sketches.
Sorry Tom, I forgot to add the #2.
ReplyDeleteThe second item was the reconfiguration from the original Parti of the combination of the transit / market buildings. In the original parti the transit was at the absolute South with the market at center. From a logistical standpoint as well as a point of pedestrian access, the scheme is improved by swapping the two positions
Kevin and I have talked about why I feel a market-grocery is necessary to this site, and he feels that a diagram will help clarify this for you. This area is without easy access to a grocery store either within easy pedestrian distance or by quick mass transit, since a large number of the people living in this neighborhood are amongst the poorest in Columbus it makes sense to try and allow them the opportunity to avoid consumption by automobile to the greatest degree possible.
In a sense what is being developed is a reverse model of commuting. Some of the poorest members of the community live near the center of the city, where the highest paying jobs are. Yet the jobs for the poorest citizens with the least language skills occur in warehouses and distribution centers at the city's perimeter. These centers are all near rail access, and the rails all pass thuu this junction and converge at my site.
So by providing a junction where people can access groceries and access their work, you find a way to reconnect the poorest members of the community, rather than to isolate them.