Den-City: An Urban Infill and Renewal Design Exploration
The brief provided was to transform an inner-city derelict parking lot and warehouse into an urban hub that would leverage its location to exploit commercial, retail and community opportunity.
Design decisions made were to retain the existing warehouses structural components and canopy (located left-end in picture below) as well as sinking the floor space in the warehouse area. This provided immediate shelter to the entrance, whilst also giving the impression of a large negative open space that would naturally draw pedestrian traffic off the busy main street and into the arcade.
Progressing further into the arcade, a monolithic and functional architecture rises, split down the middle by the pedestrian arcade at ground level. This allows natural light to penetrate the built up area and provides a focal point for the varied city programming. The arcade ends at another sunken, negative garden space framed by ramp access to higher levels. This retreat area aims to juxtapose the overwhelming nature of the commercial/retail experience giving the overall composition a strong sense of balance.
Aesthetically, a raw, industrial quality was imparted on the site in an effort to give the perception of an unfinished, malleable space. Graphical additions in the renders suggest a space that will allow the city to impart its own personality into the space over time, giving further acknowledgement to the concept of urban renewal - both in a physical and emotional sense.
