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T H O M A S A L L E N R O S SPORTFOLIO OF SELECTED WORKS

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CONTENTS

Reviving the Waterfront ........................................... 3

Site Conditions .................................................... 5

Form Creation ..................................................... 6

Project Plans ...................................................... 7

Project Elevations .............................................. 8

Renderings ......................................................... 9

Ramona Community Housing ............................. 11

Site Analysis ...................................................... 13

Project Elevations ............................................... 15

Renderings .......................................................... 17

Balboa Park Library ................................................... 19

Project Plans ...................................................... 21


Renderings .......................................................... 23

Barrio Logan Housing ............................................... 25

Project Plans ....................................................... 27


Shelter for the Homeless ......................................... 29

Mobile Shelters ................................................... 31

Single Unit Development .................................... 33

Preliminary Plan and Elevations ......................... 34

Construction Process .......................................... 35

Final Unit ............................................................. 36

Furniture Design: Reading Chair ........................ 37

Construction Process .......................................... 38

Final Build Design ............................................... 39

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PROJECT 1

The existing spacial layout of San Diego’s center city waterfront at the B-street pier is characterized with an extreme break with the city. With an excess of roadway paving, single use structures, and public restrictions along the waterfront, a project arose with the opportunity for a tremendous and drastic approach to altering such valuable real estate. By implanting and transplanting new program the project motioned to transform the existing into a new bayfront plaza enclosed and reinvigorated by architecture created for both the locals of San Diego and vacationing cruise ship visitors.

Software Used: - Rhino- Photoshop- Illustrator

The cruise ship terminal is the defining structure of the site. Embodied by an antiquated warehouse unloading visitors into an almost one hundred foot span of pavement, the tourist welcome to San DIego is somewhat embarassing. The proposition for the site was a thinning of Harbor Drive traffic to redirect automobile traffic to Pacific Coast Highway and redesig-nate the Harbor Drive passage into walkable park contained by new architecture housing new entertain-ment directed both for tourists and for locals. Also included with this move was the inclusion of public structure and private business into the terminal structure, transforming a very under-used piece of waterfront area into a public asset. Beginning with these simple premises for reinvigorating public use and social interaction, the design process acted to make a new welcome to San Diego and a better interaction between those that live in the city with those visiting.

Cruise Ship Terminal

Connected Business

Holiday Inn

NAVFAC Facilities

The Grande Condominiums

Harbor Drive

Holiday Inn Parking Structure

Excessive Waterfront Paving

Pacific Coast Highway

Bay View Promenade

Plaza Enclosure

Thinned Harbor Drive

Terminal AdjustmentAltered Water Relation

Hotel Addition

Denser Diverted Pacific Coast Highway

Physical Structure Transitway Parking Pedestrian Walkways

Land Connection

Water Surface Public PromenadeWater Access

Bay View PromenadeBay View Restaurant

Water Surface Restaurant

Frame view of the bayFold into the water

Differentiation of restaurant levels

Connection from above into restaurantCommon level to terminal

Structure grounded underwaterFloating structure tide adjustment

Floating structure stabilized by connections to grounded structure

Vertical shades

Operable windowsPublic promenade

Guards

Bar and Social

Cruise Ship Terminal

Parking ConnectionRooftop Lounge

Indoor LoungePiano Bar

RetailRooftop Hotel Tennis

Waterfront Plaza Access

Openings towards bay and plaza

Parking Bridge

Interior subdivide

Rooftop Connection

Structural walls

Adjusted tilt wall

[Extended foundation]

Vertical shading

Guards

Tennis courts

Local Performance Venue

Visitor Information Center

Connecting Bridge

Direct Terminal Connection

Bay or ship hull view

Connecting extension

City View

Open towards connection

Structural and programmatic wall

Rooftop structural folds

Foundation builds off the existing

Fold columns

Guards

Operable windowsLight controlling folds

Large city facing glazing

Process of Form Creation: Starting with the spacial relations of the chosen programs, by using a formative process of enclosings folds, the directionality of openings and a responsive means of structural support creates an architecture of consistent design language that forms three unified elements of the greater plaza enclosure

1. Public Boardwalk Seating 9. Outdoor Lounge Area Terminal Structure2. Upper Level Restaurant Entry 10. Hotel Tennis Courts3. Bay View Rooftop Promenade 11. Indoor Lounge 17. Cruise Ship Loading Terminal

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4. Water Surface Access 12. Second Level Retail Space 18. Public Open Space5. Bay View Restaurant 13. Outdoor Seating 19. Visitor Information Center 6. Connecting Bridge 14. Connecting Bridges 20. Bar and Social7. Water Surface Public Space 15. Hotel Piano Common 21. Parking and Hotel Connection 8. Water Surface Restaurant 16. Grand Level Retail Space 22. Water Structure Connection

Watertop Structure Hotel Addition

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West Elevation (Hotel Addition)

East Elevation (Hotel Addition)

East Elevation

West Elevation

1/64” = 1’-0”

1/64” = 1’-0”

1/64” = 1’-0”

1/64” = 1’-0”

Above: View of the Water surface structure and terminal traveling south along the adjusted waterfront public promenade, formerly acting as underutilized metered parking spaces.

Above Left: View of the hotel addition from an adjusted Harbor Blvd. A new level of porosity amidst the folds allows greater public passage and use of the intermediary spaces from the parking structure behind the Holiday Inn to the plaza.

Water Surface Structure: The lower level of the water surface structure floats and adjusts with the tide. In the process, the lower level restaurant offers water surface dining and the public promenade permits water interac-tion and shade.

Hotel Piano Lobby: The hotel addition is the first space experienced by those visiting the plaza from the adjacent parking structure.Thin shades on the western facade affect the levels of natural light to create variations to the lounging and listening experience.

Cruise Ship Terminal Unloading: Instead of proceeding through a glorified warehouse into San Diego, the new terminal instead proceeds through a series of overlooks. The first entry into San Diego proceeds through the open, covered public space in front of the new club and connected to the water surface promenade, drastically altering the welcoming experience.

Club Entry Corridor: The bridge acting as both a means of plaza enclosure and promenade connection leads from the hotel structure to the terminal structure. Building on top of the existing structure and capitalizing on the harbor view, the new club draws in locals, where the grand walls and floor to ceiling glazing emits the sounds and lights of entertainment, making the approach an experience in itself.

New Site Overview: A whole new waterfront is created with an injection of new program. By activating rooftop space, an incredibly underutilized array of public program comes alive amidst private business , giving rise to a plaza of open and park space for a city severely lacking in public zones.

Harbor View Restaurant: The folds on the water surface structure construct multiple spaces of different experience. As one level fluctuates with the changing tides, the upper level restaurant stays in place, offering a consistent view overlooking the harbor while contributing to the shifts in the lower. The long planes that contribute to the spans also offer directed perspectives between levels.

PROJECT 2

Downtown Ramona is a city characterized by typical development patterns in the later half of the twentieth century. Predominantly built to accomodate transit and commuter reliance on the personal automobile, the city shows a severe lack of infastructural promotion for future growth of local community. This mixed-use residential project, built in the heart of the historic district, became an active promotion of urban infill, modern density, personal frugality, and active mixed-use development to promote walkability and com-munity activation. The resulting design responded to existing and local site geometry and materiality, and acted to merge local perceptions of the form of housing with a modern approach of opening and merging private and public realms.

Software Used: - ArchiCAD- Photoshop- Illustrator- SketchUp

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R A M O N A T O W N C E N T E R RAMONA, CALIFORNIA0 1000’500’250’

OLD TOWN

THE PASEO

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Site Decision: Decision on the Old Town District of Ramona was based on the existing conditions found there. The Colonnade is char-acterized by old, sparse, private dwellings while the Paseo was very typical of automobile based develop-ment of shopping centers and front of house parking. Old Town on the other hand held comparatively dense develop-ment and more walkable streets. The level of density existing and the historic nature of many of the buildings offered a much stronger base with which to work to create a community identity and capac-ity.

Block Intervention: The existing Town Hall and adja-cent buildings carry strong local character, and their proximity to existing business was ideal. By mixing new use above and in between, desnsification further activates the site potential

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S O U T H S E C T I O N

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9th

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8th

Stre

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7th

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6th

Stre

et

Main Street, Ramona

Site Decision: Decision on the Old Town District of Ramona was based on the existing conditions found there. The Colonnade is char-acterized by old, sparse, private dwellings while the Paseo was very typical of automobile based develop-ment of shopping centers and front of house parking. Old Town on the other hand held comparatively dense develop-ment and more walkable streets. The level of density existing and the historic nature of many of the buildings offered a much stronger base with which to work to create a community identity and capac-ity.

Block Intervention: The existing Town Hall and adja-cent buildings carry strong local character, and their proximity to existing business was ideal. By mixing new use above and in between, desnsification further activates the site potential

E A S T E L E V A T I O NV I E W F R O M 7 T H S T R E E T

S O U T H E L E V A T I O NV I E W F R O M M A I N S T R E E T

W E S T E L E V A T I O NV I E W F R O M S Q U A R E

N O R T H E L E V A T I O NV I E W F R O M S Q U A R E

Street Corner Perspective: Building into the existing back parking lot and above the existing historical structure, the new structure does not impose on Main Street but rather acts to highlight the historic with the adaptive modern addition.

Double Unit Plaza View: The small bedroom on the third level overlooks the parking lot / public courtyard, creating a feeling of placement above the shaded canopy below and overlooking the mountainous outskirts of Ramona beyond the other small dwellings of the new community development.

Shared Dwelling Walkways: To avoid the isolation created by double loaded corridors, access to and from each unit is made using open outdoor walkways that run around the central public courtyard / parking. By eliminating direct access of parking spaces to the units, neighborly interaction is promoted and walkability encouraged.

Two Bedroom Unit Living Room/Kitchen: The units are designed on the idea of frugality and the maximized utility of modern space. Mixing uses of space reduces excessive spatial alottments to program, and the visual connection of these spaces to the community outside further promotes an exchange of human contact.

View from the Couryard / Parking: Doubling in design as both alottments of parking and a community space enclosed and separate from the street, the interior of the block accomodates coded demands for parking while offering to the community an improvise place for outdoor activity. The idea is based on future improvements to walkability along all of Main Street and the space’s active utility with a break from automobile dependences.

New Walkable Side Street: Capitalizing on the existing market center of the block’s placement, the ground level development promotes walkable business with residences placed above. This connection of street level activity with dwelling proximity helps promote a consistency of activated space in the public realm.

PROJECT 3

Constructing a library in Balboa Park of San Diego came with the limits of a very small site. Sitting on a small parcel of constructed grass, it became a mark on the outskirts of a very conservative historical park. Dealing with such a small site, rather than construct-ing a grand library of tremendous scale, the library resulted from the intention of modern-izing through digitizing the stacks and instead creating a series of spaces for studying, reading, and escaping in an attempt to preserve the tranquil family nature of the park. The result was a library occupying less than half of the site ground and maximizing the amount of usable space through the electronic reserve of books.

Software Used: - ArchiCAD- Photoshop- Illustrator- Artlantis

Ground Level Floor Plan Entry Level Floor Plan Upper Level Floor Plan

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1. Study Room......................2. Interstitial Reading Space...3. Computer Study................4. Computer Lab...................5. Mechanical and Electric......6. Restrooms........................

7. Information Desk...............8. Main Stacks.......................9. Download Docks.................10. Interstitial Reading Space..11. Reading Hallway...............12. Restrooms.......................

13. Computer Lab..................14. Conference Room.............15. Patio Reading...................16. Rooftop Terrace................17. Elevator Access................

960 sq.ft.624 sq.ft.418 sq.ft.1015 sq.ft.307 sq.ft.300 sq.ft.

343 sq.ft.1178 sq.ft.140 sq.ft.212 sq.ft.650 sq.ft.437 sq.ft.

440 sq.ft.615 sq.ft.758 sq.ft.3312 sq.ft.41sq.ft.

North Elevation South Elevation

West Elevation

East Elevation

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PROJECT 4

This project was one set of units in a collab-orative housing initiative set in a site in Barrio Logan. Each member of the studio was assigned a 50 ft. by 150 ft. lot with a 50 ft. height limit. The goal was to make a minimum of eight units of three housing types, including two A.D.A. accessible units. Many took the approach of staggering the stacks of units to allow natural daylighting, but for this portion of the housing block, a focus centered on verticality and shared open space. Inspired by modern Japanese uses of building small and upward, the units are multi-storied with permeating light from the upper levels. By working with vertical units, the rooms become stacked instead of just the units, separating rooms and spacial uses through levels rather than walls. Most communal living rooms and kitchens also share levels and access to shared upper level gardens, intending to give rise to greater interaction between neighbors where current trends and practices house people into isolation.

Software Used: - AutoCAD

Model Making

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41'

14'

6'-6"

14'-4"

15' 15' 15'-7"

8'-9"

11'

4"

12'-8"3'

2'

10'-8"

12'

16'

22'-6" 8'-9" 21'-3"

24'-8"

16'

13'-8"

10'-8"

20'-4"

10'-11"

8'-5" 18'-6"

4'

12'-8"

13'-5"

8'-3"

41'

22'-6"

34'36'

10'-0116"

27'-6"

38'

22'-6116"

11'-7"

20'-5"

31'-5"

16'-6"

19'-6"

12'8'-111516"

34'-8"

49'-8"

PROJECT 5

Focusing on the issue of homelessness as a recurring social issue characterized by the public’s capacity to dismiss, ignore or actively attempt to remove a portion of the population drove designs for a challenge to public conceptions. By confronting the issue from an architectural approach, housing a people without capital became a test at design in regard to construction methods relating to extremely limited budget constraints. These challenges led to multiple attempts of design shelters that were more than just budget based boxes. Attempting to alter street scenes and perceptions through alternative but money rational decisions developed small scale projects with an aesthetic to challenge such stern resistance to displaced populations. The end production was a single one to one scale construction of a unit designed as a series for a hyopthetical winter shelter in San Diego.

Software Used: - Rhino- Illustrator

Model MakingDesign Build

A completely foldable structure offering slidable adjustable siding and mobile compactibility.

<5-63+Rigid board or sheet metal

Waterproof tarp

Steel connectors

Small rollers

Nightscape

Process

1 2 3

Grocery Cart

Storage

Steel Bar Extenders

Waterproof tarp

Sleeping platform

A pushable cart that makes storage easy and pulls out into a simple form of shelter.

Push

Pull

Simplicity

7<:/�7<33

Process

c

b

a

c

b

a

Nightscape

05;,9*/(5.,

A cart shelter that allows interchangeability for the side panels, altering the night site.

Process

Grocery Cart

Storage

Aluminum Extending Rods

Waterproof tarp

Plastic Covering

1 2

3 4

1 2

3 4

Backpack Transport

Aluminum rods

Waterproof tarp

Nightscape

A compactable cover that deploys directly from back carried storage.

)9(5*/05.

Process

Transport Basket

Molded/Folded Plastic

Wheels

Steel Attachment

Bike

9633

The daily energy generated from the rolling wheels powers a small reading light

A rollable bicycle trailer that detaches to act as a rolled over cover structure

Energy

The first design effort centered on the idea of transportability. Looking at existing material use and regular means of getting limited posessions from place to place, various means of transportable shelter were devised. Ranging from backpack deployed cover to fully towable shelter, a focus on lightweight design and small structural attach-ments combined with the initial motives towards humanizing the unfortunate yet persistent presence of the homeless on the streets.

Unfold: One idea focused on simple transportability of a basic structural cover. By making the unit a clean result of foldable planes, a sleek, rectilinear street deployment with a small internal light offers a sense of life within a simple guard from the elements.

Push/Pull: This deployable shelter works of the existing use of grocery carts as a means of transporting personal posessions or collecting materials for recylced value. By simply making an extendable system that builds off a widely used tool, a very compact design offers ease for transportable shelter.

Interchange: Similar to the Push/Pull idea branching off the shoppping cart, this idea worked along with the ideas of the night scape by offering alternative material connections for the cover. With different levels of translucency, the night scape could effectively play off the decisions of panel choices of the individual.

Branching: This backpack unit works much like a tent engineered for faster compactibility. With extend-able, deployable arm supports and attachable panel covers, the concept centers on the idea of branching from an initial set of tubing grounded in the backpack and grows to a small canopy cover.

Plan1/4” - 1’-0”

South Elevation1/4” - 1’-0”

North Elevation1/4” - 1’-0”

West Elevation1/4” - 1’-0”

East Elevation1/4” - 1’-0”

Preliminary Design Drawings: Elevations and plan drawings show the coordination with cardinal directions to illuminate the unit with the morning sunlight while at night interior lighting acts as a means of emitting warmth to passers by. Thicker walls around the beds act to insulate just those nooks to reduce material demands and construction costs.

Unit Development: The individual units for a series of shelters resulted from a four part process. First, the square footage of the unit was to be no more than 81z square feet, based on existing winter shelter conditions at Father Joe’s Village in Downtown San Diego, which directed the 9x9 footprint of the single site unit. Next was the program which revolved simply on the two beds and two spaces for storage. The next stage was the cutting of corners and pieces within the imagined cube to favor conditional exterior lighting as well as create a warming night ambience for passers-by. The final stage was the implementation of directional and sectional densification of selected walls for the sake of insulating under budget constraints while simultaneously creating a formal design language for the exterior facade.

Plan1/4” - 1’-0”

South Elevation1/4” - 1’-0”

North Elevation1/4” - 1’-0”

West Elevation1/4” - 1’-0”

East Elevation1/4” - 1’-0”

Section1/8” - 1’-0”

Preliminary Design Drawings: Elevations and plan drawings show the coordination with cardinal directions to illuminate the unit with the morning sunlight while at night interior lighting acts as a means of emitting warmth to passers by. Thicker walls around the beds act to insulate just those nooks to reduce material demands and construction costs.

Unit Development: The individual units for a series of shelters resulted from a four part process. First, the square footage of the unit was to be no more than 81z square feet, based on existing winter shelter conditions at Father Joe’s Village in Downtown San Diego, which directed the 9x9 footprint of the single site unit. Next was the program which revolved simply on the two beds and two spaces for storage. The next stage was the cutting of corners and pieces within the imagined cube to favor conditional exterior lighting as well as create a warming night ambience for passers-by. The final stage was the implementation of directional and sectional densification of selected walls for the sake of insulating under budget constraints while simultaneously creating a formal design language for the exterior facade.

View from the northwest: Consolidating the thinning of the structure to an eight foot by six foot structure moved the sliding door to the north side of the structure instead of the west. The foot of the wall on the east side gained the small lower opening to emit the internal light at night as well.

View from the north: The north face displays the personalized steel door the group created from scrapped material. The rusted steel sheets bound to a structural frame created a visual consistency with the steel siding distinguishing the insulated panels.

Interior view facing northeast: The completed structure captured the natural lighting just the way the design had intended. With plenty of light flooding through the multiple openings, the interior really attained a feeling of comfort, openness, and proper air flow.

Interior view facing northwest: Although the inset of the structure was not finalized, the opening still acts to show the open view and opening up of the interior. Also, the full cost of the insulated panels cut the final product short, but the steel frame interior preserves the intended differentiation of the greater structural whole.

Constructing the Prototype: After making the initial design model, the studio collaborated in groups of three to build one full scale prototype of a homeless shelter unit. Through discus-sion and revision involving material efficiency of the structure, the unit was altered to an 8 ft. by 6 ft. structure built using a steel structural frame for each wall, a basic decking floor, and osb base siding with steel exterior cladding for the insulation panels. The first stage of construction worked off welding the one inch steel tubing to construct solid structure for the walls. The enclosure by osb panels followed the finished frame completion, and the deck footing was used as the grounding foundation for the four walls. Steel sheeting was used as the exterior cladding for the insulated panels, maintaining the directionality of the original design.

PROJECT 6

With a design intent on building a chair for reading, and influenced by the angles of the Prouvé Chair, this was the formal result of bended and welded steel which framed to hold an elaborately hand strung seat of jute. With the initial idea relying on a contrast of materials, the chair’s success lies not only in the functional comfort of a lowered seat and proper angles, but also an aestethic that results from a single union of darkened flat bar steel closed internally by the soft give of the rope.

Software Used: - Rhino- Illustrator

Design Build

Step 1: Bent two pieces of 3/8 flat bar steel with 110 degrees at the seat and appropriate angle at the front to run flush with the legs.

Step 2: Attached two lengths of steel at 21” length on the upper connection and 25” on the bottom, the extra 4” spread outside to permit for the frontal connection to the legs.

Step 3: With about 8 feet of steel each, the legs were formed with approriate angles to permit for the front connection, a slightly inclined arm rest, and a flush connection at end for a clean weld finish.

Step 4: Connecting the seat to legs was done with a finish weld on the back of the legs to the extra two inches each side of the front of the seat followed by welded back plates, placed to set the seat at 110 degrees lean on the front.

Step 5: The final finish to the chair was completed with the jute wrapping. Rather than drilling holes, using indents, or welding holds, using continual individual wraps along with the material tension and density of the jute rope, the seat remained consistent without slippage or insonsis-tency along the rails.

20 1/4” length lower bar

110 bendo

21” length upper bar

80 bendo

21” upper connective bar

25” lower connective bar 90 bendo

105 bendo 150 bend

o

80 straight angled connectiono

3 3/4” back bar

110 bend

22 1/2” top bar

6 1/2” upper bend

12” lower bend

20 3/4” lower bar

15” back bar

Approximately 600’ jute wrap

Above: Built for the purpose of reading, the seat offers a subtle give in the material for an uninhibited sense of comfort. The angles contribute to that comfort in the recline, the bars are barely felt. The chair’s height permits proper grounding and the spaceing of the legs allows comfortable adjustment of free space.

Left: Detailing in the close up shows the level of craft taken to make a consistent wrap for the seat with tight and regular wraps of the jute rope around the solid steel seat framing. The subtle joint welded to the back of the leg bars gives no physical feel while sitting while acting to transfer the compression loads from the seat head to the middle of the chair.

Thomas Allen Ross

1549 Placentia Ave. Unit 101, Newport Beach, CA [email protected]

thomas allen ross: selected works

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