Feather weights : rapid redeployable structures for interim use

Abstract

This thesis examines vacant urban parcels that are either unviable for development or stalled as a result of the economic crisis, and asks: How is it possible to generate both economic and urban value on these sites until they are ready to be developed? Reluctant to invest in these areas developers resort to a wait-and-hold strategy leaving parcels vacant until the market is suitable for development. For these parcels, the conventional architectural process is stalled because the time and investment needed for design and construction outweighs the expected return on the development. This condition occurs throughout all major cities in the United States and is becoming more prevalent as the frequency of urban utilization cycles increases. This thesis proposes that a designer can use architecture as a platform to navigate the unique demands of this condition by rapidly capturing the value of a parcel, thereby creating positive returns to the surrounding communities as well as landowners. Rather than acting as a conventional designer who develops a specific proposal for a particular site, this thesis proposes that a designer proactively provide a service to developers that generates unique design solutions to a particular condition. This is accomplished by establishing a design protocol that allows one to move from analysis to deployment of unique and dynamic architectural proposals for a range of uses and sites simultaneously while dramatically compressing both the time and cost required for design and construction.