Portfolio: Plan

As this design problem had such a strong Sustainability component to it, from the beginning I began to focus on a few specific green strategies to help me achieve this. First and foremost, I wanted to use as many prefabricated components as possible. Not only did I want to use prefabricated components, but recycled prefabricated components. It was my intention to articulate my design thru the use of retrofitted shipping containers which could be “plugged into” the main core building which is constructed on site. This could serve a two fold purpose. First, cut down on the energy associated with harvesting, manufacturing, transporting, and assembling raw materials, and second, reuse something that presently exists in abundance in storage yards all over the world. The containers could be used as dorm rooms, class rooms, break rooms, etc. They are versatile and built to be transported. The core building, which also serves to articulate my “buffer” concept, is the framework which these containers can dock into. Furthermore, by staggering the containers in a sawtooth fashion, I am maximizing southern light and views to each of these spaces. Educating future designers in a place where sustainable approaches such as adaptive reuse and passive daylighting are so strongly apparent, is a perfect way to ensure that they take these values, as well as lessons learned, with them into the future.

Concerning the arrangement of spaces, I attempted to transition public into private, and vice versa, through verticality. Simply put, the level on the street is readily accessible to the public who are encouraged to use the plazas and visit the gallery space to learn about the program and the BAC. On the second level, slightly detach from the public and the street, strategically positioned to observe the users below, are the academic spaces. And finally, the top two floors contain the dorms and provide for maximum privacy. At the lowest level of the building, a small parking garage, mechanical, and storage spaces exist. I feel that the plan is an effective blend of my parti and my program.