Archive for: November, 2016

Brownsville Youth and Community Clubhouse

Brownsville Community Center and Clubhouse

During the summer of 2015, Tricia Martin, Kaja Kühl (youarethecity) and urban design students and faculty of Columbia’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation (GSAPP) Summer Studio had the opportunity to collaborate with a group of young Brownsville, New York residents on the design for a pop-up community clubhouse at Marcus Garvey Village. The residents, part of a program at Brownsville Community Justice Center (BCJC), developed a set of mental maps of their neighborhood to identify potential sites for the community center. Made in Brownsville, a local design not-for-profit, led the initial effort with BCJC that included the retrofit of a shipping container. Nicolas Fernando Del Valle Russell, one of our Columbia students from the summer 2015 studio, continued to assist WE Design with the project once a site was approved by L&M Development Partners, the owners of the housing development. Nicholas developed a site plan that included a stage for events, porous paving for paths, and a row of constructed nooks with custom benches and planters to be used for seating or other pop-up activities. The new facility will host a range of events such as movie nights, classes, and panel discussions.

This project demonstrates how collaboration between many experts and people of different backgrounds can have a meaningful impact in underserved communities.

Recent press on the project:

Brooklyn Eagle

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El Space Project in Crain’s New York

Crain’s New York recently highlighted 10 “think big” projects that could help address New York City’s skyrocketing population increase, including The Design Trust and NYC Department of Transportation’s El Space Project. The concept, transforming unused space under elevated infrastructure into welcoming public plazas, would reconnect communities split apart by poorly lit, often dangerous underpasses, with integrated green infrastructure to address frequent flooding from highway runoff. Tricia Martin (WE Design), Quilian Riano (DSGN AGNC), and Leni Schwendinger (ARUP) are the Design Trust Fellows for this pilot project, which will provide a replicable lighting, green infrastructure, and circulation model for use throughout the five boroughs.

What’s The Big Idea? (Crain’s New York, 10/30/16)

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