Design 9 Thesis Book

Design 9, Cities Under Climate Threat Trinity Towers by Steve Graziano Project presented to the Faculty of the Department of Architecture College of Architecture and the Built Environment Thomas Jefferson University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of BACHELOR OF ARCHITECTURE Arch 507 / Design 9 Professor Edgar Stach Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Fall 2024

Trinity Towers London, United Kingdom Steve Graziano

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Thesis Statement Trinity Towers is located in the Southwark borough of London, UK and is the merge between a need for green, PRIVACY, AND BETTER MENTAL HEATH in the borough . The towers are used for office spaces (2) and residential apartments (1). The office towers HOST restaurants, sky lounges, and other amentities. The tower features floor plates that encorporate sky gardens to bring fresh nature inside into the building’s walls. The sky gardens improve air quality, mental health, and overall quality of inhabitants of the building.

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Table of Contents Research Background

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Plan for London’s Green Space

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Urban Green Space Strategies

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High Rise Case Studies

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Vancouver House

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Aqua Tower

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Al Harma Tower

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Bosco Verticale Torre E

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Linked Hybrid

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London

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Design Intentions

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Site Selection

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Site Analysis

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Artificial Intelegence Inspiration

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Form Development

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Site Model

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Program Diagram

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Structural Diagram

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Schematics

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Site Plan

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Ground Floor Plan

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Ninth Floor Plan

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Section Perspective

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Longitudinal Section

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Renderings

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Physical Model

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Project Reflection

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Sources

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Research Background Green space was a major driving factor within my vision for the project as London is home to numerous amounts of parks within the city. There are many pocket parks that are spread within the cities center and larger green spaces on the outskirts of the city. The use of these parks are incorporated with everyday life as a means to give a break from the concrete and steel that are used in the city. Being able to incorporate more green space in a city will always be well received as it pushes for better overall mental health, and visual appearances.

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Plans for London’s Green Space With the growing threat of flood zones in London, green spaces are becoming more evident in their integration within the city. Not only do green spaces provide an escape from stones and concrete within the city, but they bring nature into everyday life of the city goers. However it also acts as a sponge for excess water and flooding to be absorbed into the ground. Sadiq Kahn, is the current mayor of London who states that currently London is at 48-51% green coverage, and takes the low end of the range as the state of London in 2024 and aims to hit the high end of the range b7 2050.

https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/193331/one-four-londons-green-spaces-breaches/

LONDON GREEN SPACE MAP 2024

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London Green Plan

Urban Green Space Strategies

With London continuing to grow, and pressure from the people and the government to create more green enviroments for the people of London, the Mayor, Sadiq Jahn, is pushing for more adaptive strategies and implmenatations moving forward. The mayors primary green goal is to have the city at 51% green and blue above coverage by the year 2050. The different methods as to how he plans to hit this goal are illustrated below.

With London continuing to grow, and pressure from the people and the government to create more green environments for the people of London, the Mayor, Sadiq Kahn, is pushing for more adaptive strategies and implementations moving forward.

The mayor’s primary goal is to have the city at 51% green and blue coverage by the year 2050. The different methods as to how he plans to hit this goal are illustrated to the left.

Green Roofs / Shrubbery and Trees

Vines and Green Walls

Streets with Bike Lanes Seperated from cars

by Trees / Green

LONDON GREEN PLAN

LONDON GREEN SPACE MAP 2050

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High rise Case Studies During the early phases of the design process, looking at several case study for different high rise buildings from all across the World, there was different design decisions, successes, and failures that were able to be studied in order to further influence my design. I wanted to take inspiration from some and possibly merge it with inspiration from another to create a design vision in my head that I would later take into my early stages of design. The case studies familiarized my knowledge and ideas of high rise buildings in major cities across the World and comparing them to famous high rise in London.

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Vancouver House Vancouver, Canada Bjarke Ingels Group Completed in 2022 511’ Tall 52 Floors

This is a residential high rise building that pushes the realm of structural engineering by implementing a twist and sweeping form move that leaves an incredible structural anomaly for all to see. The building was designed with commercial spaces surrounding the site which is mazed through a main highway that plays a crucial part in the city of Vancouver. The site is divided amongst the highway above and separated by main streets on ground level as well.

https://dialogdesign.ca/projects/vancouver-house/

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Aqua Tower

Chicago, IL Studio Gang Completed in 2009 859’ Tall 86 Floors

Located in the heart of downtown Chicago, this is a mixed use building with retail and hotel space. The character of the building comes from the floor slabs that extend past the exterior walls acting as a balcony, shade device for tenants. The use of artificial intelligence as well as looking towards major points in Chicago is how the textured facade came to be. At its core, it is a rectangular building with no design discrepancies to associate with it, however the floor plates are what makes this building a remarkable high rise building.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/wareagle8608/9265778431

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AL Harma Tower

Kuwait City, Kuwait Skidmore, Owens & Merrill LLP Completed in 2011 1,354’ Tall 80 Floors

The Al Hamra Tower gives a massive impression on the city as it rises well above all of the other high rise towers that surround it. The contrast between materials and colors on this project gives it a very unique two tone look. The form is very elegant in soft curves and no harsh edges. The design and form of the building aim to best maintain proper solar heat gain.

https://www.som.com/projects/al-hamra-tower/

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Bosco Verticale Torre E Milan, Italy Boeri Studio Completed in 2014 380’ Tall 27 Floors

A residential high rise that was built around the concept of micro climates and being able to create one that latches onto a building in order to give everyone a better living environment with cleaner air, better humidity, reduction in noise pollution, and other physical and emotional benefits. The balconies were created both for leisure of the tenants and the hosting for the shrubbery that was built into the design of the twin residential high rises.

https://www.inexhibit.com/it/case-studies/il-bosco-verticale-di-boeri-da-fenomeno-ad-archetipo/#google_vignette

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Linked Hybrid Beijing, China Cosentini Associates Completed in 2009 217’ Tall 21 Floors

This high rise complex is a great example of how a master plan can be used to create an incredible idea and execution of interlinking multiple high rises within an elevated transportation passage. By using this method, the architects are able to create many different areas of leisure, office space, retail, residential, hotel, etc… all whilst allowing the user to go through all of the spaces inside the entirety of the development.

This method can also be used to create many different outdoor platforms to give the users a new green space leveraged above the pedestrian paths of the city.

https://www.stevenholl.com/project/beijing-linked-hybrid/

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London

With the project being based in London, there is unlimited opportunities for practically everything. London is a bustling city where there is a merge of all cultures, ethnicities, food, etc... all happen to make a very vibrant city at all hours of the day. The city provides excellent transportation through the “tube” or the underground subway system, buses, and even by boat down the river Thames. London has many different borough’s which all have different unique identities. The city center maintains a balance between tourism, work, residential, and history all while keeping the London identity. With London being a major city in the World, it is important to think about all the different kinds of cultures that will mesh and collide whilst interacting with the architecture I create. That is something to keep in the back of my mind as I moved forward to the design process.

https://import-500px.toolforge.org/photo/125508655

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Design Intentions

Green Space The project is focused on creating a vibrant green space both in and out of the buildings and towers by utilizing different green space strategies. The outdoor green space provides a courtyard for the residents of the building as well as the citizens of London whom are passing through. The green space is based off of the existing green space on the city block which is home to Christ Church, a protected green space from London. The Church and the green space around it is filled with trees and grass, however is fairly dense in its footprint. The courtyard gives an open and airy space for people to go play, relax, eat, or just stroll through.

Sky gardens are placed at every floor to promote for nature within the building and fresh air.

Vertical City The project deploys an array of different floor plate changes in which every floor is different from the next (except for residential) to promote a flow of air circulating through the building and a spot for sky gardens to grow upwards through the next floor and penetrate the building entirely of green. This paired with the idea of multiple different programs sprinkled throughout a typical office building and a typically residential building will give a sense of community and not restrict people to a confined cubicle where most office tower tend to lean to. The ground floor connects all three towers and provides amenities and other commercial spaces for businesses to run out of with an already large crowd of people incoming into their space daily.

Context Considerations With the project’s location being so close to a Church and in a cluster of other high rise buildings it was important to consider the pedestrian scale and the building scale of the project as there was no need to divert the surrounding context to a massive building that would not fit in the neighborhood. The three towers of the project will be based off of other high rise on the city blocks that surround the site. The towers heights will match the height of the other towers in a staged way in order to give depth and hierarchy to the main tower form the smaller back tower. The site incorporates the green space that was already on sight and uses the barrier of trees to be able to keep the Church and the project as separated as possible in a visual way whilst being close in a physical way.

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Site Selection My site is located in the borough of Southwark just off of the exit of the Blackfrairs bridge. The site is currently being occupied by a hotel and pub, The Mad Hatter. Also located on the city block is Christ Church which has a protected green space from London’s officals. The site also is home to two smaller buildings at the opposite corner of the city block that are home to a restuarant and outdoor cafe. The site is aproximatly 8,000 sq meters of buildable land. The area where I will be designing was previously developed as a commerical/ office complex with two adjacent buildings that were removed prior to 2016. The buildings have since been demolished and the site is currently being blocked off by fences with no visibile progress being made either from developments of rehabilitation. The open plot of land in a central spot of London, makes for a great area to develop and inject a project that can bring people together in various different ways.

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Site Analysis After selecting the site and taking the surrounding context into consideration I was able to pull information from the surrounding area into consideration in ways that would be able to influence my design as well as my urban gesture in regards to pedestrians. Identifies nodes, green spaces, and vehicular traffic gives a better idea as to how these conditions can be embraced or combated.

THAMES RIVER GREEN SPACE

VEHICULAR PATHWAYS RAILROADS BIKE LANES

NODES

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Artificial Intelligence Inspriation In regards to this semester, artificial intelligence was promoted to be used for ideas, renders, and other generation inspirations within the design process. The best use of AI to me was during the early stages of design where I was able to develop numerous amounts of ideas within minutes by changing and adjusting a word prompt that would output my vision as a image. Some of the prompts used included, “three towers linked together with sky bridges using greenspace” or “three towers interwoven together to create a vertical city the prioritizes green space and the pedestrian scale using glass facades and different adjusting floor plates”.

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Form Development Whilst looking at the site and taking into consideration the land available, I catered towards the idea of using three towers to be able to break up the site into a more digestable scale and using the towers as different program spaces to address different needs and desires within the city. I pushed out many different iterations and variations of models to be able to look at different forms and how they integrated on the site with the sourounding buildings. I then choose the one that fit the best and was able to explain my design decisions with analysis impacting each move as to why it was made in the way it was.

SITE

FOOTPRINT

PUSH

DISTORT

EXTRUDE

EXTRUDE

REMOVE

REMOVE

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Site Model Creating a small scale model and site context allowed for all the various different form options to be explored on site and give instant feedback as to how it did or did not work with the surrounding context. My project was expressed as a form model through the use of 3D printing to match the surrounding context’s style. The form model allowed to give enough detail to understand scale, orientation, and sizing whilst still withholding from fine detail so the models can be studied in a fast paced fashion.

1:2,000 Model

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Program Diagram This diagram showcases all of the different programs within the building on their respective floor plate. This diagram illustrates the push for a vertical city and interaction within the building all the way from the bottom floor to the roof top. The commercial spaces are broken up with different restaurant and amenities spaces so the feel of a confined commercial tower is loosened up with breaks periodically. The residential tower is broken up by two different zones of amenities spaces for the residents in which are balanced between the floors of apartments. All three towers are tied together with the first two floors being commercial space and amenities spaces that are able to bring the pedestrian scale into the building and up into one of the three towers.

COMMERCIAL SPACE AMENITIES RESIDENTIAL OFFICE RESTAURANT

PROGRAM DIAGRAM 24

Structural Diagram The project uses a typical high rise construction of a core and columns to be able to hold up the towers.

The core is fairly large in percentage of each floor plate and allows for the tower to rest most of its load on it due to that aspect. The columns provide a grid like manner to the towers as well as extra support for vertical loads and horizontal loads that may be produced by the wind. The cores and columns are embedded into a two story basement where the mechanical systems are housed and allows for the support systems to continue to run into the ground for extra rigidity.

STRUCTURAL DIAGRAM 25

Schematics When producing this project and pumping out final schematic designs there was a deep understanding and knowledge brought to my project and I was able to see everything come together in a hollistic view.

The way where my vision and model were brought into presentation level drawings allowed for me to communicate my design decisions effectivley and reinforced my understanding and passion for my project. The schematics shown are in junction with the prior diagrams to be able to explain to anyone a walkthrough of the project giving better insight into the project with each drawing. All of them showing something different and important to make the project what it is.

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Site Plan The site plan shows the relationship of the building to the urban edge as well as the relationship it shares with Christ Church also located on the city block. The courtyard area is accessed through different paths that integrate with the exisiting ones of the church. The orientation of the buildings also allows for a more secluded feel of the green space, enhancing one’s privacy when interacting with the spaces; this gives a break from the busy city life.

A3200

SITE PLAN 1:1000 27

Ground Floor Plan In the ground floor it is visualized that all three towers are connected through the central lobby space and accessed through each core. The perimeter of the footprint offers different fit outs for different programmatic spaces. In the two office buildings there are multiple different commercial spaces including a daycare for the workers and residents within the towers, a convenience store for residents and workers as well as citizens passing by the busy street corner, and a coffee shop for all to enjoy. The residential tower includes different amenities that are enjoyed by the residents and typical residential necessities such as a mail room and leasing office.

DAY CARE CONVIENCE STORE

OFFICES

STORAGE ROOM

LOBBY

COFFEE SHOP COWORKING SPACE

LEASING OFFICE

MAIL ROOM

GROUND FLOOR PLAN 1:500 28

Ninth Floor Plan In the ninth floor it shows a typical floor plan with all three tower’s floor plans showing off their respective layouts for office space and residential apartments. Each office tower is broken down into smaller units where multiple companies and tenants can coexist on the same floor with two separate office spaces. Each floor varies in office configuration layout depending on the necessary size for each client. The floors also include sky gardens with the different shifting floor plates that allow for a better flow throughout the building and does not restrict the workers to a strict vertical constraint of floor to ceiling but opens up to the next floor above and below to allow for green nature to take over and bring fresh air into the work environment.

The residential apartment is fitted out for three two-bed apartments and one one-bed apartment. These apartments are great in size and offer plenty of views to the outside as all apartments are lined with windows by half of their perimeter.

NINTH FLOOR PLAN 1:500 29

Section Perspective This drawing gives a better idea as to the relationship between the two commercial towers and shows off the facade design catering around the sky garden cut outs in the floor plates to allow for maximum sunlight into the area and enhance the overall feel of the atrium space. The cutout in the floors are also able to be seen and how they interact with the floors above and below.

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Longitudinal Section In this section it shows the larger office building and how one may use the vertical circulation to navigate within the building. The elevator shafts are highlighted with different colors showing the various different cart paths and elevator paths of the five of ten elevators located within the core. The section also gives context to the church and its proximity to the other surrounding buildings.

ELEVATOR PATH 1 ELEVATOR PATH 2 ELEVATOR PATH 3 ELEVATOR PATH 4

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Rendering showing the relationship of the project with the rest of London.

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View approaching the courtyard area.

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View showing off the restaurant spaces overlooking the outskirts of London.

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The view of a typical sky garden within the larger office tower.

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Nighttime render from across the Thames River.

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Physical Model The 1:500 scale model was created for a physical representation of the project. The model consisted of the core and floor plates based on the city block with the church and other buildings on site shown. The base was cut and etched out to display the different paths in which people would access the building and site with. This model gave a better understanding as to the floor plate cutouts for the sky gardens that were used throughout the high rise.

1:500 Model

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Project Reflection Over the course of this semester, I was able to grasp a better understanding behind the power of artificial intelligence and the use that it can play into architecture. I was able to discover strengths and weaknesses as well as identify different limitations that are associated with this new technology. Overall I believe that AI is a good tool for students, professors, and workers to utilize to be able to further their design process by either producing ideas faster, creating realistic renderings from a blank model, or even coming up with an interesting project title. AI in the field of architecture will begin to get more traction as some of the tweaks and hiccups in the different softwares get resolved. Yet I believe that it was very effective this semester being able to illustrate my visions and bring my ideas to life in a very fast paced graphic representation that otherwise would have taken a much longer sum of my time and effort. Being able to produce ideas at this speed really gives the opportunity to be able to explore numerous different options.

As far as cities under climate threat go, I think that London was a great case study to look at different strategies and plans that we as architects are able to implement into our work for the greater good of people and Earth. London has so many different opportunities to respond to various different climate threats making it a very interesting case study city to base a high rise building in.

With this being my first semester of designing a high rise, I have a greater appreciation for the elegant design moves on World famous skyscrapers and realized that with a high rise, even though it is massive in size, there is not a ton of design freedom when it comes to overall form. Yes there are ways to experiment and test out new forms and iterations, however all of them are generally tall slender buildings with a facade design, which makes every design move that critical. The design process of a high rise building requires a lot of site analysis and taking into consideration many different aspects of the urban context.

Structure being a very important part in a high rise made it imperative that the core and column grid aligned was cohesive. The process of figuring out a core that worked with the program and had access to multiple different points was a very iterative process that I learned a lot about core design and vertical circulation patterns from.

My facade was another aspect of the building which required many different iterations as it was never quite right. I tried many different styles, designs, and patterns, however I knew that they were not working until I landed on my final iteration. Using the sky gardens and the floor plate cutouts on the interior part of the building was able to leverage my decision for exterior patterning in the same spots with rationale.

Before I had made that connection, I was unable to prove my rationale as to why I was making the facade the way I was, which was causing it to not fit cohesively into my project.

The green space in my project was studied extensively and considered at many different levels. The push to create a sky garden on each level of the commercial office towers pushed the narrative of not only creating a healthy and clean work environment, but also tied in the idea of a vertical city by letting fresh oxygen flow all the way up and down the tower. The ground green space, specifically the courtyard, was an addition to be able to seclude a more private green space area that was blocked by the node at the intersection at the northeast of the site and mute out the noise and visual availability to that spot. This move tied together my project and the existing Christ Church and specifically its green space that wraps around its site.

Overall I believe that this project was a very interesting way of thinking and designing architecture by using new tools on a typology that I have never designed before. The project has opened my eyes into new innovative ways to be able to respond to climate change in the urban setting on such a grand scale.

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Sources https://unsplash.com/s/photos/big-ben https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/193331/one-four-londons-green-spaces-breaches/ https://dialogdesign.ca/projects/vancouver-house/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/wareagle8608/9265778431 https://www.som.com/projects/al-hamra-tower/ https://www.inexhibit.com/it/case-studies/il-bosco-verticale-di-boeri-da-fenomeno-adarchetipo/#google_vignette https://www.stevenholl.com/project/beijing-linked-hybrid/ https://import-500px.toolforge.org/photo/125508655

Artificial Inteligence Tools ChatGPT Prome Photoshop

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Design 9, Cities Under Climate Threat Trinity Towers by Steve Graziano Project presented to the Faculty of the Department of Architecture College of Architecture and the Built Environment Thomas Jefferson University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of BACHELOR OF ARCHITECTURE Arch 507 / Design 9 Professor Edgar Stach Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Fall 2024