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Jacob Essink Landscape Architecture Student

Portfolio 2021

Profile A landscape architecture student who has a passion for the outdoors and the sense of wonder it provides people. With experience in a broad scope of projects including adaptive reuse, urban design schemes, and concept and detailing, he has developed a knowledgeable foundation that will support the work of any landscape project. Combining abstract thinking with technical proficiency allows him to push projects further while focusing on the equitable and sustainable design aspects that benefit people and the environment.

Contact Phone

402-680-4403 Email

jacobessink@gmail.com Address

404 S 27th St Lincoln, NE 68510

Contents 01

Adaptive Reuse

Urban Design

Investigative Mapping

Concept and Detailing

Undergraduate Research

01 Adaptive Reuse

The adaptive reuse of abandoned or deteriorated landscapes provides the perfect scope for landscape architects to implement design interventions. These projects allow the ability to improve the urban and natural ecologies of an area. The project showcased in this chapter is the restoration of an abandoned water treatment facility in Chongqing, China into a public park. Above is a perspective view from inside the repurposed infrastructure within the park. 8

The challenge of the design was to effectively utilize the abandoned infrastructure, and transform the space into something that provided ecological sustainability and an enjoyable experience for all park visitors. The project focuses on utilizng the same tree species’ that are being used for reforestation efforts in China, in order to educate the public about these efforts and support the natural ecology of the region.

Park master plan.

Section cut through the park’s unique landscape.

Exploded axonometric of the repurposed infrastructure.

Plan view of the passive node.

The park contains a trail system and sport court area that provides users with expansive recreation opportunities. There are also two primary nodes in the park, the active node being the repurposed infrastructure containing an education center and native habitat, and the passive node which consists of the boardwalk overlooking the Jialing River, where users can walk amongst the tree canopy while moving along the trail.

02 Urban Design

Moving through the landscape architecture program, a variety of new project scopes are introduced. One such scope is urban design. One project that extensively explores the concepts and ideas of urban design is the revitalization of the Benson Historic District located in Omaha, NE. Below is an axonometric view of one of the key spaces in the redesigned district.

The objectives of the urban design scheme were to empower residents and build equality by developing a focus and identity for the space, as well as develop growth capabilites and envigorate existing assets of the historic district. The axonometrics shown below depict 3 different possible design interventions for the Benson area to improve spatial equity. The axonometric diagram to the right depicts the redeveloped urban design scheme for the Benson District.

The perspective on the left showcases the main corridor of the cultural center, which provides greenspace and introduces space for murals to empower local artists and the community through creative expression. The diagram above showcases the program distribution in the new urban design scheme. 15

03 Investigative Mapping

An important role for landscape architects and planners is to be able to investigate conditions of a project site through the use of mapping. Through GIS mapping, multiple different conditions and scales can be mapped and analyzed in order to develop a better understanding of existing conditons and help communicate design intention more effectively. The map shown showcases the city of Lincoln, NE with all of its city parks and trail systems. 16

Omaha Racial Dot Map Showing the distribution of racial makeups within the city of Omaha, NE.

Omaha Historical Districts Identifying the various historical districts within the city of Omaha, NE.

Omaha Social Vulnerability Index Identifying the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) rating at a block group scale in Omaha, NE.

Injustice Map of Pueblo, CO Showcasing historic redlining, the current demographic makeup, and the location of the local Superfund site.

Injustice Map of Dallas, TX Showcasing historic redlining, the current demographic makeup, and the location of the local Superfund site.

Injustice Map of Denver, CO Showcasing historic redlining, the current demographic makeup, and the location of the local Superfund site.

04 Concept and Detailing There are many important steps to the design process, but perhaps the most important are the inital steps of concept development and the final steps of design documentation. The diagrammatic sketch on the right showcases one method of exploring design interventions in a public space. The sketch on the top of page 21 shows the initial concept for a plaza design in downtown Lincoln, NE. The detail drawings below it show the final documentation of the initial concept.

The left diagram showcases the circulation and programs of the Chongqing park project, and the right diagram showcases the extreme topography of the site.

These axonometric diagrams depict different design interventions to create spatial equality within the city of Medellin, Colombia, as part of precedent research.

05 Undergraduate Research The UCARE undergraduate research program at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln provides a unique opportunity to work 1-on-1 with a professor to develop a research project. This project was done in collaboration with Professor Salvador Lindquist. The goal of the project is to catalog instances of lead-related environmental injustices from various Superfund sites, including the Omaha Lead Superfund site, and develop a framework for organizing remdial tactics that can be used by landscape architects to develop design interventions for these kinds of injustices. This research will culminate in the creation of a catalog containing these case studies and finalized framework. The map on the right depicts a heat map of soil-lead levels in the city of Omaha, NE.

In addition to the site analysis, multiple diagrams were developed to help communicate the conditions that affect the polluted sites. Above is a axonometric timeline of map layers depicting the various injustice events within the city of Omaha, NE.

Above is a hermeneutic diagram showcasing the different justice typologies used to develop the framework for organizing environmental justice tacticts. The following page is a spread pulled from the catalog to showcase the mapping analysis that is being done on the city of Omaha, NE.