Just a Touch Away Thesis Project Misha Bereznyak

Just a Touch A way A Bridging Space in Haifa, Israel

4th year project, 2010

Just a touch away, but without a direct way

Hadar Carmel

Vizhnitz Ramat Hadar

Halisa

Neve Sha’anan

Background

The City Haifa is a city of hills separated by four urban cores. After Israeli Independence, an autonomic ideal prevailed of developing new neighborhoods on hilltops. Today, the neighborhoods only connect to each other and to the central area only through highways. While there may be some charm to the untouched valleys between the hilltops, it has resulted in a fragmented urban city framework. Neighborhoods are too small for jobs, retail, and services. They also have poor access to the remaining urban cores.

Technion

Built up areas of Haifa The Site An extreme case of this phenomenon of separation in Haifa is the Roshmiya valley area. On its hillsides and at different heights are the edges of two historic urban cores and three newer neighborhoods. These five urban fragments are located very close to each other at different heights on the hillsides. They seem to be just a touch away from each other, however to actually get from one to another a lengthy detour is required.

In addition, except for the valley view that is enjoyed by the first rows of buildings, the valley is not accessible from the neighborhoods, and an opportunity for a large accessible usable park (very lacking in Haifa) is missed.

Isolated neighborhoods around Roshmiya Valley, Haifa, Israel

Concept

A Vertical Urban Fabric The project aims to create a larger local, urban, and economic unit out of the currently detached neighborhoods. This would result in shorter trips between existing destinations and a larger market for retail and services.

The proposal is for a connecting fabric that will allow both horizontal and vertical movement - a multi-level bridge. The levels of the bridge connect to existing streets at their different heights.

Basic structure proposal

To make the new system apart of the urban environment, the bridge is conceived as a street type, a continuous urban space. The combination of multiple activity levels with vertical movement systems enable for a place of richness and possibilities. The environment becomes a small, pedestrian friendly space.

Typical floor plan

Roofs plan

Community

Dwelling , entrance floor

Stair room entrance

Commercial

Bridge access, with units above and below the entrance Simple bridge access

Row houses

Ground floor Residential

Office

Communal

Typical functions of independent units

Apartment above and below the en-

Apartments and Duplexes

Ground floor Retail

Apartment over row houses

The structure The structure is vertically subdivided into horizontal “streets” that repeat every 3-5 stories with direct access to the indoors. Public elevators are spread throughout, allowing for an easy natural access to the different levels, as well as the Valley park at the ground.

To make the bridge a robust urban system, it is conceived not as a single building, but rather as an urban plan. The plan divides the bridge into two parts: the “street wall” is composed of structurally independent buildings, while the vertical movement cores and small pedestrian cross bridges are publicly built.

This way a series of medium size projects are built rather than one mega-project. Since neighborhoods on the same side of the valley are currently disconnected, even partial implementation will already be an improvement.

Because the buildings rely on multiple public streets and vertical movement cores, they do not need complex elevator systems or multiple stairways.

They are functionally broken into independent 3-5 stories units.

The proposed structural system for a single building combines two vertically continuous concrete cores (that also serve as safe rooms, which the law mandates), with a flexible Vierendel structure.

This structure allows a small footprint on the ground and variations between the floors.

Apartments

Structure

Residences

Commerce

Promenade

Commerce

Residences

Communal

Commerce

Two-way road & parking

Residences

Commerce One-way road & parking

Garden

Garden

Residences

Commerce

Two-way road & parking

Communal Garden

Residences Two-way road & parking

Valley Park

Garden Two-way road & parking Residences Garden

Valley Park