Description:The program of the library is more than just a place to house books. Through technology, methods of information retrieval have changed, thus changing the role of the book, and as a consequence, the role of the library. It has become a space for community, for gathering, a space of enjoyment. The library is no longer a place where talking is not allowed. The town of Northville’s sense of community is fluctuating, changing as the town population changes throughout the seasons. This fact becomes an important aspect of the design. The library’s sense of space must be one which is comfortable for many, but remains inviting for a few. It must be a space that is welcoming for everyone. The design of the library is that of a continuous surface in which voids and barriers are carefully chosen in order to make one aware of their surroundings while still being able to wander. In this sense it is not a specific space that is important, but rather the connection to the rest of the library that its continuity causes one to recognize. The proposed scheme for the library has the quality of being a very open, inviting space while simultaneously containing enclosed volumes that are private and intimate. This allows for the library to fulfill its role as a gathering place while still continuing and expanding its capabilities of a library. Furthermore, the open plan allows for many multi-use spaces that can be rearranged over time to fit the needs of the library staff and patrons.

Description: The conditions of the triangular block between River and Western in Cambridgeport were ones of isolation and crowdedness. The project affords a new urban idea which benefits both the residents of the neighborhood as well as the small businesses which are supported by them. The project proposal is to open the interior of the block and to develop a pedestrian corridor within it, providing frontage both to the street and to the interior avenue. The density of residential units is maintained; the twelve units are simply shifted in section and relocated to floating apartments above ground level. This avails the entire interior corridor to public access, providing parkland to shoppers and the community. Vehicle parking is removed from street level and relocated to the sloping green roof, a sustainable alternative to paved lots occupying valuable land area. This idea transforms the city block from a drive-through nuisance to a desirable destination and allows businesses to tap into newly attainable revenue from people who otherwise would not have stopped within the neighborhood.

Description: Understanding and forecasting technological impact across the scale of time remains an uncertain task. The only fact, what will not become. Despite this, most of our historical efforts are directed at the preservation of exceptional objects rather than understanding influential ones. Replacing silent enclosure with cacophonous void LIFT questions the museum as a material archive with a process-focused institution. The entire collection is connected to the public through a transparent automated storage tower whose southern façade contains stairs and walkways for the public to traverse and explore the system. The storage platforms function in several roles as parking spaces, art storage, and flexible galleries penetrating from the façade into the tower. The exhibits and collections focusing on forms of technical change in society are also integrated with a library, workshop, bookstore, and offices; further blending process and archive. These adjacent programs are housed in a two-story block covering the southern portion of the site and arranged in a banded scheme, with double height public winter gardens separated by single height private spaces. The highline expands in width over this block, making two street level connections to the developing art district in on 24th Street, before puncturing the tower and traveling north. Heritage as much history and culture today is marked largely as objects that play into our craving for identity consumption, while providing a sense of identity to a cultural group give little insight into processes of technical change in society. Two winter gardens, 26 feet high and spanning 30 feet, allow for ample natural light in the staff lounge and workshop, even when the much of the site is shaded. The depth of the trusses that support such a long span is used as diffusing louvers to reduce midday heat gain. Because winter garden’s size and the louvers internal location summer thermal gain is still a concern, prompting the skylights to be used as seasonal reflecting pools to reduce heat gain and to enhance the elevated urban condition. The museum’s design is centered on addressing what has become a dominant problem for museums of the 21st century, storage of their ever-expanding collections. The fact that museums like MOMA and the MET can only display around 1/10 of their collections at a time represents a tremendous waste of cultural and physical capital. Culturally this renders the museum little different than many private collectors who lend out works to be seen and later returned. A tremendous waste of their single biggest capital investment. The capital investment in offsite storage for these works is equally wasteful, essentially the museum hoarding art and spending large sums to keep it hidden.