Reprogramming Autoscapes

Taipei Metro Linear Park

/ Imagine a energy producing waterfront.

GSAPP, Fall Studio Instructor: Kaja Kühl , Lee Altman, Anna Dietzsch, Shachi Pandey, Thaddeus Pawlowski Site: Kingston, New York State, U.S. Type: Urban Design Group Work, cooperated with Anirudh Venkat, Dhania Yasmin, Yifei Luo Spring, 2021

Reprogramming Autoscapes

Almost 500 acres of impermeable surfaces, mostly surplus car parking, lay underutilized in Kingston, a city with dire and urgent spatial needs such as housing and public space. Reprogramming Autoscapes would retrofit these underutilized spaces, which enable a fossil fuel intensive lifestyle, into people centric spaces, catering to the needs of the community.

40% of Kingston's population is non-white. 85% of the housing in the city is owned by white landlords. Poverty is high in the communities of colour which have not had equitable access to home ownership. Compared to the total housing stock in Kingston and a lack of access to quality public space, the area of underutilized land is unacceptable.

Less space for cars, more space for people.

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Right size parking requirements in Kingston along Albany Ave and the Kingston Greenline. Tweaking the zoning laws to free up 50% of a building’s parking requirement would move more than 200 acres into the city’s development pool.

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Free up space for private land owners to develop what was previously surplus and underutilized parking. New development happens with city established stipulations regarding public space, housing and energy generation goals.

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Single Modular Unit Double Modular Units Triple Modular Units

Community Transit Hub

Community Solar

Kingston is powered 100% by renewable energy from the power grid. But there is untapped potential to generate energy within the city to subsidize costs and fund community development.

Can community solar, a concept Kingston is familiar with, be the economic incentive that pushes the boundaries of collective ownership of the city?

Community Solar has the potential to be more than just an economic strategy. Locally assembled modular units designed to power as well as add character to the city can be part of the revitalization of small cities like Kingston by creating local green jobs. The modular units are designed to be expanded according to different use of space.

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Low-density Residential Neighborhood - Ponckhockie

Ponckhockie is a remote, historically black, low density residential neighborhood.

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Community Transit Hub Grocery Co-op

Ponckhockie Neighborhood Infill

The primary goal of interventions in low density neighborhoods is to supplement local communities with programs that would reduce the need to travel.

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Post-Industrial Residential Neighborhood : Lincoln Park

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Community Transit Hub Community Center & Co-working Space Sharing EV

Lincoln Park Neighborhood Infill

Kingston main street : Midtown

The municipal parking site in Midtown Kingston presents an opportunity for a pilot project that sets the tone for the city’s ‘just transition’ away from fossil fuel intensive lifestyles.

Midtown Infill

The ground level is dedicated to walkable commercial streets and community space while the dense affordable housing is a step in the right direction in tackling the city’s housing crisis. The Midtown project embodies the motto, “Less space for cars, more space for people”.