Seattle Viaduct - Part 1 - Defining the Problem

8/14/2019 Seattle Viaduct - Part 1 - Defining the Problem

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UrbanismSeattlePublic Space &Repairing the Urban Fabric

Paul Brokenshire, April Pierce, Jody Dickerson, Kitty Leung, Ross Papa


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Like many modern North American cities, change and redevelopment is occurring at a rapid pace in Seattle

as the citys core becomes post-industrial. The downtown core is resurrecting itself and with thatresurrection has come a steady increase in high-density urban residential growth.

But as this growth and redevelopment continues, the citys long focus on vehicular infrastructure

become a problem and the same freeways that contributed to the cores collapse in the past are visible holes in the development that surrounds them.

In the case of the Alaskan highway this hole cuts across the citys waterfront and separates the g

neighbourhood of Belltown from the urban energy surrounding Pike Place. This proposal intends

in some initial possibilities for stitching this fabric back together through the conversion of a sect

Alaskan highway into a pedestrian focused public zone.


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Site Propos


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A

B

C

Currently this area is surrounded by roads and a highway. There

is a slope that begins on 1st Ave. which meets the adjacent

street Western Road. The slope also follows the curve along the

Alaskan highway infrastructure which also ends at 1st Ave.. In

the surrounding area, there are businesses, apartments and a

Latino Day Worker establishment.

Following the highway infrastructure, there is a

slight downward slope towards Pike Market. This

area is currently used as a parking lot and is

accompanied by the back of a hotel and

surrounding industrial buildings.

The highway infrastructure now intersects with

Elliot Ave. where it leads to Pike Market. The road

is filled with businesses and people as Pike market

is the main goal attractor in this area. Beyond the

road, the highway continues above another parking

lot.


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Questions Q1How can the emerging residential neighbourhood in Belltown be stitched

into the surrounding urban space and neighboring communities?

Belltown

Pike PlaceMarket


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Should people be meant to stay or move?

Should movement be left unprogrammed?

How can we make use of the topography of the site and use the verti-

cal dimension as an opportunity rather than an obstacle?

How can we break the cultural tendency to view lingering in a space as loitering or

put another way, how can we scaffold interactions with the site that will encourage

people to stay as well as to travel and move?

Q3Q2


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How do we deal with the Day Workers center currently occupying

the site in a sensitive and appropriate manner?

How can the site be made a 24 hour zone?

How can we increase the sense of safety and actual security of the area

at night without closing or restricting use?

Q5Q4


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Idea

Public Space and Neighbourhood Identity through

quality pedestrian links instantiated by elementsnative to the Pacific Northwest and

opportunities of interpersonal interaction.


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Considerations

Day Workers

The day workers facility that currently exists on site is an unattractive cluster of temporary build-

ings but the purpose of the facility is a legitimate activity and a resource that is needed by many

of the remaining population that has existed prior to Belltowns aggressive gentrification. To

simply eliminate the facility would be one more step in th is gentrification in a manner that does

nothing to solve the problem or needs of the individuals who use it.

It is thus our belief that, while the facility must be moved from its present location , it should not

be moved completely off site.

The space beneath the highway deck and extending to the right into the now obsolete tunnel

onramp is proposed as the site of a new facility that while still serving as a day-work location also

acts as a local employment center for all of the residents of the surrounding region.


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Thinning Streets and a Place to Watch The Sides of Buildings

"No one stops in front of banks and prestigious showrooms. Quite a few people stop to look at

children's toys, photos, and other items related more directly to life and other p eople. By far the

greatest number of people stop to watch other people and events."

-Ghel, Jan(Life Between Buildings)

An interesting aspect of the hill dropping down to the waterfront is that the buildings in the a

tend to only open on the side facing the hill. The walls running along the slope are often left

blank, both unadorned and unused. This has an effect on the energy of the area as well as t

occuring upon the streets, with streets such as 1st Avenue being lively and lined with small

and cafes while the streets that cross it are lifeless and generally devoid of pedestrian traffic

It is for this reason that creating a space for people to b e and see others within Belltown's urban

neighbourhood is one of the primary g oals and themes of the project. The link with Pike Place

provides a place for people to head to, a reason for being outside. The attractive and picturesquepedestrian focused corridor we are designing will encourage them to head for this goal on foot

instead of trying to drive but the core goal remains the creation of places and opportunities for

people to stop, rest, meet and watch other people, ideally mostly the other people who make up

the residential and working population of the area.


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Water

Despite, or perhaps because of the Pacific Northwests inherent wetness the existence of urban

water in the form of streams and fountains is actually quite rare. The rare instance that streams

do cut through an urban area in Seattle or Vancouver usually occurs in a slice of parkland.

The integration of this element must be one of the key aspects in our considerations so to not

only tie the site contextually with (quite literally) the atmosphere of Seattle but to also bring in the

juxtaposition of the organic form of water against the rigidity of the infrastructure.


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ProcessProccessing with the preceding questions in mind led to the devethe plan for the changes to the site.


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Vehicular Trafc

Pedestrian Travel

Pedestrian Lingering

Current UseAs is often the case in modern North American cities the current

pedestrian options in the core are rather limited. Restricted to mid

sized sidewalks paralleling the trafc grid.


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Vehicular Trafc

Pedestrian Travel


Projected Use

The redevelopment of the Viaduct path for pedestrian use

causes a profound shift in the focus of the space. In our

proposal the pedestrianisation of the area is continued by

cutting some of the street grid and creating pedestrian streets

along a segment of Battery St. and Elliot Ave. This makes

driving through the remaining region less efcient which is in

fact part of our goal. By discourageing car use crossing the

site we hope to imrpove the conditions and general safety for

pedestrians and residents.


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Vehicular Trafc

Pedestrian Travel


Projected Use Pattern


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For Site A this will take the form of an informal public square

that will serve as an active meeting space for the people of

the homes and businesses of the surrounding area as well

as serve as the gateway to the pedestrian walk that takes up

much of site B.

Site Apublic square

Parks: passive

peaceful

introverted

Squares: active

extroverted


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A river/stream will be used as a pathway and a provoker of

movement and activity. When the stream of water reaches

the end of the highway, it collects into a pool like a reverse

water fountain. The natural downhill motion of the site is not

neglected but used to connect the water from the site to the

water of the bay. That connection is still undefined. It may

be a literal connection or a visual illusion.

Site Atop view / fountain


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Site Broad, water and lightas path

Far wider than is necessary for pedestrians to travel along

and featuring impressive views along much of its length.

Our proposal is that the walking portion of the path is

thinned down and visual interest and parkland elements are

added to encourage both travel and rest. The stream is

actually within the road deck and can be walked upon. This

stream allows light to s hine through the deck down into the

underside without the details being visible.


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Site Bunderside;a play of water & light

The understructure of the site is overshadowed and the

highway structure quite heavy but the structure is visually

interesting. The road deck can be cut away and altered to

create a lighter space underneath and a visual interest

such as that mentioned in the pattern Tapestry of Light and

Dark.

The fountains and water streams we propose to embed

within the highway deck will act as focal points and path

elements while also providing us with other opportunities

including, allowing a translucent skylight for activities and

facilities underneath the highway, an ever changing visual

texture on the ground below, a sense of the sublime in the

areas where the stream is embedded. Th ere would be

parts of the stream where the water is open and accessible

and other parts where it is between panes of glass so it can

become part of the walking paths for those who travel and

sit on the deck above.


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Site Cnatural connections

Site C is another opportunity for the derelict space

to reconnect to the natural elements of the Pacific

North West. This is done by the introduction of

light, water and plant life. Stairs connect the side

walks to the bridge deck on either side. This

would create a dark and uninviting

space underneath.

To counteract this, a large hole is cut from the

bridge deck. A grove of 3 or 5 tall evergreens

(Cedar or Fir) would that will provide a tall, tower-

like landmark for people to head towards either

from Belltown or Pike Place Market as well as a

visual connection between the upper and lower

spaces. The choice of local evergreens is made

partially due to the lack of this sort of tree in much

of this part of Seattles core. The source of the

artificial stream will also occur here as a

tower/fountain hidden within the grove of trees.


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Seattle Viaduct - Part 1 - Defining the Problem

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