Portfolio.
Contents.
02 03 04 05 06 07
CITIES OF TOMORROW
Postgraduate Design Dissertation
Semester-III
UoM-2024
ECCLES
ECO-HUB
Masterplan - Studio
Semester-II
UoM-2024
POLLARD STREET REGENERATION
Urban Design - Studio
Semester-I
UoM-2023
ANCHORAGE
Undergrad - Design Thesis
Semester-X
SAP-2022
THE INTERLUDE
Urban Design - Studio
Semester-IX
SAP-2022
THE STITCH
Urban Design - Studio |TIME PROBLEM
Semester-IX
SAP-2022
THE KALóS PAVILION
Contemporary Process in Architectural Design
Semester-VIII
SAP-2021
CITIES OF TOMORROW 01
Cities consume 60-80% of the world’s resources and produce 75% of greenhouse gas emissions (UNEP, 2020), highlighting the need for resilient, sustainable urban systems. The circular economy (CE) offers a solution, focusing on reducing waste and improving resource use through reuse, repair, recycling, and regeneration. By adopting CE principles, cities can minimize waste, lower resource dependency, and become more sustainable hubs of innovation’
With a vision to transform the industrial island, St. Philip’s Marsh into a vibrant, resilient, and sustainable neighbourhood as an exemplar of circular urban design in Bristol. By seamlessly integrating resource-efficient systems, advanced green infrastructure, and a revitalized public realm with natural and technological solutions, this visionary proposal will create a model of urban synergy and innovation, redefining the future of city living.
ST. Philip’s Marsh, Bristol
The community corridor features modular residential mixed-use spaces prioritizing community living, social housing, and flexible co-living options. Key ground-level areas are designated for commercial use to enhance public engagement and neighbourhood interaction.
The Knowledge Quarter is a dynamic hub for collaboration, innovation, and sustainable learning, focused on circular practices. It includes a variety of facilities such as offices, schools, labs, incubators and multi-purpose spaces for seminars and community activities, all promoting Circular Economy (CE) practices.
The Environmental Corridor is a sustainable zone designed for waste and energy management, promoting a self-sufficient, circular community. It links energy and waste recovery facilities with recycling hubs and includes community spaces for leisure, repair workshops, and second-hand retail. Advanced systems for energy and water treatment, such as solar loops, wind turbines, and biogas stations, are also integrated.
The Green Corridor is a sustainable loop connecting key green infrastructure spaces to the surrounding neighbourhood and city. It includes the revitalized Sparke Evans Park, urban farming, aquaponics, green cafés, and mobility hubs with bike-sharing, EV charging stations, and multi-level parking. This area promotes nature, community, and sustainable mobility for a resilient neighborhood.
The Blue Corridor connects the neighbourhood to the Avon River-front through a ferry network and bridges. It features a landscaped promenade that serves as public space and incorporates advanced green infrastructure for effective flood protection. This area enhances environmental resilience and strengthens community connections through its eco-friendly design.
capturing stormwater to manage runoff and mitigate flooding.
SITE CONDITION
01. Landuse and Active Frontages
02. Route Hierarchy and Connections
03. GI, BI and Public Realm Connections
The final design proposal delivers an highly resilient and self sufficient innovative neighbourhood implementing 8 design objectives through adaptive, looping and regenerative actions
DESIGN STRATEGY + PROGRAM
SUSTAINABLE SYSTEMS
ECCLES ECO-HUB 02
Eccles site, is a historic town to the west of Manchester city centre, strategically located amongst Media city and Salford Quays. With the Manchester Ship canal to its south it sits facing the Trafford industrial park. The town’s transport hub, including tram, bus, and rail services, along with the M602 motorway, underscores its potential as a prime site for development, reflecting its unique character and promising future.
The aim is to revive and reconnect the town centre to the waterfront with a sustainable, vibrant, mixed-use development that embraces industrial heritage and integrates a eco-park. This dynamic space will foster community connectivity and act as a green barrier to Trafford Park Industrial Estate. The project will transform Eccles into a key spot in harmony with nature and its unique industrial character.
The waterfront has been designed as a promenade that connects various activities, enhancing the site’s heritage and natural beauty. The revitalized canal edge introduces new landmarks, emphasizing internal and external views and connections. Dense vegetation and new green infrastructure along the promenade mitigate industrial noise and visual barriers from the Trafford side, providing spaces for relaxation and transit.
Eccles Eco Hub envisions a dynamic transformation, rejuvenating the town centre with a vibrant, sustainable district that blends industrial heritage with lush, biodiverse green spaces. By revitalizing the waterfront and enhancing community connectivity, we aim to turn Eccles into a landmark destination where urban vitality meets natural harmony.
The design concept aims to strengthen the town centre with an active heritage core leading towards the green edge of the canal, introduce new residential developments to the west, and create innovative office, and mixed-use spaces to the east. This approach enhances connectivity between the zones and the waterfront, seamlessly integrating with the surrounding context.
Spatial Concept
POLLARD STREET REGENERATION
The design aims to establish Holt Town as the dynamic heart of the east, offering high-quality public spaces, amenities, and housing infrastructure to support a vibrant lifestyle centred around living, working and leisure.
Introduce new and engaging programs that celebrate Holt Town’s industrial heritage and unique historical features, brining new life into the area. Highlight and honour the existing and past industrial character of the mills, canal, and tram, employing context-responsive design to seamlessly blend Holt Town into its neighbouring development areas.
The design seamlessly integrates multiple layers, creating a well-connected layout that establishes a clear hierarchy of spaces with legible circulation routes. The activated building functions breathe life into the site, transforming the previously derelict and unused areas of Holt Town , Pollard Street into a vibrant, green neighbourhood . This new development interacts harmoniously with the neighbouring context and developments, while also strategically directs its functions and uses towards the canal, utilizing visual cues and enhancing the public realm around the site.
The canal front serves as the primary public realm, actively connecting all major pedestrian routes. The Triangle Park offers a serene environment, featuring an artistic wall to the west and a water element that enhances its tranquillity. Lush green vegetation and thoughtfully placed street furniture create inviting spaces for users to relax and engage with the canal front, offering scenic views for both cyclists and pedestrians traveling along the Ashton Canal towpath.
Pedestrianised Cavalier and Pollard street, which connect cycle lanes to the canal, feature dedicated lanes for diverse uses. These streets are thoughtfully designed with planned green buffers that serve multiple purposes. The green buffers act as privacy screens for street dining areas, enhance the aesthetic appeal, and provide way-finding cues for commuters. Additionally, these buffers incorporate street furniture, contributing to a more organized and pleasant environment for all users to rest and move through these streets.
Landuse and Active Frontages 02. Route Hierarchy and Connections
GI, BI and Public Realm Connections
04 ANCHORAGE
Island grounds; as the name states is a huge parcel of land surrounded by the Coovum river, flowing around its outer rings. It’s the core wherein the city branches out towards a dense fabric of urban settlements. Every year, it becomes the prime location for annual tourist and trade shows, providing a platform for displaying the local craftsmen’s skills, exhibiting trades, and fairs. On some occasions, it has even held circuses and year-end cracker fairs in festive months. At other times, it sits neglected and deserted, except for mega sports events held at Chepauk in which the grounds serve as a parking lot for spectators.
With just the site having such diverse potential in bringing together huge wave of people at selective period of times along with its surrounding historical context, its a great step to activate it as an year around iconic anchor for the city and its people. The project focus is to, study and develop Island grounds into an icon that anchors and bridges people to the city, with the proposal of ‘An Iconic Cultural Hub’ that promotes and facilitates, culture, training, education, and entertainment.
COOUM
From the urban theory on people behaviour in public spaces by William Whyte the main interests and engagement between person and space is stimulated within the people themselves ,in terms of proximity and visibility of the designed spaces. This concept theory is adapted in term of anchoring diverse urban spaces on site.
Derived from the concept theory these anchors act as multicoloured pieces, which when put together forms the final big picture- An Iconic Public Space, bringing together the city and its people. Where one can enjoy their time while appreciating and embracing the past and future traces of the city. Each pause point has been intricately blended into the triangulation mapping covering every corner of this space seamlessly.
“An one stop destination to relax, play and gather”
PEOPLE THEORY PLACE THEORY +
REVITALIZED RIVER COOUM
MARINA BEACH SKYLINE
FERRY DOCKS
THE INTERLUDE
Chennai central stretch is known for its rich heritage buildings, multi modes of transportation, identity, etc.,Over the years due to the increase in demand and to cater to the growing user population central has become a major multi-modal transit hub with the introduction of the metro rail. This transit hub has the potential to be a major social centre and expression of civic identity and local pride.
The proposal aims to bring back the VIBRANT CHARACTER that has been lost in the frequent need to satisfy the present, 3 degrees of interventions are to be implemented
1st degree RECONNECT--- focuses on revitalizing the connectivity between people and place in which time plays a driving factor that decides the new framework and linkages.
2nd degree REPROGRAM--- links and adds on programs that aims to bring back the lost site character of the site.
3rd degree REVIVE--- is the final main aim that falls has the resultant of the degree 1 & 2 forming A VIBRANT CITY CENTRE,that adapts and reflects the needs of the past,present and future
The design proposal consists of 4 well chained zones that focuses on peopleplace - connect in its entirety and aims to provide a innovative solution for overcrowding with well integrated pause and play markers for the sites users.
Given its form and placement within the site ; the park plaza uses the visual context of the surrounding strong heritage to its added potential.
PARK PLAZA
Transit plays an important role in creating vibrant communal spaces. It can create engaging community pockets by supporting existing active clusters, as well as providing a link for new activities and services. A transportation hub need not be just a place for commute but can also become a setting for community interaction portraying a new image to the city, by accommodating a diverse range of programs for all users. It can resonate and connect the people to its place irrespective of any time period.
Keeping THE CONTEXT and THE PEOPLE, ALIVE and BREATHING, a form that blends and respects both the bustling movement, heritage, and historic elements of the site. A balance between the present and past image is reflected in the material, form and character of5 the overall proposal.
THE STITCH
Time Problem
The Time Problem project shifts focus from the overwhelming scale of transit facilities to the often-overlooked mobility needs of crucial users. Rather than prioritizing high-frequency commuters, the proposal emphasizes pedestrians, cyclists, and persons with disabilities within a 0.5 km radius between the Medical College and Pallavan Salai.
A 100m corridor extending from each campus serves as the intervention site, forming an efficient and responsive link that goes beyond mere transportation. This corridor functions as a dynamic transient space, fostering socio-spatial interactions while integrating seamlessly into the built and unbuilt environment.
The Stitch- Bridge Design
Govt. Medical College, Pallavan Salai, Chennai, India.
DESIGN DETAILS
The design prioritizes pedestrian-first mobility, enhancing accessibility and user experience without compromising road functionality or existing activities. It redefines transit as an inclusive, human-centric space that elevates connectivity, safety, and urban liveability.
THE KALóS PAVILION 07
THE KALóS PAVILION is designed with the concept of wind and dunes and its lines as a base framework that forms a structure that shades and allows people to relax while also aiming to prevent plastic littering in public spaces.
FORM DEVELOPMENT+CONCEPT
The roof structure gives an experience of sand dunes,through the smooth wavy lines running over the wooden structure providing shade,with play of light and shadow throughout the day. The seater is derived from the concept of deterioration of leaf , done by an eroded cube form with a spiral void in each,which acts as a plastic bottle collecting crate that prevents littering of public spaces.
Rhino-Grasshopper --Weaverbird Plug-In
ROOF STRUCTURE SCRIPT
SEATER FORM SCRIPT
P r i t h i k a K a l a i s e l v a n
prithika.kalai.off@gmail.com
+44 7407313224 | +91 7299331289