Concept Development

As a studio exercise presented to expand critical thinking within our concept, we were required to create a character(s) for our future scenario. This allowed us to imagine ourselves in the future scenario to consider all daily aspects that should be at least considered for our general concept. Our chosen characters were a family of three; a husband, wife and young child. The future concept we have begun to develop results in a surge of residential development within the CBD due to the outward shift of commercial and major retail buildings, allowing a family to thoroughly exploit the characteristics of this new layout. Important features of the new CBD that would be required to support a family are as follows:


1- workplace access
2- general access
3- established sense of community
4- residential options for various levels of income
5- recreational space
6- educational facilities
7- safety


1&2) I conducted research into innovative and effective forms of public transportation and came across a very intriguing solution: maglev trains. Maglevs are magnetic levitation trains, and are becoming more popular due to their environmental friendliness, speed, zero maintenance, lack of noise and low pollution as they run on electricity. Currently there is only one low-speed maglev in operation in Japan, and is appraised as being extremely effective in a dense urban setting. An article on this train can be seen here:  http://www.gizmohighway.com/transport/japan_maglev_train.htm  

We decided upon a circular raised ring track similar to that of a monorail that runs in both directions for quick transportation. Within the inner CBD are four nodes that act as transportation hubs to allow access further into the city. This will also allow inner hubs to develop that contain small retail or other buildings requiring access for stock. A diagram of the transportation network can be seen below.

3&4) Residential buildings will incorporate a vertical layout similar to that of Architectural Design 6, where an amalgamation of room sizes and quality will form structures suitable for all demographics. Open and communal space should be abundant within each building to encourage interaction with other residents to form a sense of community, while creating public spaces that are still sheltered from the exterior to maintain a sense of privacy.

5&6) As commercial and major retail buildings shift outwards, large expanses of space (though much of it occupied by buildings) will open up, providing great opportunities for new functions to be introduced. Many old buildings can be retrofitted into schools or recreation centres, while outdoor areas can be expanded through the reclaiming of road space and demolition of unnecessary buildings.

7) As mixed use areas tend to be visited more frequently at all times of the day, safety is largely increased due to a large decrease in deserted streets. A shift in the major demographic residing within the area to families will also gradually increase safety as those likely to commit crimes will gradually disperse or transition towards the transport hubs.


These issues and solutions are what have inspired our four choices of architectural possibilities, which will be developed and presented in week six as starting points for the final assignment.