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Blackpool Cultural Map
Pleasure Landscape
Skyline Exploration
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Siteplan
Perspective View
Redefining the Horizon With the gradual loss of Blackpool’s cultural capital comes a need to store and preserve it, much like our need to capture and preserve memories in the form of souvenirs and photographs. I decided to translate this idea into an architectural form based on the horizon studies, I created a large concrete mass, a far cliff on the horizon, that would contain embedded structures to represent and preserve the cultural icons of Blackpool, like jewels hidden in rock. This mass would erode over the years and these jewels would the be revealed, allowing them to either transform into a new function or to be lost to the waves. This idea of renewal and loss is a central metaphor and represents our own attitudes towards memory and nostalgia - we forget things over time, in a gradual process, and we can either find acceptance in that loss or allow new memories to take the place of the old.
View from the Shore
Embedded Forms
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Axonometric Skylines
Skyline Investigation
Stacked Forms
Eroded Forms
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Access For All
Means of Escape
Disabled Parking & Exterior Access The strategy is simple, making use of the car park at the back of the site on Claremont Road. Disabled parking spaces can be reserved for 2 people with signage and blue-badge restrictions. The spaces would have clear marking as Disabled spaces and space on each side for the users to exit their vehicle. Travel from the space to the building is along flat pavement and a low ramp with a gradient of less than 1:20 (1.7) which then meets the rear entrance of the building, where quick access to the workshop or accommodation block is easy. (1.1) Alternatively, the user can follow the ramp downhill to the main entrance of the foyer to enter with other people. the minimum width of the existing access road is 2.2m, easily enough for multiple people or wheelchair users to pass. (1.2,1.10) From the Lover’s Lane entrance point, level changes are minimised as the site is levelled to the height of the entrance point. (1.4) Paths outside of the site are asphalt and within the site are compacted gravel/sand mix. Both offer a smooth, flat surface that drains rainfall quickly. (1.9) At night, street lamps light the service road and Lover’s Lane (these are already installed) to help all people to access the site. (1.12)
Occupancy Levels:
Numbers in brackets refer to objectives tackled on page 18 of the Part M Provision
Access within the Building Within the building access to the workshop is easy as the floor level of the building is level with the outside, with a simple drainage grid marking the boundary. The large folding windows give easy access and clear visual links between indoor and outdoor and clearly mark the function of the building for those with visual impairment. The windows have circular patterns of frosting at eye level for standing and sitting heights, to stop people walking into them. Doors are controlled via an electronic push-pad between 750mm and 1000mm high for wheelchair users and swing automatically - the speed is limited to avoid hitting people and a guardrail is installed to warn people of the area the door can swing into. This guardrail also has a panel at floor height to warn blind people using a stick to navigate. Where more privacy is needed, doors simply have glass panels at 500-850mm and 1150-1500mm high. Vertical Access The upper floor of the accommodation block is accessed via a double flight of stairs, however for disabled users there is also a wheelchair lift that allows access to the top floor, to the same point as the top of the stairs. This allows wheelchair users to access the top floor at the same speed as non-wheelchair users and to meet again at the same spot, resulting in minimal interruption for the wheelchair user. The landing area has 1500x1500mm space for maneuvering into the lift and electronic push-pad buttons to call the elevator, with a visual and audible cue when it arrives and a power-assisted door to aid entry. The stairs have mesh railings with handrails on each side at 900mm from the pitch line of the staircase, and have visually contrasting nosings to aid visually impaired users. The stairwell will also be clearly lit at night. There will be corduroy warning patterns at the top and bottom of the stairs and guarding with cane detetction at the top and bottom. Accommodation & Toilets Accommodation for two disabled users is provided with two bedrooms having a larger floor area than the others and containing disabled WC and shower units. These also have more space by the door in the access corridor to allow wheelchair users more room to maneuver getting in and out. The toilets include handrails on each side, maneuvering space of 1500mmx1500mm next to the toilet, a washbasin at 650mm high and an emergency alarm cord with handles at 800mm and at 100mm from the floor. Workshop & Kitchen In the workshop and kitchen, there are signs to aid visually impaired people to find sinks and shelves, and an induction loop system for hearing aid users. The workshop has (in storage when not in use) folding collapsible worktables that can be adjusted to a height suitable for wheelchair users, or for users who cannot stand for extended periods.
Please refer to the Building plans on the next page
Grand Total: 104.05
General Strategy The accommodation block offers the highest risk for fire safety due to the nature of the foyer clients and potential isolation of a fire as it develops. Thus, every room will have smoke alarms installed with additional units in the circulation spaces, as per item 1.10 on page 18 of the Approved Document B. with additional heat alarms in the communal kitchen and social rooms, as per 1.12. The corridor on the upper floor of block A presents a potential fire hazard as smoke can fill the space quickly, blocking escape routes. To minimize this cavity barriers are minimize this a fire door in the middle of the corridor is installed, with an intumescent strip to prevent smoke ingress. Each half of the building evacuates to its own side for maximum efficiency. In the event that one of the stairwells is unaccessible, resident go through the fire door and escape via the alternate stairwell. Thus, each stairwell has to be prepared to accommodate the full building’s worth of inhabitants. Stairs & Final Exits The width of the stairs in each protected stairwell must be able to accommodate the full occupancy of the first floor of block A, which comes to 19.1. Since this is below 60, the minimum width of the stairs and final exits is 750mm. however, this is not suitable for wheelchairs so the final exits and stairs are 1200mm wide. This allows easy transport of a wheelchair user in an evac-chair in case of fire - the wheelchair lift is not safe to use in the event of a fire. The values for the others doors are displayed in the above table; clearly every door is wider than the minimum specifications for ease of use, particularly for wheelchair users. Emergency Services Access for Emergency Services is easy on the ground floor as the large folding sections of glazing allow entry to the building. In the event that these are closed or otherwise impassable, both buildings have two entrance points. For the upper storeys, the two stairwells offer quick access to the part of the building on fire.
Placed Displaced
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Garden
Placed, Displaced House is a small development in Jesmond, Newcastle. The project involved tight spatial restrictions and a personal, human-scale approach to architecture. We had a hypothetical client - a nurse and a designer couple who were into pottery and buying their first house. I designed an unconventional house that separated the circulation vertically from the living spaces to create a contrast between places of movement and rest. The thick wall between these spaces acted as a thermal mass to regulate the house’s temperature and provided space for built-in shelving and furniture.
Reading Area
Kitchen
Bike Store
Bathroom
Living
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Bedroom
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First Floor
Ground Floor
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Modelling
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