7th Semester Studio, "The Conveyor Belt"

In short, I did a site analysis of Venice Beach, CA and applied adaptive (p)re-use strategies in a specified zone along Venice Blvd, where the entrance to the canals are, to evoke a sense of activity and human walkability on a vacant, concrete, and car-centric part of Venice Beach. The focus of this studio was almost entirely on the research of the Venice infrastructure and community. The result of this research became an architectural and landscape reconfiguration strategy around the canal entrance renamed as "Belt Plaza". This zone was always empty throughout the entire week and constantly filled with traffic. So, the change I made was based on how European buildings primarily operate. All of the programs in each structure that surrounded "The Conveyor Belt" (Venice Blvd) primarily had some public program on the ground floor, with housing above. There were a specific set of rules put in place for environmental needs as well such as a dry and wet canal replenishment system, and a ground refurbishment plan. Below are a few highlighted drawings from said project, starting with some drawings based on my research and ruleset, and then ending with some from my final design.