ARCH 103 MIDTERM PORTFOLIOGREGORY CAMARGOSPRING 2013

Issues: Having lived in San

Francisco my whole life, I felt that this project was to be easy and fun for me to do as I already had hundreds and hundreds of experiences within the city and plenty of pictures to go along with it. This familiarity with the city, on the contrary made it difficult to decide what experiences to show and what pictures to use.

PHOTOMONTAGE as CONSTRUCTED NARRATIVE

Ever since I was a little kid I was interested in exploring new environments. Over the years I have tried to see as many places as

possible in San Francisco and have gotten to appreciate the huge range of environments contained in this small city. Mostly avoiding tourist destinations, I have a strong relationship with the lesser- known parts of San Francisco; the depths of the park, warehouse districts, abandoned buildings, military bases, hard- to- reach nature spots and the numerous corners of San Francisco that are simply not recognized for their beauty.

I decided to group my experiences and pictures into four main areas:

-Nature

-People

-Structures

-Graffiti

The city’s nature is what first captivated my love for San Francisco. The city’s extensive areas of public space such as beaches, parks, plazas

and even streets, serve as a place to interact and meet people, some of which have become an important part of the city for me.

Concurrently, my interest in street art has led me to many abandoned buildings, and has made me appreciate the structures themselves as

much as the art inside them. My interest in the built environments as well as secluded nature places, have made me love some of the spots

around SF that re a combination of these two both elements.

I wanted to show the relationship between the 4 different components of what the city means to me. Starting from two opposite sides, there would be pictures consisting of nature (from the left), and street art (from the right.) These two, seemingly opposite activities culminate in the center of the presentation board where the main attention is focused on places that are the combination of both nature and the built environment.

Although not accomplished, there were to be many two- dimensional pictures on the extreme sides of the poster board, and towards the middle the pictures these would get more and more dimensional. The pictures would start popping out slowly, some elements placed higher than the rest of the picture background, and eventually elements of the pictures would protrude completely out of the frames of the picture and even connecting with the elements of other pictures.

Technical and creative approach

EDGES.Edges can be in the form of concrete differences, such as a wall, a fence, or a path, but also could be a change of atmosphere and the type of use one area gets

from another. Edges are vital in containing an area as I have seen an example in Merced, CA. The main street (one lane each way) is lined with businesses and

parked cars on the side for over four blocks, however further down the street, the huge chain stores have been offset from the street, and instead have placed a

parking lot facing the street. This part of Main Street becomes miserable to walk down and promotes the usage of more cars in order to do shopping. The lack of an

edge, contributes to the lack of unity throughout this part of the street and gets rid of vitality. Another edge that contains the neighborhood are the dunes, the great

highway and the jogging path that runs along the ocean. Because of the dunes, people at the end of the N Judah line cannot see the ocean and instead of

numerous people strolling along the beach, it contains most to the small. This is similar to New Orleans where the raised levy and the train tracks that run on it, block

visual access to the Mississippi river from the French quarter. Although the river is only 3 minutes away, most people don’t visit it. This is a big difference from many cities

in Europe, including Moscow, where the Moscow River flows straight through the city, and there are walkways right alongside the river and not isolated from the rest of

the city. This attracts not only people wanting to take a stroll, but also restaurants and other businesses that want to take advantage of the view.

NODES.A district with mixed- use nodes (such as for leisure and also work- related) creates a more interesting environment and promotes growth and diversity within the area.

The Oceanside district in SF, although small is fairly vital, for it contains many different places to visit. There are not only bars and restaurants at which to order food

and drink, but also a market, a liquor store from which residents can buy daily essentials. The more different types of businesses there are in one area, the less of a

necessity it is for people of that area to have to leave in order to obtain something. The less people leave their neighborhood, the more they care about how it looks

and the more time they will send in taking care of it. The proximity of different nodes is also very important in creating vitality. For every block, there should b at least

two nodes in order to maintain a connection throughout the street/ district. For example in the Richmond district, after 23 rd ave and Geary, there is a gap of about

two blocks of no “nodes”, and this creates a gap in activity in that region. Although in such a neighborhood as the Richmond this only creates a pleasant break, in

other areas or cities such as Merced, this creates somewhat of a problem. A highway running through the city creates a zone of no nodes within a couple of blocks,

and attracts various illegal activities. In a city with horrible public transit, this creates a problem for people without a car. Although this edge lays above the city in a

sense, it makes for an equally powerful edge that separates the town and even defines an area of its own within the two blocks surrounding it. Another idea is that

the redevelopment of communities should be organized by the people of the districts and not an outsider redevelopment agency. Although somewhat rundown, the

Fillmore was called the Harlem of the west back in the 60’s and was an epicenter of jazz clubs and the black community. Without understanding what the residents

wanted big redevelopers pushed their own agenda over the small store owners, clubs and destroyed a lot of the buildings. Although the area got “cleaned up”,

there was none of the same vitality that had once been there. In contrast, the residents of the Oceanside district have attended group meetings and have

converted two unused sidewalks into parks. A coffee house is also nearby, but it is not installed there artificially, but in a way arose there in response to the needs of

the community, climate and location.

OCEANSIDE DISTRICT. SAN FRANCISCO

This neighborhood, located on the west side of San Francisco in the Sunset district, is bound by the Pacific Ocean and the Golden Gate Park. Although territorially isolated from the rest of the city, it has retained overall style of the city. This neighborhood is known for it’s residential buildings with a few commercial buildings to serve the people of the area. Judah, the main street that goes through the district has a streetcar running on it at all times of the day. Being near the beach, the area has a big surf community as well as much art throughout the place.

LANDMARKS.These are usually substantial in size. Ones such as the Mission high school takes up almost a full block across from Dolores Park and is seen from all the way across the park as well

as down and up the street. The vertical element of landmarks tends to incorporate the surroundings better than low- lying landmarks. For example, the Golden Gate park,

although vast in size, is comparatively short and seems to end abruptly almost everywhere, creating a distinct boundary between park and the districts surrounding it. This is also

however due to the lack of connection between the park and the neighborhoods. Almost everywhere, there is a narrow sidewalk lining the edge of the park and cars parked

along the curb. During the night, for a regular person this is an undesirable place to be, as it is dark and unfriendly- looking, however during the day as well this edge pushes

people away either to the other side, or into the park where there are nicer paths to stroll along. One of the key points in the ocean beach master plan is to create a better

connection from the park to the beach. A landmark is also often a visual datum point that is even not always necessarily vital or even useful. It could be simply a distant point in

the skyline from which a person can orient themselves in the city. One landmark in a region (that is taller), more often than not, puts all other would- be landmarks in the

background. An example of this would be how the Mission High School and the Church on 19 street and Dolores are both on the side of Dolores park, however there is no

presence felt by the church, whereas the high school looms over the whole park. A landmark is often also determined, quite li terally by the point of view of a person. The freeway

that runs over Mission Creek for example, although not a landmark in any sense for the person traveling by car or viewing it from the side, is however one for the people that live

right near it. For the homeless it is a place of shelter, but even for other people around, it takes up most of the horizon, creates a great deal of shade and noise, making it an

unquestionable presence in the area.

PATHS.Paths can be lowered or raised from the ground surrounding it, but also can be distinguished by vegetation, or even material difference. Although physically, paths such as streets

can intersect many districts, they usually change in response to the style of the district.

Curious about the history of the Ocean Side district, I researched into the many ways this western part of the city has changed.Firstly, was the Oceanside district ever a more lively place? I had found that although the specific neighborhood had always been overwhelmingly residential, there was a great deal of more attractions in the western part of the city. Started up as Mooneysville by the sea in the 19t century, the beach area in the Richmond district was a squatter settlement until it becameeventually “Chutes by the Beach”- a famous boardwalk in 1913. Around the same time, there was a steam railroad built to bring people out from downtown out to the beach. Along with the Boardwalk, there was the Cliff House and the Fleishacker pool, once located near the zoo. These three attractions, along with the Sutro Railroad that served the area, attracted people out to the beach and demanded that there be a road connecting these three landmarks. The Great Highway was then built up in 1928- in order to protect the houses springing up nearby from being over swept with sand. The Great highway has since acted as an edge, somewhat containing human activity away from the beach, but also as a path used for cars, joggers, bikers and pedestrians.

Not only is the Oceanside district being transformed by the residents themselves, but the city had taken an interest in making major changes to the city’s western edge. Among the 6 proposals is one to make the connection between the Golden Gate Park and the Beach. As of now, there are only a few points of entry into the park which are mostly located on the Northern side. This prohibits a high level of vitality in this part of the park, and even promotes illegal activity which is evident walking through the South- Western corner of the park. Instead of having a fence that creates a definite boundary between the park and the beach, the path along the Great Highway should spill out into the park, where there could be a plaza or something

similar to attract people into the park.

U T O P I A B Y T H E B AY This district incorporates some of the design techniques deemed

important from Kevin Lynch’s “The Image of a City”. Parts of various

cities around the world were analyzed and taken as examples to

incorporate into the Utopia by the Bay. These example were

appropriated to the Utopia, but with consideration to the surroundings

and other elements, and modifying them to create a unique

characteristic to the district. The Utopia by the Bay is located on flat

land along side a closed-in bay, and is usually hidden from the coastal

fog. This would naturally make for an ideal neighborhood, however,

being somewhat isolated from the rest of the city, it is necessary for the

district to have it’s own strong commercial district that serves its

community (and not the interest of tourists), and a vital and unique

community.

[This middle- class district is characterized by it’s calm residential areas, the many parks and plazas, great transportation, vibrant music and art scene and a bustling commercial district.]

Parks:

Frisco Bulb- A semi- wild park that is a center for spontaneous art and

performance.

River Park- A quiet, walk- your- dog type neighborhood park.

Canal Park- The central park for the district.

Lookout Point- An isolated hill, with views overlooking the bay.

Major streets:

Ferry blvd.- 75 FT. wide, with light rail running down the middle. 2 lanes each way

and curbside parking.

Geary blvd.- 50 FT. wide street going from north to south with light rail running

down it as well. Curbside parking.

Bayside street- Main commercial street of the district. 50 FT. wide, with curbside

parking and one lane going each way.

The Bay Railroad freight line runs through the center of town. The main yard is

north across the Grey river and about two or three trips are taken daily (9 am-

9pm only) down to the layup serving the businesses of Bayside street. An

underpass is made under the tracks where Ferry blvd. crosses, so that traffic is not

congested.

The Ferry Building operates everyday from 6 am to 12 am and the “Skagit” ferry

takes up to 250 passengers. This is a 4 engine boat, 112 FT. long and goes up to 25

knots. (www.tacomascene.com/kalakala/wsf/index.html) The Ferry building

contains a ticket booth, 2 bathrooms, and 100 seats including the ones for the

café that spills out into the adjacent plaza.

Utopia by the Bay is approximately 10 feet up from sea- level everywhere except

for Lookout Point Park which is at an elevation of 30 FT.

Houses in the residential areas are 2 stories high (20 FT), mixed- use building in the

commercial district are 3 stories (25 FT), and the industrial buildings in across the

Grey River are 1 story high (20 FT).

Specifications

INSPIRATIONAL PLACES

In the Frisco Bulb park, there are

elements of both Albany Bulb

located in Berkeley and the

Martinez waterfront par. Just like the

Bulb in Berkeley, this one jets out

into the bay, but also had a path

that leads across a bridge to the

freight yard. In Martinez, this park by

the rails is used as a popular fishing

spot.

Wanting for the district to be

surrounded by water, I took

examples from Portland,

Moscow and even Houston for

the connections that are made between water and land. In the main

commercial district I wanted to make a way so that businesses could line the

street, but yet there would still be access to the shoreline behind. The Ferry

plaza provides such access, as does the set of stairs going down in between

the buildings on the east side of Bayside street. Elements such the walkway by

the water are influenced by similar places in Portland along the Columbia

river, and in Moscow along the Moscow river.

The commercial district on Bayside street resembles the 1960’s Fillmore district. There are many

music clubs, grocery stores, laundry mats and is full with mixed use- so that it is being used at

any time of the day or night. Similarly to town centers such as Amsterdam, there are a lot of

people walking, biking as the need for cars is lessened due to the self- sufficiency of the

neighborhood. The businesses are supplied with merchandise/ products through a train line

that branches off the mainline that goes through the district.

Ferry Building and Plaza. Café spills out onto plaza from within building. Water fountain in middle of plaza, 11 benches, 50 FT wide pier.

Main Business District. The Bayside street is 85 FT wide, including 10 FT sidewalks and 20 FT of space for the light rail. There is no curbside parking anywhere south of the intersection of Bayside and Ferry.

Underpass and East- side plaza. Following the example of the 4th ave. underpass in Tucson Az. two small plazas were brought close to the entrance to the tunnel, to make atmosphere surrounding underpass lively. This plaza has vegetation, and a small pool of water at the end.

Underpass and West- side plaza. The plaza on this side is connected partly to the market whose doors face out towards it. The plaza has seating, a fountain, and 3 built- in chess boards.

Water Walkway. A path from the main ferry plaza leads to this “concrete balcony” overlooking the bay. A place to get away from the crowds, it is also accessible through the alley- way in between two businesses.

Canal Park. Based on Dolores Park of San Francisco, this park is located in between the architecture school, residential, and business districts. There are two light rail stops coming from each way, and the park canal runs alongside the park. There is a fountain in the middle with pathways running radialy away from it towards the streets, and a large patch of grass for sports.

The underpass at Ferry blvd. follows close example to one located in Tucson Arizona. Instead of being dimly- lit, uncomfortable and attracting of crime, this underpass in designed in such a way that it is undesirable to do anything illegal. The tunnel is not only well lit up, but is also decorated with murals created by the people of the town which makes it more respectable and unique than a plain grey underpass. On both sides of the tunnel there are small little plazas that attract people and makes the area surrounding the tunnel more vibrant and pushes life closer to underpass, connecting the two sides better.

Although a railroad running straight through a neighborhood is considered to have a negative impact of the prices of the homes ad the safety of the area surrounding it, places such Santa Cruz and New Orleans prove otherwise. In both of these cities there are train tracks that run straight through people’s backyards, yet the communities are safe ones with little or no crime and the price of these houses is not significantly lower.

Provided is an example of a home in the Bywater district of New Orleans. This 3 bedroom, 2,384 sq. ft 2 bath house, located at 725 Lessept street (half a block from the railroad) was sold on August 1st 2012 for $354,000. A house similar to that one, located three blocks from the railroad (at 830 Congress street) is 2400 sq.ft. and was sold for $265,000 according to Trulia.com.

MISSION BAY

Observations

These decorative “portals”

that go through the wall are

an ideal place for pigeons

to congregate and sh*t on

the passing pedestrians. Not

only do they not add to the

design, but barbed wire has

been installed into each of

them to keep the pigeons

away.

The shape and design of the windows

creates interesting shadow/ light displays

throughout the space of the main hall.

The windows of the child-care center

however, are all the way to the ground,

something that would be uncomfortable

to be close to, especially for a child.

Although there are many

places to sit in front of this

student housing, many of

the benches are too far

from one another, thus

deterring human activity

and interaction.

The vitality of the

neighborhood would

greatly increase if there

was free passage

between the various

buildings and there were

no gates and other

obstacles preventing the

flow of people.

The covering of the parking garage not only adds

complexity to the monotonous grey concrete

frame of the parking garage, but also provides

shade from the sun. This metallic covering is

especially effective in the elevator lobby of the

parking garage. Instead of the lobby facing

inwards, as it is usually located, it is positioned

outward, where it can be naturally lit up and

pleasant to be wait in.

The way the building is split into two

elements perpendicular to the

shoreline makes for a nice view path

towards the bay.