Community Center Design
The Confluence Redesign was a project between Portland State University, downtown neighborhood members, and graduate students involved with various angles of sustainability in an urban design context. Our project goal was to develop a concept for using the space where a hotel resided on Lincoln Street, a property of PSU. Our graduate team was international and multidisciplinary consisting of a Korean Urban Designer, a Chinese Architect, and 3 American sustainability students bringing social justice education, energy efficiency, and an aspiring creative strategist/environmental artist at the time.
We conducted neighborhood research, in-depth interviews with various members of PSU and the community, and design activities to influence our project. Our deliverable was a multi-purpose reuse plan for the old hotel. Our vision involved adaptive reuse architecture, multiple revenue streams, interactive art installations, energy efficient retrofits, and interactivity programs for the multilayered community. The process of using design principles including regenerative, universal, and permaculture design drove our collaboration with unique and highly effective frameworks. We practiced integrating Civic Ecology, a framework taught by SERA Architects as well. This is a collaborative design process that harnesses various perspectives and ideas from many stakeholders. This framework reminded me of participatory action design methods as well.
Our team work was so fulfilling and our ideas so fresh we intended to save the existing structure rather than have it torn down - a wasteful choice. Our group spoke to PSU financial executives, the hired architects, and attending meetings on the project. The final report for this work is below. It received high regards from the hired architecture firms and PSU real estate executives.
We conducted neighborhood research, in-depth interviews with various members of PSU and the community, and design activities to influence our project. Our deliverable was a multi-purpose reuse plan for the old hotel. Our vision involved adaptive reuse architecture, multiple revenue streams, interactive art installations, energy efficient retrofits, and interactivity programs for the multilayered community. The process of using design principles including regenerative, universal, and permaculture design drove our collaboration with unique and highly effective frameworks. We practiced integrating Civic Ecology, a framework taught by SERA Architects as well. This is a collaborative design process that harnesses various perspectives and ideas from many stakeholders. This framework reminded me of participatory action design methods as well.
Our team work was so fulfilling and our ideas so fresh we intended to save the existing structure rather than have it torn down - a wasteful choice. Our group spoke to PSU financial executives, the hired architects, and attending meetings on the project. The final report for this work is below. It received high regards from the hired architecture firms and PSU real estate executives.