Community Practice Portfolio Spring '21

Community Practice

Sarah Jane Visnick Spring ‘21

Contents INTRODUCTION & INTENTION COMMUNITY PORTRAIT WORST CASE SCENARIO DESIGN FIRM PRECEDENTS BUILDING YOUR C O L L A B O R AT I V E PRACTICE THE URBAN CHALLENGE

Introduction

SARAH JANE VISNICK W E L L A P, L E E D G R E E N A S S O C I AT E

I am an architectural designer who carries the notion that the built environment is capable of positiely impacting day to day life.

With the end user always in mind, research, collaboration and empathy should always lead the design process. I look forward to indulging in the spirit of community practice.

Beverly, MA 01915 sarahjanevisnick@gmail.com 978-578-9290 LinkedIn Inclusion & Environment Creative Cloud, Revit, CAD, Enscape, Archicad, SketchUp, Rhino

E D U C AT I O N 2023

Master’s of Architecture

Bo st o n A rc h i t e c tura l College A n t i c i p at e d 2 0 2 3

2020

Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Interior Design En d i c o tt C ol le ge , Cla s s of 20 20 Ho n o r s S c h ol a r 3.8

EXPERIENCE 2021

Visnick & Caulfield 222 Berkeley St, Floor 2, Boston MA Designer | January ‘20 - Present Corporate Design with a Focus in Law Firms

• • • • • •

2019

C ol l a b o r at e wi th ONE Des i gn fi rms to exec ute con struction docume n tation an d ob se rvation Man age sc h e d uli ng & i ntera c ti ons w i th ma teri al ve n dors D eve lo p d r aw i ng s ets & obs erve the c ons truc ti on proce ss C re a t e re n d e ri ngs & des i gn pres enta ti ons Pa r t i c i p a t e i n work pla c e s tra tegy a s s es s ments & change man age me n t Mai n t ai n c o m pa ny blog a nd web pres enc e

Olson Lewis Architects 17 Elm St, Manchester by the Sea, MA Intern | August ‘19 - December ‘19 Lab & Biosciences

• • • •

C o n t r i b u t e d t o a des i gn tea m whi c h s pec i a li z ed in lab facilitie s Fac i l i t a t e d c o ns truc ti on doc umenta ti on a nd mate rial spe cification D eve lo p e d m a rketi ng ma teri a ls th rough Photos hop an d In D e sign A tt e n d e d c l i e n t meeti ngs , c ons truc ti on obs ervation

Intention

COMMUNITY PRACTICE S K I L L S & VA L U E S

working

community practice

Community practice is about developing a non-traditional workflow. How can a designer pause their creative brain to listen to the wants and needs of a community? How do designers learn to work with one another?

These are the questions we aim to resolve here. At the end, we will be better designers, better listeners, and better teammates. engaging transforming

listening

working together creating relationships

challenging status quo

making a difference

C O L L A B O R AT I O N

C O M M U N I C AT I O N

“the action of working with someone to create or achieve something”

“the successful conveying or sharing of ideas and feelings”

C R E AT I V I T Y

COMMUNITY

“the use of the imagination or original ideas, especially in the production of an artistic work”

to engage with the design process from a place of listening and understanding (not projecting)

VISUAL / GRAPHIC R E P R E S E N TAT I O N

CONFLICT RESOLUTION

“the use of [diagrams] to visually display, clarify and interpret information”

“for two or more parties to find a peaceful solution to a disagreement”

Community Portrait

The intent of this project was to create a community portrait for our class. The class decided to break the portrait down into individual stills, which would be designed for one another. I created an individual portrait for Brandon by collaging his original photography which illustrated his stories of travel, family, and religion.

P R O C E S S

Photography by Brandon Hervia Media & Methods : Collage by Photoshop T i m e l i n e : O n e We e k

P R O D U C T

Worst Case Scenario

Teams of 5 were given a “worst case scenario” and thus tasked with practicing conflict resolution to come to an agreeable decision.

Our team was positioned as a planning board, & asked whether or not we would let a large corporation come into our town, displacing affordable housing, but potentially drawing i n c o m e t o t h e c i t y. We a r r a n g e d o u r v a l u e s a n d sorted our thoughts as follows.

The need for public housing was a non negotiable that we began our journey with as a collective planning board. But we also recognised the positive impact of potential new businesses coming in and so we established a core set of values that we used to base our decisions on. Arguments for both sides were made on how they addressed each of these core values.

New construction is disruptive to the environment and local wildlife

There is already an existing culture within this occupiable space Housing is a basic human n e e d , r e g a r d l e s s o f income Public housing is already at risk - new income for c i t y m a y b e p r o m i s i n g

HOUSING MUST S TAY

A new build will bring in a new community, with a new culture

Jobs within the local realm lower carbon emissions by reducing commutes

A new build will bring revenue into the city which may fund benefits for other organizations

BUSINESS MUST COME

Public housing brings in little to no revenue Bringing in a new community may support gentrification New business will bring new jobs, and may offer employment to the currently unemployed Housing costs within the city may rise as a result of gentrification making living less affordable

New business will bring in revenue

New business may bring it’s own skilled workers, displacing local workers Networking and community may bring new opportunities

Revenue from the new business may support the already struggling public housing budget

Wo r k b y : K y l e M u l l a n e y, A l e x a n d e r H e l l m a n n , S a m u e l Wa i t e , I m r a n M . K h a n , S a r a h J a n e V i s n i c k Media & Methods : Illustrator T i m e l i n e : O n e We e k

Each one of our core values was impacted by either side of the worst c a s e s c e n a r i o . We d i d a c o s t / v a l u e analysis and ranked each value accordingly, to produce an analytical view of the team’s values. Based on this analytical assessment, we concluded that we are open to new businesses so long as they meet certain requirements which contribute to the community (including but not limited to re-building public housing).

If the conditions are not met, the business will not be welcomed.

Design Firm Precedents

Our group of 5 broke out into 3 teams to investigate different community based design f i r m s a c r o s s t h e c o u n t r y. We w e r e a s k e d t o assess their impact area, and make precedent analysis on some of their projects. Alexander and I analyzed LA Mas and distributed the research, then put together the presentation together, using a layout that Sam had created beforehand.

LA MAS

LA MÁS DESIGNS AND BUILDS INITIATIVES THAT PROMOTE NEIGHBORHOOD RESILIENCE AND ELEVATE THE AGENCY OF WORKING CLASS COMMUNITIES OF COLOR. THEY ENVISION A NORTHEAST LOS ANGELES WHERE COMMUNITIES OF COLOR HAVE EQUITABLE ACCESS TO THE POWER AND RESOURCES NEEDED TO SHAPE THEIR FUTURES.

PROJECT TYPES COLLABORATIVE COMMUNITY ENG AG EMENT

SMALL BUSINESS

ACTIONABLE I M PA C T M A P PROJECTS COMPLETED IN 2018

PUBLIC REALM

A L T. HOUSING

INCLUSIVE

ONGOING PROJECTS PAST PROJECTS

LA MAS TARGET DEMOGRAPHICS TWO + OTHER

EST. AS A UR BAN DESI GN NON-PR O F I T OR GANI ZAT ION

S TRE E T I M P RO VE M E N T P RO J E CTS

C RE ATE D TH E FIR S T S T R AT E G IC P L AN , RE F O C U S ING O N P O L ICY & ARCH I TE CT U R E . FO C U S O N AF F O RD AB LE HO U S ING A ND S MA L L BUSINESS SUPPORT

2012

2015

2016

ASIAN NATIVE AM. BLACK

https://data.census.gov/cedsci/

2013 C O -E X E CUTI VE D I RE C TO R TO B RI N G E X P E RI E N C E I N P U B LI C P O LI CY & C O M M U N I TY E N G AG E M E N T

CALIFORNIA, USA

IMAGE BELONGS TO LA MAS

IMAGE BELONGS TO LA MAS

IMAGE BELONGS TO NOUS ENGINEERING

THE BACKYARD HOMES PROJECT IS AN INITIATIVE LAUNCHED IN 2019 AFTER THREE YEARS OF STUDY AS A MEANS TO ADDRESS THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING CRISIS. WITH THE GROWTH OF THEIR FOUNDATION SUPPORT, THEY WERE ABLE TO DEVELOP THIS IN-HOUSE INITIATIVE. THE PROGRAM ENABLES THE AVERAGE HOMEOWNER TO CONTRIBUTE TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING. LA MAS HELPS HOMEOWNERS FINANCE, DESIGN, PERMIT, AND CONSTRUCT AN ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT (ADU) WHICH THEY WILL THEN RENT TO A SECTION 8 TENANT.

STUDY

C O VI D -1 9 RE S P O N S E

FIN A N C I A L F L IP : MA JORITY R EV EN U E C A ME F ROM FOUN D AT I O N S, GOV ERNMEN T, AN D P R I VAT E DON ATION S

CIT Y OF LOS ANG E LE S ADU PILOT PR O J E C T

220 017 17

2018

AWAR D ED H U D SECTION 4 CA PACI T Y BUI LDING G RA N T F O R C OMMUNITY DEV ELOPMENT AND AF FOR D A BL E H OUSING. A L LOWED FOR KI CKOFF OF B A C K YA R D H OME RESEA RCH PR OJECT

CASE

S TO P P E D ACCE P TI N G A P P L IC A NT S T O T HE B AC K YARD H O M E S P RO JE C T A ND C HO S E 5 H OM E O WN E RS TO S TA R T C O NS T R U C T IO N

2019 B AC K YARD H O M E S I N I TI ATI VE P ROJ E C T L AUN C H

2020

Building your Practice

In our groups of five, we were asked to design our ideal design firm. With a focus on public interest design, we pursued a nont r a d i t i o n a l b u s i n e s s m o d e l . We e x p l o r e d i d e a s of partnership, work-flow, and urban scale as we negotiated one another’s wants and needs.

My primary role in this project was organizing the team and creating content to communicate our ideas visually.

Wo r k b y : K y l e M u l l a n e y, A l e x a n d e r H e l l m a n n , S a m u e l Wa i t e , I m r a n M . K h a n , S a r a h J a n e V i s n i c k Photography by Ian Howard Media & Methods : Illustrator, InDesign T i m e l i n e : T w o We e k s

POBA I L (n o un ) co mmun ity ; the pe o pl e of a distr ict o r co un try co n side r e d co l l e ctiv e ly, e spe cial ly in th e co n te xt o f so cial val ue s an d r e spo n sib il itie s

URBAN DEVELOPMENT

RESEARCH BASED DESIGN

COMMUNITY EN GAGEMENT

URBAN RESILIENCY

MASTER PLANNING

PROBONO WORK

PROJECT CONSULTING

COMMUNITY

URBAN INTERVENTIONS

ADVOCACY COLLABORATIVE

INFRASTRUCTURE

ARCHITECTURAL

POLICY ENGAGEMENT

DEVELOPMENT

SERVICES

& DESIGN

wh o we are

THE MODERN C I TY DEMANDS E Q UAL I TY AND OPPORTUN I TY. AT POBA I L W E USE OUR EXPER I ENCES TO CREATE A FRAME WOR K FOR URBAN DEVELOPMENT, SO THAT EACH NE W PROJ ECT CAN BEST SERVE I TS COMMUN I TY. A COLLECT I VE OF ARCH I TECTS W I TH A PRACT I CE FOCUSED ON I NTE G R I TY, CREAT I V I TY, AND COLLABORAT I ON .

W E PARTNER W I TH LOCAL DES I G N I N I T I AT I VES TO I NT I MATELY UNDERSTAND A COMMUN I TY ’ S NEEDS AND BU I LD I NCLUS I VE SPACES .

ALEXANDER HELLMANN

SARAH JANE VISNICK

IMRAN KHAN

SAMUEL WAITE

KYLE MULLANEY

RESEARCH PRINCIPAL

MANAGING PRINCIPAL

DESIGN PRINCIPAL

DESIGN PRINCIPAL

DESIGN PRINCIPAL

AIA

AIA, WELL AP

AIA, NCARB

AIA, LEED AP

AIA

CREATIVITY VS

USER

INTERDISCIPLINARY

URBAN

PROJECT

FUNCTIONALITY

EXPERIENCE

COLLABORATION

DEVELOPMENT

MANAGEMENT ENIVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

bu siness model & causal loop

Graphic Drawn by Imran. M. Khan

NEGATIVE FEEDBACK LOOP

POSITIVE FEEDBACK LOOP

G r a p h i c D r aw n by S a m u e l Wa i t e

Often when community development is underta ken, a host of complicated factors converge. If these influences are not manageD, the local development process can lose a human-centric motivation, and begin a cycle that cascades negatively.

With care and INTENTION, community development can be sheparded toward GROWTH WHICH uplifts and engages the community. AS A RESULT, WE focus on workinG WITH communities that FIND THEMSELVES AT A DEVELOPMENTAL TURNING POINT.

ORGANIZATIONAL MANAGEMENT

designer

research social media lead

m a n ag i n g

research

p r i n c i pa l

p r i n c i pa l

lead

community liaison

pr oj ec t arch i t ec t

design design

p r i n c i pa l

p r i n c i pa l

p r oj e c t architect

designer designer community

design

liaison

p r i n c i pa l

designer community liaison

p r oj e c t architect

designer designer

designer

Graphic Drawn by Alexander Hellmann

T h e P o b a i l f i r m c o n t r ac t l o o k s t o s e t t h e s ta n da r d s i n w h i c h e m p l oy e e s w i l l c o n d u c t b u s i n e s s w i t h e x t e r n a l a n d i n t e r n a l pa r t i e s . I t i s a s e t o f g u i d e l i n e s t h at e s ta b l i s h e s t h e f r a m e w o r k i n w h i c h w e m u s t h o l d o u r s e lv e s ac c o u n ta b l e f o r t h e wo r k w e p r o d u c e , a n d t h e way t h at w e t r e at o n e a n ot h e r . A m o n g ot h e r t h i n g s , t h e s e co r e p r i n c i p l e s fo c u s o n : • R e s p e c t o f va ry i n g o p i n i o n • Eq ua l o p p o r t u n i t y • E n c o u r ag e m e n t o f g r ow t h • I n d i v i d ua l ac c o u n ta b i l i t y • A t e a m f i r s t at t i t u d e • A lway s p r ov i d i n g yo u r b e s t e f f o r t T h e s e c o r e va l u e s a r e e x pa n d e d u p o n i n t h e l a r g e r t e a m c o n t r ac t w h i c h w e e x p e c t a l l f i r m m e m b e r s t o s i g n d u r i n g t h e i r o n b oa r d i n g. P l e a s e f e e l f r e e t o r e v i e w a s w e h av e p u b l i s h e d t h i s i n f o r m at i o n t o b e ac c e s s i b l e by a l l o f t h o s e i n t e r e s t e d i n l e a r n i n g m o r e a b o u t P o b a i l .

e x ampl e project

T h e URBAN FARM w h e r e b e t t e r c i t y m e e t s n at u r a l l i f e ” , h a s b e e n t h e co r e i d e a throughout the design. A green urban va l l e y c o m p l e x w i t h a ‘ s t r e e t l a n d s c a p e pa r k ’ a s a h i g h l i g h t i n t h e a r c h i t e c t u r a l s pa c e , i s s i t t i n g r i g h t a b o v e o n e o f t h e m o s t u s e d m e t r o s tat i o n s i n S h a n g h a i .

INTERDESIGN ASSOCIATES

PARTNERS : MINDSCAPE LANDSCAPE DESIGN, Studio Taku Shimizu Inc,

LOCAL ARCHITECT : NIKKEN SEKKEI

YEAR OF COMPLETION : 2017

LOCATION : NEW YORK

The Urban Challenge

The design firm that we created in the last assignment was tasked with engaging the community to create a piece of built environment that would positively impact their d a y t o d a y l i v e s . We c h o s e t h e l e n s o f p u b l i c health and engaged with the people of Roxbury Crossing to determine their wants and needs.

Ultimately, we proposed a skatepark.

After our class was geared towards the Southwest Corridor, our group took an interest in Roxbury Crossing.

After some initial site analysis, we narrowed our lens down to public health and youth wellbeing.

This is a public health anaylsis map which highlights green spaces, rec centers and playgrounds in the area.

G r a p h i c D r a w n by S a m u e l Wa i t e

We t h e n d i d a n a n a l y s i s o n S t a k e h o l d e r s t h r o u g h t h i s l e n s , a n d m a d e an action plan on how to engage with the community.

O R I G I N A L S I T E A N A LY S I S REVEALED A PLAY DESERT - WE WONDERED WHAT WE COULD GIVE THE YOUTH COMMUNITY OF ROXBURY CROSSING

THE COMMUNITY TOLD UN-ENTERTAINED KIDS END UP IN TROUBLE. BI A RELEVANT ESCAPE FOR CAN BE FEW AND FAR BET WONDERED HOW TO IN ACCESSIBILITY & SA

SO SAM WENT AND ASKED

BICYC L E S H ARE P L AY S C A P E

PU

BL

IC

HE

A

H LT

AN AL YSI

S

WE ENGAGED WITH BIKES NOT BOMBS AS A COMMUNITY PA RT N E R

THE SECOND ENGAGEMENT SESSION FOCUSED US MORE ON S K AT E PA R KS T H A N O N A B I K E S H A R E .

W I T H I N T H E S K AT E PA R K I D E A , T H E G OA L B E C A M E C R E AT I N G SA F E S PAC E F O R YOUNGER COMMUNITY MEMBERS, S P E C I F I C A L LY S P A C E A W A Y F R O M DRUGS & GANGS

US THAT S OFTEN IKES ARE R KIDS, BUT TWEEN. WE NCREASE AFETY

COM

MU

NI

TY

SO KYLE AND SAM ASKED WHAT THAT M I G H T LO O K LIKE

SK

E TC

HES PROP

ED

L O

SK ATE PA R K

OS

CA

TIO N

IMPORTANT ITEMS INCLUDED BRIGHT / PLENTIFUL LIGHTING, CLEAR DESIGNATION OF A CHILDREN’S AREA (A MURAL PERHAPS), RAILS, HALF-PIPE, RAMPS, VERTICAL JUMPS, AND A PUMP TRACK

IN CONJ U NC TION W ITH T HE COMMU NITY OF ROXBU RY C ROSSI N G, POBAIL IS PROPOSING A SKATE PA R K .

Thank You