Marina zhao

Marina Zhao Portfolio (Xiaoqing Zhao)

Master of Landscape Architecture School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture College of Architecture, Design and Construction Auburn University, 2013-2015

Marina Zhao (Xiaoqing Zhao)

334-329-9509 xzz0037@auburn.edu 615 Lake Medlock ct, Alpharetta, GA, 30022

WORKING EXPERIENCE The School of Architecture, Planning & Landscape Architecture, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama Graduate Research Assistantship, January 2014- May 2015 Auburn Preserve Research Park • • • •

Create a new welcome center design for Auburn Preserve Park in Auburn, Alabama Measure the site and look for the relationships among different structures Draw base map and water analysis map for Auburn Preserve Park Build Sketch Up models and construction details for the new welcome center design

• • •

Help professor rebuild the playground for Chewacla State Park in Auburn, Alabama Measure the site and look for the relationships among different structures Create base map in different scale to prepare for the rebuild design

Chewacla State Park Playground Design

Assist professor to compile her old projects to put into Zotero

SKILLS AutoCAD Adobe Photoshop Adobe Illustrator Adobe InDesign Sketch Up ARC GIS Rhino Hand Drafting and Sketching Model making

LANGUAGES Mandarin English

CERTIFICATION

Bacteriological Monitoring, Alabama Water Watch (2014)

Shenyang Urban Design and Planning Institute, Shenyang, China Internship, April 2013 – July 2013 Work for Dadong government to research Jixiang Pedestrian Street in Shenyang for reconstruction Draw the facade for the Jixiang Pedestrian Street Draw existing maps by AutoCAD and Sketch Up for Shenyang National Bureau farm Draw Shenyang National Bureau farm rebuilding plan

EDUCATION

Auburn University 08/2013-05/2015, Auburn, Alabama Master of Landscape Architecture, graduated with honor School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture College of Architecture, Design and Construction Southwest University 09/2009-05/2013, Chongqing, China Bachelor of Environment, Resource and City and Town Planning School of Geographical Science Southwest University 09/2009-05/2013, Chongqing, China Bachelor of Accounting Business School

Portfolio of Works 2013-2015

YEAR 2 Build Resilient City Mobile, Alabama

Auburn University Preserve Park Auburn, Alabama

YEAR 1 Wilson Streetscape

Prichard, Alabama

Renaissance Park Prichard, Alabama

Carless City

North Pratt, Alabama

Hand Drawing Practice Constraction Document Practice

YEAR 2 Build Resilient City Mobile, Alabama 2015

Introduction During the study of resilience, I found that people had no confidence and always involved negative feeling when they talk about engineering strategies, especially on providing resilient riverfront. One of the reasons is because engineering structures seem to make the city more attacked, for example, the New Orleans’s Levee System that was broken during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Another reason, people always think of traditional hard engineering, generally defined as controlled disruption of natural processes by using man-made structures, such as made by concrete which has potential risk to break down and causes no wildlife habitat in support of the structure. They lose to realize the function and impact from soft engineering strategies. Soft engineering uses ecological principles and practices to reduce erosion and achieve the stabilization and safety of shorelines and the area surrounding rivers. It enhances habitat, improves aesthetics, and saves money.

Actually, hard engineering strategies also have lots of opportunities to be resilient. To be resilience or not, it is really depends on what standards we use to evaluate it. When we talk a resilient city on response to the sea level rise, hard engineering strategies are resilient as well, like levees.

Build Resilient City Mobile, Alabama

This research study looks at the sea level rise in Mobile, Alabama in the 100 years time range.

6' Sea Level Rise Situation in Mobile

Exsiting Pictures

Exsiting Issues

Neighborhood beside the highway makes unconvenience

This park will be vulnerable to the future sea level rise

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How Can I Use Levee System to Reduce These Vulnarable and Build a Livable Future for Mobile, Alabama?

Railroad seperate river from city and citizens

Sea Level Rise in the Future

40 years

60 years

90 years

According to the NOAA's prediction of sea level rise in the 100 years in Mobile, Alabama, I present data of 100 years sea level rise derictly into graphics. This analysis straightly shows how the sea level rise will influence our city in the future 100 years and which part of the city will be vulnerable of the sea level rise.

Project Context Inventory in Mobile, Al

Site Context

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2

1

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Downdown area is a very interesting and attractive place in Mobile, Alabama.

And because of the revitalizing development in the waterfront, a new Maritime Museum is constructed and opened in 2015. However the wide 6 lines Water Street seperates the downtown area from the waterfront.

1. Cooper Riverside Park 2. Open Space, As a Marketing Place for Events 3. Bienville Square

Design Investigation Levee System to Build Resilient

Design Test --- Levee System and Plaza

Convention Center

Levee Greenway Constructed Landform Railroad Under the Levee

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100 years sea level rise responsed by levee system Levee system

A levee combined with the existing building provided to build a levee system to help Mobile city to response to the future see level rise disturbance. This levee will be built above the existing railroad infrastructure to rebuild the connection between the downtown area to the waterfront area.

In the front of the levee system, try to build constructed landform to release the wave energy to protect the levee. The landform is also a plaza for people to have fun here even if there will be in the 4' sea level rise in 60 years.

Overall, this levee system will solve the issue (railroad separate the waterfront and the downtown area), at the same time, have the ability to response and adapt the future sea level rise.

Design Analysis

Levee System and Plaza

The landform is also a plaza for people to have fun here even if there will be in the 4' sea level rise in 60 years.

Three diagrams in the left show how the constructed landform can be adaptive to the future sea level rise.

The current design is for educational and playful area. In this plaza, several columns stand there and curved height. These columns try to give people feeling about how high it will be if the water rise in the future. So the column tries to tell people and educate people about future sea level rise. Also, it is a place try to collect people to come here and have lunch or dinner together.

4' Sea Leevl Rise

In the 60 years, if the sea level rise is like the predict 4', These constructed landform still can provide places for people to get together and have some activities related to the water.

At the same tmie, these constructed landforms can be the protection for the levee erosion by reducing the everyday tide in and tide out wave energy.

6' Sea Leevl Rise

In 100 years, the water may submerge a lot of this plaza, however the constructed landform can also protect the levee in the same way.

Constructed Landform Reduce Wave Energy

Building the levee connected to the existing building can shape the space in front of the levee an inner harbor.

Because the inner harbor is more peaceful than the other coastline, this inner harbor will be the first step to reduce the erosion and make a peace area in the yellow area.

And the second step to reduce the erosion of levee is the constructed landform. It can reduce the wave energy like the last diagram shows.

YEAR 2 Forest Preserve Park Auburn, Alabama 2015

Auburn Preserve Park

Introduction This is a GRA job work for the professor Jocelyn Zanzot.

The School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences at Auburn University needs to build a new welcome entrance for the Forest Preserve Park at Auburn, Alabama.

Forest Preserve Park provides services for children to learn the wildlife during their inventory at the park.

Forest Preserve Park Entrance Auburn, Alabama

Existing Condition & Waterflow

Front Perspective

Proposal

Above Perspective

Construction Front

Left

Back

Right

YEAR 1 Wilson Streetscape Prichard, Alabama 2014

Auburn Preserve Park

Introduction Prichard City is in the north side of Mobile City, Alabama. It is more like a suburb of Mobile. As of the 2010 Census, the population of the city was 22,659.

Right now, Prichard suffers big issues. Depopulation, low level of economy, low level of education, school age students have a large rate all happen here. These problems link to each other somehow, like depopulation and low level education somehow make low level of economy. People who live here have strong willing to solve these problems and build a lovely neighborhood to live in.

According to the study, I find out solving the depopulation problem can make Prichard revitalize.

The purpose of this project is to revitalize Prichard City, Alabama.

From Comprehensive Plan Data analysis, I found Prichard people go to Mobile to work and come back to live. So I think Prichard have the opportunities to attract Mobile people come to live here, especially in Wilson Street Area. Because it already had a very beautiful residential neighborhood called Gulf Garden.

Wilson Streetscape Prichard, Alabama

A linear park proposed along the Wilson Street. Based on the situation right now, this linear park seperates into 2 scenarios.

Scenario 1

First scenario is combining the commercial area and the linear park.

Use the cross road to connect the linear park in both sides of the road. And also slow down the cars in the Wilson Street.

The Restaurant Model shows how the commercial area connects to the linear park.

Restaurant Model

Scenario 2

Scenario 2 wants to separate industrial area from residential area. So I propose to use different layers of vegetation to avoid the industrial noise and pollution from the residents.

At the edge of this scenario, the city prepares a gateway of Prichard City.

Layers Section

Gateway Section Cross Road Section

Cross Road Section A plenty of cross road sections provided in this linear park area to force the high speed cars to slow down in Wilson Street.

Furnished cross roads with lights create more obvious and walkable here. Canopies along the paths increase walkability even in the hot sunny days. Besides the path, several seats provided to people so they can have a leisure time.

The layers section below uses 3 layers to separate the industry from residential area.

The first layer is heavy canopy tree in the triangle place. The second layer is street tree.

The third layer is shrub hedge. Three layers together reduce the pollution, especially noise pollution from the industry.

Layers Section

Restaurant Model A restaurant is suggested at one side of road. This restaurant model is a suggestion of how the commercial can connect to this proposed linear park. In this linear park, the restaurant conveniences surrounding people and the citizens who come here to spend their leisure time. Outdoor eating and the same paving as the path in the linear park make the commercial place (the restaurant) combined with this linear park.

Using jacaranda trees to make a liner gateway in the cross corner is not a heavy move, but gives a special landscape in the corner.

Gateway Section

YEAR 1 Renaissance Park Prichard, Alabama 2014

Auburn Preserve Park

Introduction This project is also located in Prichard, Alabama. As the statement in Wilson Street, this project also focuses on the revitalization in Prichard.

Prichard has several schools but does not have any art place right now. The school age rate is huge. They really need arts to educate them.

Prichard people need an awareness to identify themselves. Public should involve in build the city.

For now Prichard is a suburb of Mobile. But we do not want to be the suburb, we want to THRIVE! When Prichard was built, the first mayor Mr. Prichard identified Prichard as the geographic, political, economic and culture center of Mobile County. It is time for Prichard to revitalize!!!

Renaissance Park Prichard, Alabama

Revolving Door

Proposal

I purposed to build a landmark here; it can connect the water tower to build a gateway of Prichard City. A public art designed here. The shape of the public art is a revolving door.

It is 80 feet, the same height as the water tower. And it made by brushed steel.

Around the revolving door, there is an amphitheater for making a public space for people to relax here. Get out of the fence from the residential area. Because I think we can combine the residential with the park. Make the backyard the park!

Existing

View Section

Revolving Door

From the moel test, it is obviously the place I proposed public art, which is the Renaissance Park, is easier to be found than the watertower place when people go through the Highway 165.

Model Test

And these gateway will influence the whole Prichard downtown area.

Highway

Revolving Door

Revolving Door Highway

Water Tower

View

Highway View

Water Tower

Downtown

View

Prichard Downtown Model

Prichard Watertower View

Proposal Public Art View

Prichard Downtown to Gateway View

YEAR 1 Carless City Pratt, Alabama 2013

Auburn Preserve Park

Introduction Pratt city located in the west of Birmingham, Alabama.

The massive tornado that ripped through North West Birmingham, AL, in 2011 left a trail of devastation in its path. Pratt City, a small community adjacent to the Ensley and Thomas neighborhoods was torn asunder. Since that time, considerable effort has gone into clearing the debris and securing funding to seed redevelopment, and some rebuilding has occurred. A new library has recently been completed, as have a number of homes available for purchase by lowincome families.

Carless City

canopy

Pratt, Alabama

North Pratt City Tornado Before & After

Mapping in North Pratt High points

Library

5 mins and 10 mins walk

Sidewalk

Open Space s

Before

Pratt City Location

Road width

After

Vehicle Flow s

Road width

5 mins and 10 mins walk

Road Width canopy

Pratt City Birmingham

5 Mins & 10 Mins Walk s

Parking Lot

s

Road width

Urban Canopy

Bus Stop & Transit

Road width

High points

Existing Situation

Photographies

A new library has been completed recently. Here I collected the situation around this new library. Using the library as a key point to test the idea of carless city in North Pratt, Alabama.

Library and bus stop are two main elements in this site.

Photographies show the existing situation.

Library

Library

Parking Lot

Bus Stop

Library Plaza Develop Diagram

Proposal

From bus pattern to get the plaza pattern From pedestrain analysis to get the differnet spatials in the plaza and the panels place.

A bike path and trees are introduced along Dugan Ave to reduce the width of the road, forcing cars to slow down. The existing parking lot beside the library is converted into a movie theater and sitting plaza. On street parking is provided along Dugan. Bus stop waiting areas are expanded and overhead shelter introdued. Exhibitions can be displayed on the large panels on the North side of the library and the plaza.

Masterplan

Library Plaza Plan Bus Inside Pattern

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Pattern Extraction

1�= 20‛

Library Plaza

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Bus Pattern Plaza Recreation

Movie Theater & Rest Area Education

Corridor & Bus Station

Pedestrian Analysis

Functions

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Perspective 1 --- Shelter Bus Stop

Perspective 2 --- Outdoor Movie Theater

YEAR 1 Practices

Auburn, Alabama 2013

Auburn Preserve Park

Hand Drawing Practice Constraction Document Practice

Hand Drawing Practice

Proposal This practice focuses on downtown planning in a big city. The downtown area includes residential, business and a pedestrian plaza.

The task is trying to figure out how to build these three types of land use work together.

The design purposal should be livable, recreational and productive.

Constraction Document Practice

2

WOOD METAL

GRASS

Stair Construction Detail

THANK YOU FOR READING

Marina Zhao Auburn University 334-329-9509 xzz0037@auburn.edu 615 Lake Medlock ct, Alpharetta, GA, 30022