DIMENSIONAL GREEN MELBOURNE
Dariyn Girton Queensbridge Assignment 4
Figure 1
CONTENTS Section
DG
Page No.
FRONT COVER
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INTRODUCTION
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SYSTEMS - Natural, Constructed, Network and Social
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FUTURE CHANGE - Location of proposal - Future system interplay
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CONTEXT
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PROPOSAL - WHY
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PROPOSAL – WHAT - In relation to social interaction
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PROPOSAL - HOW
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PROPOSAL - WHEN
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2
INTRODUCTION
Our group project focuses on the transformation of the road systems around Queensbridge, along Southbank Promenade and the surroundings of the Eureka tower. The overall plan will allow increased overlay of the four systems – Natural, Social, Constructed and Network. This will give priority to people who will be interacting with the site, alleviating the growing pressures of increasing foot traffic. Our site presents an opportunity for a Utopian ‘sky city’ that enables the uniting of buildings in a way that is innovative, and incorporates green design and open space, hence its name Dimensional Green Melbourne. The area that I am focusing on is the social systems of our proposed site and how this will create added value to the systems that are already established through improving opportunities for social interaction and association.
Figure 4 – Location of Queensbridge Figure 2 – Shows Southbank in relation to other Melbourne suburbs
Figure 5 – The site in context
Figure 3 – Map of Queensbridge Site for change
3 Figure 6 – Image of Site
SYSTEMS - EXISTING
THE FOUR SYSTEMS
Figure 7 – Map of Constructed systems
Figure 8 – Map of Network Systems
Figure 9 – Map of Social systems – People Density
Figure 10 – Map of Natural systems
Figure 11 – Current Land Use Map
Figure 12 – The Urban Forest Strategy is a step in the right direction, our dimensional green Melbourne takes this further totally expanding the natural systems potential in our site
Our site is currently dominated by constructed buildings and utilities infrastructure, as seen by the Constructed systems map. These buildings are mainly residential and office buildings, that become quite dense as you move further out from the waterfront. The network systems in the site include mostly the roads which are occupied by cars, trams and buses. There is no train line that crosses our site and people who ride their bikes or walk, generally do so along Southbank promenade. The natural system is quite sparse with exception of the promenade grass and trees and the Yarra River, which shows that it is not well integrated into the built environment within our site. On the outskirts there are parks and open spaces, but directly within our site there opportunity for improvement. As for the social systems, our site is away from the culturally established arts precinct, however has many retail outlets in Southgate and Crown plaza, the tourist attraction of Eureka Sky deck, restaurants near freshwater place and also provides space for street artists and performers. Our strategy is aiming to further integrate these four systems and utilise the space in a more efficient and sustainable way and give our site a sense of place and community. The map below shows just how much potential our site has for establishing a strong connection with each of the systems.
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FUTURE CHANGE
Figure 13– Maps showing the location for changes (above) and how it will impact our site in terms of human activity (below)
LEGEND Connective sky bridges Sky Deck Sky Promenade Queensbridge Redevelopment City Road Redevelopment
LEGEND Equal activation of site More space for pedestrians Greater connectivity and convenience for pedestrians Road pressure eased Central point
Constructed Systems
Network Systems
Natural Systems
Social Systems 5
PROPOSAL – CONTEXT
Upon visiting and assessing the bustling Queensbridge site we noted certain problematic areas within our assigned quadrant. 1. The area in and around Southbank is constantly growing in terms of its population, infrastructure and buildings. 2. The waterfront section is far more socially active than the inner and back end sections of our site. 3. Southbank is a well known tourist attraction especially with the Eureka Skydeck in its vicinity. 4. The two main arterials within this site is City Road and Queensbridge are constantly congested with both pedestrian and vehicular traffic. It is almost impossible to address one of these and not the other when proposing a design solution. And what we discovered is that the social interaction of humans are at the forefront of each of these issues. Hence we created a holistic strategy with multiple elements within it. On addressing the various spots we found a combination of solutions would need to work together to vastly improve the efficiency, usability, social inclusivity, connectivity, sustainability and aesthetic value of the open and built spaces within this site.
Figure 14 – Image of site from the waterfront shows how people can interact with the natural and the built environments
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This section allows further analysis on why change needs to be implemented in our site in reference to the social systems. When designing an urban space, people should be a priority, to make lifestyles, commuting and overall atmosphere appealing and comfortable. A significant determinant of our strategy is the growing population, which strongly impacts people movement and flow across our site. Shown to the right is the current and future predictions for population growth. Some more issues which directly involve the social systems include: 1. The multi use of the roads which often leaves pedestrians with long waits at traffic lights and increased congestion on walkways. Pedestrians are constantly competing with the busy roads and the vehicles and the cyclists that also seem to join them on the footpath with no separation for safety.
POPULATION GROWTH
Figure 17 – There will be increased growth in the number of people in Southbank
2. When a space is created that favours the activities and daily routines of people, it is important to make people feel like they want to go for a walk or take in the views when waking up in the morning – it is all about convenience. 1. Multi use of roads and congestion
2. Minimal convenience for pedestrians
Figure 15 – Traffic conditions where red indicates heavy congestion Figure 16 – Shows both pedestrians and cyclists using the same path
Figure 176– The different ways of moving around the city are shown where 65.4% of people are on foot
Based on this most people get around the city on foot which means that top priority needs to be given to pedestrians to help them have a good experience across our site.
Figure 18– There is a noticeable change in the rate of people coming into Southbank among the top three of these city suburbs
Also, due to the high rise apartment buildings and office buildings surrounding our site, people must go to the ground floor if they want to get some fresh air or go for a walk which is an inconvenience especially on short breaks.
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Figure 19 – Image of people on Sandridge Bridge
3. Even though our site has many corridors for street entertainment and attractions like restaurants or pop-up events majority of our site seems inactivated with limited social inclusivity. This is because there is minimal unifying and connecting elements to make our site unique, give it a sense of belonging or create a space that is culturally cohesive
4. Limited undercover areas for street entertainers and pedestrians to sit, cross or walk along across the site
4 The street artists/ performers bring life to our site however there is not any undercover or designated areas for them to perform besides the amphitheatre which is often quite empty. A space that allows them to come so visitors are guaranteed to see something spectacular. 5 The amount of greenery impacts on the social system because it allows people to have some open space and provides fresh air. Whilst there is much green space along the waterfront, there is also a lot of concrete and buildings which are not broken up by greenery. Increasing this would make people enjoy the site more; visually and physically. 3. Existing multiuse of space is not equally distributed – Reduced activation of surrounds away from the waters edge
Figure 20 – Research from our Pecha Kucha Project shows that we need to expand on the creative and artistic culture that breaks through our site
Figure 21 – The promenade is quite exposed and open to the waterfront and many people do not walk on the lower level closest to the waterfront
5. The amount of green cover has reduced as compared to surrounding areas which enable people to have a better view rather than concrete
Figure 22 – Having large expanses of concrete is not very aesthetically appealing to people and also impacts the natural environment.
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PROPOSAL – WHAT
DIMENSIONAL GREEN MELBOURNE
Our project hopes to address all if not some of the issues outlined in the previous section. My investigation concentrates on how our solutions impact the social system within this site and how the social system influenced our design options. Considering the human aspect and the usage of the site, the Social System informed our strategic design elements which include: 1. The connective sky bridges 2. The Sky deck/ viewing deck 3. The Sky Promenade 4. Queensbridge Redevelopment 5. City Road Redevelopment The following slides will provide further understanding into how these elements work to improve the Social System within our site. What needs to be created is an area that is not just known for Eureka tower, but for all the other wonderful elements it brings to the city as well. We need to retain what is already there, however enhance being in the space has a lasting impact on their lifestyles and once off visits throughout the year. 3. The residents – living within the mostly mulitiresidential complexes in the area.
4. The office goers - come into the city during work hours and leave.
SO WHO MAKES UP THE SOCIAL SYSTEM WITHIN OUR SITE? WE FOUND: 1. The pedestrian – the locals and visitors moving between public and private spaces.
Figure 27 – Image taken on Sandridge bridge in our site shows pedestrians crossing the Yarra
2. The tourist - visiting places of interest and taking in the city environments
Figure 28 – Eureka Sky deck is a very popular attraction for tourists and locals
Figure 29 – The many restaurants that line the promenade are frequently visited by tourists
Figure 23 – There are many places where people can stay in our site from luxurious hotels to more budget backpacker locations Figure 25 – IBM is one of the major business cooperation's in our site vicinity
5. The Entertainers – those that perform or create art within the site for people to watch or listen to
Figure 30 – Street artists and performers are the norm in this area Figure 24 – Platinum Apartments, Southbank Freshwater Place
Figure 26 – Our site is used a lot by business people mostly coming out for their breaks or travelling to and from work on foot
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PROPOSAL – WHAT
CONNECTIVE SKY BRIDGES The ‘sky’ bridges connect various buildings and extend not only from the promenade but to a main point of Eureka Sky deck which was identified as a key point bringing people to the area. Having the sky bridges connect from residential buildings and some office buildings gives the area a sense of community allowing people to interact with the space more effectively. The bridges are solely for people traffic and provide an enhanced feeling of connectedness and also additional venues for street buskers, small market stalls or cafes that people can access without having to go to the ground floor of their building and also with the added bonus of the amazing views of the city, the Eureka sky deck will be able to be accesses by tourists and the bridges will also give people the opportunity to experience that same glass floor effect in a way that is fully integrated into the urban design. The Sky bridges not only connect the front of our site but the back as well which provides opportunity for activation. Below is a sketch of potentially how the buildings will be attached, and also how greenery is incorporated into the design so people that are in the buildings have just as much access to green space as those that are down on the ground floor. More green roof top gardens means more attractive place for community development which is often difficult in an urban setting and the bridges allows greater social interaction which addresses the issue of social inclusivity and moveability. At the moment many of the bridges in Melbourne are very low and increasing the height of footbridges will utilise the space better. Figure 31 – Impression of what the sky bridge can look like between two buildings creating a platform for all four systems to be neatly linked together
Figure 32 – The ground level underneath the sky promenade separates cyclists on a separate path to pedestrians
The Sky Promenade impacts the social system in another very positive way, people will be able to experience walking along the Yarra in a whole new way without having to necessarily be in an expensive apartment building to get the same amazing views. The sky promenade will have small pockets of greenery and will also be made of glass so you can look at what is going on down below. Having a sky walkway rather than it just being a shelter creates a uniqueness to the waterfront and makes the area more fascinating to visit for people of all ages. It will enable people on bikes and pedestrians to also be separated so that it is more safe and comfortable. The design of this will look something like the above sketch where this is on the ground level and more people can have access to what is above. The sky walkway will make every visit to Southbank special, maintaining people movement and flow as the number one priority for its overall design.
SKY PROMENADE
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PROPOSAL – WHAT
QUEENSBRIDGE REDEVELOPMENT
SKY DECK The sky deck is a larger addition to the sky promenade which covers over three buildings reaching out the waterfront and connecting to the ground via stairs. This space significantly lifts the vibe of the promenade and gives street artists, visitors, residents, workers all a chance to use the space when they would like and for different reasons. It could just be to take in the views of the Yarra and the rest of the city, listen to performers on the stage, watch a movie in a possible sky cinema or just relax on the chairs or benches The sky deck needed to be incorporated to provide a heart other than that of eureka sky deck and crown casino which is what brings people to the area. This space can be used at all times of the day and will become a point of interest for people to come to when they visit and also changes the overall feel of Southbank for when people are permanently moving in to the area, on top of the already well established food venues below which will integrate nicely, providing minimal impact to what is already there. Utilising the space in this way shows how people can be dispersed in the same place but on multi-levels, reducing the crowding and activating the waterfront like never before. Figure 33 – The sky deck a place where people come together
Figure 34 – Impression of the sky deck and how people can interact with it
Throughout our development of ideas Queensbridge became a focal point of our design strategy also. There were three main ideas such as an underpass, flyover and overhanging bridge. Each of these would give priority to people over vehicles and allow greater flow of both vehicle and people traffic. However, the design that best fits in with our overall proposal of Dimensional Green Melbourne Is the overhanging corridor. This has much the same benefits for the social system as the connective sky bridges. An example of the overhanging corridor is shown below. Which will enable it to be accessed from the outside ground level and also the inside across the buildings addressing the problem of people movement and long waits at traffic lights.
Figure 36/37– Shows how more space will be utilised to prioritise people and cars on one of the busiest roads in our site
Figure 35 – Potential hanging corridor for pedestrians to cross Queensbridge street will ease the pressure and allow people to freely move through the space
CITY ROAD REDEVELOPMENT In line with activating the other side of our site and also reducing traffic congestion a design idea was proposed to build a multi level bridge across city road. In terms of the social system, this will put pedestrians at ease from trying to navigate through busy and noisy vehicle traffic. By doing this it will hopefully address issues that residents have raised about the noise pollution as the traffic will have more space to flow and the noise would be confined to a strong tunnel like structure. This project shows how design strategies must consider all people involved and do what is best for all. A project such as this and all the others discussed will create more jobs and will have a goal of creating a united city pocket that people will always want to be a part of.
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PROPOSAL – HOW
The Sky city idea arose from investigating Utopian movements as it was realised that it would be difficult to alter the existing road systems and would be much easier to build upwards and utilise the air space that is between buildings. Some major questions we had t ask were: Will each sky bridge be f the same height? How many buildings will we connect? What types of buildings are we connecting? Will any other options work? The other option aside from building the sky bridges was to go underground, however to do this would mean a lot more money, time, and cost and would be almost impossible due to the infrastructure that is already in place. A precedence for this idea if it had gone forward would be in Sydney. Not only are shops here it connects an entire strip and could have potentially activated our site even more. With the only other way to address our problems being sky bridges a sketch was drawn up showing how each building would connect. We knew that by having all the bridges surrounding the central point of eureka sky deck then this would mean increased activation across our whole site and the amount of people seen escaping their apartment complex or desk at their office would increase significantly. The imperative for our design was to make sure that the environment could be adapted to ensure people can interact with it amongst all the current issues that have been identified. The designs are all about how humans will use the space in terms of activity, movement and any other agendas. Some Precedence's for our overall design are below arranged in the 5 elements from above:
3. Sky Deck
2. Sky Promenade Figure 38 – Midland Square Japan Sky Promenade
1. Connective Sky bridges
Figure 41 – A glass sky bridge in San Diego Figure 42– Connective
bridges at a local scale in Melbourne city Myer show a different perspective
Figure 39 – Initial idea sketch for promenade
4. Queensbridge Redevelopment Figure 40 – A precedence for queensbridge overhanging corridor in China
5. City Road Redevelopment
Figure 43 – A proposed sky bridge for crown complex is where some of our inspiration is drawn from
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A brief history shows how the Yarra had these naturally rocky barriers that separated the brackish tidal water downstream and the fresh water upstream. The falls were removed during the 1880’s for the construction of Queensbridge.
Figure 44 – The Falls 1838
Figure 45 – The Falls 1858
This is a timeline of how our site will undergo changes when our design is proposed.
Our design would not be a realistic plan to start developing in the short term, it is a Utopian/futuristic proposal that would only be considered in the long term as a possible solution to the growing problems. If it was to be constructed it would have to be done in stages and one bridge at a time and it would take a very long time to construct especially since the rights to do it would be needed from each connecting building and council. Southbank has come a very long way since the early 1800’s and the rate of development is constantly increasing , what is a Utopian idea now could become reality in the future. Regardless of how people’s lifestyles and the size of the population change, this solution will be beneficial, the sooner a major project like this is started the better as it will be done in time for any major fluctuations.
FINAL DESIGN
PROPOSAL –WHEN
CHANGE OVER TIME
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REFERENCE LIST
DG
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