shasta mccoy - university of british columbia

ubc urban studio : fall 2008sustainable urbanism : the hastings corridor

shasta mccoy

neighbourhood nodes masterplan : hastings corridor individual design

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Introduction

Citiesinaphysicalsensemaybeunderstoodastheextendedbodiesofthehumanspecies:theshapeof thesebodiesbeingdictatedbythe processes and functions that supportthat organism. Like all living creatures, thecity form is encoded in a replicable DNAor a fixed set of instructions that creates or should create the conditions necessary forlife of the organism. As a North Americanurban species, we currently find ourselves in a position of self reflection: standing in front of amirrorrevealingthatourbodyisnotcreatingthe conditions for continued life, but may infactbetheprescriptionforouruntimelyend.Attheveryleast,wearedueforaroughgo.This realization provokes us to examinethe set of instructions that are informingour cities, and seek solutions in the way ofmutationsoftheurbanDNA.Urbandesigninthisparadigmbecomesanexerciseingenetictherapywheretherealchallengeistodevelopabilitytoperceiveasaspeciesandrespondappropriately to information in the form ofenvironmentalstimuli.

The difficulty with the evolution of the urban form,aswithallorganisms,isthechancethatamutationwillrenderthecreatureworseoffthan before. It is likely this risk that inhibitsanyrapidevolutionoftheurbanform.DavidShane observes that “by bottling up urban

change in... spatial pockets, urban actorscan conduct utopian experiments withoutendangeringtheestablisheddisequilibriumofthelargersystem.”Shanesuggeststhatiftheexperimentalurbanformissuccessful,thenitmaybereplicatedelsewhere,butinthetruersenseofevolution,thesuccessofaparticularbodytypewould,overtime,naturallydisplacetheolderpresumablylessadaptedformevenintheabsenceofacross-pollinatingagent.

It is with a general faith in evolution toselect an optimal form in which to propelour collective consciousness forward, thatArboreal Urbanismadvancestheprinciplesset forth by the “Neighbourhood Nodes”masterplanandoffersa “microscopic”viewinto the genetic instructions for shapinga neighborhood. To achieve this end it ishelpful to examine scraps of urban geneticmaterialthatappeartostrengthentheurbanphysique, and recombine these conceptsintoastrategyforaddressingthe longblockbetweenKensingtonandSperlingStreetsontheHastingsCorridor.

“NeighborhoodNodes”DesignPrinciples:

-Provideavarietyofjobs-Provideadiversityofhousingoptions-Createwalkableneighborhoods-Increasemodsshareoftransit,walking,andcycling-Create neigbourhood nodes along thecorridor-Usegreeninfrastructure

ThebitoflandscapethatArboreal Urbanismexperiments with is an oil refinery that is currently being decommissioned locatednorth of Hastings Street. In the contextof an abandoned brownfield, Sue McNeil notes that “designing developments thatareconsistentwithgoodprinciplesofurbandesign is a relatively straightforward task.”The blank-slate opportunity presented bythissiteisanidealpetridishinwhichtotestdesign responses in an otherwise alreadysaturated urban condition. The former Shelloil refinery presents itself as a landscape in needofhealingandatestinggroundforasetofdesignprinciplesthatcouldpotentiallyholdanswersforhealingthephysicalurbanform.While the brownfield offers designers a path of least resistance in terms of communityobjection todevelopment, theonus remainsto retain some remnant of the historic land-usesothattheevolutionarysequenceoftheplace isnoterasedentirely.Onesolution tothishasbeentoweavearecreationalprograminto the artifacts of the former industrialactivity. The following precedents highlightrecreationallandscapeswhereremainsofanindustrial history remain to interact visuallyandphysicallywithlandscapeprocessesandhumanactivities.McNeil, Sue, & Deborah Lange. 2001. Engineering urban brownfield development: examples from Pittsburgh. Manufactured Sites. New York, NY: Taylor & Francis Group.

Shane, David G. 2005. Recombinant Urbanism:Conceptual Modeling in Architecture, Urban Design, andCityTheory.Chichester,WestSussex:JohnWiley& Sons Ltd.

arborealurbanism

ubcurbanstudio:fall2008sustainableurbanism:thehastingscorridor

This park concentrates the recreationalactivities of a community on a formershipyard of the San Francisco Bay. A combinationofreusedindustrialartifactsandnew constructions with a distinct industrialaesthetic fulfill the programmatic needs of the waterfront.

Benitez, Christina P. ed. 2007. Urban Landscape: NEW Tendencies NEW Resources NEW Solutions. Barcelona, Spain: LoftPublications.

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arborealurbanism

On this site, remnant industrial fragmentsare repurposed for new recreational use.Footprints of the old petroleum storage tanks are preserved and become a focalfeature of the park. The bio-remediation ofthe site contaminants is accompanied by arestored native coastal forest and a retrofitted stormwater infiltration system.

Margolis, Liat, & Alexander Robinson. 2007. Living Systems and Technologies for Landscape Architecture. Basel, Switzerland: Birkhauser Verlag AG.

British Petroleum Park, Sydney, Australia

This scheme for the redevelopment of anabandoned railroad line near Kings CrossStationrecyclesoldindustrialformsinanewtown square and enlivens the space with aflexible programmatic emphasis on arts and culture.

Ryan,Zoe.2006TheGoodLife:newpublicspaces for recreation. New York, NY: Van AllenInstitute.

UnionPark,Oakland,California Flux Park, London, UK

precedents


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Objectives:

-Establish a community armature that integrates the native coastal forest into theurbanfabric

-Daylight streams & restore hydrological functiontowatersheds.

-Savecommunitymoneyonlifecyclecostofinfrastructure

-Locateall residentswithinwalkingdistanceof key amenities: transit, shopping, school,jobs,andgreenspacetherebyreducingneedfor automobile trips & ownership.

-Calm automobile traffic

-Facilitate pedestrian and cyclist movement & experience

-Interpret the industrial history of site byintegrating the ruins of the oil refinery into the recreationalprogramofthecommunity

Design Principles:

-Wrap interconnected street grid around landform

- Allow streams to penetrate into community & inform land use

-Focus community around important natural and historical features

-Strategically use sunlight penetration to draw community together & instigate social interaction

- Provide vaulted overhead protection for cyclists & pedestrians

- Use side-friction to reduce automobile speeds

- Vertically layer uses of built form

Goal: Demonstrate how an abandoned industrial site, and auto-centric retail center could be redeveloped as an ecologically restored, transit-oriented community node that capitalizes on the opportunities inherent to the Hastings Street corridor.

Burnaby Maps

arborealurbanismDNA

mutating the urban form

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50m 100m 200mArborealUrbanismCommunityPlan

This scheme for the redevelopment of the former Shell petrol storage facility is characterized by the reintegration of the coastal native forest into the community rather that pushing the forest out to the periphery of the urban body. This move allows for the restoration of a kilometer of streams that were previously buried during the industrial land-use. By accommodating

the large forest trees into the streetscape, the typical urban condition of stormwater runoff is essentially eliminated, further contributing to the health of the community streams. The character of Hastings is redefined as a canopied boulevard with wide pedestrian walks to support a thriving commercial district. In the interior of the site, the neighborhood focuses itself around

the restored stream, and a sweeping green surrounded by civic buildings. This green gives way to a view of the old refinery towers that are repurposed as recreational elements. About 1000 individuals can live here, and enjoy a short commute to over 500 jobs while enjoying a high quality of life with access to the forest right outside every door.

dna recombined

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equinoxsunwintersun

summermorningsun

Pruning forsolarpenetration fromsouthduring equinox & winter solstice

Pruning for solar penetration from east & westduringsummer

summereveningsun

Hastings Multi-way Boulevard Plan 5m 10m 20m

CirculationLegend

ThrutransitThruautoLocal auto & bikePedestrian

Within the longblockbetweenSperlingandKensingtonStreets,liestheuniquepossibilityto reshape Hastings Street as a multi-wayboulevard. In response to the necessarytransition from the high-speed condition ofthe Barnet Highway to the east, Hastings Street needs to make a strong statementhere about its function as a neighbourhoodmainstreet.Intheabsenceofsuchasignal,automobile traffic disregards the community and continues at speeds that dramaticallyerodethepedestrianexperience,andpreventthesuccessofacommercialdistrict.

While the large trees provide a delightfulnatural canopy for pedestrians and cyclists,sidefrictionforslowingdrivers,andpermeableareas for infiltrating stormwater, there remains thepossibilityofthecanopybeingoppressivebyblockingsunInresponsetothis,apruningstrategyisemployedthatstrategicallyinvitesshaftsofsunlightintothecorridor.

arborealurbanismhastings street gets a life


sidewalk local & bike laneswale thru travel lanes waiting platform thru travel lanes swalelocal & bike lane sidewalk3m 6.5m 3m 5.5m 3.5m3.5m 5.5m 3m 6.5m

40m

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5m 10m 20m

Hastings Commercial District Multi-way Boulevard Tram Loading Section

Inthesection-view,itispossibletovisualizethealteredscaleofthestreetscapethatArborealUrbanism creates. Gone are the 15-20 foot flowering cherry trees common to Vancouver’s streets,andtheyarereplacedwiththemajesticcedars,hemlocksandbig-leafmaplesthatcreateasenseofbeinginacathedral.Theroothealthofthesebigtreesisprotectedfromcompaction by the use of permeable asphalt, infiltration swales, and Silva-Cells™ that give the carriageway necessary structural characteristics to accommodate traffic. This multi-way bouldvardactsasagiantspongeandcontributestoarestoreshydrologicalregimeandhealthystreams.

hastingsstreetreborn

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Hastings Commercial District Multi-way Boulevard Mid-Block Section

local & bike lanethru travel lanes swale sidewalk6.5m 3m 5.5m 3m

sidewalk swale thru travel laneslocal & bike lane3m 5.5m 3m 6.5m

36m

5m 10m 20m

The re-allocation of two lanes of the carriageway to a light rail system is a necessaryadaptationtotransitiontheregionfromanautomobile-orientedlifestyletoatransitorientedone.Thekey,howevertothistransitionisthatamenitiesaredistributedthroughoutthediscreetneighborhoodstomakethecarlessnecessary.Addtothis,astreetscapethatexplicitlyfavorsalternativemodesof travel,andachange inourauto-centricbehaviorbecomesmoreandmore imaginable. Without these radical actions it is difficult to imagine the automobile ever recedingfromitsprominenceinNorthAmericancities.Astreetwithlesscarsholdsagreatdealofpotentialasanexcitingandactivatedpublicrealm.


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Hastings & Kensington Multi-way Boulevard Intersection

Theintersectioninthisstreetschemebecomesanattractivegatheringplaceforthecommunity,asthetreecanopygiveswaytoasunnycornerwithlocalshopsandcafes.Withoutstormgratestocatchbicyclewheels,andtheeliminationofpuddleswithpermeablepavement,thestreetisattractivetocyclistsyear-round.


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travel lane2.75m

travel lane2.75m

sidewalk sidewalk swaleswalesetback setback2.1m 3m3m 2.1m3m 3m

parking lane& swale 2.4m

parking lane& swale 2.4m

25m

5m 10m 20mResidentialStreetPlan

To the north of Hastings, the coastal forestcontinuestodominatethestreetscape.Two-way traffic movement is sandwiched by an alternatingconditionofparkedcars,andlargenativetreesinaplant3/park3pattern.Theseprograms create side friction for the thrutraffic and contribute to reduced speeds in the residentialareas.Thepedestrianistreatedtoacanopiedwalkingexperiencethatinterceptsalargepartoftherainfall,makinganumbrellamostlyunnecessary.

ResidentialStreetSection

theresidentialstreet


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auto lane5m

swale3m

swale3m

parking & play7m

18m

5m 10m 20m

Community Building Types

ArborealUrbanWoonerfSection

ArborealUrbanWoonerfPlan

A borrowed strategy from Europe, the woonerf restrictsthethrumovementoftheautomobilewhilefreeingupspaceforspontaneousplayand interaction in the public realm. Thiswoonerfiscanopiedbythelargenativetrees,and infiltrates stormwater and contributes to thehealthofthelocalwatershed.

theresidentialstreet

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Multi-use on corridor 45 du/acre

4-story apartments 65 du/acre

Insustrial & loft residences 35du/acre

Civic w/attached commercial & of ce

Townhouse w/attached workshop 22du/acre

Double-stacked townhouse 35du/acre

arborealurbanismCommunity Building TypesTotal Population: 965 people

Job Capacity: 520

In order to accommodate the projecteddoubling of the population in the GreaterVancouver region, it is necessary to provide a diversity of housing options.This schemeallows for residents from diverse economicsituations to live together and enjoy a shortcommuteasmany jobsare locatedwithinafive-minute walk

thearchitecture

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arborealurbanismIn the future, is will become increasinglyimportant to provide alternative recreationalopportunities for community members.Recreationhasthepotentialtobemorethanjustfun,itcanbethevehicleforinterpretingtheindustrialpastofaplace.Inthisproject,theremainsofanpetrolstoragetankarepealedapartandbecomethearmatureforabicycleskills park in the tradition of British Columbia’s freeridetrailbuildingstyle.Inrepurposingthisindustrialartifact,webegin to fundamentallyreshape our relationship to the oil industryitself. This scheme was developed with theuse of quick exploratory models, and looseconceptualsketches.

Exploratory models test strategies for deconstructingthestoragetank

Location of storage tank in relation tocommunity

Experiential concept sketch of bike park

intersecting history & recreation

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Burn Fat Not Oil Bicycle Skills Park Plan 2.5 5 10

1. Big bridge2.Treehouse3.GiantHammock4.Wallride5.SpinetoSkinnyTrail6.Tunnel

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2 3

4

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The Burn Fat Not Oil Bike Park transforms the old storage tank into a freeriding feature that allows a progressive acquisition of skill and accommodates riders of diverse abilities andspectatorsaswell.Thenativeforestisrestoredevenwithinthetankitselfprovidingacanopyforuseoftheparkinallweatherconditions.

intersecting history & recreation

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shasta mccoy - university of british columbia

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