ARCH5101 Vertical Shift: overcoming a boundary of confusion

8/7/2019 ARCH5101 Vertical Shift: overcoming a boundary of confusion

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VERTICAL SOVERCOMING A BOUNDARY O

Chris

WARKE, CL

Boundary investigatio


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The semester began with determining the origins o boundaries within Philadelph

main genetic code that has shaped the urban development o Philadelphia. Situa

divide between the Delaware River and The Schuylkill river, William Penn plotted th

or Philadelphia at this central portion o the peninsula where a healthy abundanc

and water bodies lay present. Water, a human necessity, holds an extreme magnetism

tion. As is such, the proximty to and access to water bodies oten provides hard d

settlement across the globe. An amenity or all, rivers and lakes oten are expressed

o dignity and importance: celebrated, inhabited, and commonly

Impervious surace mapping o Philadelphia Early mapping o Penns layout and topography, revealing

development towards the large Delaware River and away

inhabitable Western edge o th


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Investigating Philadelphia or boundaries, a prorgam mapping exercise reveals the dissolutio

towards the Schuylkill River. Rather than embraced as an urban resource, there is extremely li

where center city meets University city. The Western edge o the Schuylkill is in act the semi-

The passage rom university city to center city demands taking one o the several car-oriente

spans the Schuylkill. With the abundance o rail and automobile inrastructure at the edges o

bridges that span the Scchuylkill emerge within the city, the shit in conitnuing the datum-lin

creation o a sunken zone. The pedestrian network o connectivity rom one side o the river triddled with issues or persons wishing to cross this boundary on oot. The infux o inrastruc

works is overwhelming and the lack o program or places along the strict road connectors dis

rom crossing. Buildings within the sunken zone that wish to draw visitors rom the top level

to create a rontage on the street, when in act their ootprint rests on a separate level.

Restaurant/cae Oce Com


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RAIL YARD

CHESTNUT STREET

BOUNDARIES OF CONFUSION

URBAN KNOTS

HORIZONTAL BOUNDARIESTHROUGH VERTICAL LAYERING

OF VARYING SPEED SYSTEMS

DITCH

WALNUT STREET

SOUTH STREET

HARDSLOPE

SKYRAIL

HIGH-WAY

WATERGROUND

RAIL

The bridges which span the Schuylkill are built or aut

rail trac. Pedestrian crossing is limited to the edges o

connectors. Besides the East -West connectors, num

South trac networks run through this area o Phil

result is a dense and knot-like weaving o sepera

vehicu

With the edges o the Schuylkill marked with rail linestrac must pace over these elements in order to cont

creating a much more coded jumble o interaction be

This has caused the points rom which the strict conn

to be situated deep into the urban abric, away rom

itsel. Commonly we consider crossing a boundary sta

edges, but with what occurs here at the Schuylkill, a

habitance and inactivity rests around the Schuylkills


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CHESTNUT STREET MARKET STREET SPRING GARWALNUT STREETSOUTH STREET

The various connectors that span the Schuylkill each have vary-

ing levels o inrastructural knot-tying. Each East-West connec-

tor undergoes a airly unique interaction with North-South

dividers. Within the Schuylkill boundary are elevated rail lines,

ground exposed rail lines, rail lines that traverse below spaces,small streets, the I-76 on and o ramps, and the major bridges:

Walnut, Market, Chestnut, and South


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The series o diagrammatic images below illustrate the lack o pedestrian co

and space. Taken along Walnut Street, these disengaged collages highlight

nance o the car and the division between the top level o the city and the s


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Below is a birds eye overlay diagram recording pedestrian connectivity and open space along Walnut Street (the l

yellow indicates less pedestrian access/use). Currently there are only our public options to reach the sunken lev

street. Each also takes the pedestrian to a portion o the sunken zone divided rom the rest (commonly by rail lbuildings attached to Walnut could provide a means to transition downward, but holding a private program, pede

uninclined to prod into these possibilities (and wit


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A major intersection, this could be a place to add a much more pedestria

bridge, as well as a vertical connection to the western side o the Schuylk

Adjacent to the uture Penn Park, this undeveloped strip along Walnut street could be made to

transition pedestrians rom the top level down to the park. Guiding pedestrians down at this

site could enable the development o activity here, placing ocus on transitioning and reocus-

ing rom the top level to the sunken level.

Situated between an apartment complex, an elevated rail, and commercia

the space eeds out onto highline eld. Adjacent is one o the ew public c

between levels.

This is the rst point along Walnut street rom University City where the inrastructural

boundaries and datum shit begin. Three public vertical connectors are within the

vicinity, but take pedestrians to horizontaly severed places.


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A large open lot at the end o this street. An opportunity is here to interve

grid dissolves, a point to reestablish connectivity and bring pedestrians o

boundary.

One block south o Walnut street, a transition o commercial and oce spaces to residential

occurs. This is an oportune moment to bring pedestrians onto the schuylkill-linking network

o new buildings and to the river. A block within the path o the orientation o this street may

provide a signal to bring pedestrians over the rail boundary. Programs o commercial and

public-use types (such as libraries or gyms) could provide a healthy level o magentism

The buildings along Walnut end at this point on the Eastern side. As well,

jogging strip is situated here. An island building could be situated here to

pedestrians rom the city datum to this submerged zone. This would add

the development o blocks and a point to attract pedestrians.


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Like the Ice skating rink and the apartment bu

to Walnut street, employing island buildings toSchuylkill boundary could prove eective.

This calls or the development o a unique typo

the two buildings reerrenced above. Where pe

has a dominating ocus and nds itsel carving

building/blocks themselves.

The rst objective is connectivity, second is att

persuading pedestrians to utilize the structure

Bounded on both sides o the Schuylkill are paational spaces. Primarily, the connective netwo

as vartical parks linking Penn Park and the Sch

together. (eectively blurring interaction betw

city and center city)

To draw pedestrians into this network, public a

types o program should be situated in order t

to carry pedestrians through the boundary.

Providing a dominating ocus and commonly

(due to the disagreement with covered dark p

there would be a mirrored programming to th

perhaps rom the top - commercial to the bott

utility.

REVERSE DATUM DROP PROGRAMMING

INVERSE SKYSCRAPERING

CARVED ELEVATION SHIFT BLOCKS

OFFICE

OFFICE

UTILITY

UTILITYCO

MMERC

IALCOMMERCIAL

PROGRAMS: TOP-DOWN COMMERCIAL (PEDESTRIAN NAVIGABLE) to UTILITY

Varying types o block carvings and their potential

vertical relationships


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An island scheme could

ous ways, providing ridg

more fexible ones.

This project takes the sc

be much more o a mini

the others presented.

The eectiveness o the

to have pedstrians trans

ent vertical layers in the

traverse those levels in o

reach other isalnd buildi

Although, by this reason

shouldnt necessarily be

secondary connectors, b

island buildings and at d

than the preestablished

(mainly, the top level an

zone).

Secondary connectors w

strengthen the networkscheme, and provide pe

visual clues o such. As w

pedestrian trac to stay

automobile and rail netw

an easily understood pa

ing the Schuylkill (or hea

As the island blocks not

points o magnetism to

trians across this bound

themselves may becom

tion. The secondary netw

tors could allow the hea

this transitory zone to gr


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public ocus areas

island block placement

island secondary connector pathsslope back / orientation

FOCUS TOP DATUM FRONTAGE

bottom DATUM FRONTAGE

MIRRORING: UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS - U

ENTRY POINT, INITIAL PEDES-

TRIAN GRABBER AND PUBLIC

SPACE. INTRODUCTION TO

NETWORK

REVERSING FRONTAGE TO

PENN PARK

VERTICAL CONNECTIVITY TO

WESTERN SIDE OF

SCHUYLKILL

PEDESTRIAN CARRIER,

UNUSED LOT AT PIVOTAL

POINT OF INFRASTRUCTURAL

KNOT

GAP FILLING, ADJACENCY TOHIGLINE PARK

PROGEssentially, the programs which reside within the blocks should be pedestrian attracting, public ponits o

ity. For the most part, the blocks are envisioned to house commercial spaces at top, to oce or uniqu

grams at bottom. Program has been decided or the chosen block points due to urban connectivity, pr

adjacency, isolation, potential points o ocus, and size. Along Walnut Street Program has been sommirrored between the identities o University city and Center city. Potential student housing is situated

the Schuylkill while large commercial theaters and restaurants have been placed in Univers


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RESTAURANTS/COMMERCECAFES - SMALL SHOPS

COMMERCE - RECREATION (GYMS)

OFFICES

COMMERCE - WATER RECREATION (BOATING)

PUBLIC-COMMERCE -LIBRARY-WORKSPACE-(EDUCATION)

STUDENT HOUSING - SMALL

- UNIVER

CL

STORES-RESTAURANTS-OFFICES

ENTERTAINMENT COMMERCE

(THEATRES - LARGE STORES)

SMALL SHOPS

RCE

COMMERCE - RECREATION (GYMS)

OFFICES

COMMERCE - WATER RECREATION (BOATING)

PUBLIC-COMMERCE -LIBRARY-WORKSPACE-(EDUCATION)

TAI

TRES - LARGE STORES)

SMALL SHOPS

HO N - M LL

NIVER

C

-RESTAURANTS-OF CES


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STRICT STAIR CONNECTOR WIDENED AND WARPED STAIR CONNECTOR

-PLACE AND FOCUS

WIDENED STAIR , OFFSET RHYTHM

-PLACE AND SLOWED PACE

WIDENED STAIR , PLACE INJECTION

-PLACE WITH MULTIPLE NODES

-OFFSET CIRCULATION

STRICT RAMWIDENED STAIR CONNECTOR

-PLACE

The Island buildings are carved initialy with this catalogue o

conn

Through elongating and space injecting, through thickening and

strict connectors can be modied to creat place, distort the urbanocus or direct

The project is more or less an assemblage o these parts, emp

specic ways to enhance their potential to create a public sp

(Not included: T


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Now with an abundance o pedestrian connectivity between University City and Center City, the network itsel can become a place, as

new pockets and attractors, reorienting and fuctuating identity and activity between.

Render collages


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ARCH5101 Vertical Shift: overcoming a boundary of confusion

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