April Presentation Uploaded

I uploaded the pdf of my presentation to Google Docs. Check it out here.

People Zone Model

People Zone Design_Birch Trees Applied

People Zone Design

Barnes & Noble Block CONNX DESIGN

Bridge Clearances for Sky Circuit

For almost 30 years, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Military Traffic Management Command Transportation Engineering Agency (MTMCTEA) of the Department of Defense (DOD) have cooperated to meet the demands of military traffic on the Interstate System, particularly in the area of vertical clearances. This need has been met with the adoption of standards by FHWA for vertical clearance on the Interstate that require a clear height of structures over the entire roadway width, including the useable width of shoulder, of 4.9 meters for the rural Interstate. In urban areas, the 4.9-meter clearance is applied to a single route, with other Interstate routings in the urban area having at least a 4.3-meter vertical clearance.

Found this official information here:
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/bridge/081597.htm

This means that any skyway pathing shall be a 4.3 meter clearance. Translated, this is a vertical clearance of 14'-2".

Barnes & Noble Block on a winter day

3D Modeling Schemes

Repost

Connection Circuit Updated

Green Zone Thoughts/Sketches

Public Transportation

People Zone Design Thoughts/Sketches

Program Vignettes/Ideas

I've come up with a list of programmatic ideas that can be included not only in the connection points, but also along the pathway. This is a working list and will likely to continue to grow. See below:

• "Movie In the Park", but instead "Movie on the Path"
• Cafe/Misc. Dining: can include sandwich shop, Smoothie spot, ice cream shop (Alaskans also consume more ice cream than any other state...odd factoid I've been told). Similar to how food trucks are seen in many urban areas - food stands can be located periodically within the Circuit.
• Coffee shops/Coffee bar - Anchorage has more coffee huts per capita than any other city (including Seattle)
• Green Zone areas for observing natural views - sense of being "at a park" while being inside. This even includes the "Greenhouse" concept (see most recent devloped Connection Point on charette board for example).
• People Zone areas include many of the items listed above, but there will also be areas to attract people just to sit and read, sit and conversate with a couple or few people, eat your packed lunch away from your desk (many business people in the area would take advantage of this).
• Activity Node: ice skating? x-country ski/running trail to butt up to Connection Point. Have ski/skate storage. Indoor play area/playground for kids.
• Bookmobile. Loussac Main Library is located in Midtown - could be a form of a satellite for book drop/pick up
• Bus stop/comfortable & heated waiting area for public transportation.
• Misc. Specialty Vendors: jewelry, shirts/clothing, music/books, bags, bookstore, specialty gifts, candy, etc.
• Bank branch
• Dry cleaning drop-off/pick-up (would cater to the MANY business people around)
• Walking path for exercise. Maintain ciruclation path throughtout with nodes of gathering.

Guidelines & Precedents

Connections_March Charette Board

Falling or Not? A Skybridge Experience

Very cool experience - watch this video and you'll feel like you're there. We don't have buildings of this scale in Anchorage, but I still think the illusion of being up high with the thought of nothing under your feet (even though glass is there) could really catch people's attention. This is something I'd like to include in my project.

You Tube Link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVIKg_TFjPQ&feature=email

Site Plan - Connection Circuit

Portion of Connection Circuit sited in Midtown. My next step will focus on a specific area to develop in more detail.

Connections Circuit Revisited

Precedent Images