Community Center
Reconnecting the city to it’s port heritage
Approach
The initial approach to this proposal was analyzing the existing edge conditions of the site. Located in the La Boca neighborhood of Buenos Aires, this zone marks the edge of the “city proper”, the edge of the neighborhood itself, the hard edges of the Riachuelo River and the levee, the highway, and the frayed edges of the surrounding informal settlements.
The city itself is disconnected from the water, utilizing it’s highly contaminated coast for industry rather than recreation.
This proposal is intended to break down these edges and re-imagine the levee on site as a public boardwalk to reconnect the city with the water.
The geometry of the proposal is derived from the movement of the existing highway, designed to mediate the edge conditions on site in order to provide solutions for the two main demographics in the area: the gentrified area to the north and the people of the shantytowns to the south.
The in-between
The space between the programed spaces and the multipurpose space becomes the cornerstone of activity and circulation.
Form
The curvilinear ramp acts as an extension of the levee, born of the geometry of the highway. The composition is designed to embrace the people of the informal settlement, who are so often forgotten by the city. By facing the shantytown and creating a large open plaza, this proposal works to welcome and accept these people by providing flexible, open spaces to be utilized as necessary.
Structure
The bridge itself becomes a crucial tool for the project as it acts as the shelter and structure for the large multipurpose space. The multipurpose space hangs from the bottom of the highway using a tensile system to account for natural movement from the bridge. By using the highway (a typically disconnecting intervention) as the unifying element for the whole project, the space beneath becomes activated with activity to reconnect the city with the water.
