i started thinking about this project about 3 years ago – what would La Villa and the east side of downtown look like if redeveloped. currently there are dozens of vacant sites in La Villa and downtown in desperate need of “something” other than the myriad of surface parking lots and abandoned buildings that dot the landscape currently.
at first i thought it would be cool to redesign/redevelop the entire urban neighborhood, but that became very cumbersome and mentally exhausting considering the sheer area and the lack of any viable building stock. the solution then is to choose a block or two at a time and propose a design for some kind of structure, whether it be mixed-use, residential, commercial, civic, etc. below is the start to the first project i’m proposing for the area. a mixed-use 25 story tower with an attached parking structure to serve the tower and public. retail components will take up the entire ground floor of the tower as well as the perimeter of the parking structure. the tower itself will be broken up into commercial office space, loft condominiums and loft apartments. the finishing touch is a sky garden for the residents’ use.
more images to come.
r | one studio architecture 