SUMMER 2013
Serpentine Saunter
by Anica Lompre
The Serpent structure provides a fluid path for pedestrians to move conveniently through Downtown Miami.
Walkways “slither” through the busy streets, under and over, creating a Downtown connection to existing parks which are currently disconnected and underused. Spaces created expand and contract to allow for new recreation, events and other programmatic needs.
Using sensor technology, the skin and envelope expand and contract based on the amount of relative humidity in the air anticipating needs for more ventiled areas. See more here.
3d Graffiti Park
by Italo Perez
Inspired by Graffiti artists of Miami's Wynwood District, where many use the environment as a canvas, I chose to interpret my views of what Downtown requires three-dimensionally. I modified the landscape of Downtown Miami to balance out the pedestrian traffic and exterior civic engagements with the existing vehicular traffic.
My rebellious design starts by taking the main drag of Biscayne Boulevard Downtown, and transforming it into a pedestrian park. The vehicular circulation is moved to an underground tunnel underneath this park. The intervention balances the amount of space dedicated to the different groups. See more here.
Miami Pulse
by Jaime Vado
Miami Pulse provides additional program to the existing metromover system in Downtown Miami. New activities are strung along the existing infrastructure of the rail in order to encourage more life and pedestrian activity in the Downtown areas, which are currently dominated by cars, traffic and parking lots.
The modified system expands to include a fishing pier, bike, track and pedestrian paths, bike parking, landscaping and occasional retail. Miami Pulse is wrapped by a digital skin that delivers moving light gradients as it tracks pedestrian activity throughout the rail.
The result is a more sustainable system for all users to access and move through Downtown swiftly, while also creating an iconic welcoming face to drivers entering Downtown from the Biscayne Corridor. See where it goes and what it does here.
16 Final Projects
Miami Expo
by Raphael Santos
The rising sea levels suggests a need for adaptation.
Miami Expo Intervantion: Miami is re-contextualized by offering Miamians and visitors alike an expo where marine data technology is at their fingertips. The city will embrace our sinking environment, and be prepared through learning. Miami has an opportunity to be percieved as safe and fun place, even with the 'dooms-day' predictions of a rising sea level.
Learn about the Marine Expo and its technologies here.
Living Miami
by Antuhan Gonzalez
I saw the potential for the Downtown landscape to foster a more defined work/live/recreational environmentsLiving Miami creates green spaces in the narrow busy street corridors and with a main green artery down Flagler Avenue.
Interlocking spaces within the green areas provide programmatic opportunity for professionals, residents, tourists and bikers to co-mingle and navigate through Downtown seamlessly. Exterior rooms are created within the landscape. Residents can picnic between buildings, professionals can plug-in and hold office meetings at an outside conference table, all while bikers pass by on an adjacent path. See the virtual walkthough here.
Iconic Identity for Downtown Miami
by Gladisbel Miranda
A visitor's center was designed for Miami in a very central location where several Miami districts meet. It also serves as an iconic landmark that which provides a memorable identity to Miami.
The language of the Center's structure was created to contrast with the standard hi-rise buildings of a city's center. The more temporal structure was inspired by the leaves of the palm, reflecting growth based on climate.
The new language also inspired a system of street furniture intended to continue marketing the identity througout the Downtown streets with benches and bus stops. See more here.
Real Time Miami
by Manuel Trujillo-Perez
Many cities worldwide are instantly identified by their exclusive architectural elements which may also serve as reference points for navigation. The Real Time Tower Landmark provides this along with real-time information at several scales.
The Tower sits in the Bay and communicates with three surrounding city districts (Miami Beach, Brickell and Downtown Miami). Each level of the folding structure twists to engage one of these disticts and the Causeway. The rear-faces of the fold act as digital interfaces that project a variety of real time information to various points in the City (ie: weather, sports scores and other events).
A community -accessed ferry runs on the hour, and provides access to the Tower and the variety of program it offers (ie; radio station, rock climbing, visitor's center, cafe...)
Green Ribbon
by Eliana Izza
Downtown Miami is physcially divided in two by the Biscayne Corridor. As a result, the fragmented urbanism makes it very difficult and unencouraging for pedestrians to cross from one side to the other safely.
The concept of the Green Ribbon unites Downtown Business Miami with the event spaces on the east side of Biscayne Blvd. Bridge-like walkways in the form of ribbons sew the park and the business side together . The ribbons carry a coninuation of the east side parks on top of them bringing it over to provide new green areas where they are needed. See more...
Miami SuperStation
by Joaquin Pineda
As climate change continues to alter our Earth's environment, the city of Miami finds itself in a very dangerous zone susceptiable to sea level rise. According to Surging Seas, it is projected that by the year 2100, the city of Miami will be almost entirely underwater.
This extreme change in landscape will force inhabitants of the city of Miami to find alternate modes of navigation and transportation. To establish future identity and set in stone the best method of transportation for the new underwater Miami, four SuperStations will be added to the existing infrastructure of the MetroMover's Downtown Loop. The city of Miami is defined by the activities and events which take place in it and therefore, the specific programs of the spaces in the station will be subject to what ever is going on at the moment.
Miami's Urban Gymnasium
by Christopher Centeno
The Miami Urban Gymnasium will encourage everyone to use non vehicular forms of transportation with the reward of preserving health, physical beauty, and entertainment. This will help solve the vehicular congestion by encouraging downtown Miami citizens to use other non-vehicular forms of transportation.
My intervention is inspired by the creative yet playful training discipline called Parkour. My project deconstructs what parkour is, and incorporates certain elements in order to successfully tackle all forms of exercise and fitness. Specifically, parkour is an exellent example of the Miami Identity I want to create; Beautiful, Active and Diverse. The project contains the essence of kinteic energy and the involvement of human life.
Lastly, my intervention will also use strategic way finding to numerous healthy spots around downtown in order to fully integrate with the urban conditions. The Miami Urban Gymnasium will speak the universal language of fitness in order to unite downtown residents, commuters, and tourists to work together and combat the vehicular congestion in a healthy and entertaining manner.