Harvesting Resilience by carloshkg

Va s s a r C o l l e g e Urban Studies Senior Project

HARVES T I N G

R E SI LI ENC E:

Developing the design of a food hub through the adaptive reuse of the abandoned Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory building

C a r l o s I g n a c i o H e r n รก n d e z Te l l e z Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Bachelors of Arts in Urban Studies

Advisers

To b i a s A r m b o r s t Leonard Nevarez

Va s s a r C o l l e g e Urban Studies Senior Project Harvesting Resilience: Developing the design of a food hub through the adaptive reuse of the abandoned Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory building C a r l o s I g n a c i o H e r n รก n d e z Te l l e z April 21, 2014 Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Bachelors of Arts in Urban Studies Advisers To b i a s A r m b o r s t Leonard Nevarez

Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve said goodbye to the overworked notion that architecture has to save the world. Peter Zumthor

TABLE OF CONTENTS Ac k no w l ed g em en t s Pro j e ct S u m m ar y A B ri e f H i sto ry o f the Po ug hk e e psi e U nde rwear F act o r y

SECTION I: <define> Food Hub

To w a rd s a F o o d H u b c o n c e p t f o r Po u g hkeep s ie, N Y C it ie s a n d Ur b a n F o o d S y s tem s Wh a t is a Fo o d H ub ? Te r m in a l M a r k e t / De s t in a t io n F o o d H ub M o d el Ad v a n t a g e s o f a H y b r id M o d el B r id ging the Gap L o o k in g Ah e a d : R c o m m e n d e d A p p ro ach O p p o r t u n it ie s f o r a M id d le M a in Po u g h k e e p s ie Fo o d H ub

SECTION II: <explain> Adaptive Reuse

C o n t e s t in g t h e N o t io n o f St a tic Build ing s Ad a p t iv e R e u s e Un d e r t h e L o o king Glas s I t â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s N o t All R o s y : Ur b a n Sp r a w l a n d Gentr ificatio n

SECTION III: Site and Context C a r t o g r a p h ic C o n t ex tualiz atio n Sit e Bo und ar ies

S EC T IO N IV: C urrent Condit ions S EC T IO N V: D es i g n Precedent s S EC T IO N VI: T he Proposal

F le x ib ilit y a n d Dy nam is m O p e n n e s s a n d Se lf -Go v er nance Aff o rd a b ilit y a n d S o cial Eq uity

S EC T IO N VII: H arv es ti ng the H ard Wo rk: A V irt ual V isit B i b l i o g r ap h y

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS To the architects that have shaped my architectural experience on the eclectic Vassar College campus: Eero Saarinen, Marcel Breuer, Cesar Pelli, James Renwick Jr; To my inspiring adviser Tobias Armborst, for pointing me towards an architecture that is site-specific, urban-minded, and aware of its historical and cultural contexts; To Lisa Brawley, whose beautifully articulated thoughts have guided me on my journey as a queer urbanist of color; To Leonard Nevarez, for reminding me that, even at nine a.m., thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s beauty in all things urban; To Nicholas Adams, for teaching me the language of buildings; To Mary Ann Cunningham and her treasure chest full of maps; To Margaret Vetare, idea-bouncer and loyal confidante; To Elizabeth Celaya at Hudson River Housing; To Susan Grove at the Poughkeepsie Plenty Food Coalition; To my fellow urbanites and partners in crime on the Urban Studies Majorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Committee: Lizzie Tepler, Isaac Lindy, Katie George and Maddie Szkobel-Wolff; To Jeremy Garza, unconditional friend and thesis-writing partner. To Logan Falk-Woodruff for walking next to me during the entire journey. To my housemates Naimah Petigny, Jeffrey From, and Akeel St. Vil for providing a lovely home to come to after long nights in the studio; A mis adorados Carlos y Andreina, y a mis hermanas queridas Elena y Sofia.

PROJECT SUMMARY

This Senior Project consists of a design proposal for a hypothetical food hub establishment housed in the abandoned Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory building in downtown Poughkeepsie, NY. I draw on geography and architecture as my principal academic foci within Urban Studies, and my involvement and experience with the Poughkeepsie Farm Project since 2011. The growing interest within the field of architecture in adaptive reuse strategies heavily informs the angle from which I approach this design task. Initially, a brief but all-encompassing history of the site and building are presented in order to inform the intentions of this locally and historically specific project. Resident interviews, historical research, GIS mapping, photography and street-level observation are some of the methodologies employed as part of the contextualization exercise. Butâ&#x20AC;Ś what exactly is a food hub? A conceptual exploration of this notion is presented in order to further expand the contexts of this design. The City of Poughkeepsie has long struggled with the issue of food accessibility and availability of fresh produce in the downtown neighborhoods of the city. Particularly affected are the residents of the Middle Main area, who, immersed in the car-centric environment of Poughkeepsieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main arterials, struggle with issues of affordability of produce as well. On the other hand, many farmers and ranchers in the area, especially smaller operations, are challenged by the lack of distribution and processing infrastructure that would give them access to wider markets, where demand for local and regional foods continues to rise. Food hubs can help bridge these gaps. The following document presents my ideas for what I believe would be a building that learns about, reacts to, and gravitates around food issues yet provides the platform for a wider range of community and neighborhood-based activities: a true harvester of resilience in the Middle Main neighborhood.

A Brief History of the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory

At some point in time, the fractures and surfaces of the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory were intact and strong. The waters of the Fall Kill provided this building (and many like it) with the energy required for industrial might. A Brooklyn shoe manufacturer built this three-and-a-half story brick factory in 1874 to manufacture his product.1 In 1899 the Queen Undermuslin Company was incorporated, and in 1904 it moved from a location on Mill Street into the building in question, forever leaving its mark on the property.2

The Poughkeepsie Queen Undermuslins Company

Over time, the building shifted hands numerous times, and each time, it produced something new. A new proprietor took over within a decade and began manufacturing skirts here. In the last decade of the nineteenth century, the building stood idle, but in 1902, it reopened to manufacture underwear. In 1906, the company employed 175 workers and produced over 60,000 dozen undergarments a year.3 The garments produced within the walls of the factory were admittedly of “the highest quality,” and oftentimes would go on to earn awards at competitions such as the Galveston Cotton Carnival and Exposition.4 In 1911, the Poughkeepsie Queen Undermuslin Company was deemed as “completely equipped with all the latest and most improved machinery, made especially for the manufacture of muslin underwear.”5 Indeed, the tower of the building features a very early elevator system suspected to be the first installed in the Hudson Valley. The establishment also contains a number of built-in (and still functional) features, such as the large scale set installed on the first floor. The owners of the factory, Robert Stuart and JC MacLean, were progressive employers “whose first interest is the promotion of the business, but next to that is the improving of the working conditions of the employees.”6 All women, the employees were involved in resolving business disputes and even counted with a tennis court for recreation.

Women workers in the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory, circa 1910

1 Flad and Griffen, 65 2 Ibid., Flad and Griffen 3 Flad and Griffen, 72 4 Platt, 102 5 Ibid., Platt, 105 6 Ibid., Platt, 106

As garment manufacturing declined in the United States and was shipped overseas after World War II, industrial activity in this building ceased and it fell into disrepair. One by one, the windows were smashed in, and the floors inside degraded and eventually collapsed, leaving the shell that now stands here today. In this state of decay, it finally was deemed historic, and in 1982, it was added to the U.S. Register of Historic Places.7 More recently, it has been the focus of attention since Hudson River Housing, a local non-profit organization, acquired the property and developed plans to renovate the building as part of their Middle Main revitalization project.8 This is, however, not the first time that a rehabilitation effort has placed the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory under its looking glass. In the early 2000s, the reopening of Main Street led to a grew deal of investment in the many buildings that had been abandoned in the downtown area.9 Mills and warehouses along the Fall Kill were planned as new apartments, including the factory.10 Unfortunately, none of these plans came to fruition. The cold-blooded sentence that Urban Renewalera highways delivered to downtown Poughkeepsie was deathly effective, and the indifferent motorists turned their backs on Main Street and drove away into the sunset and off to the suburbs. The Poughkeepsie Eagle reports on the esteemed underwear-making awards earned by the Poughkeepsie Queen Undermuslin Co.

Not much is known about the history of the building from the mid-20th century on. It now stands on North Cherry Street, slightly hunched as always, at the intersection of Poughkeepsieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s trinity: The Fall Kill, Main Street, and the East-West Arterial. Today, colored by the vibrancy of Oaxacan summer festivals every once in a while, an air of hope has started circulating in and out of the brick shell, once again.

Now, every summer, Guelaguetza dances take place in front of the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory, hosted by the Grupo Folklorico de Poughkeepsie

It might not be praised in newspapers anymore, but the factory now inhabits cyberspace in its own 7 Flad and Griffen, 81 Facebook page!

8 Ibid., Flad and Griffen 9 Flad and Griffen, 90 10 Ibid., Flad and Griffen

SECTION I: <define> Food Hub

To w a r d s a f o o d h u b c o n c e p t for Poughkeepsie, NY

The design, organization, and function of a food hub can vary tremendously based on several factors, including: goals, target market, infrastructure, start-up funds, organizational management experience, and existing relationships. This chapter will seek to provide a general typology of food hubs, highlighting the Terminal Destination Food Hub model due to its relevance to the project. Similarly, the goal of this section is to provide a framework to guide the planning and design of a food hub concept that reaches beyond food access into community service facilities and other gathering places.

The census tracts containing the Middle Main section of downtown Poughkeepsie are all designated as “food deserts” according to the USDA’s online Food Desert Locator tool

A high concentration of low-income residents (who are isolated from the larger community by physical and major transportation barriers) characterizes the Middle Main section of the City of Poughkeepsie.11 The community is considered to be a food desert with limited access to supermarket or large grocery stores. Low-access/food desert communities are defined as having at least 500 people and/or at least 33 percent of the census tract’s population more than one mile from a supermarket or large grocery store.12 The USDA’s Food Desert Locator illustrates that three out of ten census tracts in the City of Poughkeepsie qualify as food deserts.13 The city has only two grocery stores, both located near the eastern edge of the city limits. In a study conducted in 2012 by Poughkeepsie Plenty, researchers concluded that over one in four City of Poughkeepsie households experiences food insecurity.14 Access to transportation is a critical factor, as nearly 79% of city households that usually drive a car to a grocery store are food secure. On the other hand, food insecurity is evident in 44% of the households that rely on some other means of transportation to go food shopping.15 It is numbers like these that point towards a site-specific, localized solution in order to counteract the lack of availability of fresh produce in the downtown area. The recent surge of attention on food hubs can help us reconcile the harsh realities of food accesibility in urban areas and ways in which this gap might be bridged.

11 12 13 14 15

Nevarez, Grove, Torbin, Simons, 2 USDA ERS - Food Research Atlas Ibid., USDA ERS Nevarez et al, 2 Ibid., Nevarez et al

Cities and Urban Food Systems World population by 2050 is expected to be 69% urban (increasing from 6.8 to 9.5 billion people.16 With urbanization of the world population and price volatility in global food supplies due to intensification of climate change and diminishing oil reserves comes the need for greater food system resilience. These issues necessitate a food system that promotes more agricultural production geographically proximate to population centers. To do so will require infrastructure investment in supportive aggregating, storage, processing and distribution centers or food hubs. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in its report, Food, Agriculture and Cities, states that, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Food and nutrition security across the continuum of urban and rural landscapes embraces a set of core values including: Chicagoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s City Farm is built on movable plates, so the entire operation can be relocated at the end of a growing season if leases change

- The tenet that people-centered approaches to healthy diets and the right to food are linked; - That stronger urban-rural linkages will help buffer price and climate change volatility; - That disaster risk reduction requires planning for long term food system resilience; and - That urban consumers will ultimately shape the food system through market choices that support family farmers and the ecosystems on which we all depend.â&#x20AC;?17 In his book, The Vertical Farm, Dickson Despommier examines the urgent need to improve our food system infrastructure to ensure food security for a rapidly expanding population. The world currently requires an area of cropland equivalent to the entire South American continent. By 2050, we will require an additional landmass the size of Brazil to farm in order to feed the expected 9.5 billion people that will inhabit this planet.18 While urban food hubs may support the development of robust food system infrastructure, these facilities have the additional potential to become economic development generators and community catalysts in declining urban areas. In places such as the City of Poughkeepsie, a food hub may be a source of needed employment opportunities for low income and immigrant populations. Due to the multipurpose nature of the facilities, food hubs may encourage an agglomeration of uses that foster community gatherings and other activities that perform key social functions in the area.19

16 17 18 19

Matson and Cook, 13 FAO, 26 Despommier, 43 DeLuca, 20

What is a Food Hub?

The United States Department of Agriculture defines a food hub as “a centrally located facility with a business management structure facilitating the aggregation, storage, processing, distribution, and/or marketing of locally/regionally produced food products.”20 At their essence all food hubs, regardless of type, bridge the divide between producers and consumers. How a good hub bridges this divide provides a loose framework to distinguish different types of food hubs. Existing and emerging food hubs generally fall into one of three types of operations, according to the USDA. The type operation defines the primary function or core components of the food hub, and they are: Wholesale Food Hub: Aggregation and Distribution A core function of wholesale hubs is to aggregate produce (often organic) from multiple farms. In a rural setting, a wholesale hub is close to the source of produce and serves as a drop off point for multiple farmers. It is then purchased by end markets and other businesses. Brokerage/Cooperative Food Hub: Active Coordination Grass roots, volunteer run organizations that function as a direct bridge between consumers and local farms. An emphasis on the individual buying power of members informs the size of the hub.

A plethora of food hub models available cater to different types of communities and neighborhoods

Terminal Market/Destination Food Hub: Comprehensive Activity Provides the space and equipment for food to be stored, lightly processed, and packed. It gravitates around issues of food accessibility and community gathering. Acts as a business incubator and shared services facilities including education, community events and neighborhood exchange. “Food hub” as a term has been applied to a broad spectrum of land uses designed to provide access to fresh food, but there are marked differences in terms of operations and services with distinguishing characteristics. Based on the preliminary review of the general food hub classifications outlined above, the Terminal Destination Food Hub will be reviewed in more detail as it seems to bring leverage to the goals of this project and Poughkeepsie’s Middle Main.

USDA KYF2, 5

Te r m i n a l M a r k e t / D e s t i n a t i o n F o o d H u b M o d e l Destination food hubs typically incorporate aspects of other kinds of food hubs such as aggregation/ wholesale and cooperative/brokerage, housing these activities within a centralized location (usually an urban setting.) Proximity to a dense population base means that these facilities provide direct consumer access or other programs that cater to a general consumer or end user. A destination food hub may offer an array of services such as cooking classes, nutrition education, business incubation, on-site production (vertically integrated greenhouse/aquaponics and/or a production garden) and community gathering space.21

Economic, social, and health benefits of the Destination Food Hub model

While aggregation/wholesale or cooperative/brokerage food hubs fall into either a farm-to-business model or a farm-to-consumer model, a destination food hub may encompass aspects of both, functioning as a hybrid that serves a variety of end users. The emerging model for a 21st century food hub in an urban setting operates under the destination food hub model, which has the potential for the greatest triple bottom line (economic, social and environmental) impacts. Midtown Global Market repurposed a long vacant, iconic and historic Sears building in Minneapolis as a terminal market food hub. The anchor tenants and specialty, ethnic food vendors serve the food access needs and unique preferences of the immigrant populations in the surrounding neighborhood, while creating a draw for visitors. Mixed-use development of the site with office and housing builds in an additional customer base for the hub. A few destination food hubs in the USA: Weaver Street Market Greenmarkets/GrowNYC Detroit Eastern Market San Francisco Ferry Market Midtown Global Market Classic Food Urban Food Factory The Food Hub at Lafayette Square

Midtown Global Market

Rozyne, 40

Advantages of a Hybrid Model The far-reaching impact that terminal destination food hubs can have is remarkable. Some of the key advantages of implementing this model include: Diverse activity. Destination developments include diversity of uses that attracts a variety of user groups and supports multiple destination programs. Critical mass. The combination of uses and stakeholders develops in order to support critical mass of activity that complement and benefit from close proximity to one another. On-site production. The emphasis on terminal markets is on distribution. On site production may be a part of a destination model to the extent that it functions as an activity generator and supplies additional goods to the hub, such as a small garden or aquaponics.

High Plains Food Cooperative

Community benefits. Since social gathering is a key function of destination development food hubs, they function also as social enterprises that provide community amenities such as low-cost or freeof-charge event and meeting space, event/teaching kitchens (that support cooking classes, nutrition education and community functions), classrooms (for nutrition education, family food budgeting courses, food business start-up and business planning classes), and space for summer lunch programs for low-income children. Destination food hubs may be pilot sites for electronic benefit transfers (EBT) and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. Other health and social services may include offices for health and human service providers, as well as diet-related disease screening and counseling. Economic activity generators. Destination food hubs function as economic generators that support commerce and job growth, as well as development catalysts that draw visitors and attract investment. It is important to remain critical with respect to this pointed â&#x20AC;&#x153;benefit,â&#x20AC;? as issues of gentrification and the displacement of populations on the face of capital invasion in their historical spaces will arise.

Weaver Street Market

Transportation access. Reliance on good transportation networks is a key component of destination food hubs. Public transport, biking lanes and pedestrian-friendly environments are highlighted, as opposed to plugging the development of the food hub onto the highway system.

Shared services facilities. Destination food hubs act as a business incubator with shared services facilities (conference rooms, office equipment, phones, etc.) for food micro-entrepreneurs. Such facilities often accompany a kitchen that supports food business development through value-added food processing. Iconic green architecture. Destination food hubs often involve the construction or rehabilitation of an iconic structure. Design elements reinforce community-gathering aspects of the food hub and often include green building elements to offset the high energy demands of these facilities.

Bridging the Gap As the population of the United States concentrates in urban areas, there is growing awareness that we need to diversify and enhance the contributions of small to mid-sized growers close to home. Doing so will ensure a reliable and sustainable supply of fresh, healthy food that minimizes ecological impacts and the carbon footprint of food production and distribution. Destination food hubs are also gaining popularity as a solution to the inadequate infrastructure available to small and mid-sized farmers. Beyond increasing food accessibility, â&#x20AC;&#x153;food hubs provide a number of additional services that build the capacity of local producers and also engage buyers and consumers to rethink their purchasing options and habits.â&#x20AC;?22 As such urban food hubs have the potential to bridge the gap, providing needed infrastructure for small to mid-sized local farming operations to meet the growing demand for local food and influence consumer food choices, while collaborating with conventional supply chains to maintain access to fresh produce in off peak months. Elderly residents of urban centers are among the greatest beneficiares of food hubs

22 Shuman and Wasserman, 37

Looking Ahead: Recommended Approach

Food hub services increase and maintain demand for locally produced food through the promotion of local farming and educational initiatives regarding the economic, social and health benefits of good eating habits. No matter the type of food hub, generally such facilities work with farmers to promote variety in local product supplies and consistent year-round production. How food hubs bridge the gap between producers and eaters distinguishes one food hub from another. After taking into account the core components and key attributes within the context of the opportunities and constraints of Poughkeepsieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Middle Main neighborhood, and taking into account the diverse food access and community needs of Poughkeepsie, this research points towards using the model of a Destination Development Food Hub. This type of hub will take advantage of the areaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s location within the neighborhood, the city, and the region in order to catalyze development within the site area, facilitate community gathering and interaction, improve access to affordable, fresh, healthy food, and enhance the self-sufficiency of area residents through economic development and workforce opportunities. The model of a destination food hub can take years to grow into its full potential. Fostering community relations is a key aspect of the success of this model

Opportunities for a Middle Main Poughkeepsie Food Hub

A food hub with a cooperative structure harnesses the collective power of a group of people, which is particularly important in an area like Poughkeepsieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Middle Main with large census tracts identified as food deserts. A cooperative structure may provide a significant path to self-sufficiency for residents who experience a high degree of economic insecurity. This cooperative model may be an ideal way to initiate the Middle Main Poughkeepsie food hub, since such a structure has low initial requirements initially relying on volunteers for operational support with the potential over time to grow into a complex, robust entity. A food hub that focuses on wholesale and distribution services may not be able to fully address food access needs of the immediate community members and Middle Main Residents. Therefore, the potential food hub should include direct-to-consumer retail sales of fresh produce and/or a food bank to provide no-cost access to emergency food supplies, as well as be equipped to operate SNAP and EBT programs. A food hub in an urban area like Poughkeepsie presents the opportunity to be an aggregation and distribution center for urban agriculture and a training/technical assistance outlet for urban farmers and small food business entrepreneurs. An on-site garden/urban farm and/or greenhouse/ aquaponics facility should be included in planning for an urban food hub. NOTE TO THE READER

This notion is outside of the scope of this project, but a significant portion of the literature I reviewed was plagued by problematic neoliberal conceptions. The design and development of these food hubs seems to be inextricably related to notions of consumerism. Their design is presented in a universe in which the food hub, its goods and services will be consumed in a capitalist system. The dichotomy of the food hub and the consumer that engages with it in a predetermined way is never contested. And so is the certain â&#x20AC;&#x153;food hub aesthetic,â&#x20AC;? picturing bountiful fields, visitors often depicted in the act of consumption, and happy farmer smiles all around. This leads to the perpetuation of the mere structural, class- and race-based inequality that the food hub is trying to contest. Instead, the food hub should be envisioned as an avenue to create economic equity in the community through alternative means that do not revolve around the idea of capital transaction. The destination food hub model delineated above provides important insight in this regard.

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SOCIAL IMPACT ORGANIZATIONS/NON-PROFITS FOOD INDUSTRY EMPLOYERS FOOD PURCHASERS

CITY SCHOOLS, CHARTER SCHOOLS

FOOD PRODUCERS

POUGHKEEPSIE FOOD HUB PUBLIC SECTOR

INSTITUTIONS, COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES

ENTREPRENEURS, FOOD TRUCK OPERATORS

NEIGHBORHOOD RESIDENTS

SECTION II: <explain> Adaptive Reuse

Contesting the notion of static buildings

Buildings are not monolithic or static. They can come back to life, and remain flexible structures. The Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory presents special potential in this regard due to its industrial past. In today’s consumptive society, the concept of a building outlasting its intended purpose is strange, confusing, and even abrasive. The great divide has always been form versus function.23 Designers only look at one form and one function: the facility design for the intended program. They do not design in consideration for the eventual end of the established program and the continued life of the building. simply put, new buildings are not designed to evolve.

Fuller’s Dymaxion House

Prior to the mass influx of housing needed after World War II, buildings were expected to last multiple lifetimes. Materials with long lifespans, such as concrete, masonry and terracotta coupled with simple, elegant designs meant a building could be used for decades with just routine care.24 After the war, with developmental concepts like Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion House and the proliferation of the suburb, buildings in general started to become less and less permanent. Buildings needed to go up quickly and cheaply; concrete and masonry mass gave away to the cheaper and quicker use of stock designs and light materials. The ideology of “McMansions” and “cookie-cutterhousing” unfortunately is now the norm, with architecture relegated to the side. This situation has led to several questions: What of our heritage? What happens to the energy stored in the creation of the building, of the waste created from constant demolition and construction? What happens to the surrounding site with the constant swelling and compression of space? Perhaps there is another way to design and think about buildings. Could a building evolve as it is needed? Is the lifestyle of a building longer than its conceptive function? The process of adaptive reuse is one of the most important, viable solutions to these issues.

Adaptive reuse of an old dock, transformed into an office building by Dutch architect Trude Hooykaas

23 Thornton, 35 24 Ibid

Adaptive Reuse Under the Looking Glass The concept of adaptive reuse has many technical definitions and understandings. To just look at the notion in context, one can define it as the adaptation of an unused space in order to accomodate new programmatic uses. The word adaptive is a key part of the term, as is the installation of a program different than the intended one into an existing building. The process lends itself to interesting and demanding design processes. Architects and engineers are tasked with the idea of injecting new life and catalyzing the production of different programs while at the same time operating with the sensibility and responsibility (beyond the merely legal) to respect the set of histories and legacies housed within old abandoned structures.

Mt. Vernon Mill, Baltimore, MD

Adaptive reuse in the architectural field has typically meant taking an existing warehouse, for example, and redesigning it into another building type, such as a restaurant or a high-end condominium. However, over the past several years, we have seen a rise in architects (and other professions) engaged in service or community-engaged activities and moving their client base beyond the wealthy few in the suburbs to those in dire need of shelter, food, medicine, and care.25 Particularly in the design fields, the notion of â&#x20AC;&#x153;found objectsâ&#x20AC;? fuels the idea of a site-aware and socially conscious project.26 Hence adaptive reuse becomes more than repurposing existing architecture as mentioned above. Instead it becomes more about repurposing objects that did not originally function as architecture or places of shelter. This notion is an important one to highlight when thinking about the synergy that is generated when the design of a food hub for Poughkeepsie is approached through the adaptive reuse lens.

Derelict or abandoned buildings often have a great deal to offer in terms of location and character and should be viewed as opportunities rather than eyesores

25 26

Hein, 39 Bullen 52

However, buildings carry more than just finite measures of use and abandonment. They have social, historical and environmental aspects that need to be assessed as well. Other than the economics of the problem, adaptive reuse has advantages and disadvantages. It preserves history in creative and modern ways, it contributes to environmental initiatives and preserves the intrinsic energy of the already-constructed facility.

The success of the Eastern Columbia Building paved the way for the Adaptive Reuse Ordinance in Downtown and the rest of Los Angeles

Langston notes, “Around the world, adaptive reuse of historic buildings is seen as fundamental to sound government policy.”27 The adaptive reuse process allows for these buildings to remain historically relevant in a modern context. Bullen notes that “the most successful historic preservation adaptive reuse projects are those that best respect and retain the building’s historical and cultural significance and add a contemporary layer that provides value for the future.”28 Rather than a uniformity of modern construction, cityscapes are delineated with older architectural styles relevant to the local community. In effective adaptive reuse projects, instead of pure historic preservation, there should be a sense of the contemporary as well. When done effectively, these projects can create a unique environment, one of subtle anachronism and style.29 Sustainable development meets the needs of the future without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. As Thornton notes, many newly green technologies can be embedded in our historic buildings in unobtrusive or invisible ways.30 Also, the adaptive reuse for new interiors of otherwise historic shells opens the door for application of the entire range of sustainable materials in any new layer of construction. There is ubiquitous agreement among researchers that adaptive reuse can make a significant contribution to the sustainability of existing buildings. There is growing support of the notion that adaptive reuse satisfies a key concept of sustainability by extending the useful life of existing buildings.31 They are not static. This reuse lowers costs in relation to materials, transport, energy and pollution when compared to the erection of new buildings.

27 28 29 30 31

Langston, 79 Ibid., Langston Bullen, 54 Ward, 102 Bullen, 62

I t ’s N o t A l l R o s y : U r b a n S p r a w l a n d G e n t r i f i c a t i o n Adaptive reuse programs revitalize downtown areas by converting older, economically distressed, or historically significant buildings to accomodate new uses and programs such as apartments, live/work units or visitor-serving facilities. This reduces vacant space and preserves the downtown area’s architectural and cultural significance acting as a catalyst in prompting investment in community projects and other initiatives. Bullen observes that, “The boom that occurred in converting office buildings to residential lofts breathed new life into downtown Los Angeles at a time when it was urgently needed.”32 In spite of the apparent positive outcome of adaptive reuse programs, there is a risk of achieving environmental and economic benefit to the detriment of social equality, particularly the exclusion of affordable housing units thus contributing to larger matters in flux, such as the suburbanization of poverty. Uniformity in the cityscape is increasingly evident, particularly in the proliferation of standardized hotel, restaurant, and streetscape architecture. Consequently, local cultures are losing their local identities in the periphery of urban centers. In downtown Poughkeepsie, some historic places are already undergoing a reinterpretation of their cultural heritage by responding to the commercial forces of consumer demand. Local vernacular history and architecture is an important dimension of civic places, strengthening local identity, contributing to investment in public works, and retaining communities. This project seeks to reveal how an adaptive reuse project can cater both to the historical side of the building it inhabits and the local community that surrounds it without succumbing to the pressures of real estate development. When social objectives are neglected, they concern the users, local community, and the urban population. Freetown Christiania, within Copenhagen, provides excellent examples of community- and family-spearheaded adaptive reuse projects. Pictured here is the town’s movie theater, housed in an abandoned Danish military facility

The exclusion of affordable housing in adaptive reuse projects, combined with the outward movement of development and urban cores, leads to rings of gentrification that exclude populations from their historic places of living and playing. Gentrification issues can, however, be mitigated by adaptive reuse strategies devoted to lower-income residents and the development of a site with the inclusion of members of the community around it.33 The premise of working towards class and social equity needs to remain on the frontlines, and not hidden or tergiversed underneath a blanket of neoliberalism.

32 33

Bullen, 113 Hein, 32

SECTION III: Site and Context

Cartographic Contextualization

Using methodologies such as Geographic Information Systems and data from the United States Census Bureau, satellital imagery and photography, the following section aims to expand on the research needed in order to develop an informed, effective design for the food hub in Middle Main Poughkeepsie. The titled images and diagrams speak for themselves, but some of the most noteworthy findings include: - Residents of Poughkeepsieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Middle Main are more prone to living in dense urban areas, having a total yearly income of less than $20,000 and living below the poverty line. - Availability of fresh produce for City of Poughkeepsie residents is very low, as the biggest and more diverse grocery stores that can provide the freshest produce are all in the outskirts of the town and require to be accessed via automobile or public transportation, which can be unreliable. - The Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory is not the only building abandoned in the neighborhood, so its community-centered adaptive reuse could inspire other projects in the area. - The presence of urban amenities that increase walkability and maximize the streetscape, such as flower pots, benches, light posts is uneven. Towards the western end of Middle Main they tend to be clustered whereas the area around the abandoned factory does not contain the same pedestrianfriendly elements. - The nodal and network qualities of the site hold strong potential that could support the food hubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mission. At the intersection of transportation networks, historic sites and natural elements, the project takes on the shaping of the city around it. At the local level, multiple connections might be formed not only with individual households but with restaurants and other establishments. Regionally, a plethora of Hudson Valley farms have potential to become strong partners of the project.

Population Density Number of people in census block group/block group area 0.00 - 1.61 1.61 - 4.61 4.61 - 8.87

Per Capita Income $0 - $9686

Number of households living below the poverty line

$9687 - $19373 $19374 - $29059

0 - 13

$29060 - $38746

14 - 33

$38747 - $48432

34 - 59

8.87 - 13.77

60 - 89

13.77 - 29.78

90 - 136 137 - 228

Food Accessibility in Poughkeepsie, NY

POUGHKEEPSIE UNDERWEAR FACTORY LARGE SUPERMARKET DELI/GROCERY STORE WITH SPORADIC SUPPLY OF FRESH PRODUCE CORNER STORES WITH NO FRESH PRODUCE BODEGAS/CONVENIENCE STORES EMERGENCY FOOD PROVIDERS, PANTRIES, SOUP KITCHENS

Parcel Use in the Middle Main Area

ABANDONED APARTMENT COMMERCIAL GOVERNMENT/SERVICE PARKING LOT RELIGIOUS CENTERS UNKNOWN VACANT

Urban Amenities in Middle Main FLOWER BOXES GARBAGE CANS GENERAL STORES GREEN AREAS GROCERY STORES LAUNDROMATS TREES

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The Hudson River Housing Network

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Nodal Quality of the Site at the Intersection Between E a s t - We s t A r t e r i a l , F a l l K i l l a n d M a i n S t r e e t

Connectivity and Network Relations of the Site at the Local and Regional Levels

The parcel is surrounded by the â&#x20AC;&#x153;asphalted moatâ&#x20AC;? that Main Street, North Cherry Street and the adjacent parking lot create. The northern facade of the building faces the encapsulated Fall Kill. These four bounding elements present each facade with a different set of conditions and external characteristics--the busy street, the desolate one-way street, the enormous parking lot, the forgotten creek--that present different scenarios for physical links between building and surroundings.

S E C T I O N I V: Current Conditions

S E C T I O N V: Design Precedents

DAVID ADJAYE ASSOCIATES IDEA STORE WHITECHAPEL LONDON, UK

IIT CAMPUS CENTER OMA CHICAGO, IL

OPENOFFICE ARCHITECTS DIA:BEACON GALLERIES BEACON, NY

SECTION VI: The Proposal

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The main design premise behind this project has been the creation of a building that is site-aware and integrated into the larger processes that make up the urban fabric around it. With this idea in mind, the design I propose for the food hub reacts to a series of â&#x20AC;&#x153;urban journeysâ&#x20AC;? that occur on site. Connecting the built environment with natural elements, the building absorbs these paths generating the massing of solids on the first floor. The porous nature of the building then becomes one of its main assets.

Programmatic components of the building:

aquaponics

meeting rooms

affordable housing distribution room community cafe demonstration kitchen dance studio co-working space

FIRST FLOOR

F L EX I B I L I T Y A N D D Y N A M I S M The idea of the urban journeys has been incorporated into the first floor plan. The active spaces are delineated by a series of glass panels that enable visual connections among the spaces, which are still equally maleable to the needs of the user. A few key features:

Tables and stools in the community cafe can be stacked and rearranged in order to form a small stage for performances, lectures or film screenings;

System of glass panels on railings allow for opening/closing/shaping of spaces and altering the main corridor;

Food distribution tables and stands are designed on a triangular modular system to cater to the spatial needs and requirements of different farmers and artisans depending on the season and quantity of product;

Demonstration kitchen and seed library empower neighborhood residents with the skills and materials to become active shapers of their diets and the food system at large.

DEMONSTRATION KITCHEN COMMUNITY CAFE SEED LIBRARY

RECEPTION

FOOD DISTRIBUTIO ION AREA IO EA

SECOND FLOOR

O P E N NE S S A N D S E L F - G O V E R N A N C E The second floor provides slightly less transparency and porosity due to the fact that more fully enclosed spaces are housed on this level: seminar and workshop rooms, as well as a dance studio. Since this food hub is not formally attached to any sort of umbrella organization, self-governance is encouraged among community groups in terms of rotation and reservation of spaces. On-site aquaponics production complements products brought in by local farms. The dance studio serves as a platform for events such as after-school activities, ice breaker activities and maternity workshops, for example. The co-working space provides aspiring food entrepreneurs and small businesses without formal office space with a place to work and engage in productive and creative thinking, thus strenghtening community networks. The small exhibition space promotes local artists and public computers are a valuable resource available to the neighborhood. The porosity of the building is not only horizontal, but also vertical--featuring a double height space that connects to the distribution room downstairs, the hubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s focal point.

WORKSHOP ROOM

SEMINAR ROOM

DANCE DANC CE C E STU STUDIO U UDIO

COWORKING SPACE AQUAPONICS

EXHIBITION SPACE

THIRD FLOOR

A F F O R D A B I L I T Y A N D S O C I A L E Q U I T Y 3 2 1

The third floor is the least public and transparent level of the building. That is because seven private affordable housing units occupy the space, providing shelter at affordable rates for low-income families and collectives. Half of them are studio apartments, while the rest are designed on a live/work model. Ideally, the people occupying these spaces would take active part in shaping activities, programming and space management for the food hub. These live/work units provide much-needed floor space or studio space for aspiring local artists, farmers-in-training, social workers and students.

STUDIO APARTMENT #1

STUDIO APARTMENT #2

LIVE/WORK UNIT #1

LAUNDRY ROOM WASTE MANAGEMENT RECYCLING

LIVE/WORK UNIT #2

STUDIO APARTMENT #3

LIVE/WORK UNIT #3

STUDIO APARTMENT #4

The design for the western facade of the building finds its roots in crop availability calendars. The identity of the building is clear to the pedestrian walking along Main Street or strolling by the Fall Kill. Besides providing an aesthetic value to the project, the panels act as the buildingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main green infrastructure element--helping reduce the use of air conditioning units over the summer and providing shaded environments on the second floor during the hot s ummer and cold winters alike.

SECTION VII: H a r v e s t i n g t h e H a r d Wo r k : A Virtual Visit

A view of the buildingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main feature, the glass corridor, as observed from the community cafe. The materiality of the lobby with wooden floors and transparent passageways generates a strong visual connection between the rooms and their users.

A view of the community cafe highlighting the modular quality of the furniture and spaces defined by glass panels on railings.

The distribution room is the highlighted programmatic component of the first floor, a flexible space that connects farmers and users.

The demonstration kitchen is, perhaps, the room that benefits the most from its transparent envelope. This way, cooking and food processing classes remain open and accessible to the users traversing the space.

The incorporation of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;urban journeyâ&#x20AC;? into the design allows for the exploration of food-related activities as pedestrians make their way through the building.

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