Tulane University School of Architecture New Orleans Water Infrastructure and Architecture Professor John P. Klingman
the new Westersingel Canal, Rotterdam
Spring 2016
(photo JPK)
The intersection of infrastructure and architecture is the area of studio investigation. While the particulars of this investigation arise from post-Katrina New Orleans, the precarious state of U.S. infrastructure increases the relevance of this project type for further investigation at TSA or beyond. The studio is an extension of themes identified in the 2013 Greater New Orleans Urban Water Plan (see www.livingwithwater.com). The water planning, orchestrated by Waggonner and Ball Architects, has brought together civil engineers, hydrologists, landscape designers and architects from the Netherlands and the U.S. (including JPK, see www.dutchdialogues.com). Water infrastructure is often assumed to fall within the province of engineering or urban design. But with a city as interconnected with water as New Orleans, we can consider positive potential interactions between engineering, water, landscape and buildings. Beginning at the urban scale, the greater presence of water in New Orleans is put forward as a proposition. Involved will be a surface wet canal system, stormwater storage and groundwater management. This semester’s studio extends the consideration of water infrastructure and architecture. Its locus is a site of primary civic importance, centered on Duncan Plaza. In conjunction with the Greater New Orleans Urban Water Plan, this area is proposed for transformation from the current twentieth century Midcentury Modern assemblage into a civic complex for the twenty-first century, accommodating an expanded program as well as acknowledging the city’s historic and future interdependence with water. The building program is a City Hall Expansion on the site of the existing Civil Courts Building. An unusual aspect of the studio is that students will utilize finished projects for a new Civil Courts Building on the site of the demolished State Office Building/Supreme Court from the spring ’15 Water Studio, while redesigning Duncan Plaza.
TULANE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE KLINGMAN STUDIO SPRING 2015 Infrastructure, Water and Architecture, New Orleans An Extension of the Greater New Orleans Urban Water Plan A Twenty-first Century Civic Complex Urban Design Issues In the early twentieth century an emphasis on urban infrastructure projects was a dominant force in the United States. New Orleans undertook centralized city water supply, sanitary sewer system and storm drainage along with electrical, gas, communications and transportation systems. A century later Hurricane Katrina severely damaged these systems, and their piecemeal repair has proceeded; but a new paradigm has not been established. Under the auspices first of the Dutch Dialogues engagement and now through the Greater New Orleans Urban Water Plan led by Waggonner and Ball Architects, it is possible to project necessary and important new ideas for water infrastructure in the twenty-first century. In the Urban Design volume of the Urban Water Plan (see www.livingwithwater.com), principles are established that can be extended and tested through design case studies. In relating these principles to the morphology of New Orleans, substantial modification of the existing stormwater drainage system is proposed. The current system can be overwhelmed by the increasingly extensive volume of runoff, and the sentiment among officials and the public is that change is necessary. The new principles begin with finding places to store rainwater instead of forcing the water into a system that requires immediate pumping. Related to this is the need to reestablish a high level of groundwater helping to prevent subsidence, partially through a new network of “wet,” constantly flowing canals. A radial canal system supplementing the existing subterranean canal system has been proposed by Dutch Dialogues and the Water Plan. The streets that correspond to urban grid shifts, often early plantation boundaries, are particularly appropriate for this new system. Our primary canal location in the CBD will be the wide twentieth century boulevard of Poydras St. from near the river to its lower end at Claiborne Avenue. Hydrology Currently, New Orleans drainage canals act as water channels primarily during rainstorms. The Urban Water Plan proposal is to maintain them “wet” as water management entities and urban amenities at all times. The hydrostatic pressure from the Mississippi River allows for a spring of freshwater to be generated near the river. These springs can provide a source of available water that flows by gravity towards the lake.
Water from the canal acts as a groundwater recharge source during dry weather. During rainy weather, it becomes a component of the water retention/storm drainage system. Thus, an ability to accommodate differing flows is an important characteristic of the canal design. The canal right of way is designed as a recreational amenity for walking, biking, running, etc. Planting will improve local microclimate. Each longitudinal street will bridge the canal. At these locations a cascade, perhaps with a movable weir can be considered, or a siphon under the street is possible. In dry weather the canal may carry moving water only a few inches deep. In rainy weather as the canals become part of the storm water retention/discharge system, the capacity will enlarge. Adjacent to the canals can be a network of other water management components. Stormwater holding/ storage areas can include floodable green spaces, lagoons and ponds that will lessen flooding in periods of heavy rainfall. The initial flow of water is contaminated with urban detritus, so filtering and bioremedial strategies are necessary. Buildings along the canals and in the neighborhood can hold rainwater for graywater, fire protection and irrigation. This decentralized water system utilizing rainwater would be particularly useful during long dry periods or in emergencies when water pressure is low. A major change in New Orleans’s stormwater strategy is also proposed in the Urban Water Plan. Currently, all the rainwater that falls on the city is pumped into Lake Pontchartrain. An alternative program called “pump to the river” is proposed. It involves taking rainwater falling in the area from the high ground near the river’s edge, including the CBD, storing a maximum amount, gathering the rest along Claiborne Avenue and pumping it into the Mississippi at Carrollton and the Industrial Canal. The Poydras St. and Loyola Avenue Canals Poydras St. is an artifact of the nineteen sixties, the “Texification” of New Orleans, in the words of geographer Peirce Lewis. Antithetical to the character of the city, its overwide right of way is a perfect location for a new canal. Reduced lanes for automobiles, planting of substantial street trees and elimination of street parking can bring this street into the new New Orleans lexicon. Another important urban design focus is the possibility of a surface canal along Loyola Avenue, from Howard Avenue across Canal St. and along Basin St, to the beginning of the proposed Lafitte Greenway canal. There is an existing subsurface canal in this location, and the new waterway could be placed on top of it. This proposal envisages the redesign of Loyola Avenue itself, lessening automobiles lanes and creating greater amenities along its length. The road redesign allows for green/blue space to soften the edge. The Twenty-first Century Civic Plaza In addition to these infrastructure considerations, the focus of the studio is upon a specific civic location that is potentially rich in character. Duncan Plaza is an artifact of the post WWII civic consciousness that awakened in New Orleans. At that time, the goal was to create a new civic identity with a building complex reflecting a city that was forwardlooking rather than resting upon its noteworthy, but checkered past. Architecturally, this
is manifest in the Modernist character of the buildings surrounding the Plaza. The Plaza itself was treated as a lawn, consistent with the corbusian notion from the nineteen twenties. In the nineteen eighties, it was redesigned, rather ineffectually. The new plaza will be thematically conceived around water, the most important element to both the history and future of New Orleans. It will be designed as a focus of civic activity, contributing through both program and form to the twenty-first century identity of New Orleans. The New Civic Complex In its history New Orleans has had three city halls. The Cabildo was the first, and it was used for about a century. Gallier Hall followed with a similar duration. The existing structure has lasted about half that long to date. The current City Hall has not been renovated or expanded since completion, and a number of city agencies are located in nearby structures. Therefore a City Hall Annex is necessary. The New Orleans Civil District Courts also require a substantial addition due to increased program. Since the current site of the Civil Courts at the corner of Loyola and Poydras Sts. does not allow for an addition, a new Civil Courts Building is proposed on the vacant site where the State Office Building/Supreme Court was demolished, allowing for the renovation and expansion of City Hall onto the existing Civil Courts Building site. The operative premise is that civic infrastructure represents a substantial public investment and therefore positive engagement between the public, the facility and its infrastructural systems is appropriate. This is an increasing challenge for designers in the wake of recent US Governmental attitudes viewing public buildings and spaces as vulnerable to “terrorism.� To further the public nature of the project, each student will propose a complementary programmatic component related thematically to the project. The conjunction of utilitarian and public programs offers unusual and important architectural design opportunities. Architecturally, the focus then is the design of a new civic structure on the site of the existing Civil District Courts building. It will be connected to the south end of the existing City Hall. The new structure needs to relate both to the midcentury modern complex, City Hall and the Public Library as well as the proposed CDC building and the plaza itself. Since this is too formidable as a total architectural design opportunity, each student will incorporate the design of the Civil District Courts building from the Spring 2015 studio. In addition, the new City Hall addition can indicate a connection to The Superdome, just up Poydras St. Currently, there is no relationship between the primary civic complex and the Dome, the city’s most important public facility. City Hall Expansion Program The program for the City Hall expansion is primarily for office space, expanding the existing net square footage by thirty percent. While City Hall is an appropriate building for office use, it is less than adequate for ceremonial and civic/public purposes.
Therefore, a space for public ceremonies, a public auditorium and a replacement City Council Chamber are required. Office Space @ 30% of exist net sq. ft. 250, 000 x ,3 = 75, 000 nsf Commission meeting rooms 3 @ 2000
6,000
Committee meeting rooms 4 @ 1000
4,000
Ceremonial Hall
3, 000
City Auditorium
6, 000
Dining venue(s) and support
10,000 _________ 104,000 nsf
factor @ 1.32 (as in ex building)
137,000 gsf Total Project
Students
(previous project)
Kevin Atkinson Calla Bardwell Cecile Benoit Antonia Butwell Ian Carr Buie Fox Carson Hall Rachel Neu Patrick Saucedo Ethan Shaw
(Ardeneaux) (Jin) (Mire) (Park) (Haack) (Rosencweig) (Russo) (Sassoon) (West) (Wurzelbacher)
Special Thanks Waggonner and Ball Architects: Thom Smith, Cari Alcombright. Outside reviewers over the course of the semester included William Gilchrist, Angela Morton, Michael Nius, Sabri Farouki, Chad Cramer and Joe Evans. Faculty reviewers included Grover Mouton, Marcella del Signore, Tiffany Lin, Michael Crosby and Irene Keil of Tulane School of Architecture.
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX The City Hall Annex is kept low to avoid interrupting city hall’s relationship with N. Rampart Street and the French Quarter, while filling out the urban space left behind by the existing building and creating an engaging and urbanistic street front. On the Duncan Plaza size, a large roof and porch carries the same geometric language and creates a portico and a place to congregate in front of the traditional City Hall entrance. The neat for light and air necessitates two large and subdivided courtyards between the old and new buildings, which are used both as occupiable spaces and water retention areas from roof runoff. In addition, Duncan Plaza is constructed to allow the users to experience nature while staying dry, as an internal canal and several water channels deal with rainwater and provide sustinence for black willow trees and canebrake.
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 | KEVIN ATKINSON
IMAGE PLACEHOLDER
AERIAL PERSPECTIVE
BUILDING SECTIONS
LABEL | DESCRIPTION
LABEL | DESCRIPTION
IMAGE PLACEHOLDER
ENTRY SEQUENCE AND COURTYARD
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 | KEVIN ATKINSON
IMAGE PLACEHOLDER
CANAL DETAIL
PORCH ROOF SECTION
DUNCAN PLAZA SECTION
IMAGE PLACEHOLDER
DUNCAN PLAZA RENDERING
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 | KEVIN ATKINSON
IMAGE PLACEHOLDER
IMAGE PLACEHOLDER
FLOOR PLANS
SITE PLAN
IMAGE PLACEHOLDER
PORCH RENDERING
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX This building was inspired by a
This building was inspired by a study of of the the preexisting preexisting urban urban study fabric and green spaces near fabric and green spaces near the current currentcity cityhall. hall.The The triangle triangle the foot print print isis the the result resultof ofmultiple multiple foot street grids grids intersecting intersecting on on the the street corner cornerof ofPoydras Poydrasand and Loyola. Loyola. Adding outlets from Adding outlets from the the existing existing building to the addition show building to the addition show aa connection connection between between the the courts courts and the rest of New Orleans and the rest of New Orleans City Government. The landscape City Government. The landscape around this civil addition reflect around civilfriendly addition reflect the new,this water CZO as the new, water friendly CZO of as well as the natural landscape well as the natural landscape of New Orleans. New Orleans. These features create a more user These features create a more friendly City Hall, allowing opportunities and flexibility for the user public nature. friendlyand City Hall, allowing oppor-
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 |CALLA BARDWELL
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 | CALLA BARDWELL
tunities and flexibility for the public and nature.
Offices Public
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DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 |CALLA BARDWELL Floor 2
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Floor 1
The bottom four floors of the design are public space. They include the auditorium and meeting spaces for City Hall and its employess to meet with the public. This is made a ceremonial space by a three story atrium with live plants stretching through out it. The upper floors are offices with walkways to connect back to the original City Hall. Allowing space to circulate between the two.
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
Low Water Site Plan
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 |CALLA BARDWELL
High Water Site Plan
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
Upper: Loyola Render
Bridge View
Lower: Public Space Diagram
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 |CALLA BARDWELL
Inerior Rendering
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |CECILE BENOIT
L
ocated at the intersection of two of New Orleans’ largest thoroughfares and among a collection of towering commercial structures, City Hall is currently swallowed by its context. In an effort to give the governmental hub a greater presence, this proposed addition highlights the unique orientation of the existing structure. Running perpendicular to City Hall, the addition creates three unique outdoor areas, in conjunction with the proposed Civil Courts building on Duncan Plaza. The design strategies incorporate a massing move which creates a direct visual connection between Duncan Plaza and Poydras Street. In addition, the proposal hopes to make City Hall more of a destination through the development of a wide public plaza on the street corner. The addition boasts new special spaces: an auditorium, ceremonial hall, rooftop terrances, and a newly designed council chamber.
SECURITY SCREENING STAFF CAFE
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council chamber
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commission rooms
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DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |CECILE BENOIT
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THIRD LEVEL | AUDITORIUM
BUILDING SECTIONS
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |CECILE BENOIT
SITE MODEL | MASSING
PRECEDENTS
RENDERINGS | ATRIUM, ENTRANCE, EXTERIOR
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX Duncan Plaza and City Hall are located on the corner of Poydras Street and Loyola Avenue in New Orleans. It is a site that has been criticized and under-used for many years now. By adding two canals, the application of water to Duncan Plaza, and an addition to the exisiting City Hall, this project tries to bring new life to one of the most important buildings for the people of New Orleans. My project aims to connect the people working in City Hall to the building and eachother through a series of common spaces, large and inviting meeting rooms, and ample circulation between the exisiting building and the addition. It is also designed to connect the public to the site at the ground level and the city at higher levels with a Public Auditorium and large terraces overlooking the Superdome and Duncan Plaza. Finally my project connects water to the building and site by using water from the canals and rain water caught on the roof to power a triple- height water wall along Loyola and a retention pool surrounding the addition to City Hall.
CONTEXT MAP
CONTEXT PHOTOS
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 | ANTONIA BUTWELL
EXISITING STRUCTURE
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 | ANTONIA BUTWELL
WATER PRECEDENT- BMW SHOWROOM, UK
WATER DIAGRAM WATER DIAGRAM
FLOOR PLANS
LONGITUDINAL SECTION
VIEW FROM DUNCAN PLAZA
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
VIEW FROM CORNER OF POYDRAS AND LOYOLA
VIEW FROM POYDRAS
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |ANTONIA BUTWELL
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |ANTONIA BUTWELL
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |IAN CARR
My design attempts to enguage the public by opening its mass to create a connection between the heavily traveled streets that bound the site. It is open in other ways too, with its indoor/outdoor circulatory system, ample glazing, and open communal spaces. Another main goal of the design is to be a building of its place, which I attempted to accomplish through formal moves referencing New Orleans vernacular architecture, such as the courtyard and balconies. The lobbies placement on the busy corner of Poydras and Loyola is an attempt to open to the corner, and its most important spaces are oriented for views of the Super Dome, current city hall, and Duncan Plaza as well as the Urban Canal which was also a part of the program. Aside from the canal, the building deals with water with a wet courtyard inhabited by native water friendly plants to further the buildings sense of place.
LOYOLA ST. VIEW
INTERIOR PERSPECTIVES
CEREMONIAL ROOM
COURTYARD VIEW
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |IAN CARR
ELEVATIONS
LONG SECTION
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
URBAN CANAL PLAN
CANAL SECTION
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |IAN CARR
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX The project comes out of an investigation of the urban pathways which connect the site to its context in New Orleans. Two proposed sunlit canals are perhaps the most dynamic addition to the City’s infrastructure. The Loyola Avenue canal extends east and connects to the recentl re tructure afitte reenway. The Poydras Street canal extends north before reconnecting to existing infrastructure just south of City Park. This project examines the potential for Loyola Avenue to become an extension of the greenway to which it connects. The building situates itself prominently on the corner of Loyola and Poydras, and extends along Loyola for the length of the site. The project seeks to maintain the urban edge along the canal, and also to act as an element which would bring the public library, the proposed civil courts building, and the existing city hall together as a cohesive civic complex around the newly redesigned Duncan Plaza
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 | BUIE FOX
IMAGE PLACEHOLDER
SITE STRATEGIES | AERIAL VIEW
FACADE STRATEGIES | LOYOLA ELEVATION
URBAN CONTEXT | CANAL INFRASTRUCTURE
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 | BUIE FOX
VIEW | COVERED OUTDOOR SPACE
SECTION | LONGITUDINAL THROUGH DUNCAN PLAZA
SECTION | LATITUDINAL THROUGH DUNCAN PLAZA
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
PLANS | In an effort to further activate Duncan Plaza as a productive and welcoming public space, the building is lifted off the ground, creating an opportunity for the community to make use the covered outdoor space for a public market, in reference to the historic Poydras Street Market.The entrance is set facing Poydras Street, while a cafe is placed at the end of the building on the groun oor a a wa to connect the proposed annex to the public library. n the rai e oor , the o t u lic program is arranged closer to the intersection of Poydras and Loyola, while the more private program, such a a itional o fice ace, e ten with the building alongside Duncan Plaza. The new City council chambers exist as an object between the existing city hall and the proposed annex.
GROUND FLOOR PLAN
1/32” = 1’-0”
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 | BUIE FOX
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
FIRST FLOOR PLAN
1/32” = 1’ - 0”
SECOND FLOOR PLAN
1/32” = 1’ - 0”
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 | BUIE FOX
THIRD FLOOR PLAN
1/32” = 1’ - 0”
CADE DETAIL
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 | BUIE FOX
FACADE STRATEGIES | SECTION AND ELEVATION DETAIL
SITE STRATEGIES | FLOOD DIAGRAM
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 | BUIE FOX
VIEW | DUNCAN PLAZA
VIEW | OFFICE SPACE
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN| SPRING 2016 |CARSON HALL
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DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 | RACHEL NEU
MASSING MODEL
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PROGRAM DIAGRAM
The new city hall annex is designed to create a civic complex which includes the courthouse, existing city hall, and Duncan Plaza. The massing scheme for the annex was designed with relationships to existing city hall, and the complex as a whole. The annex is organized with public programs, such as the auditorium and council chambers, closest to the ground and entry, and a large, open, lobby space for circulation and transparency into city hall.
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
PERSPECTIVE | DUNCAN PLAZA
PERSPECTIVE | POYDRAS STREET
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 | RACHEL NEU
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 | RACHEL NEU
RAIN EVENT
The new Duncan Plaza design is based on the two axes of the complex; the prexisting Basin Street line and the connection between the Public Library and City Hall. The site is divided along these axes and each division becomes a different area for occupation. In a rain event, each area becomes flooded and the pathways along the axes remain raised, creating a clear circulation path into each building in the civic complex. SITE PLAN
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DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Professor | SPRING 2016 | RACHEL NEU
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DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |PATRICK SAUCEDO
The City Hall project began with an in depth look at the context and larger urban impact of the design. With the integration of a new urban infrastructure system, of the canals, an idea emerged to link major civic and public elements of New Orleans. The new canal system along Loyola and Poydras, would utilize the Laffite greenway to link; New Orleans City Park, Armstrong Park, New Orleans Central Library, The Superdome, Union Passenger Terminal and the Riverwalk. To establish the link between all of these significant parts of the city a canal layering strategy was devised to accommodate the immediate context of the two canals.
WATER LEVELS
TYPICAL LEVELS
HIGH LEVELS
IMAGE PLACEHOLDER
DUNCAN PLAZA CONCEPTUAL SECTION
TEN YEAR STORM
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |PATRICK SAUCEDO
With the urban strategy established the corner of Loyola and Poydras became a focal point of the project. To create an urban impact that could redefine the entire complex the main entrance was relocated to the corner underneath a large cantilever. The long horizontal nature of the cantilever coupled with materiality gave a clear defined direction towards the main entrance and lobby space. To increase public interaction the main public floor was elevated to the third floor. The bottom two floors are focused around the new city council chamber located along the edge of Poydras street, providing the opportunity for the chamber to have a separate entrance and exit. The exterior of the building is clad in zinc panels to provide a unique look while using the nvatural properties of zinc to help in gray water filtration.
FLOOR PLANS
SHORT SECTION
LONG SECTION
DUNCAN PLAZA: CITY HALL ANNEX
LOYOLA and POYDRAS
FRONT ENTRANCE
AUDITORIUM LABEL | DESCRIPTION
PROGRAM AXON
JOHN KLINGMAN, Proffesor | SPRING 2016 |PATRICK SAUCEDO
STRUCTURAL AXON
BIKE PATH
COMMISSION ROOM
The 3D views were taken to both emphasize the urbanistic impact of the project and how material treatment highlights specific element of the project. The program axon demonstrates the separation of major public space and the smaller common spaces used by workers of city hall. The structural strategy is a standard steel frame with concrete slabs. To reduce weight the elevated mass is constructed out of a steel cage that redistributes loads to columns that line the edge of the cantilever. The columns are also aligned with four light wells that cut through the mass to bring light down into the space and bring note to the main entrance. The two long light wells along the city council chamber have two small reflection pools to reintroduce the occupant to the water surrounding the project.