The Time Frame of Public Space by Antonia Medina Abell

sultados de los talleres participativos, ver informe de â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ciudad y Sociedadâ&#x20AC;?. Santiago Cerros Isla

IMAGEN 14: Partido General Archivo: SCI Studio Fink

The

Time Frame

IMAGEN 15: Asambleas talleres participativos Archivo: SCI

of Yoav Meiri Architects

Urban Think Tank

Public Space

Project Locations

LONDON Northala Fields

Â©Antonia Medina Abell Public Space: Rhetorics of the Pedestrian Urban Design Seminar Spring 2020

TEL AVIV- YAFO Garden Library

CARACAS Tower of David

NEW YORK 596 Acres

SANTIAGO Los Almendros Hill Conjunto Urbano Gabriel Plama

Seminar - Pedestrian Rhetorics - Spring 2020

Name/ Los Almendros Hill

Pedestrian projects have a unique place in city-making,

Location/ Huechuraba, Santiago de Chile

become so distinctive that they achieve an iconic status,

Area/ 6.5 hectares

collective imagination that signals who intervenes the

Stakeholders/ Fondacio, Ciudad y Sociedad, Ecomabi, Fundaciรณn Cerros Isla, Municipality of Huechuraba, community members of Huechuraba.

threads. Among them is the fact that their most

Fig. 1- Hill in city context

whether historical or contemporary. Some of these others are more modest. However, they all construct a cityscape. The following projects have many common important asset is not space, but time. Time is used to create and engage communities, develop design as iterative rather than finished product, to reflect on the role of new construction in relation to public space, or even to recycle materials traditionally considered waste, or infrastructures that have failed the city, giving

Los Almendros Hill

them a whole new set of possibilities. Looking at these case studies as they unravel through a time frame rather than the space they occupy can

San Cristรณbal Hill

be a lens to measure their success through outcomes different than the initial designed project. Moreover, the lens of time can hint at a different measurement

Mapocho River

Fig. 2 - Former agricultural land rapidly approached by the city

of success for pedestrian spaces in the city: do they engage people, establish a sense of identity and belonging, are they activated and if not, can this change? To show different aspects and relationships that can be developed through the time frame of a project, the following examples will be analyzed using two categories: pre-occupancy and post-occupancy. Preoccupancy refers to the conceptualization stages, which include the development of design concepts, pedestrianization strategies, participation tools,

oria y os acón de os de ar, lleuturo

dación proxiorado de las as deopuestura y futuro arquicia de anto a

proposals and construction. Post-occupancy invokes the moment when these examples stop being “projects” and become embedded in the city fabric, where their uses are expanded and tested in innovative but contested ways.

PRE- OCCUPANCY | TIME AS PARTICIPATORY PROCESS | LOS ALMENDROS HILL | SANTIAGO Located in the borough of Huechuraba, in Santiago de Chile, this 33-meter tall (108 ft) hill and local landmark was zoned as a park by the metropolitan authority (PRMS) in an area threatened by development pressures caused by the rezoning of many hectares of agricultural land for residential use without accompanying green spaces [Fig. 1-2]. In this situation, EQUIPO unique

INTRODUCCIÓN opportunity arose. The Hill and the surrounding developable landEQUIPO was owned by a non-profit called Fondacio,

which decided not only to turn the hill into a park, but also set up a process of participatory design for it – an unusual MANDANTE

El cerro Los Almendros, también conocido como

En estas instancias se discutió sobre la historia y

de Huechuraba, y es uno de los 26 cerros isla de Santiago que esta designado como parque intercomunal por el Plan Regulador Metropolitano, pero que aún no se ha consolidado como tal. Si éste se desarrollara como parque, dotaría de 6.5 hectáreas (MINVU, 2014) de áreas verdes para la comuna, mejorando así directamente la calidad de vida de la comunidad. Frente a esta situación, Fondacio toma la decisión de recuperar el cerro en términos ecológicos y programáticos en busca de generar un nuevo lugar de encuentro y recreación para Fondacio y la comunidad que participa de esta Fundación. Para esto, convoca a tres organizaciones: Fundación Santiago Cerros Isla, Ecomabi y Ciudad y Sociedad, con el objetivo de desarrollar un proceso de diseño participativo donde las ideas, anhelos y necesidades de las personas se vieran plasmadas, buscando hacer un real aporte para la comunidad. Durante el 2015 se desarrollaron 12 talleres donde participó la comunidad de Fondacio, vecinos del Barrero y de los condominios cercanos, más algunas organizaciones del sector, guiados por un equipo compuesto por miembros de las tres organizaciones.

su vegetación e infraestructura y los deseos de los participantes para transformar este lugar, llegando a deﬁnir una imagen objetivo del futuro proyecto del cerro.

MANDANTE

cerroconsidering La Cruz o cerro El Barrero, se ubica en they los el were contexto delnot cerro y la comuna, los usos acmove in Santiago, especially that legally obligated to do so. Most landowners in that situation terrenos de la Fundación Fondacio en la comuna tuales que acoge, el estado de conservación de

Fundación Fondacio

would wait until the land was rezoned for housing and sell at a profit. Instead, the community was invited to a series of

www.fondacio.cl Movimiento apostólico internacional de fuerte carácter social, dedicado al trabajo con los más vulnerables, los jóvenes, niños y las familias. EQUIPO

www.fondacio.cl Movimiento apostólico internacional de fuerte carácter social, dedicado al trabajo con los más vulnerables, los jóvenes, niños y las familias.

El siguiente informe, a realizado la Fundación twelve workshops to envision the future of the Hill, create listporof priorities, themes of identity, and to suggest iterations Santiago Cerros Isla, expone una primera aproxi-

of design.

Santiago Cerros Isla Organización sin ﬁnes de lucro que busca valorizar, integrar y aprovechar los elementos naturales de nuestro paisaje para mejorar la calidad de vida de nuestra ciudad. www.santiagocerrosisla.cl Rol: Diagnóstico y propuesta preliminar de arquitectura y paisaje en base a los talleres participativos.

EQUIPO

mación a un proyecto de arquitectura elaborado a partir de un levantamiento y diagnóstico de las intervenciones existentes en el cerro y a las decisiones tomadas con la comunidad. La propuesta deﬁne las bases generales de arquitectura y paisaje las cuales servirán de guía para el futuro desarrollo de anteproyecto y proyecto de arquitectura. A su vez, da cuenta de la relevancia de la recuperación del cerro Los Almendros tanto a escala de barrio como a nivel ciudad

By expanding this project into a year [Fig. 3] of participatory workshops which included community members, residents

Ecomabi Fundación para la Conservación y Manejo Sustentable de la Biodiversidad www.ecomabi.cl Rol: Diagnóstico y propuesta de rehabilitación ecológica.

TIME FRAMEgated communities, non-profit affiliates and the multi-disciplinary team that led the meetings (from of neighboring

Ciudad y Sociedad Consultora en Participación Ciudadana Rol: Diseño y liderazgo de programa participativo.

Fundación Cerros Isla, Ecomabi and Ciudad y Sociedad), the design of this park was established as a collaborative process STAKEHOLDERS rather than an institutionally-heavy or government-mandated fix. Disaggregating the components of the project into workshop activities was a key factor in establishing rapport with the communities and fostering a sense of identity and Participation Strategy EcologicalAs Strategy Proposal Client belonging before construction of the park started. such, people were engaged with the tangible aspects of the site in 6

888

PARTICIPACIÓN PARTICIPACIÓN PARTICIPACIÓN CIUDADANA CIUDADANA CIUDADANA

Fig. 3 - The project as a timeline.

METODOLOGÍA METODOLOGÍA METODOLOGÍA DE DE TRABAJO DE TRABAJO TRABAJO El proceso El Elproceso proceso parti parti cipati parti cipati cipati vo vo sevose compuso secompuso compuso de de 12 de12 ta12ta-talleres lleres lleres los los cuales loscuales cuales se se estructuraron seestructuraron estructuraron en en tres entres etapas tresetapas etapas compuestas compuestas compuestas de de cuatro de cuatro cuatro talleres talleres talleres cada cada cada una. una. una. En En laEn primera la laprimera primera etapa etapa etapa se se desarrolló sedesarrolló desarrolló el diagnósti el eldiagnósti diagnósti co coco deldel cerro delcerro cerro en en base en base base a sua su historia, a suhistoria, historia, los los usos losusos usos actuales actuales actuales y su y ysu estado suestado estado de de conservación, deconservación, conservación, concon el con objeti el elobjeti objeti vo vo devodede comprender comprender comprender el contexto el elcontexto contexto antes antes antes de de proponer deproponer proponer unauna una nueva nueva nueva intervención. intervención. intervención. Para Para Para esto esto esto se realizaron sese realizaron realizaron múlmúlmúltiples tiples tisubidas plessubidas subidas al cerro al alcerro cerro concon la con comunidad, la lacomunidad, comunidad, donde donde donde fuefue posible fue posible posible reconocer reconocer reconocer la vegetación la la vegetación vegetación y las y las yinfraeslas infraesinfraestructuras tructuras tructuras presentes presentes presentes en en elen cerro, elel cerro, cerro, verver su ver estado susu estado estado de dede conservación, conservación, conservación, la carga la la carga carga signifi signifi signifi caticati vacati que vava que le que otorgale le otorgaotorgaba ba laba comunidad la lacomunidad comunidad a ciertos a aciertos ciertos elementos elementos elementos y los y ylos usos losusos usos actuales actuales actuales (Imagen (Imagen (Imagen 13).13). Estas 13). Estas Estas fueron fueron fueron plasmadas plasmadas plasmadas en enen dibujos dibujos dibujos y eny en una y en una maqueta una maqueta maqueta elaborada elaborada elaborada en en conjunto en conjunto conjunto (Imagen (Imagen (Imagen 14).14). 14).

Participation Tools 12 Workshops 1st Stage

Site Visits

IMAGEN IMAGEN IMAGEN 13: 13: Subidas 13: Subidas Subidas al Cerro al al Cerro Cerro Archivo: Archivo: Archivo: SCI SCISCI

En En laEn segunda la la segunda segunda etapa etapa etapa se defi sese defi nió defi nió lanió visión la la visión visión estratégiestratégiestratégica o caca elo parti oel elparti do parti do general, dogeneral, general, concon el con objeti elelobjeti objeti vo vo devode genedegenegenerar rar un rar un proyecto un proyecto proyecto íntegro, íntegro, íntegro, capaz capaz capaz de de dar de dar soluciones darsoluciones soluciones a las a alas carencias lascarencias carencias y anhelos y anhelos y anhelos de de lade comunidad. la lacomunidad. comunidad. Para Para Para esto esto esto se se discuti sediscuti discuti ó sobre ó ósobre sobre las las necesidades lasnecesidades necesidades y probley probley problemasmas mas a nivel a anivel nivel barrial, barrial, barrial, y sobre y sobre y sobre el rol el elrol que rolque este queeste este nuenuenuevo vo proyecto voproyecto proyecto debiera debiera debiera cumplir cumplir cumplir para para para la comunidad. la lacomunidad. comunidad. Para Para Para dardar cuenta darcuenta cuenta deldel rol delrol o rol vocación o ovocación vocación deldel proyecto, delproyecto, proyecto, se se expusieron seexpusieron expusieron dosdos referentes dosreferentes referentes nacionales nacionales nacionales de de cedece-cerrosrros parques: rrosparques: parques: el cerro el elcerro cerro Santa Santa Santa Lucía Lucía Lucía y ely cerro el y elcerro cerro SanSan San Cristóbal, Cristóbal, Cristóbal, donde donde donde su su modelo sumodelo modelo de de gesti degesti ón gesti ón fue ónfue relefuerelerelevante vante vante para para para lograr lograr lograr su consolidación. susu consolidación. consolidación. También También También EcoEcoEcomabi mabi mabi expuso expuso expuso la relevancia la larelevancia relevancia deldel cerro delcerro cerro en en términos entérminos términos ecológicos, ecológicos, ecológicos, y los y los yposibles los posibles posibles servicios servicios servicios ecosistémicos ecosistémicos ecosistémicos queque éste que éste podría éste podría podría ofrecer. ofrecer. ofrecer.

2nd Stage 05

Strategic Vision

IMAGEN IMAGEN IMAGEN 14: 14: Parti 14: Parti do Parti General dodo General General Archivo: Archivo: Archivo: SCI SCISCI

En En laEn tercera la la tercera tercera etapa, etapa, etapa, habiendo habiendo habiendo defidefi nido defi nido nido el rol el el rol prinrol prinprincipal cipal cipal y los y los yroles losroles roles específi específi específi coscos del cosdel cerro, delcerro, cerro, se discuti sesediscuti discuti ó óó sobre sobre sobre los los posibles losposibles posibles programas programas programas e intervenciones e eintervenciones intervenciones físicas físicas físicas queque ayudarían que ayudarían ayudarían a concreti a concreti a concreti zarzar esta zar esta nueva esta nueva nueva vo-vovocación cación cación (Imagen (Imagen (Imagen 15).15). Para 15). Para Para esto esto esto se expusieron sese expusieron expusieron difedifediferentes rentes rentes referentes referentes referentes internacionales internacionales internacionales concon el con objeti elel objeti objeti vo vovo de de mostrar demostrar mostrar cómo cómo cómo operaciones operaciones operaciones de de arquitectura dearquitectura arquitectura y yy de de manejo demanejo manejo deldel territorio delterritorio territorio sonson capaces soncapaces capaces de de generar degenerar generar disti disti ntos disti ntos ntos modos modos modos de de ocupar deocupar ocupar un un espacio unespacio espacio y dotar y ydotar dotar de de servicios deservicios servicios ecosistémicos. ecosistémicos. ecosistémicos. Se Se vieron Sevieron vieron temas temas temas de dede dimensiones, dimensiones, dimensiones, materialidades, materialidades, materialidades, durabilidad durabilidad durabilidad y capay capay capacidad cidad cidad de de carga. decarga. carga. A través A Através través de de dibujos dedibujos dibujos y asambleas, y asambleas, y asambleas, se fueron sese fueron fueron tomando tomando tomando decisiones decisiones decisiones en en comunidad en comunidad comunidad queque que defidefi nieron defi nieron nieron los los lineamientos loslineamientos lineamientos generales generales generales de de arquidearquiarquitectura tectura tectura y paisaje. y paisaje. y paisaje. Para Para Para mayor mayor mayor información información información sobre sobre sobre el proceso el el proceso proceso y los y los yre-los re-resultados sultados sultados de los dede los talleres los talleres talleres parti parti cipati parti cipati cipati vos,vos, ver vos, ver informe ver informe informe de de “Ciudad de “Ciudad “Ciudad y Sociedad”. y Sociedad”. y Sociedad”.

PRESENT Main Design Concepts

Preexisting paths

Preexisting materials

Programming & Materiality

Construction

Two Ideas

3rd Stage 10

Proposal

IMAGEN IMAGEN IMAGEN 15: 15: Asambleas 15: Asambleas Asambleas talleres talleres talleres partiparti cipati parti cipati vos cipati vosvos Archivo: Archivo: Archivo: SCI SCISCI 17 1717

IMAGEN 19: Propuesta Plan Maestro - Corte General 23

Antonia Medina Abell

Seminar - Pedestrian Rhetorics - Spring 2020

Name/ Northala Fields

earlier stages, advocating for ecological restoration,

Location/ Ealing, London, UK

– such as improving the conditions of trails instead of

Area/ 27 hectares.

the summit as a place of encounter with the rest of the

helping to decide on the best allocation of certain funds retrofitting an existing picnic area – or even settling on

Stakeholders/ Borough of Ealing, Marko and Placemakers, Studio Fink, community members, development sites, Northolt and Greenford Countryside Park Society, Greater London Authority. Fig. 4 - Northala Fields in the context of the greater London Area Northala Fields

city via panoramic views. But some questions remain. What becomes of participatory processes if and when the city changes? How are former community-based decisions honored if the city needs change, and should they be at all? There is also the issue of ownership: This was privatelyowned land, raising the question: why does the city

Wembley Stadium

allow parkland to be owned? Shouldn’t it be public and easily accessible?

PRE-OCCUPANCY | TIME AS ASSEMBLAGE | NORTHALA FIELDS | LONDON Central London River Thames

Fig. 5 - Rubble becomes furniture material

Northala Fields is a former wasteland site in northwest London [Fig.4], turned into a park via competition by Marko and Placemakers between 2000 and 2008. Located between the noisy A40 highway and Ealing, a suburban neighborhood, the site had become “a magnet for crime and antisocial behavior.” Self-funding, upcycling of materials and participatory design are some of the tools that were used here, approaching a waste site in a playful manner that created land art, noise protection, community identity. The project elegantly engages with multiple scales and connections at the same time. In Northala Fields, design was not approached as a final result, but rather

a loose framework where the community could imprint their own activities and identities in this new park. Addressing issues of waste, financial constraints, noise pollution and crime in a derelict site, the design by Marko and Placemakers proposed one big, bold move that crystallized the relationships between scales and stakeholders not only in the park, but in the Greater London area as well. The team did not just design a park but created a system in which the neighborhood agreed to accept a waste harnessing facility which in turn raised the funds the local council needed for the park. The designersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; understanding of the project having a reach beyond its boundaries was key in how several themes were addressed at once. By buying rubble from several construction sites around London, including Heathrow Terminal, the neighborhood council was able to charge developers for waste disposal, build a recycling facility on site (which only functioned during the construction of the park), gather materials to raise the topography of the formerly flat area and Fig. 6 - The project as a timeline.

Fig. 7 - The constructed hills of Northala Fields

Antonia Medina Abell

Seminar - Pedestrian Rhetorics - Spring 2020

Name/ Gabriel Palma Urban Complex

assemble gabions as seats or walls for the park [Fig.5-

Location/ Recoleta, Santiago de Chile

several construction sites in London, as the rubble was

Area/ 6000 m2 (64,583 sq. ft.) Stakeholders/ Municipality of Recoleta, Francisco Izquierdo Arquitectos, PAUR, Ceresita.

6]. The move also decreased the carbon footprint of now transported for 10 miles rather than a hundred. The project was successful because it blurred boundaries, including between designers and users, and was understood as necessarily part of the socioeconomic continuum of the city. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Marko strongly recommends engaging with the public very early on and being honest about intentions, which is

Fig. 8 - Project in city context

most likely to encourage people to be part of the process.â&#x20AC;? Neighborhoods residents and the Greenford Countryside Park Society were consulted for key aspects of the project for over two years, which helped

Gabriel Palma Urban Complex

the park become part of their identity as much as part of the landscape. The time aspect is highlighted here by the successful incorporation of different communities during design and planning stages, not via one large

San Cristobal Hill

townhall meeting but with several workshops. Time can also be seen through the assemblage of rubble and

Mapocho River

Fig.9 - The project includes three residential buildings and a plaza.

its repurposed life as a construction material under the soft landscape of the hills and as furniture pieces for the park. However, some of the aspects that made this project succeed also made it significantly, if not prohibitively rigid â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and thus stuck in a moment of time rather than adapting and changing. [Fig. 7] The original design included a visitor center that would produce its own geothermal energy via ground coils; but this did not happen, and a retrofit would be prohibitively expensive. Examples like this reveal that even a robust participatory process may not be fully comprehensive

when large-scale interventions are considered. In effect, a circular system has limits and the project belongs in the â&#x20AC;&#x153;preoccupancyâ&#x20AC;? category.

PRE-OCCUPANCY | TIME AS COUNTERPOINT | GABRIEL PALMA URBAN COMPLEX | SANTIAGO This residential project by Francisco Izquierdo Arquitectos, located in the borough of Recoleta, Santiago de Chile [Fig.8], made use of an innovative legal recourse to create equity in a place where it is sorely lacking. The traditional model for new housing in Santiago chases after items that will bring added value to the properties, such as green areas, proximity to a school or a grocery store. Designer and planners did not take that approach here, choosing instead to create a new plaza as part of the design [Fig.9], a transformative move that equipped the whole area with a new green space. The plaza was Fig. 10 - The three apartment buildings were assigned to different socio-economic groups.

Antonia Medina Abell

Seminar - Pedestrian Rhetorics - Spring 2020

Name/ Garden Library

rezoned as public land as a result of the project. This

Location/ Neve Sha’anan, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel

green space per inhabitant is high -- listed as 18,43 m2/

Area/ 50 m2

appear greener than it is, is the San Cristóbal Hill, a

Stakeholders/ Arteam, Measila, Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo, residents of Neve Sha’anan

taking up 737 hectares. The new park amenities include

was very much needed: although the borough’s ratio of inhabitant in 2019 – in fact, Recoleta is home to two of the region’s large cemeteries. Also making the borough metropolitan park that is 280 meters tall (918 ft.)and a playground, a soccer field, sidewalk improvements for the whole area as well as repainting the facades of neighboring houses and a large open green area.

Fig. 11 - Neve Sha’anan in the city context.

The project is also interesting in that it used a newly Levinsky Park and Garden Library

unveiled subsidy, the Program for Social and Territorial Integration (Decreto Supremo n.19) as a key component. This subsidy was part of the Ministry of Housing and Urbanism’s (MINVU) efforts to build

Old Jaffa

more affordable-housing stock in places where it was lacking, especially in central and well connected areas of the city rather than the peripheries were affordable housing has been historically built in Santiago. Central Ayalon River

Fig. 12 - The Library during off hours.

areas are also near schools, subway stations, grocery stores and cultural programming, providing the city with an opportunity to finally leverage access to its inhabitants and boost construction. Through the lens of time, Gabriel Palma Urban Complex’s main success was establishing a counterpoint between the ‘old way’ of chasing value in the city and a ‘new way’ of creating it, embedding a sense of equity inherent to the design. This model is easily replicable in the city, both because of its use of State-provided tools and the creation of a new one: the apartment complex-plaza relationship. It creates

a before/after division in the city, in terms of a city that is constructed by exploiting the value of its context and one that creates it. As many boroughs struggle to bring in more people because of their lack of affordable housing supply, this provides an innovative solution. However, this equity can be questioned by the decision of separating each socio-economic group in their own building [Fig. 10], in a project that overall is considered to be socially integrated. But is it fair to ask one project to solve the shortcomings of its society?

POST-OCCUPANCY | TIME AS ACTIVATOR | GARDEN LIBRARY | TEL AVIV The Garden Library is a small and humble project with a large audience; it engages and celebrates its users and communities, a success owed to the creation of a legal, non-profit entity to manage both the place and its curriculum of activities. “It was founded in 2009 by ARTEAM, an interdisciplinary art NGO, in collaboration with Mesila, an aid and information center for the foreign communities operated by Tel Aviv municipality. The Garden Library was established based upon the belief that culture and education are basic human rights that bridge differences between communities and individuals, and that can affect lasting social change.” The Library responds to a broader set of urban conditions, including fraugh, vulnerable, poor and immigrant communities and, as such, it did not have input before implementation. For this reason, it belongs in the post-occupancy category. Located in the heart of Neve Sha’anan, an immigrant neighborhood in southern Tel Aviv-Yafo [Fig.11], the Garden Library is an open, outdoor structure that rests against the structure of the only public bomb shelter in the area. Designed by Yoav Meiri Architects, the structure is composed of two volumes that play with the notion of a bookcase that expands into a roof and a stool [Fig.12-14]. The bookcase is lit from the inside at night, glowing softly as a beacon in the park. The horizontal stripes of the roof , the metal doors and the opening mechanism are a subtle reminder of the distinctly Telavivian window shutters. According to the architects, the library was designed as a “book machine” with minimal operational and

Fig. 13 - Project as a timeline.

Antonia Medina Abell

Seminar - Pedestrian Rhetorics - Spring 2020

Fig. 14 - The architectural mechanisms of the library.

maintenance needs, which speaks of the fragility of the community and low budget of the project [Fig12]. Along with the bookcases, which contain books in more than 14 languages, the project of the library encompassed the creation of a center for arts and education, which acts as one of the few community centers for children in the area. It also offers adult programming as varied as a Sudanese Theater Group, web design, guitar classes, concerts, English and Hebrew classes, and tours of the neighborhood (which Fig. 15 - The closed library does not hint at how acitve it becomes.

fund activities). The Garden Library is not a static book storage device but is instead a catalyst for varied and flexible programming serving a precarious community. [Fig.13] Placing it in the heart of Levinsky Park (1,8 hectares), where migrant workers and asylum seekers congregate on weekends, responds to the neighborhood’s need of placemaking while maintaining a sense of safety for people, since the design doesn’t have doors or walls that would make migrant workers anxious (for fear of

Fig. 16

authorities waiting for them inside). Levinsky Park has become a contested space in its own right, since it is the only green open area in Neve Sha’anan but is heavily built –it contains a synagogue and a kindergarten as well—and will be even more in the future, since the Municipality’s planning committee recently approved a plan to build a large school (5,700 square meters. This action drew protests from residents, for whom the park is the only outdoor space in the heavily polluted area that surrounds Tel Aviv’s Central Bus Station, an architectural monster that destroyed the fabric of Neve Sha’anan. Protestors were also concerned that the

school will primarily serve children from other neighborhoods rather than Neve Sha’anan and and, at the larger scale, that projects for the area based on a new light-rail project will destroy the park. How could a small library empower a community and improve their opportunities in a city that is not equipped to accommodate them? If one looks at the project as just a building – or even as just outdoor furniture (of which it is an elegant example) – for the storage of books, it succeeds in a limited sort of way. [Fig.14- 15] When shuttered it has little presence –although at night it is a jewel. If, however, we unravel the actions and programming of the Library, understanding it as a series of moments, (captured in the most diagrammatic way in the schedule of Fig.13) the place becomes a site of encounter and connection, an important institution for struggling groups [Fig.16-17]. However, no matter how organized, the Garden Library project cannot transcend many of the difficulties that migrant workers and Fig. 17 - Music group associated with the Garden Library programming.

Antonia Medina Abell

Seminar - Pedestrian Rhetorics - Spring 2020

Name/ 596 Acres

asylum seekers face in Neve Sha’anan (or in Israel).

Location/ New York, NY

even a social investment in the future.

Area/ 697 acres of opportunity on 982 sites; 230 acres of community projects on 576 sites Stakeholders/ NYC Department of City Planning, 596 lots, interested residents Fig. 18 - Web map showing “Empty Lots”

Nevertheless, it can provide tools for the community,

POST-OCCUPANCY | TIME AS REINVENTION | 596 ACRES | NYC Using guerrilla-like tools such as billboards [FIg.19], hand sketches, a set of contact details and catchy phrases like “Find the lot in your life” , this organization aimed to help match empty lots with attentive citizens who wanted to use that space creatively rather than accepting it as unused. The project also worked as “a response to a public and bureaucratic perception that New York City lacks the public land and green spaces to adequately service its communities”. The approach was diffuse and disaggregated and did not focus on intervening in particular lots but on compiling the data and knowledge base for others to do so, spreading information in a transparent,

Fig. 19 - Handmade signs as part of this activist campaign.

open-source and activist manner. By virtue of being a website, the project was able to reach much larger boundaries than the political divisions of New York City [Fig.18], and even surviving the scope and funding of its updates. Reinventing and redirecting a database of empty lots in the city compiled by the Department of City Planning, the project was a guide and a list of ideas for communities to adapt the best way they saw fit. The communities were both virtual and physical, as passersby could be roaming around their neighborhood or the internet. This approach was a low stakes, yet activist reclaiming of the city, an acknowledgment of

how traditional relationships of ownership can produce a stale landscape, where familiar sites are often detached from the everyday life of a neighborhood. Because of the flexibility of the tools it proposed (mentorship, adaptive reuse and a gentle, legal occupation of abandoned sites, people were able to envision and use the lots as their communities saw fit. The project resulted in a myriad of uses: a library, a community farm, neighborhood gatherings and more. In terms of the project founder, Paula Z. Segal, it was about “getting the word out”. The organization also rallied for changes in the city, making compelling arguments about property and how it does not serve neighborhoods when it is forgotten or detached from the people who actually live in that place. Its enduring tools of mapping, advocating, and creating a record could be applied to many other cities, in many other contexts. In terms of time, this project introduces the idea of the city as a continuously unfolding landscape despite the complex and segregated patterns of ownership it may have. It establishes a critique of how property is more valued than everyday contact and experience and sets up tools to establish a dialog with government in remediating that gap. It also introduces the notion of data-cities, where information needs to be available and transparent for residents to use. But the very grassroots nature of this project makes it harder for it to scale up, and fragile in its reach. Growing too much means the institutionalization of these guerrilla-like tools, not growing enough means not having a large impact. In 2018, 596 Acres stopped providing advocacy support, and their website now shows their impressive archive and the link to their next project: the NYC Real Estate Investment Cooperative (NYC REIC). This “bottom-up” approach enlarged its scope to housing, a much Fig. 20 - 596 Lots website currently states they are not providin advocacy tools anymore.

Antonia Medina Abell

Seminar - Pedestrian Rhetorics - Spring 2020

Name/ Tower of David

more complex and enduring theme, rendering the

Location/ Caracas, Venezuela

impossible. [Fig. 20].

Area/ 45 stories; 1,300,000 sq. ft. Stakeholders/ David Brillenbourgh (investor), occupying families, Venezuelan government, Urban Think Tank.

serendipity of captivating unsuspecting residents

POST-OCCUPANCY | TIME AS OPPORTUNITY | TOWER OF DAVID | CARACAS Originally designed as the Centro Financiero Confinanzas by Venezuelan architect Enrique Gómez,

Fig. 21- Torre David in city context.

this abandoned-office-tower-turned-housing has both perplexed and enchanted urbanists, architects and

San Bernardino

filmmakers, becoming the background of television series like Homeland (Showtime, 2011-) or the star of documentaries like Torre David [Fig.23] by

Torre David

Urban-Think Tank (fun fact: the filmmaker, Alfredo Brillembourg, an architect and urbanist, is a relative of the tower’s developer). The building was to be the third tallest tower in Caracas [Fig.21] but the financial crisis of 1994 halted construction, and it stood for over

Quinta Crespo Guaire River

Fig. 22 - Circulations are the streets of Torre David.

a decade as a half-built, silent and accusing ghost on the skyline. In 2007, the building was occupied by squatters, and it has become the stuff of urban legend. A long thread of miseries followed the inception of the tower: the sudden death of developer David Brillembourg, in 1993; the collapse of Venezuelan banks the following year, and the mid-construction abandonment and decay that haunted it for over a decade. As such, this was a deeply failed project, one of the white elephants that stand as remnants of “better times” in many Latin American cities. Ironically, the Tower did not become famous as a successful

urban development project, but instead it became an iconic, innovative, and troublesome example of “the world’s tallest squat”, created by the 750 families that occupied the site almost overnight. Thus begun the occupation of the first vertical neighborhood. In the Torre David there was no running water, so residents had to carry 5-gallon water containers up 30+ stories, since the elevator shafts were empty. [Fig. 22] However, they paid for utilities such as electricity, signaling a tacit arrangement with the government. Staircases became the streets in the tower, with people going up, down, or sitting for a quick chat. Small stores and bodegas run by the residents spread around the tower as well, offering canned food and produce, among other things. Many squatters used the parking spots available; others grew tired of the staircases and used their motorcycles to move up and down, “ferrying supplies up to a distribution center on the tenth floor” (circulation as streets, indeed!). The tower was also customized: apartment expansions, and a basketball court and gym equipment on the tallest story [Fig.24]. By virtue of its occupation, the Torre David was temporarily rescued from ruin and decay by an organized and cohesive group of squatters, rendering it a profound and strange experiment into the effects of inequality and opportunity in the city. Two realities were superimposed in the occupation of the Torre David: : Mike Davis met David Harvey: the “planet as a building site” collided with the “planet of slums.” The origins of the tower were in financial and capital machinations which collapsed in 1994, creating the ghostly figure of ruin and decay that haunted the city for years, even as the slums also continued to grow in the ravines of the city. The second life of the tower sprouted from the social, not geological, cracks and failures, resulting in a troubling but distinctly entrepreneurial project. The Torre David cannot be called a Fig. 23 - Building as a timeline.

Antonia Medina Abell

Seminar - Pedestrian Rhetorics - Spring 2020

Fig. 24 - Basketball court in the half-built tower.

“project” in the typical sense of a complete and unified construct and it raises many questions about the role and lifespan of urban projects and megaprojects in the city, and the responsibilities and effects they entail. How far should a project aim in its post-occupancy goals? Should we think about adaptive reuse buildings during construction? Moreover, the Torre David becomes an unintended commentary on ruin and our status as city dwellers, signaling that the timeline of a building transcends its status as a “project”[Fig.25]. Fig. 25 - The facade shows the superimposed moments of the tower.

CONCLUSIONS | TIME Through these examples, we have tested the concept of time as the determinant and instructive aspect of projects that involve pedestrians in the city, even when contrasted with more widely explored aspects of their consequences in space. Using this lens, Los Almendros Hill, Northala Fields and Gabriel Palma Urban Complex reveal the importance and possibilities of setting up projects as processes, because doing so can give way to community participation in ways that are not just statistics, but create a sense of belonging and identification with the place of intervention. These three projects also included parkland as a central part of their development, signaling opportunities in approaching the sites as a much larger unit, becoming part of the system of the city rather than a small project with defined boundaries. This way, their effects are broader and allow participation of other communities, introducing the construct of public space in extended 18

and notional a virtual manner much earlier than the materiality of its construction. The Garden Library, 596 Acres and Torre David raise themes of activation, occupation, the need to support the built environment with management structures (NGOs, artist collectives, etc.) and the need for design and planning work to account for a lifespan that transcends traditional stages of development. These hint at innovative adaptations of the city fabric, which can change in order to harness new modes of living, also hinting at the scarcity and displacement of diversity in many cities today. “The crisis of place, in which the land of the public realm is sold as a commodity in the interests of untrammeled ‘growth’, is not a new phenomenon, but as urbanization increases pace, the pressures to adopt new methods become stronger”. Overall, considering time as the central lens with which to analyze these projects establishes a dialogue between each project’s internal goals and the city fabric in which they are rooted and expanded, revealing the tensions and limitations of “getting things done.” In these terms, fragile the concept of “public space” is revealed: it evolves, making different requirements for cities and historical moments alike. Even now that we are approaching a post-pandemic world, many cities are grappling with the fact that pedestrians do not have enough room to walk. They are adapting via pilot projects and tactical urbanism such as orange cones, breaking old notions of what is pedestrian and what is not. But more than these ephemeral tools, is there a way for us to guide the lifespan of the city fabric, project by project? How are the examples discussed here positioned for the future? Can they mutate, change or adapt, and should they?

Antonia Medina Abell

Seminar - Pedestrian Rhetorics - Spring 2020

References

ENDNOTES: 1 By comparison, the tallest urban hill in Santiago (Renca) reaches 300 meters or 980 ft 2 Fondacio is an international Christian NGO affiliated with the Catholic Church that focuses on being a place of dialogue for Christians of many different denominations. The are the owners of the land where Los Almendros Hill is located. More information at: https://fondacio.org/ 3 Santiago Cerros Isla is an NGO whose core mission is to show the value of ecological assets for the city and landscape, especially focusing on the isolated hills of the Santiago Metropolitan Region. For this project, they developed the architecture and landscape proposal basing it on the items highlighted during the participatory process. Ecomabi is a non-profit that focuses on conservation and sustainability of biodiversity in Chile. They did the proposa for the ecological restoration of the park. Ciudad y Sociedad is a consulting group specializing in civic engagement and participation. More information in: Fundación Cerros Isla, Informe de Arquitectura. Proceso Participativo: Proyecto de Rehabilitación Cerro Los Almendros. Santiago, Chile, 2016,6. Available at: https://fc50d403-e643-46a6-a21b-7ec4d6a20ca8.filesusr.com/ugd/8e4003_a35f2ab5089845a6b50ab1c87e3cdcb1.pdf 4 Recoded City: Co-creating Urban Futures, edited by Thomas Ermacora and Lucy Bullivant. Marko and Placemakers p.205. 5 Ibid, p.205. 6 Ibid, p.206. 7 Cartiere, Cameron, Northala Fields: Valhalla in the Distance Available at: https://www.academia.edu/9011024/Northala_Fields_Valhalla_in_the_Distance 8 The Gabriel Palma Urban Complex was also result of a judicial conflict between the Municipality of Recoleta and a paint company (Ceresita), in which the company was penalized with the payment of 2.5 million dollars and the transfer of the site to the public domain. The company was found guilty of bribery and unathorized construction that polluted the area. “Parque Gabriel Palma Ya Cuenta Con Proyecto |.” Municipalidad De Recoleta. Accessed May 12, 2020. https://www.recoleta.cl/ parque-gabriel-palma-ya-cuenta-con-proyecto/. 9 Francisco Díaz (ed.), ARQ Compendium: Arquitectura y Ciudad. (Santiago: Ediciones ARQ, 2020), 10. 10 Chechilnitzky, Alexandra. “Vitacura y Recoleta Lideran Ranking De Áreas Verdes Por Habitante En Chile.” La Tercera, February 24, 2019. https://www.latercera.com/nacional/noticia/vitacura-recoleta-lideran-ranking-areas-verdes-habitante-chile/628679/. 11 The situation is even worse: the municipality sold one the cemeteries’ water rights in 2002 and the old watering system of the cemetery was abandoned. “Los Árboles Del Cementerio General De Santiago Se Están Muriendo.” Plataforma Urbana, May 14, 2014. http://www.plataformaurbana.cl/archive/2014/05/14/los-arboles-del-cementerio-general-de-santiago-se-estan-muriendo/. 12 “Parque Recoleta: Familias Vulnerables Habitan Uno De Los Tres Edificios Del Proyecto.” ICAFAL Ingeniería y Construcción S.A. Accessed May 12, 2020. https://www.icafal.cl/proyecto/parque-recoleta/. 13 The Garden Library: center for education culture and arts, ‘About Us’ http://thegardenlibrary.org/about-us/ 14 “Shelters.” iView: Municipaility of Tel Aviv-Yafo GIS database. Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo. Accessed April 30, 2020. https://gisn.tel-aviv.gov.il/iview2js4/index.aspx. 15 “Public Library” by Yoav Meiri Architects and Arteam. Yoav Meiri Architects. Accessed May 10, 2020. http://yoavmeiri.net/project.aspx?id=153. 16 A majority of asylum seekers and migrant workers living in Neve Sha’anan are of Sudanese ori gin. See more at Schultz, Matthew. “Tel Aviv’s Vibrant Underbelly.” The Tower. The Tower, July 2016. http://www.thetower.org/article/ tel-avivs-vibrant-underbelly-neve-shaanan/. 17 Kloosterman, Karin. “A Model ‘Garden Library’ For Urban Environments in Transition.” Green Prophet, June 17, 2010. https://www.greenprophet.com/2009/12/garden-library-israel/. 18 Peleg, Bar. “Tel Aviv Plan to Build School for Asylum Seekers’ Children Instead of Park Draws Protests.” haaretz.com. Haaretz, January 2, 2020. https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-tel-aviv-plan-to-build-school-for-asylum-seekers-kids-instead-of-park-draws-protest-1.8346935. 19 Natalia Radywyl and Che Biggs, “Reclaiming the Commons for Urban Transformation,” Journal of Cleaner Production 50 (January 5, 2013): pp. 159-170, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2012.12.020, p.165) 20 Idem. 21 “Mission and Story,” 596 Acres, accessed May 13, 2020, http://596acres.org/mission-and-story/) 22 According to the documentary Torre David, 40% of Caracas’ residents live in slums. 23 Brillembourg, Alfredo; Klumpner, Hubert; Urban Think Tank, Torre David. Streaming. Directed by Markus Kneer and Daniel Schwartz. Vimeo, 2013, 22 mins. 24 Davidson, Justin. “How the Torre De David in Caracas Ended Up Being a Squat Site” New York Magazine, New York. October 7, 2011. https://nymag.com/homedesign/urbanliving/2011/caracas/. 25 Harvey, p.37; Mike Davis, Planet of Slums, London and New York 2006. 26 Thomas Ermacora and Lucy Bullivant, eds., Recoded City: Co-creating Urban Futures (2016), p.95

SOURCES: CERRO LOS ALMENDROS: • •

•

Fundación Cerros Isla, Lefranc, Etienne ; M. Catalina Picón, M. Catalina; Ruiz, Fernanda Cerros Isla de Santiago: Construyendo un nuevo imaginario de ciudad a través de su geografía. Santiago, Chile: Ediciones ARQ, 2017. 220 p. Fundación Cerros Isla, Informe de Arquitectura. Proceso Participativo: Proyecto de Rehabilitación Cerro Los Almendros. Santiago, Chile, 2016, 53 p. Available at: https://fc50d403-e643-46a6-a21b-7ec4d6a20ca8.filesusr.com/ugd/8e4003_a35f2ab5089845a6b50ab1c87e3cdcb1.pdf Instagram: Santiago Cerros Isla, @cerrosisla

GARDEN LIBRARY: • • • •

NORTHALA FIELDS: • • • • • •

Landezine, Landscape Architecture Platform, Northala Fields Park, FoRM Associates Available at: http://landezine.com/index.php/2011/06/form-landscape-architecture/ London Parks & Garden Trust, Northala Fields - a 21st-Century Park Available at: https://www.londongardenstrust.org/features/northala.htm Studio Fink, Northala Fields Park. Available at: http://www.studiofink.eu/c-36/northala-fields-park/?LMCL=lKXlfS Archittetura del Paessagio, Gennaio/ Giugno 2010 [Scanned] Available at: http://www. studiofink.eu/materials/files/green-urbanism/green-spaces/1-northala/arhchitettura%20del%20paesaggio.pdf Marko and Placemakers, Northala Fields Park, London, UK. Available at: http://markoandplacemakers.com/projects/northala-fields-park-london-uk Cartiere, Cameron, Northala Fields: Valhalla in the Distance. Available at: https:// www.academia.edu/9011024/Northala_Fields_Valhalla_in_the_Distance

GABRIEL PALMA URBAN COMPLEX: • • • • •

•

Francisco Díaz (ed.), ARQ Compendium: Arquitectura y Ciudad. Santiago: Ediciones ARQ, 2020. Municipalidad de Recoleta, Noticias. “279 FAMILIAS BENEFICIADAS CON VIVIENDAS DEL PROYECTO PLAZA RECOLETA” Accessed May 02, 2020. https://www.recoleta.cl/279-familias-beneficiadas-con-viviendas-del-proyecto-plaza-recoleta/ “Parque Gabriel Palma Ya Cuenta Con Proyecto |.” Accessed May 12, 2020. https:// www.recoleta.cl/parque-gabriel-palma-ya-cuenta-con-proyecto/. Plataforma Arquitectura, Bienal Diálogos Impostergables cierra el segundo fin de semana con nuevas propuestas premiadas. (written by Pola Mora) Available at: https:// www.plataformaarquitectura.cl/cl/883087/bienal-dialogos-impostergables-cierra-el-segundo-fin-de-semana-con-nuevas-propuestas-premiadas Premio Aporte Urbano 2017, Conjunto Urbano Gabriel Palma. Available at: https:// www.premioaporteurbano.cl/index.php/proyectos/conjunto-urbano-gabriel-palma

The Garden Library: center for education culture and arts, ‘About Us’. Available at: http://thegardenlibrary.org/about-us/ “Public Library” by Yoav Meiri Architects and Arteam. Yoav Meiri Architects. Accessed May 10, 2020. http://yoavmeiri.net/project.aspx?id=153. Schultz, Matthew. “Tel Aviv’s Vibrant Underbelly.” The Tower. The Tower, July 2016. http://www.thetower.org/article/tel-avivs-vibrant-underbelly-neve-shaanan/. Rosenberg, Andrew. “The Garden Library for Refugees and Migrant Workers / Yoav Meiri Architects.” ArchDaily. ArchDaily, February 20, 2011. https://www.archdaily. com/112495/the-garden-library-for-refugees-and-migrant-workers-yoav-meiri-architects.

596 ACRES: • • •

Segal, Paula Z. “Tools for Community Land Access Advocacy.” 596 Acres. http://596acres.org/. NYC REIC, “We Can Pool Our Money and Power.” NYC Real Estate Investment Cooperative. Accessed May 13, 2020. http://nycreic.com/. Radywyl, Natalia, and Che Biggs. “Reclaiming the Commons for Urban Transformation.” Journal of Cleaner Production 50 (January 5, 2013): 159–70. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2012.12.020.

TOWER OF DAVID: • • •

Urban Think Tank, Torre David. 2013. https://torredavid.com/ Also available at: http://u-tt.com/project/torre-david/ Davidson, Justin. “How the Torre De David in Caracas Ended Up Being a Squat Site” New York Magazine, ew York. October 7, 2011. https://nymag.com/homedesign/ urbanliving/2011/caracas/. Brillembourg, Alfredo; Klumpner, Hubert; Urban Think Tank, Torre David. Streaming. Directed by Markus Kneer and Daniel Schwartz. Vimeo, 2013, 22 mins. Available at: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/torredavid

OTHERS: •

Thomas Ermacora and Lucy Bullivant, eds., Recoded City: Co-creating Urban Futures (2016), Futures, 94-105, 108-298.

•

Harvey, David. 09/01/2008. “The Right to the City.” New Left Review (53): 23.

SPECIAL THANKS: •

Hugo Bovea Garcia

IMAGES: Fig.1 Google Earth Fig. 2 Fundación Cerros Isla, Cerro los Almendros, 2016, in Fundación Cerros Isla, Informe de Arquitectura. Proceso Participativo: Proyecto de Rehabilitación Cerro los Almendros, 2016 (Santiago: Fundación Cerros Isla, 2016), 4. Fig. 3 By author. Fig. 4 Google Earth Fig. 5 Marko and Placemakers, Northala Fields Park, London, UK. In: http://markoandplacemakers.com/projects/northala-fields-park-london-uk Fig. 6 By author. Fig. 7 Marko and Placemakers, Northala Fields Park, London, UK. In: http://markoandplacemakers.com/projects/northala-fields-park-london-uk Fig. 8 Google Earth Fig. 9 Conjunto Urbano Gabriel Palma. In Francisco Díaz (ed.), ARQ Compendium: Arquitectura y Ciudad. (Santiago: Ediciones ARQ, 2020),10. Fig. 10 Pola Mora, “Bienal Diálogos Impostergables cierra el segundo fin de semana con nuevas propuestas premiadas” - 2017, Plataforma Arquitectura. In https://www.plataformaarquitectura.cl/cl/883087/bienal-dialogos-impostergables-cierra-el-segundo-fin-de-semana-con-nuevas-propuestas-premiadas. Fig. 11 Google Earth

Fig. 12 By author. Fig. 13 By author. Fig. 14 Yoav Meiri Architects, The Garden Library for Refugees and Migrant Workers – 2011, ArchDaily accessed May 03, 2020. Fig. 15 By author. Fig. 16 Yoav Meiri Architects, The Garden Library for Refugees and Migrant Workers – 2011, ArchDaily accessed May 03, 2020. Fig. 17 The Garden Library Facebook page. In: https://www.facebook.com/librarylevinsky/photos/a.877646712280360/1634646856580338/?type=3&theater Fig. 18 596 Acres. In: http://596acres.org/ Fig. 19 596 Acres. In: http://596acres.org/ Fig. 20 596 Acres. In: http://596acres.org/ Fig. 21 Google Earth Fig. 22 Still from Torre David (2013). Urban Think Tank, https://torredavid.com/ Also available at: http://u-tt.com/project/torre-david/ Fig. 23 By author. Fig. 24 Still from Torre David (2013). Urban Think Tank. Fig. 25 Urban Think Tank, https://torredavid.com/

Antonia Medina Abell

What is the most important asset of projects that construct public space? I argue that it is not the space they occupy, create, or transform, but time. Time can be used to create and engage communities, develop design as a series of iterations rather than finished product, to reflect on the role of new construction, or even to recycle materials traditionally considered waste, or infrastructures that have failed the city, giving them a whole new set of possibilities. Looking through the lens of time can hint at a different measurement of success of pedestrian spaces in the city: do they engage people, establish a sense of belonging, are they activated and if not, can this change? The examples for discussion will be analyzed using two categories: pre-occupancy and post-occupancy. Projects analized under the ‘pre-occupancy’ category refer to the conceptualization stages, which include design concepts, pedestrianization strategies, participation tools, and construction. The projects for discussion will be Los Almendros Hill (Huechuraba, Santiago, Chile) and Northala Fields (London, UK). Both include parkland and were heavily influenced by participatory and engagement processes set up much earlier than the design and construction stages. Post-occupancy invokes the moment when these examples stop being “projects” and become embedded in the city fabric, where their uses are expanded and tested in innovative but contested ways. These include the Garden Library (Neve Sha’anan, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel), and the Tower of David (Caracas, Venezuela). Overall, seeing time as the asset means to establish a dialogue between a project’s internal goals and the city fabric, because if anything can be learned from historical projects, is that their lifespan transcends the initial goals by many, many years. How are these projects positioned for the future? Can the mutate, change or adapt, and should they?