Design Competition: City is Park
This proposal was submitted in response to the 2014 Rizzo Group Design Competition. The challenge was to create a version of New York City’s Park Avenue that re-imagines the existing urban landscape. This submission was awarded 2nd place. In my submission of “City is Park: Park is City,” I called for an a blur between where a park ends and a city begins. Landscape features like trees and boulders have been pulled into widened sidewalks to replace traffic poles and trees. Moss graffiti and climbing vines are encouraged to grow on buildings to increase the amount of green material. Perennials and native grasses have been introduced into the median planters along with multi-stemmed trees. All of these site features are introduced to tip the scales as to how much of Park Avenue is truly concrete, and how much is jungle. The text submitted alongside the design competition can be found on the next page.
[2] City is Park
A park and city are one. A park is not simply a designated area where grass is allowed to grow, and a city is not simply a mass of vertical concrete. In City is Park: Park is City there is a continuing flirtatious game between green and gray; a seamless transition between human-made structure and natural environment. Moss graffiti replaces traditional graffiti. Grassy inclusions replace areas of brick and concrete. Park and Avenue intertwine in one form.
City is Park
[3]
Wayfinding Wildlife: An Ecological Response to the Economic Oil Boom Group Project: Photos by Grace Olson, Graphics & Design by Kene Okigbo
This project is based in the Bakken region of western North Dakota. There are large swatches of open grasses, hills, and built areas. As the oil boom reached its height, so did the amount of animal roadside fatalities [roadkill]. Increased traffic leading to and from the Bakken region, specifically on highway US-2 W, correlated with an increase in roadkill. Without a diversion, animals continue to cross the highway, meeting their untimely end. In response to the situation I conducted an inventory of native animal species, locations of exiting waterways, and a comprehensive study of land use. From said inventory I deduced that there was insufficient public land to make a substantive difference in stemming roadkill numbers. But if private land, donated to the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), was utilized it would be possible to lead a percentage of wildlife to an overpass specifically designed for animals.
The image on the extreme left is the original sketch of the wildlife overpass concept. The rendering under it is my depiction of final product. The rendering was produced by creating contours in AutoCAD. Those contours were exported into SketchUp, where the basic forms for the final render were input for scale. The rest of the render was produced in Photoshop.
[4] Wayfinding Wildlife
The image to the right is an isometric layering showing the waterways, major roads, and land use of the subject area.
*Land use, roads, and waterways extracted from GIS data.
Creating a wildlife crossing was only 1 facet of the overall project. The plan on the bottom left shows the different site features and program elements that I proposed in the project. I chose to take advantage of an existing rest area, retrofitting it to become a distance viewing area. In my design it continues to function as a rest area, but it also allows travelers the opportunity to learn about existing wildlife and vegetation native to the region. It also serves as an educational outpost, teaching visitors about the wildlife crossing and what purpose it serves. The same site plan also shows Conservation Reserve Program land, connected through waterways. Drawing closer to the wildlife crossing a vegetative buffer blocks any access to the road. To supplement the vegetative buffer a wire mesh fence has also been proposed. The image on the bottom right depicts a bird’s eye view of the rest area. The wildlife overpass can be seen in the distance. The sketches seen below were part of the process of leading to this final design. The left sketch depicts an ideal view outside of the rest area window, overlooking a resting doe. In reality this is fairly unlikely, but it inspired the thought process. The right sketch is of Reed Canary grass, native to North Dakotan prairies. I understood that when designing for animal safety, plant matter, specifically native species are just as important.
Wayfinding Wildlife
[5]
Undergraduate Thesis: Landfill Re-morial Landfill Service Area & Wind Study
Landfill Service Area & Wind Study
I-29
Amenia Kragnes
Harwood
75 10
Oakport Wheatland
Casselton
Mapleton I-94
West Fargo
Durbin
Fargo
Dilworth
Glyndon
Frontier Sabin Horace I-29
81
75
52
Baker
Davenport
45th Street
Location within the City & Surrounding Population Density I-29
12th Avenue I-94
Existing Landfill Slope Anal-
[6] Landfill Re-morial
Main Avenue
The City of Fargo Landfill, at the time of this undergraduate thesis, was planning on closing within 20 year. The current plan is to “cap” the landfill with a barrier of thick clay, growing grasses above the barrier. In response to the city’s existing plan, I developed a new plan to fully utilize the opportunity that the City of Fargo has created for itself. By strategically placing waste matter throughout the site landforms can be created to perfectly suite program elements like sledding and mountain biking. Animal habitats and outdoor learning spaces are also included in my proposed plan for the City of Fargo Landfill. Aside from making the landfill a useful space after its closure, reinforcing the importance of sustainable practices to the community and committing that importance to memory was the guiding principle behind the project. The sketches below show part of that thought process.
The site spans 150 acres and boasts a variety of program elements. Monuments created from recycled landfill waste, animal habitat, sledding/ tubing hills, mountain biking, and outdoor classrooms are scattered throughout the site to draw year-round continued interest in the site. When designing the site, I took particular care to mitigate the risk of site contamination/ spreading. Both methane and leachate collection systems have been introduced in my design to produce energy for the site, and to treat the harmful products. Methane is a byproduct produced through the decomposition of waste in most landfills. Leachate is a byproduct produced when water comes in contact with waste. Both of these systems have been designed to be made a spectacle. By transforming these processes into monuments, the public is given the opportunity to learn what steps are being taken to negate the effects of waste on the environment and what steps could have been taken to prevent them.
Landfill Re-morial
[7]
Undergraduate Thesis: Landfill Re-morial This image is one of the first hand concept-renderings of how I planned to intrigue passers-by to enter the site.
I understood, through my inventory, that most people will have their first experience with the site by driving past. To appease both drivers and pedestrians I used varying heights of trees and shrubs to break the monotony. I also used bright colors in the vegetation to attract attention. But though I took these steps, I also made sure to keep the site open and visible.
The image to the right is the original concept for the site’s outdoor classroom. The space was meant to be an open area where interactive games could take place. Teachers could ask students quiz questions. Students would then flock to the numbered square that correlates with their answer. Those on the wrong square would be eliminated for the round. The elevation below the sketch depicts the direction I took the outdoor classroom next. I pivoted from the open concept to create a lecture space. This is meant to take the onus away from professors. With the first concept teachers were forced to warp their curriculum to my whim. This also creates a location for groups to form. The monument acts as a landmark to help groups find one another on this large site. The last image is the final perspective rendering of the outdoor classroom space. When class is not in section it is meant to be rest/meeting space for those visiting the site. Hikers, bikers, those interested in sustainability can be seen enjoying the space.
[8] Landfill Re-morial
Landfill Re-morial
[9]
Assorted Presentation Graphics All the images on this page were created to depict Central Nebraska Veterans Home (CNVH). The design and construction documents were created before I became involved with the project. The image below was created by taking the existing SketchUp model and stripping it down to usable layers. From those stripped layers I recreated the linework by hand. I then marker rendered the remaining image. The image in the top right of the page depicts a typical day with expected residents and visitors of CNVH. Working with the SketchUp model, I exported this scene and complete the rest of the render process in Photoshop. The Image on the bottom right of the page is another view of the pond from looking north. It showcases some of the picnic areas available to residents. The same render process was used - exporting the view from Sketchup and then adding site features, textures, vegetation, and people in Photoshop.
[10] Presentation Graphics
The image to the left is a plan rendering of Crab Orchard Wildlife Refuge. The linework was stripped from AutoCAD Civil 3D. Those lines were brought into Photoshop where colors and textures were applied. The surrounding forestry depicted in the image is actual aerial imagery of the area surrounding this site. I was involved in the production of site plans and details for this project. Those samples can be found on page 14. The remaining three images [seen below] were produced to aid in a presentation explaining a custom watering system designed by a collaboration between Big Muddy Workshop and the Nebraska Forestry Service. My role was to make construction documents less technical and more illustrative. I did this without losing pertinent information from any of the three graphics. The linework was taken from AutoCAD Civil 3D and exported into Adobe Illustrator. I then applied the remaining colors and textures through Illustrator to create the three graphics you see below.
Presentation Graphics
[11]
AutoCAD Civil 3D Samples: West Papio Trail SIGN #1 TI-4
SIGN #1 TI-4
SIGN #2 NR-2
SIGN #3 TI-4
MILE MARKER 6.0 N 523462.87 E 2707999.41
SIGN #1M - MUTCD STOP SIGN
HARRY ANDERSEN AVE.
SIGN #2 NR-2
SIGN #3 TI-4
MILE MARKER 6.0 N 523462.87 E 2707999.41
SIGN #1M - MUTCD STOP SIGN
HARRY ANDERSEN AVE. MILE MARKER 6.1 N 523048.42 E 2708321.14
SIGN #4 TI-4
TR
EE
T
MILE MARKER 6.1 N 523048.42 E 2708321.14
R5.5000
"Q
"S
TR
EE
T
"Q
"S
SIGN #4 TI-4
R5.5000
SIGN #5 NR-1
DATE
I was heavily involved in all aspects of this project. I created grading concepts for the parking lot shown above. I calculated quantities for the cost estimates. I helped produce the sections and details seen on the next page.
DESCRIPTION / ISSUE
Papio-Missouri Papio-Missouri River Natural RiverResources Natural Resources District District Omaha, Omaha, NebraskaNebraska
OWNER: OWNER:
DATE
Giles Road GilestoRoad Millard to Millard
WEST WEST PAPIO PAPIO TRAILTRAIL
SIGN #5 NR-1
DESCRIPTION / ISSUE
PLAN & PROFILE ZONE 'A' PLAN & PROFILE ZONE 'A'
BMW PROJECT: 0830 DATE: 10/16/2017
Sheet Number
C3.01 C3.01
BMW PROJECT: 0830 DATE: 10/16/2017
[12] West Papio Trail
Sheet Number Copyright 2017
Big Muddy Workshop, Inc.
Copyright 2017
Big Muddy Workshop, Inc.
DESCRIPTION / ISSUE
OWNER:
Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District Omaha, Nebraska Omaha, Nebraska
OWNER:
Giles Road to Millard Giles Road to Millard
WEST PAPIO WESTTRAIL PAPIO TRAIL
pio-Missouri River Natural Resources District aha, Nebraska
NER:
iles Road to Millard
EST PAPIO TRAIL
DATE
DATE
TRAILHEAD PARKING / ISSUE LOTDESCRIPTION ENLARGEMENT
BMW PROJECT: 0830 DATE: 10/16/2017
Sheet Number TRAILHEAD
West Papio Trail
PARKING LOT ENLARGEMENT
Copyright 2017 0830Big Muddy Workshop, Inc. BMW PROJECT: DATE: 10/16/2017
C3.19 [13]
AutoCAD Civil 3D Samples: Crab Orchard Wildlife Refuge
[14] Crab Orchard
I worked collaboratively in a team of 3 landscape architecture professionals to produce of all of the plans and details on both pages. I played a key role in the production of the preparation, layout, and grading plans seen on the left page. Those graphics were created by working in tandem with a landscape architect in studio. I produced the Phase 2 Layout Plan seen on the right page, coordinating with the project architects. All of the details were created in tandem between another teammate and myself, under the direction of the project manager. I began the Speed Table Detail, basing it on an Omaha Standard Plate. It was then completed by another teammate. The other details were started by other teammates, which I then completed.
Crab Orchard
[15]
701.200.2431 c.kene.okigbo@gmail.com