Urban Design Strategies of Deviation. Towards a Resilient Tietê Valley, São Paulo: Suture

URBAN DESIGN STRATEGIES OF DEVIATION. TOWARDS A RESILIENT TIETÊ VALLEY, SÃO PAULO

SUTURE

Author Matthias Vanhoutteghem Promotor Prof. Dr. ir. Bruno De Meulder Co-promotor Yuri Gerrits Local Promotor Eliana Rosa De Queiroz Barbosa Readers Guido Geenen Christian Nolf

Urban design strategies of deviation.

Towards a resilient TietĂŞ valley, SĂŁo Paulo:

Suture

Eindwerk aangeboden tot het verkrijgen van het diploma Master in de Ingenieurswetenschappen: Architectuur Promotor Prof. Dr. ir. Bruno De Meulder Co-promotor Yuri Gerrits Local promotor Eliana Rosa De Queiroz Barbosa

Academiejaar 2013-2014 Master in de Ingenieurswetenschappen: Architectuur

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Matthias Vanhoutteghem

Š Permission for Use of Content:

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The author herewith permit it that the present dissertation be made available for consultation; parts of it may be copied, strictly for personal use. Every other use is subject to strict copyright reservations. Particular reference is made to the obligation of explicitly mentioning the source when quoting the present dissertation’s results.

Leuven, 2014 All images presented in this booklet are, unless credits are given, made or drawn by the author.

Š Copyright KU Leuven Without written permission of the promotors and the author it is forbidden to reproduce or adapt in any form or by any means any part of this publication. Requests for obtaining the right to reproduce or utilize parts of this publication should be addressed to dept. ASRO, Kasteelpark Arenberg 1/2431, B-3001 Heverlee, +32-16-321361 or via e-mail to secretariaat@asro.kuleuven.be.

A written permission of the promotor is also required to use the methods, products, schematics and programs described in this work for industrial or commercial use, and for submitting this publication in scientific contests.

K.U. Leuven Faculteit Ingenieurswetenschappen

2013-2014

Master’s thesis file

Student: Matthias Vanhoutteghem

Title: Urban design strategies of deviation. Towards a resilient Tietê valley, São Paulo: Suture

Acknowledging the true character of the Tietê River’s deprived floodplain, this design research embraces the vision of regenerating the Valley into a Riverplain by further elaborating on the resilient design strategies presented in the common part of this research. Suture is an exploration on the area around the old Barra Funda train station and rail yard. Characterized by a rupture between two tissues with a distinct identity and being inherently connected to the history of the railroad, this area is currently undergoing its first major transformations. As the presence of the railroad is questioned by the current development plans and real estate developments are fearlessly consuming land in the Valley, it is only a matter of time when the urban void of the old rail yard will be subject to this generic transformation. Therefore this design research proposes a framework by etching the blueprint for future transformations. Driven by water management, it exploits the intrinsic identity of the surrounding tissue and explores new building typologies within three strategic projects.

Thesis submitted to obtain the degree of Master in Engineering: Architecture.

Promotor: Prof. Dr. ir. Bruno de Meulder Co-promotor: Yuri Gerrits Local promotor: Eliana Rosa De Queiroz Barbosa

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Abstract:

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Preface

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

To Eliana Rosa de Queiroz Barbosa, our local promoter, for her guidance, insights and friendship during our fieldwork and her visits to Belgium.

To Bruno De Meulder, our promotor, for his critical reflections and support.

To Yuri Gerrits, our co-promotor, for his inspiring guidance, motivation and encouragements during the entire design process.

To Christian Nolf, Jeroen Stevens and Guido Geenen, for their expertise, critical insights and contribution during our instructive sessions.

To VLIR, for the financial support that allowed us to travel to SĂŁo Paulo.

To all my dearest friends and fellow students, for their endless support and moments of much needed distraction.

To my parents for the given opportunities, their understanding and loving support.

And last but not least to Evelien, Benjamin and MichaĂŤl of Studio SĂŁo Paulo, for the memorable journey and fruitful collaboration. I would especially like to thank them for their remarkable team spirit, friendship and endless perseverance.

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I would like to thank everyone that have made the outcome of this thesis possible,

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Preface

su路ture I.

a) The process of joining two surfaces or edges together along a line by or as if by sewing. b) The material, such as thread, gut, or wire, that is used in this procedure. c) The line or stitch so formed.

II. The line of union in an immovable articulation.

III. The line formed by two crustal plates of different plate tectonic, metamorphic and paleogeographic histories.

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noun

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Preface Acknowledging the true character of the Tietê River’s deprived floodplain, this design research embraces the vision of regenerating the Valley into a Riverplain by further elaborating on the resilient design strategies presented in the common part of this research. Suture is an exploration on the area around the old Barra Funda train station and rail yard. Characterized by a rupture between two tissues with a distinct identity and being inherently connected to the history of the railroad, this area is currently undergoing its first major transformations. As the presence of the railroad is questioned by the current development plans and real estate developments are fearlessly consuming land in the Valley, it is only a matter of time when the urban void of the old rail yard will be subject to this generic transformation. Therefore this design research proposes a framework by etching the blueprint for future transformations. Driven by water management, it exploits the intrinsic identity of the surrounding tissue and explores new building typologies within three strategic projects.

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ABSTRACT

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Barra Funda railyard

Preface

Prologue 15 16

Context 23 Wet feet 24

The railroad, an urban driver 28 Body of the railway 28

Estação da Barra Funda 28 Encapsulation 34 Barra Funda Terminal 36 Distinct identities 38 Fragmentation 38 DNA 42 New momentum 56

Strategies of resilience 62 Urban drainage 64

The quay as a design concept 66 Hydro-logics 69 General system 69 Barra Funda Wetland 70

Design

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Blueprint 74 Landscape vs Grid 74 flows

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Preconditions and projects 80 The Clip 86 The Barge 90 The Station 92

Epilogue 96 Bibliography 101

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Strategy 61

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Prologue

BARRA FUNDA RAILYARD Characterised by the discrepancy between São Paulo’s fierce urbanization and its natural constraints, the Tietê valley today is one of the exceptions in the city’s homogenizing territorialisation. Stretching along the threshold between the city and the marshy lands of the Tietê floodplain, the railroad used to embody the frontier between the Valley and the formal city, between the breeding site of a flourishing industry and a raging urbanization. Right up till now...

As the surge of high-rise gradually accumulated along the border of the railroad, a sprawl of real estate developments have now touched ground in the Valley; consuming its land, chunk by chunk and thereby slowly fading its intriguing landscape of scars and fractures.

However, river- and flash floods keep occasionally paralyzing the city’s lowlands, exposing the true identity of the deprived floodplains.

Therefore São Paulo needs to rethink its water management, providing space for the rivers to flood and storm water to drain. And yet, amidst these water issues, the city council has recently put forward one of the most flood prone areas, the Tietê valley, as the most important redevelopment area for the city: Arco do Tietê.

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Within this growing momentum of urban transformation, cavities in the tissue are becoming scarce. With dozens of plots to be developed or industrial leftovers to be demolished, it raises the question about the future of the Valley’s coveted open spaces.

During our fieldwork I was intrigued by the figure of the old rail yard of Barra Funda. Lying on the edge of the Valley and part of the new area of redevelopment, the site depicts the stronghold the railroad used to be.

In the past decades, a line of real estate rose along the railroad, looking over the peculiar fabric surrounding this branch of no mans land. A bit further there was a large park attached to the railroad with alongside the building foundations of a soon to be twenty-five-story gated community.

In just one year it will tower over the low-rise landscape of warehouses and subordinated dwellings, exceeding its siblings on the opposite side of the railroad. Again, The question rose what the future will bring for the rail yard and above all its larger surroundings.

Therefore the following design research takes a stand against the current generic transformations by re-evaluating the railroad and foremost its body within the vision on water management and development, elaborated in the common part of this thesis. It will explore the conceptual propositions and strategies of resilience within this specific area of research by etching the potential blueprint for impending urban transformations.

Prologue 17 floodmap of Tietê valley and indication of Arco do Tietë aerial picture of Barra Funda rail yard

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Prologue

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Prologue

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Context

WET FEET Barra Funda rail yard is located on the edge of the Valley, between the TietĂŞ River and the steep hills of the formal city. The local topography varies between 722m and 725m elevation, making the area prone to flooding as in extreme circumstances the water of the river can reach heights up till 724m. Furthermore is the area foremost afflicted by flash floods, caused by the high volumes of storm water coming from the higher regions of the city trough the covered and under dimensioned creeks.

A comparison of the following graphs illustrate these issues, as the marked flood points are a result of micro-topographical depressions, the lack of permeable surface and the proximity of an underlying creek.

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Context 25 Detailed map of the topography and hydrography

26 Floodmap of the area area

Context 27 Topography of the area 0

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Permeable surface Floodpoint Covered creek Border Watersched

THE RAILROAD, DRIVER OF URBANIZATION Body of the railway

During the 19th century, São Paulo became a predominant strategic centre for trade on the crossroad between the productive provinces.

The large commodity production of cotton, sugar cane and coffee in the hinterland and the establishment of the rural elites in the city centre gave rise to the construction of São Paulo’s first railway, simply called São Paulo Railway. Commissioned in 1867, it provided a constant flow of passengers and goods between Santos, the port in the South and Jundiaí in the hinterland. Soon other railway companies followed, creating a vast network throughout the state.

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Located on the edge of the former floodplain and at that time considered peripheral to the city, the railroad initiated a significant spatial expansion towards the city’s natural borders. As the population boomed from 31.385 in 1872 to 239.820 in 1900 due to the abolishment of slavery and inflow of immigrants, the railroad marked the gradual urbanization of the floodplain. In a matter of time, stations became urban centralities and industries related to the agricultural production started to nestle themselves adjacent to the railroad. [1] This made the railroad more than just a linear trace trough the landscape, but a body of tissues and industries related to it. In some places as wide as two building blocks, at other just a gash in the landscape.

Up until a decade ago this body served as a protection of the Valley, isolating it from the rest of the city while it created its own urban logics.

Today this body is still very present, some parts are still in service of an extinguishing industry but above all it’s a frontier of no mans land, questioned by the current redevelopment plans.

Estação da Barra Funda

The Barra Funda rail yard forms an inherent part of the body railroad, marked by a bundle of tracks branching from the main trail. Its surrounding tissue has always been strongly related to the railroad, as it is one of the prime examples of the significant developments following the deployment. When at the end of the 19th century the demographic pressure forced the city to urbanize its flood prone areas, this region was still mostly a floodplain called Várzea do Barra Funda, or Barra Funda lowland. Notwithstanding the risks of flooding due to the meandering Tietê River, the city started to plan urbanization of these cheap lands to house the working class serving the nearby industries.

[1] p60-81 in “Urban Design strategies of deviation. Towards a resilient Tietê valley, São Paulo”

ref. figure body of the railroad p30-31

[2] p133-200 in “Exploiting Deviations in the Valley of Tietê, São Paulo” [3] GIESBRECHT, R. “Estação de Barra Funda”, Estações Ferroviarias to Brasil

ref. map p. 33

[4] p211-220 in “Urban Design strategies of deviation. Towards a resilient Tietê valley, São Paulo”

Taking a leap in time, the map of 1930, p33, shows the consolidation of the formal city and the occupation of the floodplain, reaching as far as possible and awaiting the canalisation of the Tietê River for the complete urbanization of the lowland. However at that time their was a decay in the hills South of the railway as a result of the disinterest of the higher classes, the area around the station and rail yard was flourishing. Not only due to the industries and nearby working class neighbourhoods, but also because it was situated along an important route connecting the hinterland to the inner city.[4] The map of 1930 clearly shows how the rail yard nestled itself on the edge of the empty floodplain, surrounded by a thin layer of related activities. Whereas in 1895 the planners foresaw a continuation of the orthogonal tissue, the rail yard breaks with this rule, initiating a significant enlargement of scale for the upcoming, mostly industrial, developments towards the West.

Barra Funda Station in the 50’s

Figure body of the railroad Map 1895 and 1930

Context

The map of 1895, p32, depicts these soon to be built neighbourhoods as a grid has been projected onto the marshy lands of the river’s territory, stretching as for as possible. At that time the hills South of the railroad were established by coffee Baron and the ruling classes, looking over the railroad and floodplains, marking the start of strong social segregation between both sides of the tracks. [1] Furthermore did several potteries already settle in the floodplain, using the proximity of the river as a resource of water and raw materials. Meanwhile, in 1892, Barra Funda station was inaugurated, next to the equivalent station of the South, Sorocabana railway line.[2] Whereas this latter supplied the adjacent warehouses, the other focused on both transport of passengers and goods. [3] It served the already populated neighbourhood of Barra Funda and was soon to be an important driver for the surrounding urbanization.

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ref. map p. 32

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32 500m Map of S達o Paulo, 1895

Context 33 500m Map of S達o Paulo, 1930

Encapsulation

Due to the pressure on urbanization, valorization of land, general improvement of drainage and urban embellishment, the Tietê River was by 1958 almost completely canalized over the entire stretch between the far East and West borders of the city. Soon the urban expansion of the floodplain will significantly gain momentum as until now occupation of the area had crystalized due to the high risks of inundation. Meanwhile, the body of the railroad had reached its maximum size. As transport by road became more important, trains did no longer have the predominant position in nationwide transport of passengers and goods, but shifted towards suburban transport and everyday commuting. So did Barra Funda station as the old station was demolished in favor a new to serve the wide region between of Barra Funda and Santa Cecilia.

With the end of the canalization nearing, the ambitious plans of Plano Avenidas became reality. Based on the model of the most profound, radial European cities. São Paulo wanted to follow the same example with the construction of a large marginal road along the river, connected to the city center by several important traffic arteries. [1] The construction of these arteries is clearly visible in the aerial picture, as Avenida Rudge (in the East) and Avenida Pacaembu (in the West) gradually encapsulated the railyard and its surrounding area.

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Furthermore, notice the consolidation and homogenization of the urban fabric surrounding the empty lands of the floodplain, while a sprawl of high-rise is transforming the tissue and so creating São Paulo’s infamous skyline.

Barra Funda station after demolition and during construction of the new station in the 1964

[1] p80; 94-104 in “Urban Design strategies of deviation. Towards a resilient Tietê valley, São Paulo”

Context 35 Aerial picture of 1958 0

500m

Barra Funda Terminal

Inaugurated in 1988, Barra Funda Terminal replaced the station and rail yard with the same name along the Sourth, Sorocabana, railway line, which was the equivalent of Barra Funda Station of the North SPR railway line. By merging both existing railway lines with a brand new metro line and a large bus terminal all under the same roof, it soon became the most important and busiest transport hub of the city. In the shadow of this massive new center of flows, the old Barra Funda station lost its function as part of the suburban railway network. However it remained standing, the building quickly started to show signs of decay and vandalism. Between 1994 and 1998 the station underwent a lest convulsion when it served as a boarding platform for a night train between São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, but since then, the station is nothing more than the fading memory of a flourishing past. [1]

[1] GIESBRECHT, R. “Estação de Barra Funda”, Estações Ferroviarias to Brasil

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With the station slowly decaying, so did the rest of the neighborhood between the two traffic arteries and the railroad. Small bars and restaurants went out of business, with only a few surviving thanks to the high employment rate in the area. There was no interest from investors to redevelop the area and its outdated dwellings and warehouses.

Instead, big and small businesses, workshops and warehouses took advantage of the cheap land prices. In the meantime, the station and rail yard remained a void in the tissue, exploited as a parking lot admidst the remnants of the railway.

Barra Funda Terminal, 2013

Context 37 Ruin of the old Barra Funda station, 2013

DISTINCT IDENTITIES Fragmentation

Today, the area is isolated from the rest of the Valley and the city by the pocket formed by the railroad and the two busy avenues. However, not entirely since high flows of cut-trough traffic pas through the area on weekdays in the direction of Barra Funda terminal.

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The rail yard and the park demarcate the line between the crystalized tissue of the rigidly planned working class neighborhood of the early 20th century and a rather unruly expansion from the moment the river was canalized. Large figures have taken the opportunity to nestle themselves on the drained lands of the Valley, organizing the surrounding tissue by imposing compelling constraints and edge conditions.

They depict the otherness of the Valley as a conglomerate of contrasting patches of different morphology, function, scale and boundaries.

Again, the line initiated by the scale of the rail yard demarcates the rupture between a scattered landscape of large industrial and post-industrial fragments and a rigid grid composed by a mish mash of warehouses, workshops and dwellings. The following figure ground map, p38-39, depicts the identity of this peculiar urban fabric. In an attempt to connect the tissues of the Valley to the formal city, the body of the railroad has struck a gap in between. The Streets on the side of the city are abruptly interrupted and the grid North of the railroad has created a protective crust of large warehouses and industrial leftover. Moreover is the contrast between East and West of the rail yard striking as a sprawl large blocks seemingly drift within large voids, the grid illustrates a mesh of cavities within the consolidated building blocks.

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Context 39 Aerial picture, GOOGLE MAPS 2008 Figure ground of the area

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Context

DNA

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As mentioned before, the rupture between the grid and more recent (post-) industrial landscape depicts very distinct identities within the area of research. Preceded by a map of the most profound functions and characteristics, a series of photographs will illustrate the impressions that were captured during fieldwork, revealing the current conditions, processes and potential of the area. Let me take you on a tour; starting at the old train station (A); passing the park attached to the rail yard (B), followed by the busier streets surrounding the central road of cut-trough traffic(C) and ending at the pedestrian bridge crossing the railroad (D).

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A C

D

Context

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Context 45 0 Residential low Residential middle-high Residential high Institutional Warehouse Public space Map of functions of the area

Density of flows

100m

Around the old station

46 Small housing facing the railyard, with each an open garage as an extension of their living space

Context 47

Coulourfull cafĂŠs right across the rail station remind of the busy centre it used to be, now serving the local workers

One of the few restaurants still open near the station, surrounded by other abandoned bars

Barra Funda railyard

On of the few remnants of the many transformations of the railway site 48 The ruiins of the old station peaking over the wall and fences, now the terrain is exploited as a parking lot

Context 49 The closed backside of the buildings facing the railyard, not allowed to benifit from the beautiful surroundings

Towards the park

Old migrant dwellings from the beginning of the 20th century next to the closed facades of more recent warehouses 50 New large businisses from a post-industrial era, just 100m away from the dwellings shown above

Context 51

Risidential high-rise towers above the only green space in the surrounding, however. Its inhabitants never cross the railroad

The size of new development, wrapping itself around an existing building. Soon, two 25 story towers will rise here

In the grid

Housing in one of the more quiet street of the neighbourhood 52 Subordinated housing with commercial ground floor along one of the busier streets parallel to the railroad.

Context 53

Centre of the grid, with car-related commercial activities along the main road used by cut-through traffic

One of the commercial side street of the street shown above. The area is mainly inhabited by a Bolivian community

Crossing the bridge

The gloomy atmosphere around the enclosed footbridge due to the lack of social control by the many closed warehouses 54 Well maintained gated communities South of the railroad

Context 55

The contrast between Palmtrees and residential high-rise South and ruinous warehouses North of the railroad

One of the residential streets right across the railroad. Although no green space nearby, the inhabitants never cross the tracks

NEW MOMENTUM What are the future prospects of this peculiar area? Will the sprouting generic developments continue to transform the intrinsic character of this tissue? Can the void of the rail yard stand against the pressure of development? And moreover, what if the railroad will disappear in favor of an underground network of tracks?

We should not despise the border of the railroad as a social and urban obstruction, but value it as an historical trace in the landscape, creating unique conditions in- and outside the Valley. As it has been the driver for the arise of the area around the old Barra Funda station, but also the reason for its decay, a revaluation of the railroad may in the future initiate a new momentum of urban and social regeneration.

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Therefore this thesis will further explore the proposed resilient design strategies of the common research of this thesis, by embracing the vision of regenerating the Valley as a Riverplain; and in particular the concept of excavating the space between the tracks for the redistribution of storm water. [1] This new dimension of the railroad challenges us to reconsider its crossings, question its fences and walls and foremost to explore the potentials of the body of the railroad alongside the tracks.

It is now the moment to exploit this growing momentum of urban transformation to determine a framework based on water management to guide future development. It is the start of an exploration on the current and new building typologies and urban structures; on how to integrate and safeguard capacity for water in the ongoing processes of transformation.

Conceptual image of the redistributor Map of the proposed Riverplain

ref. figure Riverplain p62-63

[1] p276-299 in “Urban Design strategies of deviation. Towards a resilient Tietê valley, São Paulo”

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Context

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Context 59 Existing railway stations Planned railway station

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Strategy 61

Bibliography

STRATEGIES OF RESILIENCE In the final chapter of the common research, a vocabulary of resilient design strategies was presented with the main purpose to mitigate flooding, while protecting specific urban tissues. As a result, a vision for the Riverplain was proposed as an amalgamation of the acquired comprehension on the urban and hydrographical structures in the Valley. Within this representation, the transformation of the traffic arteries into dykes could protect the area of Barra Funda railyard. The main logic behind this choice was to maintain the flow of traffic during flooding. [1] Although this proposal protects the area from river-floods, it still needs to mitigate flashfloods during heavy rainfall. Creating capacity for water detention is the most sufficient strategy, as the ability to infiltrate is not guaranteed due a certain amount of clay in the alluvial plains. [2] Four strategies will therefore be applied to sufficiently drain the area in case of heavy rainfall:

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- Redistributor: The excavation of the space between the tracks and using this soil for leveling up the tracks will create a large linear detention basin to mitigate storm water coming form uphill the city. An ingenious system of sluices, explored in the Impluvium, will further guide and redistribute the water towards areas with capacity.

- Green creeks: Opening up the existing covered creeks and adding new drainage channels provide additional capacity to the drainage network.

Furthermore could these creeks serve as green axes trough the tissue, providing a qualitative and sustainable environment while rising the public awareness on water management.

- Basins and landfills: Basins are created to store storm water during heavy rainfall but also in times of drought. At the same time, these basins can be used as a variety of public spaces. The excavated soil can be used elsewhere to level up terrain or create dykes.

- Dykes and basins: Dykes protect the tissue from river floods. Excavating retention and detention basins provides the soil for the construction.

ref. figure Riverplain p62-63

[1] p276-299 in “Urban Design strategies of deviation. Towards a resilient Tietê valley, São Paulo” [1] map p.172-173 in “Urban Design strategies of deviation. Towards a resilient Tietê valley, São Paulo”

Strategy Barra Funda railyard

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TietĂŤ River

Redistributor

Green creeks

Basins and landfills

Dykes and basins

URBAN DRAINAGE

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A first key concept for the further design process is to provide sufficient drainage and storage capacity in relation to the tissue and built typology. The large grain of the (post-) industrial tissue allows landscaping of large spaces for water storage. In contrast, smaller catchment areas are linked together in the dense tissue by exploiting the cavities of the consolidated grid as waterchambers; collecting storm water from its surrounding surfaces.

A wide variety of typologies and public or private uses are possible, including small parks, squares, gardens,‌ Secondly the reopening of the covered creeks and the construction of an additional one parallel to the railroad enhances the drainage capacity while becoming the spine of sustainable, green and limited-traffic axes.

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Strategy

THE QUAY AS A DESIGN CONCEPT

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A second, more profound design concept is the quay. This rigid elevated figure runs along the edge of the railway and the existing tissue, just above the level of flood risk. On one hand it links different places secured from flooding, on the other hand it demarcates surrounding flood prone areas or areas intended to flood due to micro-topography manipulations. Not only does this figure intensify the contrast between landscape and infrastructure, it will moreover serve as an armature of development by enhancing/protecting the intrinsic identity of the tissue and by setting preconditions.. Together with the concept of urban drainage, it creates the foundation, the blueprint, for future phases of transformation. This figure is also referred to as the Suture, as it articulates the rupture between the two distinct tissues by a cohesive concrete thread.

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Strategy

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Strategy

HYDRO-LOGICS General system

[1] PREFEITURA DO MUNICIPIO DE SAO PAULO, Diretrizes basicas para projetos de drenagem urbana no municipio de São Paulo.

Possible water storage Drainage Watershed Sluice Overflow

With a total surface between the two traffic arteries of 805.000m², of which over 100.000 m² is used for water detention, it well exceeds the 2% surface area/water detention area prescribed by Urban Drainage and Flood Control prescriptions of 1992. [1] The total capacity of the water system, excluding the creeks is an estimated 130.300m³. Although no information on the required capacity was found, the Belgian law prescribes that at least 300m³/ha of capacity for water storage should be provided. Following this benchmark, the required capacity for this area should be 24.150m³. This results in an excess capacity of 106.150m³, of which a certain percentage can be used as overflow capacity for the redistributor.

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Applying the concepts of urban drainage and the quay results in a system of water management for the broader area. The smaller catchment areas in the consolidated grid all connect to the open creeks, which flows directly towards the Tietê River. Some of the detention areas are located in the middle of a building block, others on the side, which allows many different uses of these spaces as mentioned before.

The quay marks the rupture between the two distinct tissues and between the two different scales and types of water detention areas. It encloses the transformation of the former rail yard into a large floodable landscape. Whereas before the rail yard served as a side branch of the railroad, it now provides overflow capacity for the redistributor. By excavating the old tracks, the scar of the railway will remain strongly visible during future transformation. Moreover can the tracks be used to store water during dry season for grey water purposes and can a system of purifying vegetation clean the storm water. The basin itself is further connected to the creek behind the traffic artery of Avenida Pacaembu, regulated by a variable overflow.

Schematic longitudinal section of systems of overflows

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Schematic cross section of the landscape

Barra Funda Wetland

The water level in the floodable landscape of the former rail yard is regulated by two overflows. Shown on the schematic longitudinal section above, the first overflow is located beneath the tracks of the railroad just under the critical level of the redistributor. In times of severe rainfall and saturation of the redistributor, water starts flowing trough the overflow to rail yard. In case the critical height of the rail yard has been reached, an emergency valve can close the overflow. From this point the water flows trough the excavated tracks towards the connection with the creek of Pacaembu. Here, a variable overflow regulates the water level in the wetland, anticipating on the capacity of the adjacent creek, weather reports, etc. Following situations illustrate the different scenarios of the overflows. It also includes the sluices of the redistributor as they will have a large impact on the overall capacity of the respective creek.

Stage 1: Dry season, with occasional rain Stage 2: Wet season with frequently periods of heavy rainfall (>50mm/d) Stage 3: Wet season after long period of extreme rainfall (>100/d)

Strategy Stage 1: The overflow towards pacaembu creek is closed to store as much water as possible to maintain the vulnerable vegetation and provide for grey-water purposes.

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Stage 2: Water is flowing from the redistributor towards the rail yard, as the redistributor reached a critical level. Depending on the flow in the Pacaembu creek and reserve capacity of the rail yard, the overflow and sluices are carefully regulated to avoid oversaturation of the system. The smaller catchment areas in the tissue are holding storm water as long as possible.

Stage 2: The redistributor is saturated, and so is the railyard reaching a critical level by regulating the overflow to its highest level to avoid overstaturation of the Pacaembu creek. The water level of the rail yard is kept as high as possible until the creek has restored capacity. Meanwhile, the catchment areas in the tissue are trying to avoid flooding and overloading the creek.

Overflow Sluice Reduced flow Closed

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Design

BLUEPRINT Landscape vs grid

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This final chapter specifies the design of the blueprint as the product of the concept of the quay and the vision towards water management for the area. The result is a figure that imposes specific conditions along its edges by interacting with the existing urban morphology and creating new types of qualitative spaces for the wider region. A first impression suggests the influence of the Suture on the urban transformation of the wider erea. Illustrated by this next figure, it is the amibtion to extrapolate the contrast between both tissues. In the West, the transformation of the rail yard initiates a landscape approach towards the oversized tissue, with new large developments among existing, drifting in the landscape of the Riverplain. In the East, (re-)development should focus more on a small scale approach within the consolidated urban grid.

The graph on the next pages shows the precise manipulation of the topography of the railyard and the potential transformation of adjacent tissues. Furthermore, it introduces a new foodbridge, with better connections to the other side of the railroad while forming a key element of the Suture.

Strategy 75 Map of the blueprint

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Strategy

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traffic

pedestrian

public

loci

Strategy Cut-trough traffic is now focussed on the axis parallel to the railroad, whereas the axes with the open creeks becomes limited traffic. The quay generates flows of pedestrians coming from the East, West and accros the railroad. The crossing points of these flows become centres of activity and strategic places in the further design. The excavated rail yard is always accesible as long as the level of water allows it. The East area of the park is meant as a public recreational park. The West is less public, characterized by a terrain vague of wild growing reeds and other vegetation.

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Flows

PRECONDITIONS & PROJECTS This section focuses on the edge conditions imposed by the quay on the area surrounding the rail yard. Marked by three distinct situations, three exemplary/strategic projects will exploit the preconditions set by the Suture in relation to the existing fabric while serving as beacons of the floodable landscape. Each project depicts a distinct typology, set out by the architectural tectonic and relationship towards its environment on the ground floor. The figure on the right illustrates the basic concepts of the projects: The Clip demarcates and enhances the rupture in the tissue, engaging the confrontation with the other high-rise developments. On the ground floor, it opens up towards the landscape by lifting itself above the quay to serve as a covered urban square and gateway to the Valley.

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The Barge uses the analogy of a ship, stranded in the floodplain with just a few connections to the main land. It is a monolite, independent and foremost brutal figure in the landscape; an example of the quirkiness of the Valley.

The Station forms the keystone of both the rail yard as the small bit of tissue facing its back to the viaduct. It embodies the re-vitalisation of the old train station by focussing on public life on the street. On the side of the railyard, it stand with its feet in the marshland, overlooking the flow of water trough the excavated tracks. The station forms an inherent extension of the quay.

Following figures show the detailed plans of the three projects in relation to the landscape and tissue.

Strategy 81

The Station

The Barge

The Clip

roof plan of the projects ground floor of the projects

82

0 10m

50m 83

Strategy

84

0 10m

50m 85

Strategy

THE CLIP The cross section below shows the relationship towards the surrounding highrise, forming a linear landmark along the rupture between the tissues. On the level of the quay a large public square runs underneath the clip, articulated by the higher ceiling and arrival of the footbridge.

Further along the quay embracing the park, an open stairs and slope give access to a semi-public deck with the private entrance of the building.

Inside the builing itself many different typologies are possible, as well as collective facilities.

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Strategy 87 Section AA’’

88 Section CC’’

Strategy 89 Section BB’

THE BARGE The design of the barge is based on the idea of maintaining the outside as solid as possible while creating a contrasting environment inside. By the use of large patios and altering the building height, the design tries to bring as much as possible natural light inside without including the risk of overheating. As the outer shell is constructed in raw concrete to emphasize the brutalism. In contrast, the inner facades can be executed as a curtain wall. Inside, transparant hallways give access to the private areas with views over the different patios of which some are excavated to reveal the soil onderneath or for the use to store storm water.

90 Section DD’

Strategy 91

Section FF’’

Section EE’’

THE STATION The Station is constructed in a steel frame to contrast with the concrete of the quay. The flexibility of this open structure on the ground floor allows a variety of different uses. Along the road, the typology of the gallery is used. It refers to the housing on the opposite side of the road where an open garage is used as an extension of the living area. In case of the Station the height difference of the quay can also be used as a informal bench where workers can have their lunch. Openings in the building itself give a view on the rail yard and provide access to the private areas. The location of these openings are chosen in such matter that they correspond to the cavities in the tissue on the other site of the road, initiating further opening of this tissue away from the viaduct towards the Station.

At the end of the road a large pulic square marks the end of the opposite street the a centre of different flows. The location gives a view on the rail yard and has an underground parking underneath.

92 Section GG’

Strategy 93

Section HH’

Section II’

94

Strategy 95 Conceptual image of the Barge druing heavy rainfall

96

97

Epilogue

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What started as a design process focused on water management and the position of the area in the larger vision of the Riverplain, ended up laying the focus on the complex tissue as part of the identity of the Valley. Through the design process, the quay became more than just a retaining wall to increase the detention capacity of the rail yard. It became the framework for a whole new variety of building typologies for the Valley with a profound ability to adapt to local conditions and create a network of interesting public spaces. Therefore Suture should not be understood as a mere local intervention, but as a strategy for protecting and revaluating the identity of the Valley, by creating of new centres of flows and activity between the stations. In the future, the explored building typologies of Clips and Barges can be further deployed along the railroad, becoming a he distinctive trademark of the edge of Valley, even if the railroad might ever disappear.

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Epilogue

BIBLIOGRAPHY Books BAVA, Henri; LEE, Gini, Towards Resilient Water Landscapes- Design Research Approaches from Europe and Australia, KIT Scientific Publishing, Karhlsruhe, 2010.

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Papers and Articles CAMPOS, Daniel; OLIVEIRA, Antonio, “A ocupação das varzeas no alto tiete e a reprodução deste modelo urbano na bacia do rio baquirivu guaçu, guarulhos e aruja”, GEOUSP - espaço e tempo, 2012, N° 32, pp.198-213, (http://citrus.uspnet.usp.br/geousp/ojs-2.2.4/index.php/geousp/article/ viewFile/497/342), [last consulted 14-04-2014] BUCALEM,M., Plano diretor de drenagem e manejo de aguas pluviais de São Paulo PMAP-SP, Prefeitura de São Paulo Secretaria Municipal de Desenvolvimento Urbano, São Paulo, 2012, (http://www.prefeitura. sp.gov.br/cidade/secretarias/upload/desenvolvimento_urbano/arquivos/comite_clima/ plano_diretor_de_ drenagem_201200712_fundap.pdf), [last consulted 24-05-2014] BROCANELI, Pérola Filipette; STUERMER Monica Machado, “Renaturalização de rios e córregos no município de São Paulo”, Exacta, São Paulo, 2008, v. 6, Nr. 1, pp. 147-156.

KASSIBRY, K., “Arco do Futuro”, The Borgen Projet, 2013, (http://borgenproject.org/arco-do-futuro-the-future-of-sao-paulos-favela-slums/) [last consulted, 28-05-2014] NOLF, Christian et al., “Ruimte voor water in de stad- naar een meer geïntegreerde steden- en waterkundige benadering”, WT- Afvalwater, Nr.1, ASRO KULeuven, Leuven, 2010.

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Other FIGUEIREDO, Maria João Cavalcanti Ribeiro de, “Corregos ocultos: redescabrindo a cidade”, Universidade de São Paulo Faculdade de Arquitetura e Urbanismo, 2009, (http://metropolefluvial.fau.usp.br/downloads/ projetos/ GMF_ensino- tfg_figueiredo.pdf), [last consulted 24-03-2014] GOVERNO DO ESTADO DE SÃO PAULO, “A world called São Paulo”, s.d., (http://www.saopaulo.sp.gov.br/en/ conhecasp/), [last consulted, 26-05-2014] PREFEITURA DE SÃO PAULO, “Alagamentos na cidade de São Paulo durante o século XIX”, Arquivo Historico, São Paulo, 2006, (http://www.arquiamigos.org.br/info/info05/index.html), [last consulted 17-04-2014]

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