c o m m u n i t y c e n t e rD X P r o c e s s b o o k

Fellycia Sutanto | Spring 2013 | Prof. Chris Harnish | Philadelphia University

e tokozweni

table of contents

CULTURE

CONTEXT

CLIMATE

STRUCTURE

SKIN

DOCUMENTATION

01

03

05

INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION eNtokozweni Community Center is located in the focal point

of the city of Alexandra, Johannesburg, South Africa.

The intent of this project is to create a community center that

promotes and provides secured environments that serve education and

other activities for all different ages in Alexandra. The goal is to design

a passive and self-sustain building that responds to the specific climate,

culture and context of the site.

There are five existing buildings on the site. Only four out

of these five are presently used: daycare center, kitchen, site keeper’s

hoouse, and exercise space.

Img. 1. Harnish, Chris. South-West Panorama A [photograph]. 13 Feb 2013.

Img. 2. Harnish, Chris. South-West Panorama B [photograph]. 13 Feb 2013.

Img. 3. Harnish, Chris. North Panorama [photograph]. 13 Feb 2013.

Img. 4. Harnish, Chris. South Panorama [photograph]. 13 Feb 2013.

4. South Panorama

CONTEXT Contextually, eNtokozweni Community Center is located on

the intersection of major roads in Alexandra; this makes eNtokozweni

Community Center as focal points of the city of Alex. The corner of Lon-

don road and 13th street is one of important nodes of the site because

it’s the intersection of main circulations in the city.

01

London Road

12th Avenue

13th Avenue

Public Transit

Main Traffic Road

Security Wall

Pedestrian Path

Img Location

12

3

Main Entrance

circulation

node

The main entrance of the project is lo-

cated on the intersection of 13th street and London

road. This corner will be the visual node. The other

important node of the site is located on the corner

of London road and 12th street. This corner is the

gathering place for the students. 12th street will be

the secondary entrance that allows students and

other users to enter the site.

Circulation

public circulation

user circulation

There are two entrance sequences

on the site; located on 13th street and on 12th st.

This two main entrances create one main circula-

tion that is accessable from every program on the

site.

Programatic Organization

Programatically, the organization is

based on security needs of each program and also

accessability from the public sequence.

PERFORMANCE SPACE

RETAIL LIBRARYCLASSROOM

GYM

LOBBY

KITCHENBUSINESS HUB

accessibility to public

securitysecured

less secured

least secured

Security Threshold

Security is one of the main consider-

ation of the design. The strategy is to have three

different layer of threshold in the site.

The first layer of security threshold

is the building perimeter (building material). The

second layer is the security on each room (locks

on doors and windows). The third layer is the

second floor, which is more secured and con-

trolled.

2nd layer

3rd layer

1st layer

Material

Materiality choices is based on mate-

rials’ durability. They are also ecofriendly such as

steel frame construction and contextually respond

to the neighborhood (masonry).

Wood

Innovation Cultural Experience

Sustainability

Steel

Concrete

Glass Block

Glass/windows

Masonry

Plastic

engaging recycled content

salvaged, certified, and low in toxicity

provides thermal mass that adds to energy efficiency

local craft

tactile

provides thermal mass that adds to energy efficiency

digital manufacturing of making wood flexible

flexibility on design and construction

weight reduction generates savings in shipping, erection,

and substructure costs

local craft

local craftused in areas where privacy

or visual obscuration is desired while admitting light

flexibility on design and construction

durability of the overall construction

used in areas where privacy or visual obscuration is

desired while admitting light

Security Contextualism Local LaborPrice

secured

require surveillance or additional

security devices

secured

require additional security devices

used to be the most commonly used

materials for houses

commonly used material for commer-

cial buildings

commonly used material in South

Africa

expensive

expensive (usually

imported)

reason-able

collaboration with local workers

less involvement of local worker

secured

require additional security devices

require surveillance or additional

security devices

commonly used material in South

Africa

commonly used material in South

Africa

commonly used material in South

Africa

commonly used material in South

Africa

reason-able

reason-able

reason-able

reason-able

less involvement of local worker

collaboration with local workers

collaboration with local workers

collaboration with local workers

less involvement of local worker

tactile

local craft recycled content

Provides natural daylight, reducing the

electric lighting

Provides natural daylight, reducing the

electric lighting

CULTURECulturally, eNtokozweni Community Center is one of important cultural

heritage of Alexandra. The clients want this community center could not

only serves as a historical site of Alexandra, but also could be functional

and useful for the people in Alexandra; teaches them skillsets and helps

to create job opportunities. Therefore, it is important to create and ar-

range the programs of this community center to be more useful for the

people of different ages. It is also important that this community center

to be self-sustain. Therefore, proposing programs that generate income

such as retails spaces, food garden, and Internet café, would help this

community center and the neighborhood.

“Africa Tikkun [community center] has proven that it has the ability to reach sections of our disadvan-

taged population at grassroots level. It therefore provides both physical help, as well as giving hope

and dignity to the recipients.”

(Nelson Mandela, Patron-in-Chief)

“[We want more information about] the world we live in, to be knowledgeable, to know what is hap-

pening around us, to know about other country and their problems, the problems we are facing in our

school and in our country.”

(12 and under, mixed group)

careerservices

labs &classrooms

classes

daycare

health infocenter

Clients’needs [Program]

Economic Sustainability

It is important for a community center

to be self sustain economically. Therefore, the de-

sign of this project focused in how to bring in some

income for the community so that it lasts long.

Income Generation Program :

- The Internet café. By charging the users by hour.

- The retail spaces. By renting out the spaces to

the community.

- The performance space/auditorium. By renting

out the space to the community. Also, by perform-

ing shows that generate

money by selling tickets to community.

The retail space will be one big open

space market along the London road with storage

available for each space.

The other strategies are food garden

to generated food, and solar panel to generate

energy.

Retail

Solar Panel

generates income

generates energy

Roof Gardengenerates foods

CLIMATE03 The clients want the building to be sustainable and eco-

friendly for the environment. Therefore, the building should integrate

passive strategies in the design such as natural ventilation, use of shad-

ing device, green roof, and rainwater capture. The shading device is

one strategy to keep the heat penetration to the building in the summer.

Green roof also helps as a passive cooling strategies in the summer. It is

also important to generate energy for the building use. Proposing solar

energy generator such as photovoltaic is one of the strategies to create

a building that self-sustain.

FORM

The form design of the project is de-

rived from the orientation of the sun. The intent is

to have an even distribution of natural light pen-

etrate the entire building. Therefore, creating a

U-shape courtyard is the best strategy to expose

the north face of the building to natural light.

Passive Strategy

The intent of the design is to create

a building that is sustainable from the economic

standpoint, as well as the environmental. So, it is

important to have passive systems that respond to

the environmental condition of the site.

For passive cooling system, the strat-

egy is to have a cross ventilation from the south

to the north through the building. This strategy is

created by having a porous face (perforated brick)

on the south side of the building and openings on

the north side.

For passive heating system, the strat-

egy is to have a light construction on the north side

of the building to let the sun heat comes in to the

building.

For water system, the pitch roof

helped to catch the rainwater and store it in the

lowest point of the site (under the gym).

Passive Cooling Strategy

Passive Heating Strategy

Water System Diagram

STRUCTURE The choices of the structure materials and system are

based on the durability. Therefore, the choice of steel construction is the

the best fit in respond to weather of the site.

W8X10 Steel Column

Corbelled Brick on Cold Form Steel Framing

Relief Angle

Retaining Wall

Wall Section

steel truss

Retails’ Covers

SKIN05 The perforated brick is used in the design as a siding materi-

als. The perforated brick is also help the ventilation of the building as well

as give transparancy.

The openness of the perforated brick is based on the secu-

rity needs of each programs behind the walls.

PUBLIC SEMI PRIVATE

RETAIL

GARDEN OF HONOR

AUDITORIUM

KITCHEN/DINING

BUSINESS HUB

PUBLIC MEETING

DAYCARE

LIBRARY

MULTIPURPOSE ROOM

CLASSROOMS

INTERNET CAFE

TECH RESOURCE

SEWING ROOM

STORAGE

OFFICE

PRIVATE MEETING

DOCUMENTATION

LOBBY

KITCHEN

CLASSROOMDAYCARE BUSINESS HUB

GYM

AUDITORIUM

OUTDOOR

PERFORMANCE SPACE

MEMORIALGARDEN

PLAYGROUND

RETAILS

A

B

1st Floor plan

CLINIC

LIBRARY

DINING ROOM

REHEARSAL

ROOM PARKING

LOADING DOCK

A

INTERNET CAFE

TECH CLASSROOM

TECH RESOURCE

LIBRARY

MUSIC/FILM STUDIO

OFFICES

MEETING

ROOM

ANGELO’S HOUSE

2nd Floor plan

ROOF GARDEN

ROOF GARDEN

CLASSROOM CLASSROOM CLASSROOM

Section A

Section B

West Elevation South Elevation

East Elevation

2nd Floor circulation

Mandela Memorial Garden

Internet Cafe

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to

change the world.”

Nelson Mandela

Thank You