Addition to City View Apartments:
A high-rise apartment proposal prioritizing sectional organization, structural and mechanical systems, and iterative facade exploration; designed in collaboration with Brian Hartman (CMU B. Arch, 2024) and Kit Tang (CMU B. Arch, 2024)
(2022)
Universal Drawing of Building Composition
Pedestrian View of Southern Facade
Robinhood Gardens emphasizes two concepts: “streets in the sky” and its subsequent tetris-like interlocking logic for its units. These key spatial generators emphasize a shared public condition of the corridor and a rich interior condition for the units. The vertical circulation cores are given greater significance in the proposed scheme with one serving as structural object and the other as an occupiable social experience in addition to egress.
Streets in the Sky - Robin Hood Gardens
Streets in the Sky - Proposal
The necessity for ADA units created a new interlocking scheme, creating longer units for larger three bed unit types. All units still access the corridor. To make room for an updated code compliant parallel unit stair, the shear walls of the units were pushed further apart. Both the public corridor and unit balcony were widened to create more comfortable public and private experiences.
Sequence - Robin Hood Gardens
Sequence - Proposal
Egress Core/Plan, Extension of Corridor, Shear Wall/System Shaft - Robinhood Gardens
Egress Core/Plan, Extension of Corridor, Shear Wall/System Shaft - Proposal
Iconic Short Section of Robinhood Gardens
Sample Unit Plan from Robin Hood Gardens
Reenvisioned Short Section of Proposal
Reenvisioned Sample Unit Plan from Proposal
Exploded to Assembled Unit Matrix
Detailed Unit Interlock Study Model
The proposal is taken through a series of massing tests to study the impact of a new housing tower on the existing apartment building, testing Pei’s parallel scheme against some with the faceted logic of Robin Hood Gardens. The building has three distinct structural zones. The base is a cast in place concrete moment frame system. This supports the majority of the building, a concrete rigid frame system. The top of the building is a light-weight steel frame structure holding responsive photovoltaic panels. Adjusting the Robin Hood Gardens scheme to contemporary code was necessary, understanding how structure, systems, egress, and public sequence needed to be adjusted to be technically safe yet experientially robust. Similar to the massing, the relationship of shear wall structure and systems shaft location is explored to determine ideal layout for occupants and maintenance.
Initial Structure, Facade Study, Structure & Systems
Structural Strategy
Systems shafts are pushed to be outside of the units, providing access for maintenance and creating porch conditions for the units. The shafts serve the corridor and the units. The mechanical equipment is housed in a small mechanical room at the same level as City View’s mechanical room as well as a horizontal mechanical bar in the penthouse level. The building operates on a central loop heat pump system modulated by the neighboring Central Energy Plant so the southwest. ERVs on the rooftop are zoned to serve three story portions of the building.
Unit Systems Reflected Ceiling Plan
Detailed Unit Model with Systems
Building Systems
South Elevation
Long Section through Unit Matrix
East Elevation
Short Section through Units and Corridor
West Elevation
Short Section through Sculptural Egress
Unit Matrix Plan at Connector Level
Roof Plan
Floor Plan at Corridor Level, Above Corridor Level, Below Corridor Level
The goal of the southern facade is to reference the dominating sectional characteristics of the Robin Hood Gardens precedent. The sectional profile of the unit is displayed using prefabricated perforated panels of four different colors to differentiate the interlocking units. The perforation opacity corresponds to the interior program of the unit view or privacy where necessary. A series of panel explorations are used to determine how black and white input imagery can be utilized to optimize view as well as aspects of daylighting. Additionally, panels went through phyiscal tests to understand how the size and density of perforation would impact interior and exterior experience of the facade. Panels are operable to allow full view and daylight access when preferred by the occupant.
Testing Exterior Experience of Perforation Density
Investigating Interior Experience of Facade Panel
