Pelli Clarke Pelli presented the final design for the Transbay Transit Center on Thursday to the Transbay Joint Powers Authority Board (TJPA) in San Francisco, Calif. The glass-and- steel complex, which will serve 12 transit systems including the future California High Speed Rail, is noticeably minus its original iconic tower and includes new features as well.

One of those features is a 5.4-acre rooftop park with a 100-seat outdoor amphitheater for musical performances, space for evening film screenings, cafes and restaurants. The park will have 20 sub-environments including an amphitheater, a children’s playground, public artworks and a lily pond, providing rich educational and recreational experiences to the public. A 1,000-foot long fountain shaped like a bus will automatically be activated when a bus passes underneath the park.

The first phase of the project, which is set to start construction in August, is estimated to cost $1.6 billion. The second phase of the project, scheduled for completion later this decade, will provide rail access to the new Transit Center via an underground tunnel. The new Transit Center is scheduled to open in 2017.

“We are very proud of the Transit Center design. It is a visionary station that fully achieves our goals of architectural beauty, functionality and sustainability,” said Maria Ayerdi-Kaplan, executive director of the TJPA.

blogged by: Jake Shea

Construction is currently in progress on what will be the largest sports park in China, featuring “picturesque and sustainable public spaces” as well an Olympic-size stadium inspired by the local flora found on the nearby banks of Hangzhou’s West Lake. Designed by NBBJ in collaboration with CCDI, the 400,000 sq meter Hangzhou Sports Park in Hangzhou, China began construction back in December and is expected to be completed in 2013.

The new sports park is located on the Qian Tang riverfront opposite of the city’s new Central Business District. It’s designed to be a sustainable public park amidst all of the dense urban development that has consumed the rest of the city. Hangzhou Sports Park is designed to be more than just a large sports stadium — the park will also include open space, walking trails, a tennis facility, retail space, community playing fields and an extreme sports area. Inspiration for the design for the park and the stadium was drawn from the geometry of the nearby river delta as well as the flora of the nearby lake.

Details on the exact sustainable elements of the project are not clear. Robert Mankin AIA, LEED AP, principal and sports practice director at NBBJ, says, “This is a transformational project that redefines sustainable design excellence in sports facilities throughout Asia. It changes the game, and I applaud the City of Hangzhou for taking this important step.” With such a large project, one hopes that what they consider as sustainable is more than just public park space. Hopefully this also means the project is aiming for green building certification, energy and water efficiency, and the use of renewable energy green building materials

blogged by: Jake Shea

[Image: The Ladybower bellmouth at full-drain, photographed by Flickr user Serigrapher].

Nearly half a year ago, a reader emailed with a link to a paper by Andrew Crompton, called “Three Doors to Other Worlds” (download the PDF). While the entirety of the paper is worth reading, I want to highlight a specific moment, wherein Crompton introduces us to the colossal western bellmouth drain of the Ladybower reservoir in Derbyshire, England.

His description of this “inverted infrastructural monument,” as InfraNet Lab described it in their own post about Crompton’s paper—adding that spillways like this “maintain two states: (1) in use they disappear and are minimally obscured by flowing water, (2) not in use they are sculptural oddities hovering ambiguously above the water line”—is spine-tingling.

[Image: The Ladybower bellmouth, photographed by John Fielding, via Geograph].

“What is down that hole is a deep mystery,” Crompton begins, and the ensuing passage deserves quoting in full:

Not even Google Earth can help you since its depths are in shadow when photographed from above. To see for yourself means going down the steps as far as you dare and then leaning out to take a look. Before attempting a descent, you might think it prudent to walk around the hole looking for the easiest way down. The search will reveal that the workmanship is superb and that there is no weakness to exploit, nowhere to tie a rope and not so much as a pebble to throw down the hole unless you brought it with you in the boat. The steps of this circular waterfall are all eighteen inches high. This is an awkward height to descend, and most people, one imagines, would soon turn their back on the hole and face the stone like a climber. How far would you be willing to go before the steps became too small to continue? With proper boots, it is possible to stand on a sharp edge as narrow as a quarter of an inch wide; in such a position, you will risk your life twisting your cheek away from the stone to look downward because that movement will shift your center of gravity from a position above your feet, causing you to pivot away from the wall with only friction at your fingertips to hold you in place. Sooner or later, either your nerves or your grip will fail while diminishing steps accumulate below preventing a vertical view. In short, as if you were performing a ritual, this structure will first make you walk in circles, then make you turn your back on the thing you fear, then give you a severe fright, and then deny you the answer to a question any bird could solve in a moment. When you do fall, you will hit the sides before hitting the bottom. Death with time to think about it arriving awaits anyone who peers too far into that hole.

“What we have here,” he adds, “is a geometrical oddity: an edge over which it is impossible to look. Because you can see the endless walls of the abyss both below you and facing you, nothing is hidden except what is down the hole. Standing on the rim, you are very close to a mystery: a space receiving the light of the sun into which we cannot see.”

[Image: The Ladybower bellmouth, photographed by Peter Hanna, from his trip through the Peak District].

Crompton goes on to cite H.P. Lovecraft, the travels of Christopher Columbus, and more; again, it’s worth the read (PDF). But that infinitely alluring blackness—and the tiny steps that lead down into it, and the abyssal impulse to so how far we’re willing to go—is a hard thing to get out of my mind.

blogged by: Jake Shea

To create a single structure that could be used in many ways, IMD studied Japanese home design and yacht design.  In these homes, tables, beds, and chairs appear to fold up into the wall.  It’s quite interesting and minimalist.

At the direction of clients, IMD will use energy-efficient materials and green products, including LED lighting, low-water consumption fixtures, and low-VOC paints.  And if you want to go off-grid or off-pipe, IMD can help with that, too.

[+] Learn more about InterModal Design’s green container cabins.

Rendering credits: InterModal Design and Hive Modular.

blogged by: Jake Shea

3XN’s dramatic design for Middelfart Savings Bank attempts to capture the Bank’s high ambitions for their new head office. To do this, the building had to create a perfect environment for the employees along with positively stressing demands for high architectural quality on the developing harbour front. The extreme roof covering acts as a focus point for the building – a large, elegant wooden structure with numerous openings.

The 83 prism like skylights compose the remarkable roof surface, defining the geometry of the rest of the building – in reference to the maritime environment on the harbour front as well as the surrounding timber framed buildings. The roof is designed to frame a perfect view towards the Lillebælt waters, as well as a functional purpose of shading from direct sunlight. The openings in the roof bring in abundant amounts of daylight and allow sea views from all places throughout the building. It is hoped that this will create the desired light and friendly atmosphere for the workers in the bank. Under the roof, different functions including a bookshop, a café, a real estate agent and the cash desk are placed around a central plaza, resulting in the building forming an informal public meeting space.

The new building is designed to carefully fit into its context. To one side, the village is respected by following dimensions, scale and the shape of the roof. Towards the harbour the building retracts and makes way for a new, triangular space that opens for the view. The rest of the Bank’s area is spread over a series of terraces with open connections to the plaza – and to each other. The terraces are connected by spacious staircases that will provide good opportunities for the informal meetings. With its central position, it is hoped that the building will become a natural meeting point for clients, staff and visitors.

Energy efficient heating and cooling systems, developed through the Danish Technical University, have been implemented in Middelfart Savings Bank. The method utilizes the mass and ability of concrete to adjust the room temperature by absorbing and releasing heat. The method is based upon pre-fabricated concrete decks with embedded plastic pipes. The system is partly self-regulating as water for heating and/or cooling is circulated with a temperature only a few degrees from the desired room temperature, which is the key to the large energy savings. In addition to energy savings, the capital costs are lower due to the reduced needs for cooling and heating.

Internationally renowned artist Olafur Eliasson has created an art installation for the plaza. Six ‘shooting star’ kaleidoscopes inspired by the triangular geometry of the building are to be lowered into the ground floor granite, to add an extra dimension to the structure.

blogged by: Jake Shea

28 year old Danish architect Christian Bay-Jorgensen has proposed an intriguing new project, suggesting that the infamous Hollywood sign be transformed into a hotel. Currently standing at an imposing 45 feet tall, Bay-Jorgensen’s plan intends to double the size of the iconic letters and include hotel amenities such as an observation deck, so that visitors to the structure can take in the spectacular views of the Los Angeles basin. The architect said: “I know people are scared…I know they are afraid this idea will turn it into Disneyland”, but continued to argue that the transformation would preserve the site and bring in much needed capital to the location.

At this point, physical developments of the concept have been vehemently denied by officials and governing bodies put in place to protect the sign. Chris Baumgart, chairman of the Hollywood Sign Trust, said: “That three-dimensional hotel makes a good story, though it’s not going to happen”, before adding that he is regularly bombarded by people’s ideas to adapt or reinvent the classic symbol. Cara Rule, who sits on the board of directors for the Hollywood United Neighborhood Council, simply stated: “It’s not going to happen”. Created in 1923 by architect Thomas Fisk Goff, the sign has become one of the most recognizable pieces of architecture in the world, making endless appearances in popular culture after being initially designed for use as an advertising tool.

Whilst Bay-Jorgensen’s hotel design may be receiving mixed reviews, the more tangible danger is that the rugged area surrounding the sign will be swallowed up by real estate in the coming years, slowly engulfing the landmark. The Hollywood sign itself belongs to the city of Los Angeles, although the land to the back and left of it is held by private investors. It had been said that this land was to be sold to real estate developers for $22m, with the intent of constructing an array of mansions in the area, however recent developments suggest that the land may be sold back to the city. Activists have been given until the end of April to raise the final £970,000 needed to purchase the land and save it from residential development. Charitable division of the luxury jewellery retailer, The Tiffany & Co Foundation, have stated that they will match any further donations with up to £320,000.

blogged by: Jake Shea

Flexibility and transformation are the two big ideas that inform Reiser + Umemoto’s winning design, which took first place in the Taipei Pop Music Center international competition. Besting finalists Studio Gang of Chicago and Office D’A of Boston. Reiser + Umemoto, RUR Architecture, will now begin planning and preliminary design the US $100 million project with local architect Fei & Cheng Associates and ARUP.

Reiser + Umemoto’s design envisions a new global music hub with multiple and flexible performances spaces that will become a 24-hour destination and a cultural icon much like New York’s Times Square. Located on a former industrial site, the center features an elevated public space that bridges two buildings sites divided by the Xinsheng highway. This space connects the center’s three major elements: the Main Concert Hall (the three lobed volumes) containing the main amphitheatre, the music business functions and recording studios; the Outdoor Amphitheatre, which has a mobile stage dubbed the ‘Robot Theatre’ that is situated on tracks allowing it to move to and from the other venues; and the Hall of Fame (the cube), a two-level podium raised above the street that will house functions such as exhibitions and retail. As flexibility is key, all of the venues will be wholly transformable to meet the needs of any performance. These venues will accommodate audiences ranging in size from 3,000 to 15,000 people.

The materials for the complex have been selected based on their performance attributes and in response to the hot climate, said Neil Cook, a project architect on the design team. The Main Hall will be constructed of perforated metal panel with a double skin to provide natural ventilation and passive cooling, Cook said. The Hall of Fame will be a lightweight structure with a translucent fabric or glass LED sandwich panels to provide a surface for broadcasting media. A wire net covering the podium will be made of compact solar panels with LED lights. The rectangular volume, commonly referred to as the Robot Theatre, will be constructed of piping to allow it to easily transform to any shape.

Construction is expected to begin in 2012 with completion slated for 2014.

blogged by: Jake Shea