thesis prep book (spreads)

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CONTENTS

CONTENTIONTERmINOLOgYAuSTIN, TExAS urban History urban Analysis Events & Activities Contextual AnalysisgREEN WATER REdEvELOpmENT Access Interface Critical Connections Edge Conditions programming public Space potentials Weather AnalysisCASE STudIES urban public Hotel ComparisonpubLIC-pRIvATE TOOLKITpROjECTIONbIbLIOgRApHY

Think Rationally | M.Arch ThesisSloan Springer | Spring 2011

CONTENTION

Throughout history, public space has been seen as the connective tissue of urban fabric. From Pope Sixtus V’s plan for connecting key spaces in Rome, Haussman’s vision for creating grand avenues through Paris, or John Nash and his development of a bustling route between two prominent parks in London, public space has driven economic development through connections for centuries. But these examples only came to pass through the will of a monarchy. In an ever-urbanizing democratic society, opportunities for the actual interface between public and private space are often left wanting. Despite the fact that development is now driven exclusively by market value and economics, the full potential of an interface between market strategies and architectural design is rarely capitalized upon.

The contention of this thesis is that by leveraging public space for private development, critical opportunities can be capitalized upon to not only decentralize capital costs but to set up new potentials for design innovation through the constraints of the project. Through the use of such strategies as public private partnerships, a process for interfacing the design of public space with that of private architecture can be established, where both begin to inform that of the other, increasing value and maximizing the utilization potentials of the spaces for both public and private sectors.

The city of Austin, Texas, considered the “Live Music Capitol of the World”, is known for it’s unique urban outdoor lifestyle, blending the amenities of a rich urban context with the laid-back atmosphere of more rural settings. Few other cities allow for the ability to visit art galleries and music venues then, within walking distance, go kayaking and hiking. In an effort to further bolster this atmosphere, the city is pursuing several large developments aimed at increasing density while also increasing the public value of private developments.

One such endeavour is the Green Water Treatment Plant Redevelopment, consisting of 2 million square feet of retail, office, housing, hotel and public space. Situated in between the proposed hotel and recently completed Austin Music Hall, the developments proposed main public plaza holds significant potential for leveraging the interests of the hotel and music hall, as well as setting up a key urban public space for the entire development and it’s connection to the city, capitalizing on the uniqueness of Austin.

This thesis seeks to demonstrate the potentials of rethinking the interface between public and private space, and the relationship between architect and developer; designing through critical analysis and rigor to capitalize on the constraints of the project and thus maximizing both market value and architectural innovation.Think Rationally | M.Arch ThesisSloan Springer | Spring 2011

TERmINLOLgY

AgENCY ability of architecture to perform an action [see performance]

CONSTRAINT limitation or restriction to a project that cannot be waived or removed

CONTENTION key point or assertion of an argument

INTERfACE physical or immaterial connection

LEvERAgE ability to exert significant influence for a greater gain

pERfORmANCE moment where architecture becomes an active participant in any context

pRIvATE entity whose finances are unaffiliated with the government

pubLIC entity that seeks to promote general welfare

RECIpROCAL relationship where entities provide benefit to each other

TOuRISm activity that generates income in multiple sectors simultaneously


dOWNTOWNAuSTIN, TExAS


Austin’s unique atmosphere has had a profound impact on tourism to the city. Few other cities boast such a diverse range of activities and events. From its art, music, and film venues, such as the well-known Austin City Limits and South by Southwest music festivals, to the beautiful and serene Barton Springs natural swimming hole and Lady Bird Lake Trail, Austin offers something for both the cultural urbanite and the outdoor enthusiast.

The influx of people and economy, due to such events as Austin City Limits, South by Southwest Music Festival and the University of Texas football games, has bolstered the city of Austin and is fuelling the steady increase in development within the city. This economic engine should be capitalized upon in all city projects, using architecture to leverage the benefits of tourism for better design and value while simultaneously providing for and supplementing the tourism itself.


uRbANHISTORY

1873 GridUniversity of TexasSouth Congress ExtensionWest ExpansionEast Expansion

1882 | University of Texas 1980 | Barton Spring Preservation Lady Bird Lake Development

1873 | Downtown Grid1838 2007 | MetroRail Service

State Capitol

City HallLady Bird Lake Trail MetroRail

MLK, Jr. Blvd.

Sixth St.

Fourth St.

Third St.

Second St.

Cesar Chavez St.

I-35

Firs

t S

t.

Red

Riv

er S

t.Con

gres

s A

ve.

Lam

ar B

lvd.

Austin Convention Center

Frank Erwin Center

Darrell K. RoyalMemorial Stadium

PedestrianVehicular


uRbANANALYSISpRImARY mOvEmENT

State Capitol

City Hall


Frank Erwin Center

Darrell K. RoyalMemorial Stadium

5 minute increment


uRbANANALYSISWALKAbILITY


Congress Avenue Section

building Height Analysis


EvENTS& ACTIvITIES

0

15

30

45

60

75

90

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC

Event Attendance | Average per day of event (thousands)

ACL Festival

Longhorn Football

Longhorn Basketball

Blues on the Green

Texas State Arts Festival

EventsPay

Free


SOUTH BY SOUTHWESTMUSIC FESTIVAL

Trail of Lights

Republic SquareFarmers Market

Congress Bridge Bats

2nd St Retail District

4th St Entertainment District

South CongressRetail District

Texas State Capitol

Kayaking

Hiking/Biking

Barton Springs

6th St Retail & Entertainment District Cong

ress

Ave

Ret

ail D

istri

ct

ActivitiesPay

Free

Austin Film Festival

Austin City Limits75,000

UT Football85,000

7,000

UT Basketball12,000

Blues on the Green2,000

South by Southwest17,000

UT Baseball6,000

Republic Square

Lady Bird Lake Trail

Shoa

l Cre

ek T

rail

Lance Armstrong Bikeway

2nd Street Retail District

4th Street Entertainment District

W Hotel & Condos/Austin City Limits

Austin Museumof Art

Austin Ballet

Federal Courthouse

Austin MusicHall

City Hall

AMLI

Gables

360 Condos

Rio Grande Lofts

West Avenue Lofts

Monarch

AMLI

AustinCentralLibrary

Mixed-Use Residential


CONTExTuALANALYSIS


AustinCentralLibrary



2Nd STREETRETAIL dISTRICT


Republic Square


Shoal Creek Trail




Austin City Limits

Austin Museumof Art

Austin Ballet

Austin MusicHall

City Hall

AMLI

Gables

360 Condos

Rio Grande Lofts

West Avenue Lofts

AMLI

W Hotel & Condos

ProposedCentralLibrary

ProposedPlaza

ProposedMixed-Use

Hotel

ProposedMixed-UseResidential


gREEN WATERREdEvELOpmENT


By far the largest single development undertaking in the history of downtown Austin, the $750 million Green Water Redevelopment is slated to bring over 2 million square feet of retail, office, and residential space to perhaps the most booming area of the city. Located along the shore of Lady Bird Lake and Shoal Creek, the development joins additional ventures to redevelop the Seaholm Power Plant for adaptive reuse, and the new Austin Central Library. This new complex stands to create a significant impact on the urban fabric of the city, and offers potential for unique solutions for urban space.

Plan

Northwest

Southeast

Southwest`

Austin Ballet

Austin MusicHall



ProposedPlaza


SOUTH BY SOUTHWESTMUSIC FESTIVAL

2nd St Retail Extension

ProposedMixed-UseResidentialProposed

Mixed-UseHotel

Shoal Creek TrailLady Bird Lake Trail




Future Light Rail Extension


ProposedPlaza

ProposedMixed-Use

Hotel



ACCESSINTERfACE


CRITICALCONNECTIONS

Northwest Edge | Shoal Creek Bank Stabilization & Proposed Central Library

SW - NE Section | Between Rio Grande & Nueces Streets

NW - SE Section | Between Second and Third Streets

EdgECONdITIONS


Northeast Edge | Austin Music Hall

Southeast Edge | Nueces Street Extension & Proposed Street Front

Southwest Edge | Cesar Chavez Street Front & Lady Bird Lake Trail

Condos133,250

Hotel Rooms

PUBLIC FRONT OFHOUSE

BACK OFHOUSE

124,500

Food & Drink32,500

Function13,000

Support

TOTAL BLOCK16,000

331,000TOTAL PUBLIC

67,250

Recreation7,000

Reception4,750

Front Desk

Living Room

Restaurants

Fitness

Main Hall

Breakout

Pre-function

Restrooms Storage

Spa

Office

Kitchens

Bars

Restrooms

Front Office

Break Room

Security

Valet

Storage

Storage

Storage

Concierge

RestroomsPlaza

Food & Drink

Function

Recreation

ReceptionPlaza10,000

Front of HouseFront of House Back of HouseBack of HouseSqft Units Total Sqft Units Total

RoomsBays 350 350 122,500 Service Room 100 1/Floor 2,000

124,500 122,500 2,000

ReceptionFront Desk 400 1 400 Front Office 450 1 450Living Room 2,000 1 2,000 Break Room 600 1 600Concierge 150 1 150 Security 150 1 150Restrooms 500 2 1,000 Valet 250 1 250

Storage 150 1 150

4,750 3,150 1,600

Food/DrinkRestaurant 8,000 2 16,000 Kitchen 4,500 2 9,000Bar 2,500 2 5,000 Storage 500 1 500Restrooms 500 4 2,000

32,500 23,000 9,500

FunctionMain Hall 4,000 1 4,000 Storage 2,000 1 2,000Breakout 1,000 4 4,000Pre-function 2,000 1 2,000Restrooms 500 2 1,000

13,000 11,000 2,000

RecreationSpa 3,000 1 3,000 Office 500 1 500Fitness 3,000 1 3,000 Storage 500 1 500

7,000 6,000 1,000

SupportStaff 4,000 1 4,000Loading Dock 16,000 1 12,000

16,000 16,000

CondosUnits 1,750 75 131,250 Service Room 100 1/Floor 2,000

133,250 131,250 2,000


pROgRAmmINgbLOCK pROgRAmmINgpubLIC

TREE pLAZA mARKET

AmpHITHEATER bASKETbALL COuRT

pubLIC SpACEpOTENTIALS


WEATHERANALYSIS

Shadow RangeSun PathPrimary Wind DirectionDate | 1.1-12.31Time | 00:00-24:00

Austin’s climate is characterized by long, hot and humid summers with mild, dry winters. Most of the yearly rainfall occurs in spring and fall, with relatively few overcast days during the summer.Within immediate proximity to the city are several bodies of water, including Lady Bird Lake downtown, Lake Austin, Lake Travis, and the Colorado River. These create a lush vegetative environment, paired with the primarily limestone hill country. This mix of natural landscape and urban density gives Austin its unique feel and provides residents with immediate access to both city and rural amenities.


Psychrometric Chart | Austin, TXDate | 1.1-12.31Time | 00:00-24:00

Wind Frequency | Austin, TXDate | 1.1-12.31Time | 00:00-24:00

N15°

30°

45°

60°

75°

90°

105°

120°

135°

150°

165°180°

195°

210°

225°

240°

255°

270°

285°

300°

315°

330°

345°

Best

W orst

kW h/ m²

2.70

2.40

2.10

1.80

1.50

1.20

0.90

0.60

0.30

Compromise: 180.0°

90.0°

DBT (°C) 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50

AH

5

10

15

20

25

30

Comfort

N O R T H1 5 °

3 0 °

4 5 °

6 0 °

7 5 °

E A S T

1 0 5 °

1 2 0 °

1 3 5 °

1 5 0 °

1 6 5 °S O U T H

1 9 5 °

2 1 0 °

2 2 5 °

2 4 0 °

2 5 5 °

W E S T

2 8 5 °

3 0 0 °

3 1 5 °

3 3 0 °

3 4 5 °

10 km/ h

20 km/ h

30 km/ h

40 km/ h

50 km/ h hrs

484+

435

387

338

290

242

193

145

96

<48

Selected Design Techniques1. passive solar heating 2. thermal mass effects 3. natural ventilation 4. indirect evaporative cooling

Optimum Orientation | Austin, TXAnnual AverageUnderheated PeriodOverheated Period

As the Roman Catholic Church gained more power during the early days of the Renaissance, it became necessary to position Rome once again as a center for culture and religion. One major detriment to the city was the fact that it lacked a wholistic means for navigation. Prior to accepting the title of Pope Sixtus V, Cardinal Montalto began developing his plans for reinvigorating Rome as suitable for the center of the Christian world. He created an organisational structure connecting key monumental spaces and architecture, allowing for pilgrims to easily find their way around the city. Visual connection and sense of space were key factors in driving the plan, and so several obelisks were relocated to the intersections of main trajectories between spaces to aid in creating such connection.

This was one of the earliest precedents in urban design where development of public space created new opportunities for private development, and furthermore reestablished the prominence of the city of Rome. By envisioning public space as a connective fabric, the plan creates a sort of main artery to which the private aspects of the city are inextricably linked, thus allowing for the public prominence of the city to activate a whole new level of private development.

Plan for Rome | Pope Sixtus V

Public ArteryPrivate Sub-Arteries

CASESTudIES uRbAN


One of the first planned developments in London, Regent Street represents an attempt to break free from the medieval street pattern of the city. The plan connects Prince Regent’s residence at Carlton House up to Regents Park, passing though several key spaces. Due to the financial state of the country following the Napoleonic Wars, a large portion of the development was funded by private developers, including Nash. Planning guidelines were setup that dictated everything from architectural style to material details in order to preserve a cohesive feel. Regent Street is still considered a crucial part of the urban fabric of London, and its shops and cafes are enjoyed by tourists and Londoners alike.

Regent Street serves as an excellent precedent for public-private redevelopment within an existing urban fabric. By establishing a cohesive set of codes and guidelines for development, the plan is able to create a strong public artery between two prominent public spaces without direct visual connection. Because of this, the promenade acts as a dual catalyst for increased public traffic and private financial gain.

Regent Street, London | John Nash

Compressed Public TrafficPublic-Private Street Front

The High Line | James Corner Field Operations & Diller Scofidio + Renfro

Running over a mile-and-a-half stretch of abandoned railway tracks in lower Manhattan, the High Line has become an arterial life-line for the redevelopment of the Meatpacking District and Hudson Rail Yards. The park, in effect, provides significantly increased pedestrian traffic for the many shops, restaurants, and other businesses in the district, both new and old. This creates a reciprocal relationship where the park capitalizes on its connection to diverse program, and developments leverage the park for increased exposure. New projects created show this relationship by blurring their boundaries with the park and allowing for spaces that simultaneously exist as the park and the development.

The High Line acts as a power strip in which surrounding businesses can plug in to, further activating the area and establishing a dual-level public-private infrastructure.

Before

After


CASESTudIES pubLIC

Schouwburgplein | West 8

Designed to fill a void in a mixed-use area, the Schouwburgplein acts as a public social interface for the surrounding buildings. The plaza functions as a flexible, adaptable space that allows users to create their own configurations, essentially bleeding the private into the public. It is considered to be a “city stage”, where the interplay between public and private venues and activities generates a uniquely-Rotterdam feel.

By creating a space that offers users the ability to project their own wishes for an environment, the plaza becomes itself an indeterminite zone catering to the changing of the seasons and of the urban landscape.

Typical Flexible

The W Hotel in Dallas, Texas is situated in the heart of Victory Park, one of the most vibrant areas in all of downtown, host to the American Airlines Center and Dallas Arts District, as well as high-end shopping, restaurants, and several connected green spaces. Rather than establishing an exclusive enclave for hotel guests, the hotel operates as a key centerpiece connecting the entire plaza. The grand living room and lounge are as integrated into the urban fabric as they are the hotel, providing an open space for pedestrians and hotel guests alike to interact, all-the-while putting the busy plaza on display.

The W Hotel Dallas | HKS

CASESTudIES


HOTEL

Blending in to the surrounding high traffic street fronts, the Standard Hotel capitalizes on this by pluging in to the key public spaces through and adjacent to it. By placing its lobby, restaurant, and “living room” lounge along the public plaza, the hotel gives over its ground level program to the urban public realm, and cantelievers its private features out over it.

Standard Hotel | Polshek Partnership

Rome v Austin

High Line in Austin Schouwburgplein in Austin


CASESTudIES COmpARISON

Regent St v Austin

W Hotel Dallas in Austin Standard Hotel in Austin

A reciprocal relationship exists between public space and private development, but maximum potential is rarely achieved. This toolkit of strategies pose to leverage public space for private development and vice versa.

pubLIC-pRIvATETOOLKITpubLIC-pRIvATETOOLKIT


Adjacent program offers unique opportunities for partnerships that can leverage constraints and capital resources for both public and private development. By identifying and analysing such critical adjacencies, such partnerships can provide further influence for design innovation and financing. Additionally, other outside resources may be possible through further analysis of specific program connections in the city.

Establishing a connection between critial points in the city and tapping in to the public avenues between them allows for a reciprocal relationship where development blosters public use, and in turn public use further supports the development of the avenue. Through analysis of these connections and avenues, they can begin to inform the design of the developments both public and private programs to maximize potential interactivity and interconnectivity.

NETWORK INTERSECTIONS CRITICAL CONNECTIONS

In order to maximize user experience through visual and physical connectivity, public amenities of private developments could be transferred to the public sector. Various incentives could be given to the private development in return, creating a reciprocal partnership for the betterment of the public and consequently for the financial betterment of the development.

The traditional notion of generic flexibility of space is seldom capitalized upon. Typical “flexible” spaces ultimately end up serving a minimum number of options due to the indecisiveness of human nature. Strategic insertions of calculated flexibility can maximize viable opportunity for users. By analysing desired uses within the space and creating a predefined range of options, usability and value are increased along with the number of options actually capitalized upon.

“What do you get when you cross a parrot with a centipede?A walkie-talkie”Francisco Sanin

+ =

Multiple opportunities lie in the diversity of programming within a project. Through “architectural alchemy”, these opportunities are leveraged by blending diverse program to create unique and innovative results that not only perform the same tasks as the original program but simultaneously allow for additional and often unexpected possibilities.

Typical space planning only accounts for planar qualities, not utilizing the additional opportunities of the third dimension. As a way to capitalize on the essence of space, its sectional properties must be developed. By multiplying the ground plane and manipulating the section as well as the plane itself, a more complex and multi-use space can be created, with additional program and possibility embedded within it.

The High Line TKTS Times Square

SchouwburgpleinLow2No


TRANSfER Of dEvELOpmENT RIgHTS

“THICK” SuRfACE

CALCuLATEd fLExIbILITY

pROgRAmmATIC dIvERSITY


ProjectTower

Massing



DesignPublicLevel

pROjECTION


The design phase of the thesis process will include both the design of the public level(s) of the hotel, as well as a projection into the expected massing of the hotel and condominium tower, demonstrating the effect of leveraging public space for private development. The public zone will seek to inform the design of the private, and vice versa, but the deep design focus will be maintained on the public level, as it is seen as the key interface and connection between the urban and immediate context and the private aspects of the hotel.

bIbLIOgRApHY


Alex Wall, “programming the urban Surface,” in Recovering Landscape: Essays in Contemporary Landscape Theory, by james Corner (princeton Architectural press, 1999), 233-50.

Ashley Schafer and Amanda Reeser Lawrence, pRAxIS: journal of Writing and building, Issue 10: urban matters (praxis, Inc, 2008).

bjarke Ingels, Yes Is more: An Archicomic on Architectural Evolution (Evergreen, 2009).bruce upbin, “joshua prince-Ramus On The myth Of Architectural genius,” forbes.com (june 14, 2010).

Committee for Economic development, public private partnership: An Opportunity for urban Communities, 1982.

Edmund N. bacon, design of Cities (New York viking press, 1976).

Elite Kedan, provisional: Emerging modes of Architectural practice, ed. jon dreyfous and Craig mutter, 1st ed. (princeton Architectural press, 2009).

girish K. misra and g.C. mathur, public private partnerships in urban development (Intellectual book Corner, 1997).

joshua prince-Ramus, “Agency,” ed. marc guberman, jacob Reidel, and frida Rosenberg, perspecta 40 “monster”: The Yale Architectural journal: 96-101.

judith R. blau, Architects and firms : A Sociological perspective on Architectural practices (The mIT press, 1987).

Keith moskow, Small Scale: Creative Solutions for better City Living (princeton Architectural press, 2010).

paul Lewis, marc Tsurumaki, and david j. Lewis, “Tactics for an Opportunistic Architecture,” in Opportunistic Architecture, 1st ed. (princeton Architectural press, 2007), 168-177.

Sara moss, “Calculated Risk,” Architectural design, january 2004.

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