New civic landscapes : manifesting cultural sustainability and civic myth in urban public spaces

Abstract

Civic spaces represent, constitute, and enhance the daily lives of citizens. As such, they hold an important role in constructing a communities social values regarding sustainable use of shared resources. This project investigates the thesis that constructive evolution and entropy of public space may be realized through architectures of landscape and gathering. The design project proposes a new city hall for New Orleans, LA, by exploiting latent connections between the city hall-as-site and larger city programs of development, recreation and street spectacle. The existing structure was retained and intersected by a immense sloped and vegetated ground plane. This primary element organized cross-axis circulation, created dynamic vistas across the downtown area, and increased transactional efficacy by organizing existing city services in closer relation to public access. Integrated strategies for daylighting and natural ventilation were maximized throughout.