Transit System Light-Rail and Subway systems converge on the downtown grid from all around the Toledo metropolitan area. Left: Los Angeles metro light rail system. The majority of the metro runs above ground, while the dense downtown goes underground.
Pedways Underground pedestrian walkways provide a route to important areas downtown during all weather to citizens. Linking underground parking, shopping, entertainment and even East Toledo. N
Left: Toronto, Canada’s PATH network of underground walkways and shops keeps the downtown core of Toronto bustling even during the harsh Canadian winter.
By creating an open and easy to understand metro system, Toledo can draw more people to the city center to live, work, and play in the urban areas. Walkable developments are crucial for local businesses to thrive. The majority of the system will utilize light-rail while urban areas will use an underground metro.
Medium Masterplan: Re-routes Erie Street to create a market street for the urban farming.
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SCALE : 1”=200’
Revealing The Canal The Miami and Erie Canal terminated here in Toledo Ohio. This canal was the largest in North America at over 400 miles long. It allowed trade to connect from the great lakes and the Atlantic Ocean, all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. In a way, this made Toledo Ohio a grand entrance to a large portion of our nation. It is my intent to revive this forgotten gateway. Functioning as a cistern and bioswale, the canal has been revealed.
Parti Diagrams: Original parti on above left showcased the influence of Toledo’s Core on the greater region and has retaining walls that align to the Saint Lawrence historical grid that makes up most of downtown Toledo. The new parti diagram uses the canal to influence change in Toledo and its region.
Above Context Photo: The Civic Center Mall in Toledo, Ohio as of October 9th 2021
The Canal District
The Gems
The Canal District Consists of a series of retaining walls that divide the space into different uses that strengthen the core of the city. From sustainable year-round urban farming to recreation and wildlife preservation. This urban intervention district turns back the clock on Toledo. Retaining what is while revealing what was.
These stark, glass shapes tower above the canal district, shining as beacons of the future emerge from the past. Housing urban farming and a transit hub, these structures are monuments to the history and potential of the glass city.
Above Left: Libbey-Owens-Ford Glass Factory in Toledo Ohio, Circa 1919. Toledo’s glass is its heritage. Above Right: The Toledo Museum of Art, Glass Pavilion by SANNA. Glass is still very relevant in Toledo’s culture. Top Right: Key Bank Plaza in Anchorage, Alaska by Perkins & Will. An overhaul of an earth-quake damaged building, inspired by glaciers. The Huron-Erie Ice Sheet flattened Northwest Ohio’s landscape, creating the Maumee River and the Great Black Swamp about 17,500 years ago. Bottom Right: Denver Art Musem by Studio Libeskind. Modern form Intervenes in established history.
Above: Riverside Park in Perrysburg, OH by EDGE Group and a lock at Sidecut Metropark in Maumee, OH. This park uses limestone blocks to divide a sloped space. The designers were inspired by similar blocks used in the creation of the Miami and Erie Canal and used in the lock at Sidecut. Right: In The Canal District, these limestone blocks from the canal are brought back within the retaining walls, dividing the district into distinct uses.
Right: Ice skating on the canal. During winter months, The Canal District hosts ice skating on the frozen canal. Below: Reflecting pond at One Seagate in downtown Toledo is turned into an ice rink during the winter.
Urban Aquaponics
The core of the city: The Canal District is home to urban farming, the Lucas County Health Department, Toledo Fire services, Toledo Police, Lucas County Sheriff’s Department, a county jail, courthouses, a library and a train station.
Open Greenspace
Urban Farming Great Black Swamp
High Speed Rail Canal
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Late 1800s Toledo
Urban Decay
Greenspace
Palimpsest
Intervention
Canal District