Urban Studio:Barrio Logan
The Urban Studio led us through a series of studies that took us from a zoomed out view of the city to a very zoomed in exploration of specific typologies present in the urban fabric of the Barrio Logan neighborhood of San Diego, CA. As a result of these studies we were able to discover possible interventions that while implimented at a small scale could affect the larger urban fabirc.
Poulation Density 12,234
6,713
3,944
Median Income 2008 $31,581
$23,140
$62,668
Average Rent 2008 $859
$707
$1,245
Average People Per Household 4.1
3.2
2.6
% of Renters 89%
85%
48%
Number of Cars Per Household 1.6
1.1
1.65
% of Poulation w/College Degree 12%
10%
35%
% Below Poverty Level 30%
48%
14.4%
By looking at the economic condition of our section of Barrio Logan verses those of San Diego and the rest of Barrio Logan I was able to begin to see what kind of interventions might work well in the community. Through analysis of the data I was able to see that my section of Barrio Logan was more stable financially than the rest of Barrio Logan but still well below that of the rest of San Diego. Another interesting statistic was the number of people per household. These statistics point towards affordable high density housing.
“Widgets” To further explore and understand the community we were told to explore our section of Barrio Logan and find unique conditions that came about due to economic factors, zoning regulations or other reasons that led to a form of densification. We were told to draw and diagram five of these occurances. Three of my “widgets” dealt with the idea of mixed use which was bread from setback issues as well as finding a way to generate income on the property. The other two deal with densifying a residential site. One was done on a large scale with the other being done through a converted garage.
contextual relationship bar front the street and connects with the street
materiality
concrete block stucco asphalt shingles wood siding
housing is hidden by the bar and has no connection to the street
program/uses
commercial non-owner occupied residential
16’ 6”
architectural components
cultural specificity
flat roof hipped roof gabled roof
bar porvides a local gathering space multi-family housing creates connections between neighbors
53’ 9”
hidden density uses: residential commercial (bar) square footage: built: 4,700 sq. ft unbuilt: 3,050 sq. ft
24’ 9” economic/generator rent bar income
far: .61 occupancy: 8 residential units (approx. 20-30 people) bar: 5 employees
contextual relationship church fronts the street and connects with the street
housing is above the church thus losing a street level connection housing on the front are connected to street with windows overlooking the
materiality
concrete block stucco
program/uses
commercial non-owner occupied residential
137' 5"
25'
architectural components flat roof reccessed entry cornice
overhead density uses: residential church square footage: built: 11,300 sq. ft unbuilt: 1,400 sq. ft
cultural specificity
church provides a place of worship 49' 7" for the community
far: 1.51
economic/generator rent church income
multi-family residential provide connection between neighbors
occupancy:
contextual relationship restaurant fronts the street and connects with the street
housing is hidden by the restaurant but still has a semi-connection to the street due to the empty lot next door
materiality
concrete block stucco metal (trolley car) asphalt shingles wood siding
program/uses
commercial non-owner occupied residential
14' 11/16"
50' 5" 10’
cultural specificity
architectural components
restaurant porvides a local gathering space 95'
front porch hipped roof
single-family business uses: residential commercial (restaurant)
50' 11”
square footage: built: 2,300 sq. ft unbuilt: 2,600 sq. ft
economic/generator 16' 5" rent restaurant income
far: .47 occupancy: 1 residence (approx. 4-6 people)
Sidewalk Edge Condition
Land Use Study
Useable Space Study
From the five “widgets” that we explored above we chose three widgets that we could analyse further and generate our own proposals for densification and economic diversification based on the concepts that were driving the original widgets. For this I wanted to examine the conditions that were suroiunding the site as well as the pockets of land that were not useed within the given parcel of land. It was not a requirement to use the existing buildings but I tried to where I could because I felt that this was important to the identity of the community. Two of the three widgets I chose were mixed use. They consisted of multifamily housing and a single commercial unit. The third widget I chose was a single house with a garage that was converted into a income generating rental unit. The two widgets to the right contain strategies for densifing the given area and allowing the owner to generate more revenue. The next step of the project would call for us to choose one of the six propsals and apply it to a site in Barrio Logan. For this I chose to focus on the proposal for the widget titled “hidden density”.
12'
55' 5"
137' 5"
25'
49' 7"
The first proposal for this widget focused on creating a connecntion between the residential units located behind the commercial unit and Logan Avenue. I did this by removing part of the commercial building, which not only created a path between the residential units and the street but also created and outdoor area for the commercial unit. In addition to the connection the street I wanted to better define the residential area. I felt that it was important to have a mixture of single family homes and multi-family units in order to create a community feel. I also wanted to provide room for a playground for the kids of the imidiate community as well as those of people visiting the Logan Avenue area. For the second proposal I focused on strengthening the isolation of the residential units located behind the commercial unit and Logan Avenue. I chose to do this because I noticed as I walked the neighborhood that nearly all of the residences were closed off from the street.
Commercial Units Residential Units Public Space
Proposal 1
Proposal 2
The next step of the project was to choose a site in our area of Barrio Logan and apply what we had learned trhough our case studies, neighborhood studies, widgets and finally our iwdget proposal to design an intervention that whike small in scale could have a big impact on the surrounding community. I chose a site at the corner of Logan Avenue and South Evans St. I chose this lot because its proximity to Chicano Park, Public Transportaion and its location of Logan Avenue. I feel that Logan Avenue is positioned to be a main pedestrian destination in Barrio Logan . This led me to focus on trying to activate Logan Avenue as a pedestrian center. I decide to implement ideas from the first proposal for the “hidden density� widget. I wanted to create an area with mixed-use buildings as well as stand alone residential units. I wanted to create a public gathering area comprised of outdoor cafes, a playground and gathering areas. I norder to bring people to the area and have them stay I proposed that the commercial areas be comprised of a community art center, restaurant, coffe shop, bookstore, community daycare/ education center, and an appointment based commercial unit. The residential units would be a mix of studios and single family units. As a way to make the single family units more affordable they would have the ability for the first floor to be rented as a two-bedroom apartment.
Mixed-use
Residential
Public Gathering
Public Circulation
Private Circulation
Resident Parking