Essay

Theories of Architecture and Urbanism [ARC 2224] PROJECT 2: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS ESSAY

TUTOR: Mr. Nicholas KELVIN CHIEW KAH KHENG 0311848

Introduction The intention of this essay is to compare and contrast the area chosen in Project 1, Rittenhouse Square, with the current Design Studio site, Petaling Street area to discover the contacts points in each area.

Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia is an open space located in central Philadelphia, surrounded by 19th Street, 18th Street and Walnut Street. Rittenhouse Square has quite a few famous historical building, such as the Holy Trinity Church, Rensselaer House, Barclay Hotel, and the Art Alliance which sponsors art exhibition, drama and poet readings.

Petaling Street area, on the other hand, is a street that intersected by Jalan Tun H.S Lee, or known as High Street, Jalan Hang Lekir, and Jalan Sultan. Petaling Street was not a landmark until the major transformation in 2003 which provided a shaded pedestrian walkway. Throughout the time, Petaling Street has surrounded itself with several market, ranging from commonly known Centre Market and Pasar Karat to food stalls located along the streetway.

Comparision 1

Recreation Activity Perimeter of booth

Grid Planning

There are high to low intensity contact points ranging from exhibition to cart business in both of the areas. Rittenhouse Square has been an art district as early as 1928, the first contacts point from Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia is located in the complex itself, which houses the famously known Rittenhouse Square Fine Art Show annually, accommodated by both students and artist across the districts, since Philadelphia is one of the oldest city that adopts grid city planning system, the linearity with contact points of the Rittenhouse Square are relatively in high intensity, thus optional activities between public and the strip of fine arts booth that held along the perimeter of Rittenhouse Square contributes chance contacts, whilst in turn generates passerby around where passive contacts ‘see and hear’ takes place. Besides the Fine Arts Exhibition, the internal square occasionally filled with recreational activities node, where moderate amount of people may gather around and join in, creating the social / resultant activities.

On the other hand, Petaling Street area shows more differences than similarity to the former. Unlike Rittenhouse Square, Petaling Street area has its nodes scattered around the

places, namely Kasturi Walk, Centre Market and Jalan Petaling. Though both Rittenhouse and Petaling have relatively high intensity of activities, Petaling Street area has more necessary activities than the other, due to the different intention of the pedestrian and the dissimilarity in city planning, that it has lesser linearity whereas one need to travel from a place to another, and the users are mainly tourist and local that is purposely approach the place for food or personal use items. However, both areas shares the same contacts points, where both has users travel in groups, mainly acquaintances and friends from business districts, with chance contacts between vendors and buyer and passive contacts from passerby that attracted by the activities happening inside the node.

Comparison 2

Rouge Restaurant

Pietro Cole Oven Pizza

Barclay Hotel

In Rittenhouse Square, Rouge Restaurant and Pietro Cole Oven Pizza both has moderate intensity of activities. Since Rouge Restaurant that is located along the 18 th Street is conveniently close to the Historical Barclay Hotel, it attracts travellers and hotel stayers to visit. The contact points are relatively people travel in groups and mainly close friends to enjoy the vibes, whereas the transparency of the restaurant faรงade contributes to the passive contacts giving the diners viewability from inside to outside. Not to mention the abundance of parking area generates more passerby to the restaurant. On the other hand,

Pietro Cole Oven Pizza is located at the commercially known walnut street along with a strip of restaurant including Mcdonald’s, it attracts shoppers around the areas as it is the only restaurant that offers frontage seating along the strip. The contact points for this restaurant are essentially passive and chance contacts as it provides seatability for individual shopper to enjoy quick meal on-the-go.

Jln Tan Siew Sin Jln Tun Tan Cheng Lock

At Petaling Street area, Lai Foong Restaurant and Soong Kee Beef Noodle both shares a fairly similar contact point with the former in Rittenhouse Square. Both restaurants located along Jalan Tun H.S. Lee, Lai Foong at the corner of intersection with Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock, while Soong Kee at the corner of intersection with Jalan Tan Siew Sin. Thus the frontage allows passerby’s passive contacts from outside to inside, along with the crowded situation which attracts passive contacts from the road traffics, that shows sign of high intensity activities across both restaurant. However, due to both famously known for their beef noodle, it is presumably necessary activities takes place here by most of user in the restaurants, and the daily go-to places by office acquaintances and friends. Although the walkability is lacking in this site, the location at the cross junction resolves the issue, where office mates would meet and greet each other along the junction way.

Comparison 3 Holy Trinity Church

Rittenhouse Hotel Two Twenty Library

Distinct strip of road generates different types of contact points in Rittenhouse Square, the Church of Holy Trinity located in 19th Street situated at the tip of the square which alongside with The Rittenhouse Hotel and Two Twenty Library. As Christianity is the dominant religion in Philadelphia, along with less diverge culture and race difference of Western city, while Holy Trinity Church serves as the landmark of Rittenhouse Square, Church contains all-time high intensity contact activities around it. Due to the open car park located behind the church, it became the journey to the hotel and the library, hence serve as the landmark attraction to the traveller and readers, and photo takers stop by that generates passive contact point. Holy Trinity Church also serves as a node for social / resultant activities, while chance contacts may become closer friendship as discussions are held among church goers, and close friends may go in a group to the church.

In Petaling Street site, Sri Maha Temple and Guan Di Temple shares the same location along Jalan Tun H. S. Lee, one opposite to each other. Both temple has less intensity of activity due to the location of the lower end on the famous Jalan Tun H. S. Lee, along with the diverse culture and racial ethnicity in Malaysia. Meanwhile, passive contacts are drastically lesser than the former city, due to the cramming of vehicle on the street, causing public traffic to avoid the specific lane next to the crowded Jalan Petaling. As contrast to Holy Trinity Church, the temples located near to the car park are not utilised as pedestrian’s walking area, as pedestrian tends to spread across the space. Meanwhile, both temple has a small amount of avid prayer and goers, along with travellers, which these interest and habits of activities increases the chance contacts encounters between local and tourist outside the temple. However, as different time changes, family goers during festival period to both of

the temple shows high intensity contact points inside the temple with different programs takes place, including the festival marching, etc.

Comparison 4

Zebra Crossings

Bus Stations

In Rittenhouse Square, the bus station and zebra crossing are both spans across the perimeter of the square area. The 4 bus stations are located from Walnut Street, to 19 th Street and 18th Street, with moderate intensity Close Contact activities spread across the stations. Since the grid city planning is adopted, the passerby or tourist would easily glimpse through the open area of Rittenhouse Square and recognised the Bus Station, thus Passive Contacts intensity is stronger than Close Contacts. Close Contacts ranging from friends to close friends would increase due to the amount of group travel together, as the bus station is spread evenly. The zebra crossing contributes a significant amount of contact points to the bus station, as the stations are spreads across, the zebra crossroad connects the dots together, and hence driving more and more people to the bus station, creating higher intensity contacts.

In Petaling Street area, the bus station and zebra crossing are spans in different area, the bus stations are spans on upper end across Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock, while the zebra crossroads are situated along Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock to lower end of the area. With distinction between these two city area, the Petaling Street area are formed of condensed planning, and thus Passive Contacts is in low intensity, whereas the sight of pedestrian is blocked. Although bus stations are more than the former city, the contact points are lesser in these stations, due to the abundant of bus stations that people that tends to spread across the stations. While decreases the amount of people onboard due to the lack of bus stations on the lower half of the city. However, zebra crossing plays a huge role in Petaling Street area by connecting people to the upper half of the city.

Conclusion The city planning of Rittenhouse Square and Petaling Street are distinct from each other, although both are known famously for its arts district, Rittenhouse Square shows more evidence in the optional activities as the linearity of the city planning affects the pedestrian travelling style from one place to another, meanwhile the pedestrian in Philadelphia are more keen to art learning platform, and are willing to approach student or others more freely, thus enhance the chance contacts between each other and hence develop into closer relationship. On the other hand, cultural difference of Western and Eastern country should be taken into account in this comparison, as shown in Rittenhouse Square, the passive contacts are more as it encourage people to sit outside of restaurant and hence they ’see

and hear’ the exterior more than the diners inside. As it is known more for the optional activities in Philadelphia, pedestrian tends to wander some areas before reaching the destination, thus passive contacts is higher.

On the other hand, Petaling Street area, shows dense city development, and linearity is interrupted to the pedestrian, thus necessary activities are higher as pedestrian tends to proceed directly to the destination without wandering around the area, and the famous area are spread out across the area, each with own car parking area. The lack of bus station on the lower end area also decrease the amount of passive contacts, presumably the lower end area shows more friends and family travel in group, since most user that travel to Petaling Street to look for food in group. Whilst the upper end is more in individual travel sense, since upper area is business district. Thus the lower end has more close contacts than the rest of the area.

Therefore, each of the city shows different sign of activities ranging from moderate to high intensity, while the contacts point are more in chance contacts and passive contacts, along with some close contacts which users are travel in groups.

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