UncoveringPotential AN INVESTIGATION INTO DIMENSIONS OF THE CITY

UncoveringPotentialAN INVESTIGATION INTO DIMENSIONS OF THE CITY

Kansas City Design Center Urban Studio2009-2010

The University of KansasKansas State University

contents

Preface by VLADIMIR KRSTIC 7defining the city WHaT IS KaNSaS cITY? by RACHEL DUNCAN 12

SOLID/VOID/VacaNcY by KARINA LEUNG & BENJAMIN BUSCH 16 seeing the city mOrPHOLOgIcaL DISSecTIONS 25 SPaTIaL PercePTION 31 maNIfeSTaTIONS Of THe TemPOraL 43 envisioning the city aPPrOacHINg arcHITecTUre by RACHEL DUNCAN 60 reSTrUcTUrINg THe grID 64 Walnut corridor UrbanInfill:ReactivatingtheCrossroadsArtsDistrictbyAmyKinderknecht CrossroadsInfill

cONNecTINg PLaceS 80 UrbanNode:WashingtonSquarePark UrbanDeck:ParkingGarage/School/Bridge DowntownAquaticsCenter DrivingBy:TheDesignandExperienceofTriangleParkbyShannonWilliams UrbanFolly:TrianglePark

PrOgrammINg cHaNge 106 AdaptiveUrbanSpace CrossroadsInfillHousing SchoolofOne Digital media center

REDEFININGPUBlIC122 CityInterface Public/Parking

cONcLUSION 137 creDITS 138

ThisbookwaswrittenanddesignedbyKarinaleung,BenjaminBusch,andAllisonGouldwithdirectionfromVladimirKrstic,KansasStateUniversityprofessorinarchitecture.Onbehalfofallthestudentsinthe2009-2010KansasCityDesignCenter(KCDC)UrbanStudio,wewouldliketothankthecommunitypartnersthatmaketheCenter’spresenceindowntownKansasCitypossiblethroughtheircharitablecontributionsandprofessionalsupport.

4 5

prefaceVLADIMIR KRSTIC

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vendignibh enisisl in veros deliquisit vendignis exer si.

6 7

TheRiverMarket,Downtownloop,CrossroadsArtsDistrict,andCrownCentercomprisethecoreofKansasCity.Thecharacterofeachdistrictisdistinct,buttheprimarypublicbuildingsinKansasCityaresituatedalongthenorth-southcorridorofMainStreet,WalnutStreet,andGrandBoulevard.

Kemper Arena

American Royal

Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts

Convention Center

Freight House

Union Station

Liberty Memorial

Sprint Center

Power and Light District

City Market

City Hall

Central Public Library Federal Courthouse

WEST BOTTOMS

WEST SIDE 18TH & VINE

PASEO WEST

HOSPITAL HILL

LONGFELLOW

COLUMBUS PARK

CROWN CENTER

CROSSROADS ARTS DISTRICT

DOWNTOWN LOOP

RIVER MARKETN

1956

highway history

I-70builtI-29built

1970 I-35built 1990 I-670builtI-35re-routed

2001 US-71built

8 9

THE CITYdefining

Despite the tangibility of a city—its physical presence and its delineation in space—the term “city” connotes a much more comprehensive and qualitative idea based upon individual constructions of experience and prior knowledge. Each city is a unique amalgamation of its history, people, infrastructure, and architecture. From these elements, a collective conscious emerges, defining the city.

what is kansas city?

RACHEL DUNCAN

doEs Kansas City bElong to Kansas or Missouri? is it

the location, the geographical realities that make up this—or any—city?

does its broad relation to the rest of the world or universe have anything

to do with one’s perception of it? or should one simply take into account

those few events and places which one encounters? (i.e. those in which

one lives, dines, or holds conversations.) it seems that anything beyond

that which is directly experienced is hearsay, and therefore a pseudo-reality

requiring research or the trust in some form of media or peers. However,

it is virtually impossible to experience an entire city, every part of it and

all of its possibilities and opportunities. one is left with only an individual

interpretation, be it made from one day’s experience or fifty years.

this is the beauty of the city—it is so alive, dense, and complex that it

fuels the lives of millions of people at once. it participates on tremendously

different scales of involvement and significance, and therefore exists as

layers of multiple current, yet ever-changing realities.

So in attempt to define a city—a decidedly complex and dynamic

organism—where does one start? I find Aldo Rossi’s writings in The

Architecture of the City especially compelling. i am able to grasp rossi’s

theories about the city and and see examples of his ideas in the organism

evolving around me, Kansas City. rossi understands the issues an american

city faces and he allows for a framework by which one can understand a city

beyond the simple encounters one has with it, regardless of if they occur

over only one day, a few weeks, or a lifetime.

What can be particularly helpful in the endeavor of defining the

american city, and in this case, Kansas City, is the recognized necessity

to remember the past. understanding that “with time, the city grows upon

itself; it acquires a consciousness and memory”1 does not specifically require

a personal experiential understanding to realize the effects historical ideals

have on what the city currently is. regardless of what used to be, all that

currently exists are signs of collective will which endured the destruction,

demolition, and change of use that occur over time in a city.

these permanent characteristics are evident in the

artifacts that contribute to the image of the city. “the urban

image, its architecture, pervades…and invests all of man’s

inhabited realm with value. it arises inevitably becasue it is

so deeply rooted in the human condition.”2 We must take into

account its physical form, but also its ability to contain and

remind inhabitants of its ancient qualities. the “city is in its

history,”4 a history that is alive and present. therefore, there

is “meaning to give permanences: they are a past we are still

experiencing.”5

Especially in a city as young as Kansas City, people

need something to understand about the past, something

that makes them feel grounded. there is something about

moving into a newly constructed house, in a brand new

Residueofthepastinapartywalladjacenttonewlylaidsodonanowemptylot

12 13DefININg THE CITY

neighborhood, between two empty houses still looking for owners, versus

moving into, or back into, the house built by the hands of your great-

grandparents. Here, possessing some respect for the history makes you

feel every nail and imagine the stories told on the front porch. to me, this is

what a city is like—it has depth. as one can see the mark of a demolished

building along the side of one still standing, the depth grows deeper. but as

stated before, one does not need to have seen the previous building there,

or watched their great-grandfather hammer the nail in, to feel the value of

history, thought, or of some purpose for why it was there.

With this realized framework for sensing permanent, lasting realities of a

place, I can begin to define one layer of the city as it exists

to me. One of the most experientially-rich and defining

areas of Kansas City is the river Market district, because

it is there that i sense the memory of a diverse, expansive

city. While i do not possess a personal memory of such

a time when trading was actually taking place along the

river, i can certainly recognize its remainder in the market,

along the streets, amidst the traces of change and

consistency. i value this entire district as an urban artifact

because of its ability to imply “not only a physical thing

in the city, but all of its history, geography, structure, and

connection with general life of the city.”6 it is a physical

location, yet it holds a personality of coming together,

sharing, and experiencing differences. remarkably not

overtaken by chain venders and gas stations, the district

remains personal and individual.

there are few places i have ventured through this

city in which a simple building tie or an inadvertent

contrast of colors has made me lose my train of thought mid-sentence. Had

these small details not called for my attention, in effect they would not exist

at all. some other element (perhaps more obvious or mediated) could have

formed or limited my personal image of the district and the city, yet the

market is flooded with detail, variety, and acceptance of other cultures and

lifestyles. this multiplicity is the critical foundation of the ideal american

city. Therefore, it is a significantly defining artifact of Kansas City, one that

undoubtedly exists beyond my layer of interaction, and one that would be

noticeably void if taken away.

granted, i realize the necessity to also envision the makeup of the city

beyond historical ideals and attractive areas full of character. For instance,

following Steven Holl’s example of defining the physical reality of the

American city through “the spatial field between buildings…The individual

building [or artifact] does not monopolize one’s thoughts. Concentration is

on the relationships between buildings: the terrain, the sky, light, axes of

movement.” While this is important, especially to an architect, i believe the

emotions and suggestions that these created spatial relationships provide

should be related to the historical emotions and suggestions that continue

to prevail throughout the various artifacts of the city.

ProducestandattheCityMarketinKansasCity’sRiverMarketdistrict 1.AldoRossi,The Architecture of the City

(Cambridge,Mass.:MITPress,1982),21.2.Ibid.,27.3.4.Ibid.,34.5.Ibid.,59.6.7.

14 15DefININg THE CITY what is kansas c i ty?

limits the sort of building or activity that will occupy any particular segment of

the city; the spaces it designates are free to develop in a variety of ways. the

grid merely coordinates spaces and thus provides one space with access

to all the others.”

Two opposites, solid and void, are commonly used to define the

physical incarnation of the city but are semantically deceptive: solid implies

consistent mass but means finite space and its enclosure;

void implies fluid emptiness but means defined yet infinite

space.

If the traditional European city is defined by spaces

carved into its inhabitable poché and the Modern city is

understood as a relationship between the architectural

object and its collectively owned natural space , then Kansas

City exists somewhere in between. Composed as a system

of traffic ways and parking lots littered with buildings, the

American city is read as objects-in-field. Streets, instead of

becoming spaces defined by the typological uniformity of

street walls, read as voids that suture separated blocks . this

condition is problematic because “when figure is unsupported

by any recognizable frame of reference, it can only become

enfeebled and self-destructive.” such objects-in-void stand

aloof as wholly self-referring eccentricities rather than being

an element of the urban fabric.

quintessentially american, Kansas City is expressed

by a figure-ground image that more closely resembles a

chessboard than one of a renaissance or Modernist city; it

will never offer the continuously defined space of a European

city nor the complete openness of a Modernist city. the

KansasCity

Barcelona

solid/void/ vacancy

bornE oF idEalisM, tHE aMEriCan City, WitH its griddEd

streets and architectural mélange, was and conceived as a rational “other”

to the chaotic cities of Europe. The order of the grid defines an equalizing

matrix impossible to realize in established cities. the pursuit of democracy

and tabula rasa of the american landscape provided the nascent discipline

of urban planning the opportunity to apply Enlightenment principles to the

development of new urban settlements.

The Land Ordinance of 1785 parsed the infinite extension of the United

states. into digestible one-mile blocks via the inscription of the Jeffersonian

grid. the mile was the new unit of measure for space, commodifying the

country’s most abundant natural resource—land.

implicit in every man’s opportunity to own land, was his right to do as

he wished with his land, for “after life and liberty, ‘the third absolute right…is

that of property.’” Property rights, with the guarantee of individual freedom

became the dominant force in shaping american cities.

As these rights were exercised, buildings became objects of definition

against the homogeneity of the street grid. “the grid neither legislates nor

KARINA LEUNG & BENJAMIN BUSCH

16 17DefININg THE CITY

irregularity of development within the american city results in serendipitous

spaces and exceptional frames of reference.

It is in section where the American city finds form, and urban space

emerges from “vertical groupings, terrestrial shifts, elongated slots of light,

bridges and vertical penetrations of a fixed horizontal” . These conditions

transform static monoliths into ethereal backdrops as one proceeds through

the city.

the dynamic quality of the city is not just an illusion; the city must be

understood as a process under constant change as it reflects the forces that

have influenced it. Aldo Rossi states: “With time, the city grows upon itself;

it acquires a consciousness and memory.”

Just as the shape of the city is in a constant state of transformation, so

is its function; however the changes do not necessarily correlate. because

the constructed urban environment contains within itself the definition of

its past and present inhabitants, as well as inviting imagination the future,

certain urban artifacts may persist as a means of retaining continuity of

identity, while allowing for the natural evolution of a city to occur.

Certain urban artifacts maintain permanence and become monuments,

regardless of the multiple functions that may reside within a particular

building. union station has maintained a prominent presence as a monument

that houses the ritual of arriving in Kansas City. in the past, the building was

a regional train station and the first impression for visitors to the city; now,

the building is used for exhibition, operating as a tourist destination. With

its stately architecture, union station has preserved the notion of the grand

introduction to a city, even as its function has changed.

union station’s transition may be attributed to the abandonment

of local rail travel in favor of personal automobiles during the post-war

economic boom. the simultaneous suburban sprawl, which relocated

KansasCity’sUnionStationisanentrancetothecity

18 19DefININg THE CITY sol id/vo id/vacancy

much of the population from the urban core to surrounding areas in cities

across the united states, marked a turning point in many Midwestern cities.

these cities didn’t have the strength to attract enough new residents and

businesses and steadily deteriorated.

the empty lots and skeletal remains of what existed prior created a

condition of vacancy. Whereas void is the absence of form, vacancy is the

absence of presence. the lack of occupation denoted by vacancy has far-

reaching implications on a city. Private land ownership confers the right of

disallowing public use of vacant lots, but does not oblige an owner to act in

the best interest of the public. the effects of vacancy on the space of the city

are detrimental, acting as spatial vacuums.

the idea of deterritorialization, as put forth by James Corner, provides

a model for completely reevaluating strategies for urban renewal: “rather

than ‘fixing’ the city through architecture, or ‘architecturalizing’ the city

in order to discipline its spaces, both perspectives of power, the work of

deterritorialization simply establishes the conditions for the processes of

urbanism to perform and unfold in more dynamic ways.” by temporarily

reclaiming vacant lots for public use, vacancy no longer has to be a scourge

of the city. the collective ownership of the land can actually initiate renewal,

as these space provide a site for the impromptu events of public life to

occur.

With urban renewal efforts underway in many Midwestern cities,

it must be noted that the space of the city should be at the forefront of

consideration; it is this space by which the city is defined, both as a formal

object and by public life. quantity cannot be confused with quality in goals

for revitalizing cities. recognition of the reality of void in the Midwestern city

requires strategic intervention.

Kansas City mirrors other Midwestern cities in the efforts being made to

1.Cuff,Dana.“CommunityProperty:EntertheArchitector,thePoliticsofForm.”SlowSpace.121

2.Copjec,143.ColinRowe,FredKoetter,“CollageCity,”Vol.27ofInstitutfürGeschichteundTheoriederArchitektur,Cambridge,MIT,1984,p.79.

4.Thepublicplazaisreplacedby“MainStreet”.MarioGandelsonas,X-Urbanism:ArchitectureandtheAmericanCity,NewYork,PrincetonArchitecturalPress,1999,p.45.

5.Rowe,Colin.CollageCity.646.StevenHoll,Guesteditor,“WithintheCity:PhenomenaofRelations,”DesignQuarterlyNo.139,Minneapolis,1988,p.7.(quotingPaulValéry)

7.Rossi,Aldo.TheArchitectureoftheCity.218.“Monuments,signsofthecollectivewillasexpressedthroughtheprinciplesofarchitecture,offerthemselvesasprimaryelements,fixedpointsintheurbandynamic”(22).AldoRossi,TheArchitectureoftheCity,Cambridge,MIT,1984,p.29.

9.Corner,James.“landscraping.”StalkingDetroit.Actar,2002.123.

reverse the deterioration of the urban core. there are myriad potential futures

for the city. Current design challenges warrant unconventional strategies

that relate to their physical and cultural context. through an investigation of

Kansas City, its potential will be uncovered.

20 21DefININg THE CITY sol id/vo id/vacancy

THE CITYseeing

We used Kansas City as a case study for our investigation of the Midwestern city. An objective examination required devising methodologies for inquiry. Our analysis revealed layers of Kansas City obscured by familiarity and a cultural prejudice about the idea of the Midwestern city.

We derive meaning from the physical

form of the city that is fundamental to our

understanding of it. By withdrawing our vantage point

from within the city to a position looking at it, the city

becomes an object for study. its morphology may be

reduced to unbiased images of solid and void.

By systematically dismantling the city into

pieces and then assembling these parts into new

compositions, a new image of the city emerges in

which the built mass of Kansas city and its topography

are inextricably tied. the grid’s indifference to

geography, which results in “an erasure of all such

features” (copjec, 13) does not apply in section.

Where the ground rises, development follows

suit—the downtown loop and crown center house

the city’s skyscrapers, while the lower lying river

market and crossroads arts district are less densely

built and contain much smaller buildings.

the ensuing viewsheds from topographical

variance are a defining characteristic of Kansas City.

standing in the loggia of the Bartle hall Ballroom

one is confronted with the image of the distant

crown center compressed into a single plane as the

Crossroads Arts District lies at his or her feet. To find

oneself looking upon the city while being within it

creates a precarious relation to space.

Composite north-south section of Kansas City

morphologicaldissections

24 25SEEING THE CITY

Sections along every street in downtown Kansas City document its changing form. A comprehensive image is formed as an “x-ray” of the city, relating its density and distribution of mass.

26 27SEEING THE CITY morpholog ica l d issect ions

Horizontal sections follow the emergence of the topography and morphology of Kansas City from the reference level of the Missouri River bank. Buildings and the ground are graphically treated the same, resulting in figure-ground drawing from discrete positions in space, acknowledging the role of the ground in forming the space of the city.

28 29SEEING THE CITY morpholog ica l d issect ions

spatialperceptionspace in the gridded city is often a Byproduct—the

counterpart of buildings, the absence of mass. as opposed to the

deliberate constructions of space manifested as public plazas of the

renaissance city, space in the american city is indiscrete. public space is

much more a product of perception. movement, light, texture, and mass all

factor into individual constructs of space.

spatial perception results in multiplicity of representation which

complements the absolute, physical form of the city. these multiple

realities result in part from the means by which one engages the city.

the city that is seen and felt by someone crossing through alleys and

parking lots en route to his destination is wholly different from the city he

experiences driving down the street at thirty-five miles-per-hour.

the portrayal of space is as varied as its personal perceptions.

Whether defining its boundaries or depicting its phenomenological

qualities, these studies impart substance on a part of the city that, by its

very definition, lacks all substance which might be quantified.


MA

IN S

T

N

In this evaluation, several spaces along Main Street were recognized as being distinct from the rest of the street. Multiple perspectives of each space were combined to create a three-dimensional representations of these spaces.

SpAtIAl pERCEptIoN ANd dEvElopMENt IN AN uRBAN SEttING REquIRE A tHREE-dIMENSIoNAl, SECtIoNAl AppRoACH tHAt GIvES pRIMARy IMpoRtANCE to tHE

vIEwS of pERAMBulAtING RESIdENtS wHo tRAvERSE SHIftING GRouNd plANES, ExpERIENCING tHE CIty fRoM

MultIplE fRAMES of REfERENCE.

—Steven Holl

32 33SEEING THE CITY spat ia l percept ion

1

Kansas City is full of interstitial spaces wholly unlike one another. Elevated vantage points, formal anomalies, vast parking lots, and extended sightlines create spaces out of incidental voids in the city.

1

2

3

4

34 35spat ia l percept ionSEEING THE CITY

Triangle Park Site Space

view boundary view extension main site supplemental site

1” =

50’

V i e w o n 2 3 r dF a c i n g E a s t

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1” =

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V i e w f r o m S o u t h w e s tB o u l v a r d L o o k i n g N E

1” =

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V i e w f r o m S o u t h w e s tB o u l v a r d L o o k i n g S W

the site of triangle park extends far beyond its property line. the diminuitve site is part of a much larger space with much potential for the creation of a significant urban public space.

N


Hierarchy of T ime Viewed

from Top Exiting from Interstate 35 to Southwest Boulevard; driving north on Southwest Boulevard; driving south on Southwest Boulevard; driving from 23rd Street to Southwest Boulevard

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

E on 23rd St

6 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 06 5 4 3 2 1 0

12

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9 10 11 9 10 11 9 10 11 9 10 11 9 10 11 9 10 11 9 10 11

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triangle park:views from the car


1:00 2:00 5:00 6:003:00 4:00 7:00 8:00 11:00 12:009:00 10:00 13:00 14:00 17:00 18:0015:00 16:00 19:00 20:00 23:00 0:0021:00 22:00

1:00 2:00 5:00 6:003:00 4:00 7:00 8:00 11:00 12:009:00 10:00 13:00 14:00 17:00 18:0015:00 16:00 19:00 20:00 23:00 0:0021:00 22:00

summer solstice june 21

dec 21solsticewinter

triangle park is dwarfed by a freeway overpass to the west and a billboard atop the building on the southern edge of the site. the shadows created by these structures continually modulate the boundary and experience of the site.


Time is a critical dimension in which the city must be examined.

Within this dimension, the physical decay is measured, as well as the

indelible marks left on the city by its inhabitants. But as a function of time,

the city m

At the end of the 20th century, the Crossroads Arts District began a

dramatic transition from a declining light-manufacturing district to a center

for creative businesses and pursuits. Its dynamism explicates the transitive

quality of functional change within the equalizing grid of the Midwestern

city. No longer a bustling industrial, the district has become primarily

an event space activated by monthly First Fridays gatherings. However,

everyday life is characterized by empty streets, underutilized parking lots,

vacant storefronts, and warehouses renovated into premium lofts lacking

tenants.

The formal order of the city is a physical layer that impacts and is a

resultant of the fluctuating layer of human life. The city is a living record of

history: the life of the city and the patterns that characterize it are integral

to our understanding of it. From data and observation, we made alternate,

manifestations of the temporal

A comparison of Kansas City’s population (blue) with its built mass (gray).


A map of peak hour traffic loads from an average weekday depicts Kansas City as a function of its people. Each line represents represents fifty vehicles.

44 45SEEING THE CITY mani festat ions of the tempora l

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1 MILE0 1/2 MILE 1 MILE

total parking areasurface lots and all garage levels

parking footprintsurface lots and garages


A revised figure-ground drawing of the Crossroads Arts District depicts vacant building in gray, giving a more accurate depiction of the district’s scattered nature.


FACADE INVENTORYactive store frontinactive store frontother businessparking/vacant lotparking garagebare wallgreen/public spaceresidential

GRAND BOULEVARD

WALNUT STREET

MAIN STREET

M WG

The ground level storefronts along Kanas City’s primary north-south corridor are divided into categories denoting different levels and types of engagement with the public. Each street may be described by its barcode, a unique marker embedded with information.

FACADE INVENTORYactive store frontinactive store frontother businessparking/vacant lotparking garagebare wallgreen/public spaceresidential

GRAND BOULEVARD

WALNUT STREET

MAIN STREET

M WG


The activity at the corner of 14th Street and Wyandotte Street in the Dowtown Loop was recordered during regular intervals over the course of a weekday. These images provide a record of the living city.

630-7

715-745

8-830

845-915

930-1000

1015-1045

1100-1130

1145-1215

1230-100

115-145

200-230

245-315

330-400

415-445

500-530

545-600

MORNING

630-7

715-745

8-830

845-915

930-1000

1015-1045

1100-1130

1145-1215

1230-100

115-145

200-230

245-315

330-400

415-445

500-530

545-600

AFTERNOON


1 City Market 4 events/month 583,000 annual visitors

2 Folly Theater 4 events/month 1078 seat capacity

3 Bartle Hall Convention Center 250 events/year 600,000 annual visitors

4 Power and Light District Open every day 8 million annual visitors

5 Sprint Center 78 events/year 19,000 seat capacity

6 Kauffman Performing Arts Center *Under const. 3,400 seat capacity

7 Kemper Arena 47 events/year 18,000 seat capacity

8 Crossroads District 2 events/month 6,500+ indoor capacity

9 18th and vine Jazz District 15 events/month 300,000 annual visitors

10 Union Station Open excl. Mon. 490,000 annual visitors

11 Crown Center Open every day 5 million annual visitors

12 Liberty Memorial Open excl. Mon. 165,000 annual visitors

Visitor AttendanceEvent Frequency Event Frequency x Visitor Attendance

Visitor Flucuation KANSAS CITY ENTERTAINMENT VENUES


The surfaces of the city speak of its history and personality. This texture map follows Main Street from the River Market through the Crossroads Arts District. Abstractions were used to create a physical model with the terrain determined by tonal value.


THE CITYenvisioning

The conditions of the contemporary Midwestern city informed our project proposals in which design would stimulate a more habitable urban environment. The means for doing so ranged from large-scale urban design strategies that sought to reorder the city to designs for specific buildings that radically re-imagined the role of architecture in the city.

“When I’m working on a problem, I never think about beauty. I think only how to solve the problem. But when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong.”–R. BuckMinsTeR FulleR

Most would argue that successful architecture Must

be aesthetically pleasing. But what if it wasn’t? is it preposterous to think that

something “ugly” could offer a positive experience, or should it be labeled as

visual pollution and void of the possibility of being considered architectural?

Perhaps it would be more useful to focus on the accompanying experience

rather than any tangible form and consider whether or not this is beautiful

or provocative. for one could very well argue that architecture itself is not

real, but rather is an instrument to facilitate an experience; it is the resulting

experience that is considered real.

especially in the american city, the form of architecture is the result

of what it does, how it functions; space comes as residue of necessary

structure. in such case, architecture is consequently meaningless. it is built,

and then opened for possibilities, much like the city on a different scale.

in shinohara’s “machine” theory of design, the overall architectural form

does not matter - there is no plan or intention behind it. its role is to set up

processes by which spaces form and life happens. we have no power to

control that which occurs beyond this. all parts are independent in function

and form, and are all attached in an impromptu manner. [25] they do not

conform to any preconceived overall arrangement, just as the american city

lacks a determined concept for development.

at the scale of each building, shinohara treats each part as a

fragmented spatial element; the total image of the building is assembled

from the sum of the various relationships established among these elements.

the building is in effect an envelope for these relationships. space is then

considered genuine if it comes about without intention. the american city

has developed in the same way, each part as an independent element,

resulting in a chaotic condition of the city. furthermore,

the significance of architectural form begins to fade as the

permanence of architecture loses importance. the city is the

greater representation of our lives’ perpetuating change. we

must fit architecture to this condition: it must be pliable; willing

to change with us. it is obvious we must reconsider either

our goals or processes of design to suit the instantaneous

state of our world. there is possibility for a new archetype of

expression to arise.

approaching architecture

RAcHel DuncAn

1. ***citation**

60 61ENVISIONING THe ciTY

N

WALNUT CORRIDOR

CITY INTERFACE

PUBLIC/PARKING

CROSSROADS INFILL

ADAPTIVE URBAN SPACE

DIGITAL MEDIA CENTER

SCHOOL OF ONE

CROSSROADS INFILL HOUSING

URBAN NODE AT WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK

URBAN DECK

DOWNTOWN AQUATICS CENTER

URBAN FOLLY

TRIANGLE PARK

project proposal map


restructuring the grid

the utilitarianisM of the Jeffersonian grid and

absoluteness of property rights leaves little room for physical urban design

in the Midwestern city. Zoning regulations masquerade as urban planning in

a setting that is regulated by historically equalizing infrastructure. for Kansas

city to operate as a coherent and functional whole, we require a vision for

the city that considers both its form and its practical use.

while the urban grid was intended to provide a democratic basis for

construction, it results in chaos. through proposals regarding the city from

the perspective of its inhabitant—from the ground—we project a reordering

of the grid that intends to dramatically affect the way we perceive and use

Kansas city. through the introduction of new ordering systems, we bring

hierarchical organization to the city in regard to its program and legibility of

space. our organization is based on movement through the city, activity in

the city, and the current placement and division of necessary functions. we

address notions of vacancy and void and their effects in order to imbue the

city with forward-looking orders.


walnut corridorconsidering walnut street from the scale of the city,

we propose a sequence of four episodic places that provide

visual and programmatic connection to critical points

along the corridor. each place brings attention to a unique

physical-contextual condition and incorporates urban space

as a continuation of the diverse and unfiltered public realm.

additionally walkways were designated in the crossroads

district to maintain the intrablock visual and physical

connection to adjacent streets. these walkways contained rain

gardens for water collection from walnut.

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66 67ENVISIONING THe ciTY rest ructur ing the gr id


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systems whose relationships with one another create combinations of

experiences not previously present in the site.

A series of red folies placed along a grid that is separate from the grid

of the city sets the stage for multiple imaginative programs. A new winding

pathway creates a cinegramatic experience that is neither complete nor

incomplete at any one spot along the path. These two orders exist among

open space which is left available to any number of activities. Tschumi’s

Parc is not an “expression of a pre-existing context,”2 rather it brings an

unfamiliar order to the site, introducing conceptual experience grounded in

the potential of its location.

The Crossroads in ConTexT

The “new attitudes and perspectives”3 about urban design may be translated

to infilling the Crossroads Arts District, which is known for its eclectic mix of

artistry and culture. It is the location of various architecture firms, advertising

agencies, design studios, and unique retail and restaurants. The Crossroads

is also has one of the highest concentration of art galleries in the U.S.4

UrbAn InfIll Is mosT ofTen ThoUghT of As The ADDITIon

of structures to an area in an effort to bring about density. Simply providing

more rentable square footage is expected to attract people to live and work

in the city. but bernard Tschumi offers an alternate approach to infill with his

design for Parc de la Villette in Paris: “When confronted with an urbanistic

program an architect may…search for an intermediary—an abstract system

to mediate between the site (as well as all given constraints) and some other

concept beyond city or program.”1

The Crossroads Arts District in Kansas City presents the opportunity

for exercising such design mediation as Tschumi proposed. Where vacancy

and abandonment exists, a lively urban environment is possible, but most

probable through a reinterpretation of urban infill.

an Urban Park in Paris

In 1988, bernard Tschumi revealed his design for a new urban park in Paris,

france that challenged the typical interpretation of the infill typology. his

design for the Parc de la Villette integrates a number of different ordering

urban infill: reactivating the crossroads arts district

aMY kinderkneChT Crossroads Arts District

72 73ENVISIONING The CiTY rest ructur ing the gr id

However, the area reamins one of the most fragmented sections of

the city with many historic buildings standing (empty) as single entities

separated by surface parking lots (also often empty). The Crossroads is

a patchwork of activity occurring at limited times of the day, week, and

month; though teeming with life during the typical work week, its streets are

deserted most nights and weekends. During the monthly first fridays art

exhibition, galleries and studios open their doors to the

public, and the culture contained within spills onto the

sidewalks and streets.

The condition of discontinuity is a greater affliction

of the American city, which has become “a landscape

of independent islands of activity.”5 What was formerly

exclusive to the domain of the city—industry, fine dining

and retail, and social ammenities—were displaced

as residents fled to the suburbs and new zoning laws

compartmentalized the city, breaking down the mixed-use

concept of urban living. This has resulted in (and from) “a

society which has become more and more debased,”10 a

society that possesses the means of being anywhere and

everywhere else at will.

The shift in the nature of urban life that has resulted

in these spaces has created a city that is no longer

situated in the physical location of interaction.This lack

of the need for place of urban life, this condition of the

American city, begs the question as to if, and how, new

urban design can work towards grounding society in its

physical nature again.

realizing PoTenTial in kansas CiTY

With the abundance of empty lots, a strategy of traditional urban infill could

not even begin to make a significant enough impact in the Crossroads for

it to become a thriving urban district. What this area needs most is regular

activity and movement; the area needs to be hospitable for the people who

will instill life in the area.

This can be done with a strategic approach of design as a mediation,

which will reunite urban life with the physical realm of the city. A new ordering

system that builds on the character of the Crossroads will reactivate the

district. maintaining the “incompleteness”of the Crossroads, a spatial network

will preserve selected open spaces, and infill structures will be designed to

support these spaces. The wealth of emptiness and the connections created

by this new ordering system will allow people to traverse the area by means

other than the traditional street grid.

It is within this network of voids already in existence that a new

experiential quality of the Crossroads offers the possibility of

reactivation in the area, where what was once a desolate hole

in the urban fabric becomes a vital green space for people

inhabiting new residential structures. These instances beg for

the urban dweller to step out and experience the Crossroads

at any time of day, week, or month. With a little attention they

can give the residents of this area a reason to truly inhabit the

city in which they live.

1. (Tschumi ##, Introduction)2. (Tschumi ##, Non-Sense/No Meaning)3. (Tschumi ##, An Urban Park for the 21st century)4. (Crossroads)5. (Leong ##)6. (Virilio ##)7. (Leong ##)8. (Virilio ##).9. (Leong ##)10. (Virilio ##)12. (Leong )

top A rare unpaved lot located in the Crossroads is fenced off, unavailable for public use

bottom� Vacant buildings and the dilapidated parking lots surrounding them result in what Sze Tsung Leong terms a “no-man’s land”12


crossroads infill: sPaTial neTWork

The proposal for revitalizing the Crossroads Arts District is comprised of implementing a network of four different types of open spaces from existing unbuilt spaces. Designed for a nine-block area, the network is intended to be expanded to the entire Crossroads district, cementing the area’s unique identity within Kansas City. By not aligning to the street grid, these open spaces reinforce each other and form a coherent whole.

Kinetic spaces occur mid-block and encourage the movement from one point to another along a route that is not part of the street grid.

Buffer spaces are adjacent to sidewalks and create a dialoge between interior activities and the exterior. Outdoor dining is one possible use for buffer spaces.

Static spaces, which may be large or small, are open spaces in which community members can gather.

The destination space utilizes a wide alley along which railroad tracks formerly ran. This space could be utilized for small street festivals without disrupting street traffic.


RESIDENTIALPARKINGRETAILSCHOOLOTHERARTDINING

crossroads infill: inFill sTrUCTUres

The open space network is supported by infill structures that formally define the open spaces. These structures fulfill the programming requirements needed for a thriving neighborhood, by complementing the area’s many offices, premium housing, dining, and cultural establishments with much needed housing and retail diversity, as well as educational and higher capacity parking facilities.


connecting places

Downtown Kansas City is faCeD with wiDespreaD

fragmentation and polarization. natural terrestrial modulation between

the low-lying river Market and Crossroads arts District and the elevated

Downtown Loop and Crown Center districts was originally accepted

as an inherent quality of the city. District divisions were exacerbated

by the introduction of transportation routes that cemented formerly

implied boundaries. when broken down into districts, general activity is

further diminished as a result of accepted centers of economically viable

development.

the city is not only disjointed by transportation infrastructure that

inhibits pedestrian movement; it is further isolated by competing interests

tied to specific districts. The re-routing of Intestate-35 along the western

edge of the Downtown Loop was particularly contentious because it

severed west side neighborhood from the adjacent Crossroads arts District

without regard to collectively accepted boundaries. our proposals address

the need to connect new concentrations of activity as well as the necessity

to reconnect disjointed places.

80 81ENVISIONING THE CITY

downtown crossing at washington square park

city node

183

an intersection, critical point, connector, distributor, focus, point of intense activity

mixed use development, that serves the surrounding area as a critical point for jobs, housing, entertainment, and civic and cultural activities; with access to mass transit and connection to other parts of the city

museums

residential lofts and condominiums

sq ft of exhibition and convention space

transit stops

3regional attractions5

7companies with over 1,000 employees

6 business headquarters

700

hotels2

2regional amtrak station1

rooms1,460 of downtown’s total40%

174,553

Downtown Crossing is a 17-acre park that

extends washington square park north across the

railroad tracks, dissolving a barrier and connecting

the city. The new park benefits from renaming, to

reinforce the park’s position as a center within the

urban core of Kansas City. native landscaping,

a “natural playground,” and an outdoor reading

room provide the opportunity to engage with the

park and relate to it as a specific space within the

city.

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urban node: WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK

82 83ENVISIONING THE CITY connect ing p laces

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Semi Private

Public

Private

Under Utilized Buildings

Under Utilized Surface Lots

Vacant Lots

Liberty Memorial

The Power and Light District

The Crossroads Art District

Sprint Center

Bartle Hall

River Market

Union StationCrown Center

N

Proposed Heritage Trail

Washington Square Park

Penn Valley Park

Heritage Trail

N

MAX Line

Trolley Car

LightRail

Regional Rail

axis

views

M1 M1

R4

R5URD

C3A2

downtown crossing at washington square park 51

12th

14th

16th

18th

20th

10th

Broa

dway

Wal

nut

Mai

n

OakG

rand

protected site views

to performing arts center

to liberty memorial

the the downtown loop

site views


east of Main street, the railroad tracks that border the

Crossroads on the south cut into the ground plane

of Kansas City, leaving Crown Center and hospital

hill much higher than the Crossroads. to alleviate the

disconnect caused by the railroad, a parking deck

and magnet high school for education in film, art,

computer science and engineering, was proposed to

bridge the districts. The prevalence of these fields in

the Crossroads arts District will provide the opportunity

for students to engage with professionals in the

surrounding area during their studies. this structure will

provide a physical and programmatic link for the rest of

downtown Kansas City to washington square park and

the surrounding area.

urban deckSCHOOL/PARKING GARAGE/BRIDGE

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downtown aquatics center

as part of a plan to revitalize the washington square

park area, the Downtown aquatic Center was proposed

as a complement to the Crossroads Creative school.

with three pools, the aquatic center accommodates

recreational swimmers as well as therapeutic and

competitive aquatics. the center would be the only

venue for professional athletics in downtown Kansas

City. the ground level contains a transport connection

point for transferring between bus and rail. these public

functions will extend pedestrian traffic south along Main

street, reconnecting Crown Center with downtown.

pools

floors

structure

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the shape anD existenCe of triangLe parK is fUnDaMentaLLy

tied to traffic. The park lies at the intersection of three streets and is just

one of a series of triangular residual spaces created by a diagonal street

interrupting the standard street grid. any design created for the park must

address the phenomenon of traffic that first created the space.

THE ExPERIENCE Of TRAffIC AND STREETS

in the precession of simulacra, Jean Baudrillard investigates the

current prominence and power of simulacra, the dominance of images over

reality in today’s society. the contrast between viewing and experiencing

can be extended to the triangle park site as a function of traffic. Traffic, or

traveling in a car, creates an unreality in regards to experiencing the city

or a specific site that one views or passes. The experience in traffic is an

unreality in which you are sheltered and protected from interaction inside

your vehicle; you are in control, your very attention is vied for by the outside,

but you view the street from a passive perspective, much like the experience

of television watching.

furthermore, the past conception of public streets as a place where

real life and activity takes place is now lost; streets are the domain of traffic

and cars exclusively. streets represented on maps are now only funnels for

traffic (although they are still “sold” in new developments with perspectives

filled with people and activity, pedestrians and bikers, interest

and life). streets in many cases are now no longer places

for “real” activity and we can only make them seem as such

through another unreality—the Disneyland-esque temporary

introduction of life and events. in this case, first fridays is a

nearby event that does just that. But as first fridays creates a

vibrant street life and opportunity for interaction, it also makes

clear to use the lack of population and activity on any other

given day. Like Disneyland, most first fridays participants

must drive from elsewhere and park to take place in the event,

and will exit again at the termination of the event, leaving the

Crossroads once more a largely underutilized place.

CHANGES IN TRAffIC IN THE PRESENT DAY

It is clear that traffic, in some form, has always existed

in the city. Historical maps can show us the pattern of traffic

around triangle park has existed for over one hundred years.

But is the current experience of traffic different or more

divisive of people from the city? Jean Baudrillard argues

in the ecstasy of Communication that automobiles are no

longer seen as objects, but as their functions, merely to be

used and optimized through the power of technology: “the

vehicle now becomes a kind of capsule, its dashboard the

brain, the surrounding landscape unfolding like a televised

driving by: the design and experience of triangle park

SHANNON WILLIAMS

Drive-by experience like watching television


screen (instead of a live-in projective as it was before)” (Baudrillard, 1987).

not only is the experience of passing through the city muted, but so too is

the experience of traveling by vehicle, until a person could be existing in any

space, surrounding by a view and by technology.

Similarly, in The Overexposed City, Paul Virilio contends that traffic or

new modes of transportation such as the automobile did not fundamentally

change our experience of the city—“architectural surfaces still formed

boundaries, cities still comprised clusters of locals, and space was still

managed perspectivally”—but that technology—constant communication,

the destruction of city boundaries, permanent transit—has transformed our

experience of the city from one of spaces to one of time and light. if we are

all now “interlocutors in permanent transit,” our designs must address this

existence: an appeal or challenge that no longer simply relates to a physical

or visual interaction, but to a technological way of life.

IMPLICATIONS TO TRIANGLE PARK

images—simulacrum—are continuously used to enhance our desire for

improved highways, improved streets. The rush hour traffic jam is commonly

portrayed in television, movies, and the nightly news as a destructive

phenomenon that can only be solved by more construction, more roads, and

faster travel times. triangle park is one opportunity to create a new image

and interaction with traffic that tells a different story. By focusing a design

solution that reacts to traffic—whether combating, harnessing, or simply

interacting with it—awareness can be created in the minds of the constant

commuter. technology can be utilized as an underlying support for design

goals as we accept is permeation and importance in our current society;

however technology need not be the focus of the design.

CASE STUDIES: INTERACTIONS WITH TRAffIC

By addressing the constant flow of traffic and the typical inattention of

drivers to their surroundings, we can create an atypical space resulting in

a unique experience. In the case of the intersection of 8th Street and John

street in seattle, washington, a proposed design solution sought to create a

beneficial interaction between drivers and pedestrians through the creation

of a woonerf (Nelson and O’Byrne, 2007). Woonerfs are popular in the

netherlands, where they create a shared public space in which pedestrians

take precedence but cars can still be utilized. By populating the street right-

of-way with parking, vegetation, children’s play places, seating, and other

amenities while narrowing lanes, drivers are obligated to reduce speeds while

traveling in the woonerf, simultaneously increasing safety and enhancing

their own experience with the outside world. the concept of a woonerf could

be adapted to serve the Triangle Park site. In lieu of closing either 23rd Street

or pennsylvania, narrowing these streets where they abut the

triangle site, removing curbs, and replacing street pavement

with a visually distinct material would signal to drivers that

they are in a unique space. Unifying the street and the triangle

“park” itself would allow for activities to flow throughout the

entire space and signal the precedence of pedestrians.

CASE STUDIES: AWARENESS THROUGH ART

in the aforementioned woonerf study, amenities were

included to support the local population of children and

families through play areas. Bringing children and parents to

the park area is desired in order to enliven the space and

encourage use by “desirable” populations, creating a feeling

of safety and ownership. without a target group to occupy

8th Avenue and John Street Woonerf, Seattle, Washington (Nelson and O’Byrne, 2007)


the park, the space may become the habitat of “undesirable” persons that

generate a feeling of uneasiness to other users, resulting in underutilized

and avoided space. in order to customize our design

program for the local population, different groups may

need to be addressed. the immediate area is home to a

variety of businesses, including restaurants, architecture

and design firms, and artists. An ideal candidate to

occupy and enliven the space could be a live artist. in

thriving neighborhoods such as Manhattan and Brooklyn,

new york, live art is continually created and displayed in

public places.

offering the environment and infrastructure needed

to create and display artwork could be the first step to

harnessing the creativity of the area and changing the

current dead zone into a live space. such an environment

might include display spaces, seating, a comfortable

level of sun and shade, and possible hook-up to

electrical power. it will be important to address the safety

of automobiles traveling along southwest Boulevard in

regards to attention-attracting displays in the park space;

such displays may be better suited farther from this main

trafficway, serving as a mere glimpse to these drivers.

CASE STUDIES: TRAffIC, MOvEMENT, AND LIGHT

Lighting is a popular and aesthetically pleasing way

to adapt a space. in this case, lighting can be utilized

both as an extension of the triangle park space into

the surrounding neighborhoods and as a way to utilize

forthcoming technologies to highlight the movement and traffic inherent

around the park site. Jason Bruges studio and Light projects Ltd. provides

numerous examples of adapting technology and lighting to create interactive

experiences at the pedestrian and auto scale.

these projects primarily seek to develop interest and interaction

through technology applied to otherwise typical spaces. such a project

could prove beneficial to attracting users to the triangle park space and

highlighting traffic patterns around the site, although other comfort, safety,

and environmental needs should not be forgotten in any lighting scheme.

CONCLUSION

By examining the effect of traffic upon our site and creating solutions

such as allowing pedestrians to interact positively with cars in a shared

space (woonerf), mitigating the effects of traffic with increased pedestrian

activity (engaging artists), or even highlighting traffic through technology and

lighting, our design proposal can provide a strong response to this major

impact on the triangle park site and its surroundings.

Lights installed on the Thames Bridge in London react to pedestrians’ movements. Jason Bruges Studio, 2008

Large “litmus strips” react to environmental stimuli and display information to drivers in London. Jason

Bruges Studio, 2005

Lighting under the Kingston Bridge in Glasgow, Scotland responds to changes in the river tide and traffic. Light Projects Ltd., 2005


The divide that I-35 imposes on

the westside and Crossroads

neighborhoods has blurred the

original boundary lines of the

two neighborhoods, causing

controversy. the site lies at

an intersection between two

different types of neighborhoods,

with the westside remaining

largely residential in nature and

Crossroads transitioning from

industrial to a business/arts area.

this is notable because it allows

for access from different types

of users and different levels of

surrounding activity. however, the

area still suffers from a lack the

density and a number of empty

triangle parkthe site, triangle park, was entrusted to the Department

of park and recreation Department to be protected as

community space, shared by all. any design for the site

must mind the original communal intentions for the park.

a city cannot be a city without the people. the people are

what animate, grow, and bring the city to life. Colin rowe

argues that we are a pluralistic society. he states “a city is

a combination of complex networks that are only successful

when all live for the collective whole.” (24) In the past, open

discussions were made when people met in town squares,

plaza, and piazzas. this type of interaction allowed for the

free sharing of ideas and created a sense communal vitality.

Being able to share and meet in community allows for us to

be up to date with the world and environment in which we live.

public space is what helps us to form our own perception of

that world. public space is the window or mirror of society. it

is where we stay, meet, observe, undertake with or without

others, relax and become familiar with or become part of our

living environment. “a city is only as good as the sum of its

parts.” (23) The public spaces of the community allow for


View South on Pennsylvania

CrossroadsWests ide

View SW on SW Blvd

View East on 23rd St

Neighborhoods

opposite Model of proposal for Triangle Park; I-35 is running long the top

above View from within site looking southeast

right Walking north on Soutwest Boulevard under I-35 overpass

these parts to come together.

triangle park possesses great possibility for a design solution of public

space. the park is located within the overlap of two different communities.

the public space has the potential of being shared by both communities and

create a stronger connection between the two in the process. the location is

also in the cross section of several major streets and highways of Kansas City.

the submersion of the park relative to the highway system

gives potential to mend a gap between the vehicles passing

by and the park’s pedestrian occupants. a balance between

the technology of the car and the interaction of public spaces

is desired to create sustained human connections. a project

run in the netherlands titled shared spaces has removed

all barriers between the cars and the pedestrians, such as

curbs, signs and lines, to create an open dialog between the

vehicles and the pedestrians. what they have found is that

streets are actually safer because of the added awareness

and responsibility on both sides. working to create a safe

yet shared environment for cars, pedestrians, workers and

dwellers is a focus for the design. if this can happen the

original communal goal of achieving a community space at

triangle park shall be achieved.

the design proposition is to make something of this

visual clutter. not to merely dress up and beautify the area

in attempt to mask its curb un-appeal, but to implement a

smart, minimal intervention to enhance one’s experience of/

through/with the site. an experience that will dissolve the

barriers (and clutter) therein, and will encourage an adaptable,

relevant design solution to other struggling residual spaces


opposite Model of proposal for Triangle Park; I-35 is running long the top

above View from within site looking southeast

right Walking north on Soutwest Boulevard under I-35 overpass


southwest boulevard elevation 1/4” = 1’0”

section e 1/2” = 1’0”section b 1/2” = 1’0”

1/8” = 1’0”

c

c’

d’

d

opposite Site plan of Triangle Park

below left Section of the walkway along Southwest Boulevard (top left). The sidewalk folds up along the roadway to in order to provide a path for stormwater collected from the roadway to reach the rain garden on the site, as well as providing pedestrians with protection from traffic.

below right Section of canopy underneath I-35 overpass

bottom Elevation of Triangle Park along Southwest Boulevard


triange park

i. the shape and existence of the project site, triangle park, is fundamentally tied to

traffic. The park lies at the intersection of three streets and is just one of a series of triangular

residual spaces created by a diagonal street interrupting the standard street grid. southwest

Boulevard has a diagonal route because it was the former trolley car line connecting the

suburbs to downtown. Any design created for the park must address the phenomenon of traffic

and the transgression of the street grid that first created the space.

ii. southwest Boulevard has created trianglular anomalies in the typical american street

grid along it’s length that result in excessive residual space. The triangular traffic median

located at the intersection of Southwest Blvd, 23rd street and I-35 is a complex site impacted

by significant extension of space, strong presence of the overpass, and sensitive relationships

between local communities.

Lighting is applied from below the canopy to wash the underside and is also implemented along the front of the site reinforcing connection.


programming change

The use of The ciTy and iTs consTiTuenT parTs is locked

in a state of metamorphosis. program as well as the buildings, structures,

and spaces that facilitate it must be designed in anticipation of flux. Further,

essential program must be injected into the city in a way that encourages

higher quality of life for the urban dweller. The role of urban programming must

be reinterpreted to allow for the integration of unconventional programming

that facilitates the vision of a 24-hour city.

Our Crossroads Infill proposal reconsiders public space in the

crossroads arts district. The proposal recognizes the ultimate potential of

infill as well as the restrictions that led to the district’s current fragmentation.

several categories of open space have been set aside for intermediate use,

and the added structures play a supporting role. The open and enclosed

spaces set forth by the proposal accommodate the appropriate volumes

of their respective programs and compliment the existing context—both

physically and programmatically. open space is multifunctional, housing

units are adaptable and share communal spaces, and civic and academic

functions blend together.


cIrculatION

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rculatION

108 109ENVISIONING THE CITY programming change

parkINGmarkEt

baNquEt pErfOrmaNcE

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crossroads infill housing

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E 19th Street

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LEVEL 1

1) LOBBY2) GALLERY3) AUDITORIUM/THEATER4) PUBLIC REST ROOMS5) APARTMENT LOBBY WITH POST BOX STATION FIRE STAIRS APARTMENT ELEVATORS

LEVEL 2

1) FILM/PHOTOGRAPHY LIBRARY2) EQUIPMENT STORAGE3) EDITING STUDIO4) FILM/PHOTOGRAPHY STUDIO

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LEVELS 5-8

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LEVEL 9-11

1) FLEXIBLE APARMENTUNITS WITH (MOVABLE) GREEN WALL PARTITIONS ITERATION-12) FLEXIBLE APARTMENT UNITS FACING NORTH ITERATION-23) GREEN HOUSE FOR SUBSITANCE GARDENING FOR ALL APARMENT UNITS

1”=8’N

1

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OPEN TO SPACE BELOW


redefining public

Public sPace in Kansas city exists Primarily on the

street, however it is possible to blend the space of the street into the space

of the enclosed built environment. Public space, albeit a filtered version of it,

extends into the public areas of private businesses (e.g. retail, restaurants,

etc.), particularly at night when fenestrated facades reveal glowing spaces

beyond. though much enclosed public space is privately owned, we question

the true ownership and authority of space made available to the public.

if street space is to be regarded as public space, then we may regard

the highway and other forms of regional traffic to be extensions of it, where

movement is its singular function. by accommodating the functions of the

street within the configuration of a building, a new form of enclosed public

space that turns back on itself? emerges. the challenge becomes the

articulation of its enclosure, and most importantly, defining its use.

As we redefine public, we must also redefine its opposite: private. One

of the most accessible and underutilized forms of privately held public space

within the city is the urban parking lot. a physical continuation of the street,

the private parking lot cannot disconnect itself from the city. We propose

that unused and underused land should be appropriated for public use, if


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WA

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EAST 7TH STREET

EAST 6TH STREET

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electricity needs

site

requiredpvs

water pump

site lighting

pop-up shops (2)

ev charging (6)

24 kWh

34 kWh

6-17 kWh

8 kWh

mobile units

office of mobile design's

MOBILE ECO-LAB

mobile classroom for K-12 students8' x 35' cargo trailerLA county

storycorps®

MOBILE BOOTHS

traveling recording studio26' Airstream traileracross the U.S.

temporary retail store8' x 20' ISO shipping containersNew York City

food vendors6' x 10' and largereverywhere

lot-ek’s

UNIQLO CONTAINER STORES

CONCESSION TRAILERS AND TRUCKS

1:50

adaptive [re]use

site infrastructure1:250

potential layout1:250

potential layout1:250

electricity module

seating and rain garden

trellis garden and site lighting

electric vehicle

regular vehicle

mobile eco-lab

uniqlo container store

storycorps mobile booth

concession trailer

1:10

C 8x13.75

conduit

pv panel

C 12x25

C 6x10.5

L 6x4x½

L 3x2x¼

canopy connection detail

1:4

L 6x4x½

¼ in. steel plate

C 6x10.5

conduit

ev charging station

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1

2

3

4

erection process

typical electricity module

1

2

3

4

erection process

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init eum nos dolor aute do dolore velit at loreetuero commy nonsenim

veliquisim zzriusci eu faccum venit am verat, volorer acincil iquatum velit,

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ed tat dion hent lorero elit veliquissi.

136 137

credits

StudIO mEmbErS

ErICa BEslErurban Planning, Kansas State university

JakE BrEwErArchitecture, university of Kansas

BEnJamIn BusCHArchitecture, university of Kansas

kaTIE DarTErArchitecture, university of Kansas

raCHEl DunCanArchitecture, Kansas State university

Paul FolgErArchitecture, Kansas State university

allIson goulDInterior Architecture, Kansas State university

sEan HanDlEYArchitecture, university of Kansas

JanEllE HEIDEmanInterior Architecture, Kansas State university

sTEvEn HolTLandscape Architecture, Kansas State university

amY kInDErknECHTArchitecture, Kansas State university

karIna lEungArchitecture, university of Kansas

BrEnT sImmonsArchitecture, university of Kansas

sCoTT sTICkanE Architecture, university of Kansas

BranDon uloHoArchitecture, university of Kansas

sHannon wIllIamsurban Planning, Kansas State university

KANSAS CIty dESIGN CENtEr

PrEsIDEnT

John C. Gaunt, FAIAdean, university of KansasSchool of Architecture, design and Planning

vICE PrEsIDEnT

Cindy Frewen, FAIAPrincipal, Frewen Architects, Inc.

BoarD mEmBErs

tim de Noble, AIAdean, Kansas State universityCollege of Architecture, Planning and design

Jonathan m. KemperChairman, Commerce bank

david Warmdirector, mid-America regional Council

DIrECTor/CEo

daniel Serda, Ph.d.university of KansasSchool of Architecture, design and Planning

sTuDIo InsTruCTor

Prof. Vladimir KrsticKansas State universityCollege of Architecture, Planning and design

thANK yOu

Populous for genrously donating studio time and materials to add on to the KC model, doug Stockman of el dorado, inc. for being a liason in the triangle Park project...

138 139

requisite stuff

Documents

UncoveringPotential AN INVESTIGATION INTO DIMENSIONS OF THE CITY