Process: (Challenges, Flow of Assignments)

During the Semester going through building and designing from a great scale to a smaller scale to a smaller scale the most challenging thing was dealing with the scale of the project which as design students we do not encounter throughout the semesters. The assignments were very consecutive and comprehensive mostly because of the past examples that were uploaded on open lab which helped the process very much.

Happy City:

It was very interesting how much we could integrate our courses in the department with other departments. Having the faculty come in and have talks with us was very important and helpful in figuring out we shape the minds of the population through our structures and through that creating a happy city.

Client Interaction:

It was very informative and exciting to have the experience of dealing with a client for our project, and also it helped me realize how easy it would be to have miscommunication from the client to the architect when doing the initial interview the client might not be as specific as we want them to be so we as architects will have the responsibility to make sure there is no misunderstanding.

Master Plan VS architectural focus

It was a challenge for me at some point to go from bigger to smaller scale and from smaller to big scale, but i learned a lot during the process and i would not do it another way. We did need to have a lot more time on the master plan because we didn’t know how to make big scale master plans and needed time to figure it out.

Thank you for the experience,

Hadiza Djibring

When we had a minute to write about what we think happiness is, i wrote goals and pursuing them, accomplishments and completion. Which is very design studio based, directed towards completing the work than looking through the process of completion which is not very much directed or focused towards happiness. After this discussion when designing for an environment i will not think only of how the people will experience the space but how it brings them towards enlightenment or more important how it brings them closer to HAPPINESS.

1. Energy efficient neighborhoods (Solar Panels, Wind Turbines)

2. Green Roofs

3. Water Front Accessibility

4. Easy flow circulation

5. Resilience to flood

6. Bioswales

1. Scale

2. High Density

3. Accessibility

4.Resiliency

5. Environmental Health

* Farhana, Dominic, Danny, Daniel  *

Infrastructure

This is a critical item that will be guiding our design mainly because the site is on a waterfront and will be the first to sustain damage from incoming storms.

Accesibiility

The goal is to easily guide the inhabitants of our site through the created paths in the neighborhood by creating tighter shorter streets and encouraging bicycles usage and implementing a main road though the site.

Green Spaces

we will be adding public green spaces and private green spaces to improve irrigation throughout the site.

Multi-Use buildings

A mix of usage in buildings to add variety and add to the neighborhood’s infrastructure.

Sustainabilty

Green roofs, reduced run off and water usage, improve irrigation, add sustainable practices.

Gathering Space

Add Squares, Parks, community center, library art galleries and shops.

Hadiza D.  Horacio M.  Manu S.  Yuhui O.

Transportation – how to attract people to the site?

To attract early families and young adult to live at the site.

Analyze and understand circulation and hierarchy of importance and relationships of uses.

Easy circulation throughout the site for bicycles, cars and pedestrians

Incorporating existing neighborhoods and buildings

Keep the style and feel of Brooklyn and try not to modernize too much.

Flood resilience and Storm awareness

Provide a right ratio of commercial and public area with residential