Introduction to Public Spaces and Architectural Design Review

Heritage Park and the Work of Lawrence Halprin

• Original versus Restoration: The speaker emphasizes the distinction between the original drawings by Lawrence Halprin and the recent restoration efforts. A tour of the project was recently conducted, highlighting that the site is now open.

• Design Language (Objects and Fields): The project is conceptualized through the use of a "field of trees." The spatial definition is achieved through overlapping rectangles.

  • Transparency: At the points where rectangles overlap, a layer of transparency is created, defining specific sub-spaces within the larger field.

• Physical Features and Navigation:

  • The project features water fountains and is designed to create a more inviting plaza in the front.

  • River Connection: On the opposite side, there is a physical and visual connection to the river.

  • Mechanical Elements: The site includes waterfalls and racks that swing back and forth—a mechanical necessity for NBA or building code compliance, requiring several flips to function correctly.

  • Vistas: The site offers specific views toward Main Street, facing north toward the Stockyards and the Courthouse.

Comparative Operations in Landscape Design

• Fountain Place (Dallas): This site is described as a grid line overlaid with a field of trees and fountains.

• Heritage Park Operations: Unlike the grid of Fountain Place, the operation here is described using the metaphor of "rubber bands."

  • Spatial Shaping: Layers of these "rubber band" elements are adjusted to shape the space.

  • Conflicts and Openings: The design involves elements that pull back, continue, or overlap to create points of conflict or openness, suggesting a physical process that could be modeled.

Environmental Infrastructure: Streams and Valleys

• Streams and Valleys Organization: This organization acts as the citizens' caretakers of the Fort Worth river and watershed. They maintain a master plan for the watershed, including all major river branches.

• The Bypass Channel Project: A major infrastructural undertaking designed to accelerate water flow.

  • Urban Runoff Issue: As development increases, more concrete surfaces are created. This results in less water penetrating the soil during storms and more runoff flooding streets, creeks, and rivers.

  • Functional Goal: To prevent flooding, the bypass channel speeds up water flow. The existing conditions are being modified to remove certain barriers.

  • Water Level Control: Diodes are placed at specific points to control water levels on certain sides, effectively creating quiet, controlled waterfront property.

• Economic Implications: The speaker argues this is primarily a development project to create high-value waterfront property. There is an ongoing struggle to ensure that this land remains a public space accessible to the community rather than strictly private development.

The Politics and Economics of Public Space

• Public-Private Partnerships (PPP): The speaker asserts that in the United States, major public spaces, parks, and museums are almost exclusively produced through public-private partnerships.

  • Example: Klyde Warren Park and Sundance Square are products of these partnerships.

• Political Systems and Urbanism:

  • European Model: Historically, great European cities were shaped by kings and popes who had the absolute power to determine urban form.

  • Democratic Model: In a democracy, space is determined by political acts, majority rule, and voting, making the process much different and often more complex.

• Capitalist Society vs. Capitalist Economy:

  • Capitalist Economy: Refers to the economic driving forces of a nation.

  • Capitalist Society: Occurs when capitalist priorities invade all aspects of life, including justice and social priorities. In this state, people must fight for justice and public rights rather than assuming they will be granted.

• The Case of Main Street (Fort Worth):

  • Although Main Street officially exists on paper, portions of it have been ceded to private entities (like Sundance Square).

  • Public Access Restrictions: If a private entity decides to close a plaza, they effectively close a public street. This creates problems for public activities like protests or marches, which may be prohibited on what appears to be a public thoroughfare.

  • Privatization Trends: The speaker notes a trend where wealthy individuals can rent out these "public" spaces for private events (e.g., weddings on Friday or Saturday nights), closing them off to the public on the busiest days.

Network of Public Spaces and Architectural Climate Response

• The Urban Network: Successful cities like Fort Worth work as a network of public spaces. A pedestrian can walk two to four blocks and transition from one space to another (e.g., Main Street to the Courthouse to Sundance Square to General Worth Square to the Water Gardens).

• The Necessity of Shade in North Texas:

  • Winspear Opera House (Norman Foster): The design includes a massive overhang to provide shade. Foster was inspired by O'Neil Ford (San Antonio) and Kevin Roche (involved in similar shading strategies).

  • Thermal Comfort: The speaker argues that in North Texas, if a project does not provide adequate shade, it will not be used. Renderings shown to clients should emphasize nighttime use or significant overhangs rather than bright, unshaded afternoon sun.

  • Institutional Generosity: Even though the opera house is a private, "pay-to-enter" institution, the shaded outdoor space it provides for the general public is considered a significant contribution to the city.

The Dallas Park Pavilion Program

• Willis Winters: The former head of planning and parks for the City of Dallas. He initiated a program to build high-quality architectural pavilions in city parks.

• Architectural Diversity: Winters hired famous and talented architects to design these pavilions, resulting in scattered "architectural gems" throughout neighborhood parks.

  • Tectonics: Some pavilions focus on the articulation of structure and assembly.

  • Stereotomics: Others focus on the mass and form of materials like poured concrete.

  • Formal Languages: The pavilions explore various languages, including digital fabrication, folded planes, and pure structural tectonics.

Assignment and Examination Guidelines

• The Exam:

  • The exam is worth $20$ points.

  • It consists of $10$ to $15$ questions.

  • Visual Recognition: Students must be able to identify projects and their designers from the PDF and PowerPoint presentations.

• The Presentation Assignment:

  • Timing: Exactly $15$ minutes for the presentation, followed by $10$ minutes for Q&A.

  • Strictness: Points are deducted for being more than $2$ minutes over or under the time limit. The clock starts the moment the speaker begins.

  • Preparation: Students are expected to write out their presentations to ensure they stay on point. All presentations must be ready by Monday and uploaded to Teams.

• Grading Rubric:

  • Presentation Delivery ($5$ points): Punctuality, hardware readiness, and professional conduct.

  • Quality of Drawings ($10$ points): High-quality, professional-level drawings (sections, figure-grounds, axons). Redrawing or cleaning up existing drawings is acceptable.

  • Verbal Presentation ($5$ points): Ability to stay on point and integrate programming information.

• Reference Examples:

  • Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (Peter Eisenman): Cited as a good example of clear sections, figure-ground diagrams, and abstract illustrations of the ground plane, though it originally lacked credit for the landscape architect.

  • Maya Lin's Vietnam Veterans Memorial: Described as a critical and important memorial project from the last $100$ years.