Steel Design Student Competition 11th Annual ACSA / AISC Student Competition
CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER CATEGORY II OPEN
Sponsor
American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), headquartered in Chicago, is a non-profit technical institute and trade association established in 1921 to serve the structural steel design community and construction industry in the United States. AISC’s mission is to make structural steel the material of choice by being the leader in structural-steel-related technical and market-building activities, including: specification and code development, research, education, technical assistance, quality certification, standardization, and market development. AISC has a long tradition of more than 90 years of service to the steel construction industry providing timely and reliable information.
Administrator
The Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA), is a nonprofit, membership association founded in 1912 to advance the quality of architectural education. The school membership in ACSA has grown from 10 charter members to over 250 schools in several membership categories. These include full membership for all accredited programs in the United States and government-sanctioned schools in Canada, candidate membership for schools seeking accreditation, and affiliate membership for schools for twoyear and international programs. Through these schools, over 5,000 architecture faculty are represented. In addition, over 500 supporting members composed of architecture firms, product associations and individuals add to the breadth of interest and support of ACSA goals. ACSA provides a major forum for ideas on the leading edge of architectural thought. Issues that will affect the architectural profession in the future are being examined today in ACSA member schools.
Copyright Š 2011 The Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture ISBN 978-0-935502-78-7
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All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publication may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of the Association of collegiate Schools of Architecture. To order additional copies of this summary, contact: Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture | 1735 New York Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20006 | Tel: 202.785.2324 | Fax: 202.628.0448 - www.acsa-arch.org
2010-2011
Steel Design Student Competition 11th Annual ACSA / AISC Student Competition
CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER CATEGORY II OPEN
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INTRODUCTION
STRUCTURAL STEEL
THE CHALLENGE
CRITERIA FOR JUDGING
The Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) is pleased to announce the winners for the eleventh annual steel design student competition for the 2010-2011 academic year. Administered by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) and sponsored by the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), the program was intended to challenge students, working individually or in teams, to explore a variety of design issues related to the use of steel in design and construction.
The 2010-2011 Steel Design Student Competition offered architecture students the opportunity to compete in two separate categories. CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER Category I, Homeless Assistance Center calls for students to: 1. Develop a program for a homeless assistance center that acts as a bridge to preparing residents for reentrance into society; and 2. Execute the program in the design of facility on an urban site of the student and/or faculty’s choosing. CATEGORY II OPEN Category II, Open submission design option permitted the greatest amount of flexibility for any building type.
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Steel was used as the primary structural material with special emphasis placed on innovation in steel design. Structural steel offers a number of strengths in building design including high resiliency and performance under harsh and difficult conditions, (e.g., earthquakes and hurricanes) and offers the ability to span great distances with slenderness and grace. Steel can be shaped to achieve curved forms and can be erected quickly to meet tough construction schedules under almost any weather condition. Steel can be easily modified to satisfy the life cycle of a building including changing occupant requirements. Steel is the most recycled material in the world. Today structural steel is 97% recycled with the primary source of material being automobiles. It is the environmentally sound choice for a building material. Architects have praise the natural beauty of steel and are excited about exposing it in the design of their structures to emphasize grace, slenderness, strength and transparency of frame.
Criteria for the judging of submissions included: creative use of structural steel in the design solution, successful response of the design to its surrounding context, and successful response to basic architectural concepts such as human activity needs, structural integrity, and coherence of architectural vocabulary. The final result of the design process was a digital submission of up to four presentation boards describing the design solution. In addressing the specific issues of the design challenge, submissions demonstrated the design solution’s response to the following requirements: • An elegant expressive understanding of the material – Steel; • A strength of the argument and the proposal’s ability to support the concept for the design (Category I); • An articulate mastery of formal concepts and aesthetic values; • A mature awareness and innovative approach to environmental issues; • A thorough appreciation of human needs and social responsibilities; • A capability to integrate functional aspects of the problem in an architectural manner, and • A capacity to derive a design, using steel, with the maximum innovation and possibility.
Contents Sponsors
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Introduction and the Challenge
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Category I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
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First Prize
8
Second Prize
14
Third Prize Honorable Mentions
20 26, 28, & 30
Category II OPEN
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First Prize
34
Second Prize
40
Third Prize
46
Honorable Mentions
52, 54, & 56
Participating Schools
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Category I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER According to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, there were 664,414 sheltered and unsheltered homeless persons nationwide on a single night in early 2008. This number suggests that 1 in every 190 persons in the United States used the shelter system at some point in that period. Homelessness in the U.S. is increasing rapidly in both the number without shelter and severity of their condition. The cause of homelessness is the scarcity of low-cost housing, lack of job skills, alcohol and drug dependency, and domestic violence. Offering design solutions to meet the basic necessities of food, shelter and clothing is much more complex than one would first anticipate. The new composite portrait of a homeless person is evolving from the single older male of the 1970’s toward a person who is younger, better educated, and often accompanied by family. At 39%, children were the fastest growing segment of the homeless population in a national survey conducted in 2003. Programming for these diverse demographics is difficult. Perhaps one of the most challenging aspects of shelter design is fully understanding a homeless person’s point of view. The typical homeless shelter resident is undergoing a crisis that has resulted in a change of lifestyle and the loss of familiar surroundings. This experience can effect a dramatic change in a person’s worldview, impacting their needs and priorities. Therefore, designing shelter includes services such as social worker counseling, health care, nursery care, literacy programs, and job readiness training. They also include other public functions, bringing privacy, security, and dignity as major concerns that must be considered.
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the challenge
Category I, Homeless Assistance Center called for students to: 1. Develop a program for a homeless assistance center that acts as a bridge to preparing residents for reentrance into society; and 2. Execute the program in the design of a facility on an urban site of the student and/or faculty’s choosing.
site
The Homeless Assistance Center was to be sited on a city lot to be chosen by the faculty sponsor or the student. The criteria for site selection include the following: Size: the site should be no larger than a single city block Context: the site should be located in an easily accessible area of the city Access: the site should have access to public transportation such as light rail, commuter rail, subway, or bus
program
Students and/or faculty developed a program for a homeless assistance center that acts as a bridge to prepare residents for reentrance into society. Specific requirements for specific city, site, and environment was incorporated into the final design. The Homeless Assistance Center had a requirement to be between 75,000 – 100,000 square feet of interior space. Following is a list of program spaces provided for consideration: • medical services • security • job placement (community engagement) • health and mental services • social worker counseling • recreation • kitchen and dining facilities • exercise • lodging quarters • worship • classrooms • exterior spaces
Panel of Judges
The design jury convened July 2011, to select the winning projects and honorable mentions and consisted of the following individuals: Linda Brock, University of British Columbia, is a registered architect with experience in forensics and energy efficient housing. Her research focuses on building envelope systems, prefabrication and globalization of building components, indigenous and historical use of building materials, cultural components of housing, and the global marketing of light wood frame housing. Her findings have been presented at international conferences. Chris Rockey is the principal of Rockey Structures, LLC, in addition to being an Assistant Professor at Illinois Institute of Technology, College of Architecture, and has over 15 years of experience in the structural engineering field from initial conception through construction phase services. Prior to teaching and starting his own practice, Mr. Rockey served as an Associate for Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, an international A/E firm with over 700 employees worldwide, as well as being a Project Engineer for Halvorson Kaye Structural Engineers. His design projects have included office, residential, civic, renovation, urban, transportation facilities. In coordination with the architectural and building services teams, he incorporates the structural engineering design concepts within project requirements. Mr. Rockey, drawing upon his experience in the architectural, engineering, and construction fields, provides engineering consultation that combines aesthetics, constructability, and efficiency. Ryan Smith is the Director of the Center for Integrated Design and Construction. Smith’s research includes analyzing the integration process, players and collaborations including the use of BIM, energy, and lifecycle simulation. Smith teaches in the areas of materials and process of design to construction, sustainability of materials, digital means that facilitate design to construction, sustainability quantification, prefabrication and building technology , and studio integrative pedagogy. He has received the ACSA Collaborative Practice Award and the ACSA Creative Achievement Award for his industry collaborative teaching. Smith is a graduate of the University of Arizona and UC Berkeley.
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first prize Category I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
Student
Igor Białorucki Warsaw University of Technology / University of Detroit Mercy
Faculty sponsor Anthony C. Martinico University of Detroit Mercy
Project title
Homeless Assistance Help Centre …mobile
Juror Comments
Inviting scale brought to human level to encourage participation and use. The project has potential for reuse and relocation with a comprehensible construction system. Could be produced in any urban or suburban context on an economically feasible budget. Prefab steel frames with an ease of construction using light sections that would preclude the need for a crane. Graphic presentation is simple and accurate. All around an elegant but unassuming design submission.
student design essay
Location The centers are usually located in areas leased from the city. Their non-profit nature contributes to placing them in the least attractive locations. Therefore, the idea of this project is mobility. It is based on an original system of prefabricated steel frames. Building time is expected to last not more than two weeks. As a consequence this center can easily be placed in a prosperous area of the city. However, when authorities decide about other usage of the area, the center could be transported to another location at minimal costs. As an example a plot in Warsaw on Bliska street has a good communication link with the city by the Eastern Railway Station. What is very important, the location near the place of an intense public usage, will help to change the stereotype of a homeless person lying on the station to a person who takes actions in order to alter his/her life. Functions in the building are divided into several service zones: education, nutrition, healthcare, hygiene, social care and a separate residential zone. The constructional technology requires a simple division into four blocks, each of them can be built independently and adapted to different requirements thanks to the system of transportable partition walls. From the outside, the building surrounded by 17,7 in. (45 cm.) platform, ensuring communications and “the first contact” access. Nutrition and healthcare zones are available both from outside and inside the building. The interior is accessible through four main entrances where two blocks meet together. Each block has a two-path hallway layout next to the courtyard and rooms adjoined. On the ground level blocks are not connected with internal communication, while on the first floor blocks are connected by a crossing over the main entrance.
Vertical communication is ensured by three staircases and a mechanical jack which lifts a covered ramp with a slope of 8% to the first floor. Next to each vertical communication route there is a prefabricated bathroom module placed. Ecology Recycling of steel reaches 70-80% so this project assumed to use a steel in almost every element and part. Starting from drilled foundation piles through main construction frame system, corrugated steel floors and finishing with corrugated steel sandwich panels used in elevation. What is more, to supply building with heat, in every block there is pot-bellied stove heated with biomass placed. Heat is distributed with warm air ventilation system. Typology Due to the fact that the building is a prefabricated, we cannot refer to a specific environment. Thus the best solution is such a construction of a building form which will give an impression that the building blends with the landscape, either urban or natural. It can be achieved by using light, mesh construction. Architecture’s blur and transparency gives the feeling of an easy access, and encourages to come inside. The space around the building leads very smoothly to the interior. Moving from the public area through half-public and semi-private to private. Despite the impression of lightness and openness of the architecture, users have to be provided with a sense of security. To this end a complex of buildings is formed in a closed system. Thanks to many ways to enter the building, residents have a peace of mind, and there is always a chance to withdraw from an unwanted situation. Another element which increases the sense of security is a slight elevation of the ground floor above the ground level. To see more, people tend to go higher. Similarly, in this case, by raising the level of the floor, residents have a further view, and hence their well-being is improved (they feel safer), because they feel more control over the situation. In the building the is an inner courtyard formed, which also plays a role in the activation of the residents. Referring to the remarks of the psychologist Mr. Leszek Adamczyk, there is a positive aspect of giving tasks to homeless people in the center. The inner courtyard should be a place where some of the residents could find an activity for themselves. By creating a garden, we can achieve two positive effects. Firstly, aesthetic green surroundings will be beneficial for well-being of people living there. Secondly, some of them will be responsible for maintaining this place and caring for green. Despite the problems connected with the involvement in work for the homeless center it is essential to give such opportunities to the center, leaving the decision up to social workers. Technology The main technological objective of the project, is mobility of the building. For this purpose, a system of prefabricated steel frames has been developed. Building construction process begins with driving 47,2 in. (120 cm.) pile, to which there is a hinge attached that allows rapid assembly of the frame. The frames consist of three elements. Each frame is mounted and fastened to the hinges horizontally, and using a guy-wire posed vertically. This eliminates the use of heavy cranes. Frames are connected with beams and the whole structure is rigid with angle ties. Any combination of elements is based on fast assembly system. In such a construction there are corrugated steel sheets as a floor support inserted. The next step is to placed prefabricated modules with toilets, showers and a bath unit adapted to disable people needs. Finally the whole construction is covered with sandwich panels.
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Board 1
FIRST PRIZE
CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
Board 2
Board 3
Board 4
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FIRST PRIZE
CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
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second prize Category I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
Student
Iroha Ito Louisiana Tech University
faculty sponsor Robert Fakelmann Louisiana Tech University
Project title Resource Tent
Juror Comments
Innovative and articulate use of steel connections along with an eye to environmental strategies, incorporating ventilation space between units. The nonorthogonal structure has a realistic approach to complex construction techniques. Building that hugs the ground with a restrained asymmetrical geometry. Overall a good design solution as an example of amorphous architecture.
student design essay
Project Background and Site Information Seattle has developed significant support for the homeless with the flourishing operation of “Tent Cities”. Tent City 3 (TC3) consists of one hundred homeless men and women who passed health, mental and physical checks by the managing NPO called SHARE. The site is relocated to a new area of the city every ninety days. Many Tent City residents are employed in temporary or day labor jobs. However, their income is insufficient to obtain more permanent housing for themselves. In addition to the TC homeless people, over two thousand unsheltered homeless people live out of their cars, while others stays in makeshift structures or meander around the downtown area. The project is situated south of the St. Mark’s Cathedral in Capitol Hill, Washington. The St. Mark’s Cathedral was the first host of TC3 in 2002 and finished hosting the Tent City 3 in its parking lot by November 27, 2010. The Cathedral has been the most frequent host of TC3. The site is accessible from downtown Seattle by bus, car and bicycle.
Project Synopsis The Resource Tent provides opportunities for the two types of homeless people in Seattle, sheltered and unsheltered, to redeem their individual responsibility and to become fully functioning members of society. The desirable resources for sheltered homeless people, assumed to be from Tent Cities (TC), are job training, literacy programs, as well as job placement. Tent City prohibits alcohol, drugs and violence. After a period of time the homeless people from TC are relatively healthy and ready to move onto the next step, re-entering society. For unsheltered homeless people, health care and mental services are most likely to be mandatory. The Resource Center also urges them to become participants of TC, which in turn, helps them to regain their responsibilities as a part of the community at large. By accommodating both types of homeless people, the building encourages a symbiotic relationship between them. There are two main entry points in the building, each corresponding to the type of homeless people arriving and what their needs may be. The East Broadway entrance brings those who are seeking shelter and health services from downtown Seattle onto the camp ground. The East 10th avenue entrance leads to a staircase which brings homeless people directly to the job placement facility. The first floor contains a bathroom, shower room, and a small kitchen. This area is accessible to all who camp out on the site. The worship space gives the camping homeless people a secluded respite from their daily activities outside of the building. Minimization of building function on the ground floor results in a creation of TC-like life experience. As one ascends the staircase to the education area, a view of the St. Mark’s Cathedral, where TC-3 began, is revealed through layers of delicate structure, the translucent building envelope and the camping site below. This visual connection - the individual to the camp, the camp to the city, and the city to society - is designed to motivate the occupants in the direction of societal life. The upper level functions as the special needs space, providing physical and mental health care, as well as vocational resources. The building facilitates the ability of the homeless people in the city of Seattle to overcome the alienation from society that they experience both physically and mentally. The Resource Tent encourages homeless people to find a place where they can construct the idea of home.
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Board 1
second PRIZE
CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
Board 2
Board 3
Board 4
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natural light/ direct and indirect
camp ground 1
main entrance stair case
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worship
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cafeterior
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classrooms
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mental service
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health care
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activity and excercise area
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balcony/ garden
rainwater recycling system 8
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natural open space for the inflow
third floor plan
5 8
4
4
4
4
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4
4
1
3 2 A _ section 0’
8‘-0”
16’-0”
second PRIZE
CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
ground floor plan
polycarbonate panel
secondary structure
interior stractural cable
floor slab suspension cable
rainwater flows down skin rain gutter
wheel chair railing system
primary structure
natural open space for the inflow
concrete base
B _ wall section 0’
5’-0”
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west elevation
north elevation
north elevation north elevation
north elevation
east elevation
east elevation east elevation
east elevation
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third prize Category I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
Student
Martin Bouvard University of Nebraska-Lincoln
faculty sponsor Rumiko Handa University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Project title
Ribbons Connecting Homelessness to Society
Juror Comments
The project has a practical floorplan with believable and graceful design solutions. The metal skin provides simple privacy while creating openings for views and light.
student design essay
After making observations during several visits to the homeless shelters of Lincoln, NE, I concluded that there are three problems. First, there are not enough dorms dedicated to the housing of those in need. Second, the city of Lincoln does not have any activities that help the integration of homeless people into society. A large percentage of the homeless population has the necessary skills to get decent jobs but their real need is to interact with the people of the community in order to create opportunities to be integrated into society. Third, the two existing shelters are located in remote areas away from the urban center, making it even more difficult to integrate the homeless into society. This project will help respond to these issues by offering a new shelter and a dining hall, where homeless people will interact with members of the Lincoln community at meal times. Two elements will make using the dining hall easy for everyone: Location The project’s site is in the center of downtown Lincoln between Centennial Mall and N streets. Currently, this area is occupied by Pershing Center, the multipurpose auditorium designated to be demolished in 3 years. The proposed shelter will be incredibly accessible being only a few minutes walk from most office buildings in downtown Lincoln. There are over 6,100 parking spaces (7 covered parking garages) located near the site. The shelter will also be accessible by bike, thanks to bike racks integrated into the project. Several bus lines also pass by the site. Architecture The architecture of the building itself is designed to help interactions between people by providing strong connections between interior and exterior. The project utilizes the flexibility of steel, bending and curving the material to create the concept of the building. The building’s spaces, both indoor and outdoor, and the activities being held within will be generated by a system of bands of steel (or ribbons). The steel and the smoothness of the shapes will create a public space acting as a bridge to reintegrate homeless people into the society. The design and location of the building will help make impossible the ignorance of the homelessness in the city of Lincoln.
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Board 1
third PRIZE
CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
Board 2
Board 3
Board 4
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third PRIZE
CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
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Student
Andrew Sedersten Oklahoma State University
faculty sponsors
John J. Phillips, Khaled A. Mansy, Tom Spector, Jeanne Homer & Jerry L Stivers Oklahoma State University
project title
Oklahoma City Homeless Assistance Center for Families
student design essay
Board 1
Board 2
The design of the Oklahoma City Homeless Assistance Center for Families will offer a place of protection and shelter while creating connections to the greater Oklahoma City community both within and beyond the facility. This connection is achieved by relating residents to a common interest in rebuilding their lives, that builds and encourages relationships with their families, neighbors, and community. For the family assistance center, this common link is the Beacon of Hope, a sculptural piece located east of the site that signifies hope for the families and patients of the nearby medical center. Organized around views of the sculptural piece, the center offers hope to all residents. With this design, the individual units help build an open relationships between the members of the family by limiting the physical barriers within each unit. Although the units are divided into individual spaces, the dividers are not permanently placed, nor do they seal off the space from the rest of the unit. By organizing the units around the Beacon of Hope, the resulting layout creates smaller communities within the center. A series of nodes connect four units together and form a shared community space that allows the four families to become familiar with one another. Through these nodes, residents continue to maintain a connection with both the Beacon of Hope and with the greater community.
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Board 4
structure axon Organizationally, the main community spaces anchor the assistance center on each end. The administration and health clinic mark the main entry and signify the starting point of the transitional process from homelessness to a more fulfilling lifestyle. Moving from the entry block and through the nodes of units, the recreational areas anchor the other end. Through this organization and design of the assistance center, individuals will build relationships on many levels, thereby helping to reacquaint residents with the community beyond the transitional housing center. Screen Design Throughout the design, steel is utilized in several aspects, but it is most prominent in its use on the exterior. The west facade is shielded from the setting sun as well as views from the street by a steel framed screen. This screen provides a sense of security for the residents while maintaining views to nearby Oklahoma City. By utilizing steel as the main structure for the screen, the frame becomes open and expressive. Comprised of steel angle members and thin tension cables, the frame supports ipe planks. The experience between the screen and unit offers a well shaded area for residents on the ground and second level.
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honorable mention CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
Students
David Hurtado, Colin Winchell & Luis Salas Woodbury University
faculty sponsor Daniel Rabin Woodbury University
project title
[inside]OUT Homeless Facility
student design essay
Located within Skid Row, Los Angeles, [inside]OUT Homeless Facility situates itself on the corner of 6th Street and San Pedro Street, within the highest concentration of homeless in the area. There are a total of 42,694 homeless people within the greater LA area and this accounts for about 21% of the nation’s total homeless population. Board 1
Board 2
[inside]OUT Homeless Facility is a four story building aimed at reintegration back into society. It operates on a referral basis in conjunction with the Housing First program. The Housing First program is an organization which takes temporary homeless people from shelters all over the country, and places them in permanent housing. However, there are several stages in the Housing First process. [inside] OUT Homeless Facility operates as the “crisis intervention� stage, which helps stabilize individuals in preparation for reintegration back into society. As a means of creating a facility that is both functional and welcoming, [inside]OUT Homeless Facility utilizes a balance between inside and outside. Rather than taking homeless people (who are predominantly outside) into a shelter for twelve hours a day, [inside]OUT Homeless Facility peels the sidewalk into the building creating a continuous loop of circulation and external program, wrapping around the complementary internal program. This allows for the users to choose whether or not they want to experience the building inside or outside, creating an easy transition from being constantly outside, to being constantly inside.
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Board 4
The interior program follows the main circulation path, wrapping around the building. The relationship between interior and exterior is reinforced through the programmatic qualities of the building. The program consists of interior spaces as well as exterior spaces ie: a bedroom inside and a tent outside. If a person is not comfortable sleeping inside, street furniture is arranged throughout the facility in order to accommodate exterior sleeping. In addition, there are a series of outdoor “classrooms� which facilitate exterior job training. On the ground floor, there are small beds set up both inside and outside of the medical clinic to help homeless people in a non-emergency situation. Furthermore, the threshold between these two conditions is blurred through the use of a series of accordion doors. These accordion doors open entire walls as a means of bringing the exterior spaces in, and the interior spaces out. This is to say that the facility has the ability to be completely open, or completely closed, according to the demands of the users. This diversity of space is achieved through a specific structural strategy. The primary structure of the building is a series of long span steel trusses. Hung from these sixteen foot deep trusses, are a series of concrete slabs reinforced using steel decking. Large wide-flange steel I-beams support these floors and are welded to the flanges of the trusses. The combination of these elements allows for a relatively open floor plan and minimal column supports. The perforated corten steel skin is hung from these trusses as well. A series of vertical supports are welded to the flanges of the trusses and the skin is then hung from these supports. The skin consists of a harmonious mix of perforated panels, solid panels, and voids depending upon the corresponding program within the space. When this skin opens, the large steel trusses are exposed, creating a visual diversity as well as a programmatic diversity. The combination of the structure, program, and circulation, creates the essence of the building: a homeless shelter in which a person chooses to experience the building inside, outside, or a combination of the two. [inside]OUT Homeless Facility does not aim to solve the problem of homelessness, but rather create an architectural solution that may ease a homeless person’s transition back into society.
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honorable mention CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
Student
James Metoyer Louisiana Tech University
faculty sponsor Robert Fakelmann Louisiana Tech University
project title Subterranean Ascension
student design essay
Board 1
Board 2
Clark County Has one of the highest amounts of homeless per capita which contains the infamous Las Vegas. Many Americans are unaware of the homeless that live in the drainage tunnels. Under the harsh desert conditions the tunnels are the refuge the homeless seek from society. It is here that they will not be judged or punished for their addictions. Throughout this network of tunnels they have built a community in their subterranean environment, it is a place where they have no personal space and can continue their drug and alcohol conditions. In Response to these issues The Homeless Assistance Center aims to allow homeless to ascend from the subterranean tunnels to a center of rehabilitation. The Homeless Assistance Center is located in Las Vegas near the McCarran Airport drainage tunnel entrance. The Homeless Assistance Center program allows the homeless with a choice to enter a hotel for rehabilitation through counsel, services, and living spaces. By creating a steel structure that engages with the drainage ditch it is an opportunity to ascend from the cool dark subterranean environment to a light cool environment. The structure acts in a way that it pays homage to the ditch and uses its curvature to create spaces that allows for plenty of natural light. To create cool spaces the homeless center uses an evaporative cooling system. The program addresses the homeless addict by having group and private counsel spaces. The homeless center allows homeless to have their own personal space through living in pods. In these pods every homeless person has their opportunity to claim a
Board 3
Board 4
space of their own that is naturally cool with a view to the city. It is here that the homeless can began their process of rehabilitation. With the homeless assistance center, a choice for rehabilitation, the homeless have a chance for counsel, services, and personal space. The living spaces allow for plenty of natural light while having personal space and opportunity for counseling and services.
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honorable mention CATEGORY I HOMELESS ASSISTANCE CENTER
Category II open the challenge
The ACSA/AISC 2010-2011 Steel Design Student Competition offered architecture students the opportunity to participate in an open competition category with limited restrictions. This category allowed the students (with the approval of a faculty sponsor) to select a site and building program. Steel was used as the primary structural material with special emphasis placed on innovation in steel design.
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Panel of Judges
The design jury convened July 2011, to select the winning projects and honorable mentions and consisted of the following individuals: Weiling He, Texas A&M, has been a faculty member since 2005, researches design theory with particular focuses on translations across different forms of art, formal descriptions of space, metaphors of making, diagramming and visual thinking. He has a B.Arch and M.Arch from Southeast University in China, along with a PhD in design theory from the Georgia Institute of Technology. She has a wide variety of publications, honors, and awards. Jonathan Ochshorn, Cornell University, is a registered architect whose teaching specialties are in the areas of construction technology and structures. Prior to joining the faculty at Cornell in 1988, he taught at City College of New York while serving as associate director of the City College Architectural Center, a research center supplying technical assistance to community groups in New York City. Since 1976, he also has practiced architecture and urban design in New York and California. Ochshorn’s academic background is in structural engineering (M.I.T.) and urban design (M.U.P., City College of New York), as well as architecture (B. Arch., Cornell). John Syversten, OWPP / Cannon Design, is a senior principal of Cannon Design. Over his more than thirty-year career, John has devoted himself tirelessly to design excellence— focusing much of his time on working with colleges and universities across the United States on projects of all sizes. He is a former Chair of the National Committee on Design of the American Institute of Architects. He is President of the Board of Trustees of the Graham Foundation and immediate-past chairman of the Chicago Architecture Foundation. John also serves on the board of the American Architectural Foundation, on the University of Washington Architectural Commission, on the University of Illinois at Chicago Chancellor’s Design Review Committee, on the Board of Overseers of the College of Architecture at Illinois Institute of Technology and on the board of Family Focus, Illinois. He is also a member of Cannon Design’s executive leadership team and Board of Directors.
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first prize Category II OPEN
Student
Yekaterina Artemchuk McGill University
faculty sponsor Martin Bressani McGill University
Project title
Lacing the Gaze: Public Library and Cultural Centre for NGD, Montreal, Canada
Juror Comments
The design has a simple structural idea with a contrasting concept of using steel in a fragile way while showing interesting characteristics; even though steel is strong it can be bent. The shapes, which appear expressive, are actually compatible with the nature of the high strength material. The skin and structure are integrated together revealing a pattern that is logical but shows complexity with the two overlapping systems.
student design essay
Like an apparition, the screen rises above the solidity of the earth, delicately touching the ground and fading into the distance in a shroud of fog. Lost in its own gracefulness, the fragile members faintly shadow the slender branches enfolding the site in their brittle embrace. A dream, a mirage scintillatingly surrounded by shadow. An elegiac revelation to those lucid enough to see it. Primary research explored the textures and transparencies of fabric as a means of expressing the affect experienced at the site. An image was transferred to fabric and then sewn on to differentiate both the changing perspective and the fading view. The primary panels inspired further research into different types of fabric as a means of representation of an affect. Lace was chosen both for its light transparency and intricate pattern. Wax stiffened the model and created another layer of opacity. The original lace pattern was studied and key elements were extracted. The pattern was at that point too literal, so a simplification and an extraction of the main element, the web, was made. This pattern was then modified and overlaid to create the subsequent mesh. Like the unfurling of a ribbon, the building unwraps itself from the central court
which is a reflection of the surrounding architecture, particularly that of Benny Farm, and twists to meet the street slightly skewed. From the entrance the visitor is faced with a decision: whether to proceed upwards on the series of terraces to the library or to move downwards into the increasingly narrower passage leading down to the cultural centre. The upper floors not only house the fiction section, the multimedia area, but the children and adolescent sections of the library also, with an enclosed animation room for larger and more boisterous functions. The open portions are separate from the quieter covered sections giving the user a number of options for different functions. The ground floor houses the required offices for the library as well as the non-fiction and reference sections. The terrace leading down to the cultural centre also has a small cafe which can be opened to the central court. The first of the downward focusing terraces houses the cloak room as well as a number of support spaces for the cultural centre and auditorium. There is also a large exhibition space that continues downward on the next terrace which houses the entrance to the auditorium from the upper portion of the seating as well as various support spaces for the cultural centre. The last of the downward orientated levels houses the entrance to the lower portion of the auditorium as well as more support spaces. The faรงade was treated like the hem of a skirt, the lace at the corner lifting to make way for the entrance. Reflecting the interior terracing the building ramps up from the ground gradually growing as it unwraps and expands.
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Board 1
first PRIZE CATEGORY II open
Board 2
Board 3
Board 4
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first PRIZE CATEGORY II open 38
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second prize Category II OPEN
Student
James Hinze University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
faculty sponsors Gil Snyder, Frankie Flood, & Kyle Talbott University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Project title
Milwaukee Industrial Exhibition Center
Juror Comments
This design project is a very well thought through solution with graphics that use compelling imagery. The industrial quality of the building has a very light and delicate almost unusual combination. The project demonstrates use of steel on a variety of levels and different scales and makes reference to the history of steel while still being a modern interpretation, which expresses the use of the material.
student design essay
The project is an Industrial Exhibition Center for Milwaukee. Much of the aesthetic and tectonic qualities for project are drawn from Milwaukee’s rich industrial heritage. Once known as the “Machine Shop of the World” Milwaukee offers a perfect venue for this project. The project focuses on not only the overall design and composition of the building, but also the design and function of adaptable architectural elements. The goal of these adaptable elements is to allow the building to change with the exterior environment. In the case of the exhibition setting, the primary element being controlled is sunlight. The design of these adaptable elements will consider not only there function, but the aesthetics of function itself, and how the resulting kinetic qualities can be used to enhance the design. The medium that was used to demonstrate these ideas was a combination of digital representations as well as a series of physical prototypes. In addition to designing the adaptable components, this project focused on how to design at multiple scales. What I mean by this is in addition to designing a few of the details of this building I also wanted to have a comprehensive building design. To accomplish this there was a constant jumping back and forth between the large and the small aspects of the design. It was important to me that the details reflected the same goals as the overall composition. It is my belief that this strategy allows the designer to create a building with a greater degree of cohesiveness, from the overall concept, down to the fine details. This strategy helps alleviate the common disconnect between a building’s larger concepts and the details that ultimately make up the building.
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Board 1
second PRIZE CATEGORY II open
Board 2
Board 3
Board 4
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second PRIZE CATEGORY II open
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third prize Category II OPEN
Student
student design essay
faculty sponsor
Arno River = the missing puzzle piece in the city. It has resulted in an engineering construction that makes the riverbanks inaccessible and functionally bifurcate the city.
Kwan Lui New Jersey Institute of Technology
Michael Stephen Zdepski New Jersey Institute of Technology
Project title arno. botanicaline
Juror Comments
This project mediates and connects pedestrians to the Arno River in Florence, Italy. The project exploits the lightness and the strength of steel. The structural material is used as a framework for holding nature in place, an interesting and provocative contrast between industrial material that is rooted into the ground. A performance garden creating a wonderful collection of different experiences from interior to exterior spaces, all along an urban corridor.
Florence = a city that has been built up with layers of history and culture. It is important to understand the physical and socio-cultural conditions of the city.
Botanical Garden = a public space allowing for social and cultural interaction. Botanical Garden + Arno River + Florence = to reinterpret the piazza, a medieval typology, into a modern instrument of leisure, life and growth. The Arno: Botanical Line attempts to address the relationships of Garden, River and Florence by providing a flexible steel skeleton to accommodate functional and seasonal changes. Along its length, it marks the natural growing cycle of the plant life, resulting in a variety of landscape experience. The south facing existing retaining wall is used as a thermal wall to harvest heat for radiant heating systems in each garden. Plants are organized in segments to avoid concentration or clustering of landscape. Extending the city side into the river side, the locus is kept to its thinnest, allowing sunlight to the sidewalk and visual experience to the other side of the city. Screens of vegetation act as a sliding landscape revealing and hiding views of the river with differences in height, species, transparency and density. Northern gardens are ecologically irrigated, by a linear wetland system that cleans the river water from the South side of the river. In contrast to the fast speed of the Arno River, this linear experience is characterized by slowliness, a lifestyle that most Florentines live by. It brings pedestrians to experience the river at different layers: vertically, from pedestrian level, to the river bed, eventually up to an overlook to Ponte Vecchio; horizontally, with the play of flowing fabrics as a vehicle to shade each interior garden with specific climates. Breaks are imposed during this slow path, allowing for more intense social spaces and urban ecologies to interchange throughout the year. Overall, this line is a framework to absorb an endless series of further meanings, extensions and intensions. 47
Board 1
third PRIZE CATEGORY II open
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third PRIZE CATEGORY II open
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MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE S A N
Social Museum
F R A N C I S C O
Service
Student
Jose Barajas University of Idaho
PROCESS
faculty sponsor
Techne: The tri-parti organization enhances the spacial experience of the MOTMI. The super structure of the threemasses, which originate from a solid form, consist of steel flanges that are braced together. The masses sit on hydralic-mechanical dampers which are anchored to 3’ reinforced concrete columns. The masses are slanted to create an uplifting effect as the user ventures through its’ program. Not only does MOTMI have experiential qualities in its program, but it also pays respect to the surrounding environment with its native plant- green roofs. With similar structural features, the masses differentiate themselves from one another by the skins that wrap around the southern portion of the site. The skins are delicately constructed to allow a feeling of lightness and openness.
Roman Montoto University of Idaho
project title
San Francisco Museum of the Moving Image (MOTMI)
student design essay
Lobby Perspective
Logos The Museum of the Moving Image (MOTMI) creates unique experiences that lure the subconscious into filtered layers of the sublime. Light is woven causing the mind to dwell on the angles that wrap its uplifting fabric.
Location Facts: The Museum of the Moving Image (MOTMI) is nestled on the West coast on a site located at the Transbay District near San Francisco’s South of Market District. MOTMI sits at the intersection of Folsom Street and 1st Street and foot of the Bay Bridge: a place travelers hit the ground after crossing the San Francisco Bay. The site is split in two parts: 1A is southwest and 1B is northeast of 1st street. LOGOS: The Museum of the Moving Image (MOTMI) creates unique experiences that lure the subconscious into filtered layers of the sublime. Light is woven causing the mind to dwell on the angles that wrap its uplifting fabric.
NORTH SECTION SCALE: 1”=20’-0”
Aerial View
LOCATION PLAN
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SITE PLAN
Board 2 EXPLODED-AXON
3. Detail A:
Hydraulic Mechanical Dampers for seismic resistance
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Detail B:
Rigid Frame Steel Beam System W/Additional rigid cross bracing for reinforcement
B.
SKIN 1: 3” Steel tubing space frame SKIN 2: Outdoor balcony with operable louvers
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SKIN 3: Vertical-static wooden louvers with 2” steel tubing for additional shading.
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A. E. D. B.
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Tech Museum of the Moving Image educates the public comprehension and appreciation of the art, history, technique, and technology of film, television, and digital media. By collecting, preserving, and providing access to moving-image related artifacts; screening significant films and other moving-image works; presenting exhibitions of artifacts, artworks, and interactive experiences; and offering educational and interpretive programs to students, teachers, and the general public, the museum stimulates the perceptions of all senses.
M. N.
(A) Native Plants (e.g. Grass, Sedum)
J.
(B) Growing Medium (C) Oldroyd Tp Filter Fleece (D) Oldroyd Xv20 Green Xtra Drainage Layer (49-70% Recycled) (E) Suitable Waterproofing Membrane (F) Concrete Slab
Auditorium
K. O.
L.
(G) Corrugated Metal with a rebar screen
P.
(H) Anchors to prevent uplifting (I) Open Web Steel Joist @ 24” o.c (J) Steel Rod allows for movement (K) Operable shading devices with aluminum framework Solar & perforated cooper panels attach to the framework
N. Q.
N.
(L) Steel Tension Cables (M) Radiation Resistant Glazing (N) Structural 3” Steel Tubing framework
Behind the Screen Gallery Techne:
The balcony stretches out the skin causing a gentle-curved skin profile on the exterior. The skin filters the Southern light during the hot portions of the summer and insulates the museum on the cold months. The balcony creates a dynamic and rich experience as slivers of light seep thought the layered materials that make up the skin. The shading louvers are operable and serve 2 functions, (1) to block the sun, and (2) to receive solar gain thought its solar panels.
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(O) Rigid Frame Steel Beam System W/Additional rigid cross bracing for reinforcement
G.
(P) Suspended perforated Metal Panels (Q) Cooper Perforated Panels on exterior of skin
F.
SKIN 2: BALCONY DETAIL
Many features of the Tri-Parti organization were inspired by the movie Lost Highway, directed by David Lynch. After a bizarre encounter at a party, a jazz saxophonist, Fredd, is framed for the murder of his wife and sent to prison, where he inexplicably morphs into a young mechanic, Pete, and begins leading a new life. The movie is organized in a mobius strip, which essentially ends where it begins. The mobius strip idea was introduced into the museum’s circulation.
In addition, through out the movie the true perceptions of reality weaved in an out; thus, creating a foreplay, which enveloped an experiential and one of kind factor in the museum. The tri-parti organization enhances the spatial experience of the museum. The super structures of the three-masses, which originate from a solid form, consist of steel flanges that are braced together. The masses sit on hydraulic-mechanical dampers, which are anchored to 3’ reinforced concrete columns. The masses are slanted to create an uplifting effect as the user ventures through its’ program. Not only does MOTMI have experiential qualities in its program, but it also pays respect to the surrounding environment with its native plant- green roofs. With similar structural features, the masses differentiate themselves from one another by the skins that wrap around the southern portion of the site. The skins are delicately constructed to allow a feeling of lightness and openness. The skin that creates an outdoor balcony, which is illustrated on the final boards, explores the creative usage of steel. Thin and perforated steel is seemingly and delicately attached to the super structure. The balcony stretches out the skin causing a gentle-curved skin profile on the exterior. The skin filters the Southern light during the hot portions of the summer and insulates the museum on the cold months. While standing at the balcony, glimpses of the surrounding context can be experienced as the sounds are filtered though the layers. The balcony creates a dynamic and rich experience as slivers of light seep thought the layers materials that make up the skin. The shading louvers are operable and serve 2 functions; (1) to block the sun, and (2) to receive solar gain thought its solar panels.
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honorable mention CATEGORY II open
Student
Thomas Fagan California Polytechnic State University, SLO
faculty sponsor
Thomas Fowler IV California Polytechnic State University, SLO
project title PULSE
student design essay
Site Located in the shadow of downtown Los Angeles the site is adjacent to the 110 freeway. Bounded between 1st and 2nd streets the site is split in two by Beaudry Ave
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Concept A pulse emerges from a segmented field. It rises through the ground plane pulling the surface of the field up around it becoming wrapped with a fragmented skin. Finally the pulse lifts into the sky establishing a presence for education within an urban environment. Opposite Beaudry Ave the field is pushed downward, exposing the scar left by a previous pulse. Program As the pulse emerges from the field it is physically connected to the site on different levels. Starting embedded in the site the pulse moves upward and ends cantilevered in the sky. The programmatic spaces of the building follow this motion in order to engage the surrounding context. Spaces that engage the public are embedded in the ground while educational spaces rise above. On the west side of Beaudry Ave the site is an open community space. At the street level there is a public plaza while below, in the depressed scar, is a playground. From the playground a passageway under the road leads to the schools partially submerged gymnasium. As the location for performances and athletics the gym connects the school and the greater community. Moving upward from the gym the main entrance and administration spaces emerge from the ground plane working as a transition between community oriented spaces and educational spaces. Just above this, the schools kitchen
Board 3
Board 4
and café are situated on second level. Spanning between two atriums the café serves as a main open space and allows for interaction between the students and faculty. Finally the classrooms are lifted upward, moving education into the greater urban context, culminating with the library on the top floor cantilevered above the field. Skin/Structure/Materials The buildings skin, program and circulation are all unified by the structural system. Wrapping the pulse every twenty feet the primary structure is a series of wide flange ribs. The external skin is offset from these ribs creating a functional space between. The horizontal structure, which supports the floor slabs within the pulse, extends through this space to support the external skin. Finally, the circulation inhabits this space between the structure and the skin. The external skin is made of anodized perforated aluminum panels and is supported by a frame of square tube steel. The skin pulses outward at each structural bay forming a series of overlapping scales. This layering creates an open-air environment within, which takes advantage of southern California’s mild climate and serves as a transition between external and internal space. The external skin controls and diffuses the light entering the building allowing for a sustainably controlled environment within.
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honorable mention CATEGORY II open
Student
actuated_
Carolyn Rhodes Oklahoma State University
faculty sponsor Mohammed Bilbeisi Oklahoma State University
vancouver, bc
project title
coal harbor
Actuate
view from coal harbor
site
motivated, impelled, and put into motion a much needed diversion.... In a technologically savvy world, why can't building technology not only serve to enhance architectural quality, but on a personal level, help create a much needed ESCAPE from the pressures of everyday life. Active structure incorporating minimal restraint and convention can create an invigorating mental diversion. Buildings of the future have the opportunity to change the attitudes and daily experiences of their inhabitants. Located on the shoreline of Coal Harbor and directly west of the Vancouver Convention Center, the site provides the experience of a fast paced city life and panoramic views of the mountains and ocean. The structure is integrated on two levels with the convention center, a center which attracts delegates from all over the world that represent some of the most technologically advanced and innovative companies. Vancouver Convention Center offers meeting and exhibition space for over 350 world forums each year and will help to increase pedestrian traffic around the site.
student design essay
a b d
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a b
d a
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The design provides multiple large restaurants, retail, and gallery spaces. Most importantly, a departure point for the underground transportation system is located within the building. The active structure and continually transforming spaces allow visitors from all over the world to experience a much needed escape.
a b c d e f g h i
connection to convention center gallery restaurant retail restrooms transportation system lobby transportation system track restaurant/bar greenbelt ramp
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Actuate to motivate, impel, and put into motion The future of the city… Every city is experiencing substantial growth. Growth not only increases economic activity, but intensifies competition, diminishes personal space, and adds stress to any simple task. A much needed diversion… In a technologically savvy world, why can’t building technology not only serve to enhance architectural quality, but on a personal level, help create a much needed escape from the pressures of everyday life. Active structure incorporating minimal restraint and convention can create an invigorating mental diversion. Buildings of the future have the opportunity to change the attitudes and daily experiences of their inhabitants. Located on the shoreline of Coal Harbor and directly West of the Vancouver Convention Center, the site provides the experience of a fast paced city life and panoramic views of the mountains and ocean. The structure is integrated on two levels with the convention center, a center which attracts delegates from all over the world that represent some of the most technologically advanced and innovative companies. Vancouver Convention Center offers meeting and exhibition space for over 350 world forums each year and will help to increase pedestrian traffic around the site. The design provides multiple large restaurants, retail, and gallery spaces. Most importantly, a departure point for the underground transportation system is located within the building. The active structure and continually transforming spaces allow visitors from all over the world to experience a much needed escape. The future of technology… Stagnant structure is in the past. Technological advancements are
allowing steel structures to become responsive to their users and environment. The design incorporates an actuated tensegrity structure; therefore every atmospheric change, water or air, manipulates the form of the structure and the aesthetics of the space. The continually changing building form stimulates any visitor’s movement and mood.
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honorable mention CATEGORY II open
Participating Schools ACSA and AISC would like to thank all member schools for their continued support and participation in our student design competitions.
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American University of Sharjah Auburn University Bowling Green State University California Polytechnic State University Catholic University of America Central Piedmont Community College Clemson University Columbia University Dalhousie University Danish Institute for Study Abroad Drury University Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University Florida Atlantic University Georgia Institute of Technology Illinois Institute of Technology Iowa State University Judson University Lawrence Technological University Louisiana Tech University McGill University Montana State University New Hampshire Technical College, Concord’s Community College New Jersey Institute of Technology New York Institute of Technology NewSchool of Architecture and Design North Carolina State University North Dakota State University Norwich University Oklahoma State University Pennsylvania State University Philadelphia University Portland State University Prairie View A&M University Pratt Institute Princeton University Ryerson University Savannah College of Art and Design Southern Polytechnic State University
Stanford University State University of New York Syracuse University Temple University Texas A&M University Texas Tech University Tulane University Universidad De Puerto Rico University of Cincinnati University of Colorado University of Detroit Mercy University of Florida University of Hartford University of Hawaii At Manoa University of Houston University of Idaho University of Illinois at Chicago University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign University of Kansas University of Louisiana - Lafayette University of Minnesota University of Nebraska University of Nebraska-Lincoln University of Nevada, Las Vegas University of New Mexico University of North Carolina at Charlotte University of Oklahoma University of Oregon University of Tennessee-Knoxville University of Texas at Arlington University of Texas at Austin University of Virginia University of Washington University of Waterloo University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Virginia Tech Washington University in St. Louis Woodbury University
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2010-2011
ACSA PRESS WASHINGTON, DC