Ann Nguyen LA Portfolio

[ann nguyen] +landscape architecture portfolio

SELECTED WORKS

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE IS A TOOL FOR CHANGE.

ann nguyen university of georgia [bla] annle.uga@gmail.com 912.695.5737

SELECTED WORKS +Urban Museums Athens, Georgia

+Health Science Campus Athens, Georgia

+Lyndon Art Center Athens, Georgia

+Medical Center of Central Georgia Macon, Georgia

+Diocleatian’s Palace Split, Croatia

+Participatory Rapid Apprasial Piketburg, South Africa

*all project sites were visited during the design process

+Urban Museums Athens, Georgia

+RENEW, REGENERATE AND REHABILITATE ATHENS, GA HISTORIC DISTRICT FUNCTION AND FUTURE New urbanism is really about old urbanism. You want to put your inhabitant spaces somewhere that does not conflict with nature. Athens Clarke County has almost a dozen listed historic districts. The historic districts are poorly defined and are in need of movement and circulation from one district to the other. The proposed design maximizes attention to the historic architecture and regenerates the landscape by rehabilitating the former ecological character of the site. The proposed future historic district network system will provide an improved pedestrian experience and expression of Athens living ecology and heritage. In addition to satisfying the community’s concern in the management and local identity of Athens historic district, the attention to the city’s heritage will generate potential economic growth and tourism. This proposal focuses on urban redevelopment, function of loss spaces in Athens urban fabric and the connective tissue between the community and the historic structure.

+PIEDMONT LANDSCAPE PATTERNS

+Urban Museums Athens, Georgia

+CONTEXT MAP AND AREA OF STUDY

Legend

+the historic district is located in Athens urban core. the proposed historic district green network system will provide connectivity and revive loss spaces.

HistoricDist allroads

Urbanized_ !

bus stops

acc_bike_ro

0

1.25

2.5

+POINTS OF (RE)WILD

+EASEMENTS

+URBAN DEVELOPMENT

+hydrology

5

7.5

+vegetation

+cooridors

+local historic districts

+Urban Museums Athens, Georgia

+LOCAL HISTORIC DISTRICTS

+ buena vista 45 acres

+ boulevard 144 acres

+ cobbham 87 acres + reese street 12 acres

+ dearing street 10 acres

+ rocksprings 2 acres + west cloverhurst-springdale 25 acres + bloomfield 38 acres

+woodlawn 9 acres

+RETHINKING THE CITY

+EXISTING natural corridors

+PROPOSED CONNECTEDNESS linking the unseen natural systems

+Urban Museums Athens, Georgia +CHARACTER

+POINTS OF DESTINATION

+LOST SPACES

+POINTS OF (RE)WILD

+MASTER PLAN

proposed park

bishop park

health science campus

proposed stormwater weland affordable housing

civic improvement in streetscapes

boulevard woods

+HISTORY The Buena Vista Heights neighborhood was planned out in 1890 by the Athens Park and Improvement Company, a group of Athens business professionals who came together to build what was, at the time, one of the city’s first “suburb.” Homes soon started sprouting along the corridor, taking advantage of the easy commute to downtown Athens. The State Normal School (now the UGA Health Sciences Campus), nearby Normaltown businesses, and the Southern Manufacturing Company’s cotton mill across the railroad tracks, border this neighborhood to the north. Most of the home construction in Buena Vista Heights was done between 1890 and 1949, and architectural styles run the gamut from Victorian homes with gingerbread detailing to simple mill homes. +FUNCTION HISTORIC FUNCTIONS +domestic/single dwelling +transportation/rail-related/streetcar line CURRENT FUNCTIONS +domestic/single dwelling

+Urban Museums

Athens, Georgia + BUENA VISTA DISTRICT 45 acres

+NUMBER OF RESOURCES WITHIN PROPERTY Noncontributing Developed parcels 20 Vacant parcels 4 Total parcels 24 Primary structures 23 Secondary structures 28

Contributing 76 0 76 78 7

The Buena Vista Heights Historic District is an area of approximately eight square blocks and is the newest addition to Athens historic district. Affordable housing is proposed on abandoned parcels, along with green space for each building. The mixed income housing creates a diverse community.

+Urban Museums Athens, Georgia

existing residential housing

a COURTYARD/ GREEN SPACEwill create shared public spaces in the historic district and increase the property value in the district.

the mid-rise AFFORDABLE HOUSEING creates more of a mixedincome group of residents instead of condensing affordable housing

a STORMWATER RETENTION, approximately 2 feet wide will relieve stormwater runoff and create a barrier between pedestrian and vehicular traffic.

+ARCHITECTURAL CLASSIFICATION

a 4 feet wide BIKE LANDE is added to make Boulevard more bike friendly and slows down vehicular traffic by having smaller car lanes.

Late 19th and early 20th Century American movements/craftsman/folk Victorian

+MATERIALS

foundation: brick, stone, concrete walls: wood, brick, stucco, concrete roof: metal, asphalt

existing residential housing

+Health Science Campus Athens, Georgia

The regional pattern of the natural landscape is emphasized in this design.

The defined rectilinear form of the design reflects the natural boundary of the regional vegetation and the boulders reflect the piedmont shoals and granite outcrops. The pine plantation ends where the campus green begins.

The building is atop one of the highest points on the site. This condenses the use of ramps and reduces cross slopes.

The circulation loop of the architecture creates more movement and engages the landscape to define private and public exterior spaces and becomes another passive security measure. The building is adjusted to create privacy as well as views to the green space. The rooms facing the courtyard have beds that are oriented in such a way to allow patients a direct visual to the natural world and have access to outdoors. This system of patient nooks also allows for family members to sit bed side with their loved ones without having to occupy circulation spaces or the space of other patients.

The essential building block is linear with large covered but open areas which increases ventilation and natural lighting opportunities.

+Lyndon Arts Center Athens, Georgia

The art center serves as an educational and art museum for the public. The regional pattern of the natural agriculture is emphasized in this design. The defined rectanlinear form of the design reflicts the natural boundary of the regional vegetation. The pine plantation provides shade and play sturctures, like tire swings and tree houses.

tree house

seating

vegetable garden

tire swing

+ storm water management the storm water filtrates through the native vegetation and agriculture and collects in the water feature at the low point of the site.

+Medical Center of Central Georgia Macon, Georgia

passive to active spaces to ------> RECOVERY “In the ensuing years, MCCG evolved into a 637-bed, full-service, acute care hospital that now serves an estimated population of 750,000 residents in central and south Georgia and is the second largest hospital in the state.�

An average of 10% more people received services in ICRCassisted centers in 2011 than in the previous year.

restore function, improve mobility, relieve pain, and prevent or limit permanent physical disabilities

richard louv, public awareness +foster creativity +allowing residents to deal with recovery in a different way. +improve adult interaction with horticultural therapy and the hospital’s “golden opportunity” program that will take place on the lawn active wilson/kaplan,attention restoration theory +involuntary vs. voluntary +all pavements and structures are recycled brick from the decontruction of the original buildings. +being away, buildings and noise are being screened +fascination, very whimsical and literal design +compatibility, contextuality, the space is filled with familar objects from a “home” +”larger world” taking the “golden opportunity” program outside of the facility active ulrich, positives to nature +exposure to green and brick +stress restoration +emphasis on exercise and rehabilitation +whimsical design serves as a fun distraction +bamboo walls make a safe and private setting

passive

+Medical Center of Central Georgia Macon, Georgia

+ program the recycled brick from the deconstruction of the existing buildings will be repurposed for the new therapuetic garden. the garden is focused on the physical recovery of patients suffering from being physically challenged, cancer and cardiovascular disease.

solid brick pavers (beginners)

spaced bricks with ingrown turf (intermediate)

crushed brick (advance)

+Diocleatian’s Palace Split, Croatia

Over the past 1700 years, the residence of Split have adapted and altered the city to the current needs of each generation. The city started out as the fortified palace of Roman Emperor Diocletian, who in 305 AD abdicated his throne and moved to this location on the Adriatic to live out his remaining years near his hometown of Salona.

Following his death in 316, the palace remained in the possession of the Roman Emperors until the fall of the Western Roman Empire. During the 7th Century, the Avars and Slavs destroyed the nearby city of Salona and at that time, a large number of its citizens took refuge within the palace walls thus converting the palace to the city that is now known as Split. The refugees built their houses within the fortified walls of the palace utilizing existing structures and dividing them into smaller spaces. Soon the medieval city was expanding outside the original walls of the palace while at the same time new palaces built by the Venetian noblemen were being built within the walls of Diocletian’s palace.

As Split grew, it became a major port city for the Venetian empire thus attracting more and more people to live within the city. Split continued to grow until it is now the largest port city on the Adriatic Coast of current day Croatia. As time progressed, the Venetian palaces were subdivided into apartments to accommodate large number of people that were moving to the city and even further subdivision of buildings was done after WWII. It is because of the continued use of the city by its inhabitants that Diocletian’s palace and the medieval part of the city has been preserved so well.

+ urban sprawl Diocleatian’s Palace in the year 305

the early Mediaeval city, 6th century

late Mediaeval autonomous municpality, 1400

fortified twon under the Venetian rule, 1675

intergration of town and the suburbs under Austro-Hungarian sige, 1882

Split before WWI, 1914

Split before WWII, 1941

nucleus of Split, 1985, aroud the city harbor

+Diocleatian’s Palace Split, Croatia

shoe store 205 sq meters rental 1944 sq meters

primary resdiential 8023 sq meters tourist shop 365 sq meters abandoned commercial 799 sq meters

restaurants 351 sq meters

hotel 402 sq meters

renovation commercial 73 sq meters

abandon resdential 1753 sq meters

renovation resdiential 172 sq meters

green space 198 sq meters

+ objective: encourage local residents to

live in the historic core and avoid selling their home to tourists

layers + residential + commercial + green space/ open space

roof top

+ program

+create affordable housing in abandoned spaces of palace +establish green pockets throughout the city to filter air pollution during peaks of tourist season +create jobs for local residents, train workers to maintain green spaces throughout the year

ground floor

+Participatory Rapid Appraisal Piketburg, South Africa

+RESEARCH Research was conducted from 14th-22nd January 2013 by twelve students and three faculty members from North West University (South Africa), Oxford Brookes University (UK), University of Georgia (the U.S.) as well as one Peace Core volunteer.

In total, 24 interviews were conducted with community members as well as government officials within the Picketberg area. Discussions and interviews were also carried out with workers from a grape farm within the Bergrivier Municipality. Secondary research was necessary to develop an understanding of the local history and context.

The focus of our research was outlined by a Terms of Reference document, summarized in the following four questions: • Who is most vulnerable within the community and why?

• What are the major threats and why?

• Who were the major actors and what are their respective roles in increasing/ reducing vulnerability?

• What can be done to reduce vulnerability ion the short, medium and long term?

In order to answer these questions, we approached our research using Participatory Rapid Appraisal (PRA) tools in three different sections of the neighborhood (see graphic), including: Mapping, Transect Walks, Seasonal Calendars, Daily Activities Schedule, Diagrams, Ranking, Matrix Scoring, Key Informant Interviews and Focus Group Discussion.

The underlying belief of PRA is that community members should be central in discussions regarding their community, as they know are most likely to have a better understanding of relevant issues than outside researchers.

Vulnerable Communities Participatory Assessment

Throughout the project, a number of assumptions have been made regarding the accuracy of translated conversations between community members and researchers, as well as any information that could be considered subjective.

Our team has identified a number of threats including: • Cycle of Poverty • Social issues • Environmental hazards • Issues around Community Support Several recommendations are outlined in this report to counter the aforementioned threats in the short, medium and long term. The recommendations include the implementation of vocational training and skills development programmes; public works projects; extramural activities; construction of shell housing; strengthening of community networks; and improved drainage infrastructure.

[ann nguyen] In the past couple of years I focused on local to international projects in Croatia, South Africa and over five different cities in the state of Georgia. I started small with local non-profit organizations in the community like the Georgia River Network, Habitat for Humanity, Athens Land Trust, Athens Homeless Shelter and Sandy Creek Nature Center. These organizations helped me see design challenges in small scale. I started taking on community development and design-build projects in Georgia to learn even more about the contexts of the urban fabric. I look forward to continuing my education in ecology and urban planning to stitch together my detailed small scale designs to a larger system. I want to create adaptable designs that reflect the two major modern problems— urbanism and climate change.

university of georgia [bla] annle.uga@gmail.com 912.695.5737 [references] Pratt Cassity [director] Center of Community Design & Preservation, pcassity@uga.edu Bob Thomson [city planner] Porterdale, Georgia, bthomson@cityofporterdale.com Donnie Longenecker [associate professor] University of Georgia, longneck@uga.edu

[resume] 912.695.5737

Bachelor of Landscape Architecture University of Georgia, Athens, Ga

Expected May 2013

annle.uga@gmail.com

highlights facts and figures [Croatia Study Abroad] international agriculture & heritage conservation [U.S. National Committee of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS)] Split, Croatia, summer intern [Participatory Rapid Appraisal (PRA) Training] Piketburg, South Africa: two weeks of planning and design in emergency and critical community development strategies

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certificates water resource certificate LEED Green Associate, expected May 2013

4

lead designer, design-build projects

5

honors & academic awards

[Georgia Incentive Scholarship] Fall 2008 [HOPE scholarship] Fall 2008-2012 [Dean’s List] Summer 2011, Spring & Fall 2012 [ASLA Student Award] nominee, Spring 2012 [Robert J. Hill Scholarship] Spring 2012

internships volunteer based internship for the 11th annual Eco-Adventure. Recruit participants and assist with designing a new race course. [Athens Clarke County Leisure Services]

proficiencies technical & language Microsoft Office Suite AutoCad InDesign Photoshop Sketchup GIS Vectorworks Hand Graphics

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interest bigger = higher level of interest water resources historical preservation environment

engineering tourism

urban planning graphics architecturehand public policy food production

volunteer based internship with [Georgia River Network] arrange meetings, secure maps, research solutions for sites, assist in directing design charrettes, present and advertise a water trail workshop, introduce potential community projects. design public green spaces, water trails design, parking analysis, work closely with city planner and council members, host and attend public input meetings, coordinate with non-profit organizations, assist in grant proposals and historic preservation issues [City of Porterdale]. record the extant parts of Diocletian’s palace in AutoCAD, analysis of the historic core of Split, Croatia (maps of property, functions, etc.), assist with surveying on other office projects, create design proposals for public green spaces on the northern section of the palace.[U.S. National Committee of the Internatioinal Council on Monuments and Sites]

English Spanish Vietnamese

transportation writing community development

design charrettes, [Center for community Design and Preservation] assist in redesigning affordable homes and partnering with the Athens Land Trust; host community meetings, redesigning and reevaluating the downtown area, community center and outdoor recreational spaces with community input in Canon, Georgia. Directed two mill town charrettes in Athens and Porterdale, Georgia. Directed Habitat for Humanity charrette in Athens, Georgia.

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university work study [Enterprise Information Technology Services] update and record University’s central technology data in AutoCAD, work with a small scale team to provide technology and support throughout campus.

Working/living in the [Covington Metropolitan Studio] host public input meetings, record meeting minutes, live/interact/cooperate with 10 other students for 10 weeks, redesign for the local cities in Newton County.

[ thank you ]