More than 60 languages are spoken here.”6 The type of people who live in the suburbs vary widely and come from different walks of life. Integration into society, along with housing for the homeless population (mainly migrants), is an issue in Mt Roskill that needs to be addressed.
Project outline
Aims and objectives
Research question
Scope and limitations
The second part of the design is research around the site – both in context and in examining the physical site. Understanding how the local area works and how the place is important in location.
State of knowledge
There is a central courtyard where the building is shaped in a V-shape, which acts as the main green zone of the hospital grounds. Wood cladding is seen throughout the building as it diffuses the light and creates interesting spaces between the large windows.
History
History of homelessness
Homelessness in New Zealand
Redundancy, relationship or family breakdown and health issues are just some of the reasons why people in this group become homeless - even if only for a short period of time. 27 “Together we can end homelessness,” The People's Project, accessed 1 October 2019, https://www.thepeoplesproject.org.nz/.
Types of homelesness
Addiction, trauma and debt are the main reasons people in this category become homeless. This group is dominated by families and for some it may be the first encounter with social services. 27.
Homeless shelter design
Community centre design
Precedents
Center Village in Winnipeg, Canada, is designed for the less privileged members of the community. The shape of the building's roof follows the mountain landscape in the area.
Biophilic design
Biophilia
Nature deficit
Green mind theory
Nature and design
Biophilic design can be organized into three main categories – nature in space, natural analogues and nature in space. These three main categories help us understand and use the natural environment when designing buildings that incorporate biophilic design.
Nature in the space
Biophilic design principles
Fig-50 showing scattered light (image by author) Fig-51 showing connection to natural systems (image by author).
Natural analogues
Nature of the space
Psychological health and well-being
Greenery stretched from the courtyard all the way to the roof of the building, giving the feeling that the entire building embraces nature. 15% of people who use the building come for purely recreational activities, forcing people and patients to interact. The layout of the building and how they separated each tower into its own space.
Reflecetion
The Project
Programme
Site context
Mt Roskill hisotry and context
Maori history in the area
Mount Roskill early history
The area was not of significant importance due to its distance from the main development areas at the time which were the Waitemata harbor front and town areas. Many of them turned to growing strawberries on Mt Roskill.53 Wealthy townspeople also saw the empty land on Mt Roskill and took advantage of it by buying up as much of it as possible for cultivation and farming. Farmers saw the opportunity to use Mt Roskill as a center for farming due to its proximity to the city center and the suburbs established as Auckland grew in size.
State housing in Mt Roskill
Immigrants and Mount Roskill
Mt Roskill connotations
Site
Site analysis Site selection
Initially, the location of the entire plot from the rear of the Food plot to the street side was chosen as a potential location. This was because it was primarily centrally located in the suburb of Mount Roskill and in the middle of identified homeless zones. The food waste and potential recycling factors, together with the central location, were the driving factors in the choice of location.
Site selection
It is also easier to see and encourage people to come to the site with it located so close to the road front. Fig-89 Place options (image by author) Fig-87 View of the place from the southeast corner looking at the location. image by author) Fig-88 Place in front of northeast corner with view. This site is located in the center of the Mt Roskill suburb and centrally between these key points which means that navigating the site is easy for users.
Location of site in Mt Roskill context
The area is located at the foot of Mount Roskill in the southwest. The slope also slopes upward on both the northeast and south sides, meaning the site is at the base of all three slopes. Views to the northeast include Mt Roskill, which is less than 1km from the site.
Environmental significance
To the northwest on an elevated level there is a view of Mt Albert in the distance. Attached to the western bank of the site is a strip of green land called Plantation Reserve, and to the south is another reserve called Turners Reserve, which has a basketball court and playground on site. Plant life at the site is abundant, as the site has been open and abandoned for a while, there is grass cover on the ground with a large tree in the center of the site.
Site conditions
Parallel to the busy streets of Dominion Rd and Sandringham Rd, both of these streets act as main routes into the Auckland city CBD. Pedestrian access is only from the front of the site as it is blocked off at the back by trees and a fence. This complex allows for great integration with the site via visitor engagement as it is only a stone's throw away from the complex.
Networking and connectivity
During the morning and afternoon, the site sees the majority of foot traffic as school children walk the road in front of it along with people using the bus stops located along the road. The place has only one entrance to it, and that is from the front of the road. The site must accommodate both the homeless shelter and community spaces, where the homeless shelter is more private and the community space is open and public, the site can be divided into areas of privacy and public access.
Circulation and movement
The main traffic flow from the site comes from cars and other vehicles as May Rd is a main road in Mt Roskill and acts as an attachment to many dominant Auckland roads ie. This basic access allows for easy separation of spaces because privacy and circulation are straight forward.
Design
History, cultural and social aspects are also important influences, but not all played a major role in the design. The surrounding natural aspects such as the mountains, floodplains, local fauna and flora and views are important drivers in the biophilic aspect of the design. The flood zone influenced the design by ensuring that the building is on stilts for the soup kitchen and on plinths for the community center and part of the homeless shelter.
Initial
Local ecosystems, mountains, on-site plant life and hydro features are all important drivers in biophilic design. To create a sense of togetherness, there is a pergola system that connects all the buildings. Referring to the need to connect community and homeless members with each other and also with the wider New Zealand community.
Arrangement
Zoning
With semi-public on either side and private at the back of the site. The reasoning behind this is due to the programmatic functions of the buildings on site. The soup kitchen will be located on the north side of the site, because this is the least traveled part of the site.
Main entranceSide entrance
Community garden
Turner reservePlantation reserve
Homeless shelter
1 - The courtyard space acts as an extension of the park spaces at the southern end and the park space facing the street. 2 - Community garden: this space is designed to be in the middle of the site and also between the soup kitchen and the homeless accommodation. Homeless residents can use the garden as a means to contribute something to the community if they help with some of the work of growing, gathering, packing and moving.
Interaction zones
On the north side of the site is a communal garden and a soup kitchen. None of the units contain kitchen facilities, as there is an industrial kitchen attached to the public kitchen, which can be used by the residents. Other entrances can also be from either side and when driving down the driveway at the north end access to the homeless shelter at the back end of town.
Access and circulation
The main path will be in the center of the yard and shows the path one should follow. Mystery – The promise of more information gained through partially obscured views or other sensory devices. The courtyard in the middle of the plot can contain a central element that functions as the main room.
Materiality - selection of systems Exterior systems
The interior context will include green walls and wooden walls to allow for increased connection with nature. The floor finishes will be different in different zones, varying from wood to carpet (natural colors). The floor of the entire pergola structure will be wooden, this wooden aspect will connect all three buildings with each other, symbolizing the connection that must happen in the members of society and the connection that people must have with nature.
Interior systems
Perhaps a large tree or water feature could mark a place in a community context and be a catalyst for the emergence of a new community center. Using biophilic design strategies, it aims to harness the inbuilt biophilic desire in people to encourage human interactions and create an environment that fosters community growth. The architectural result provides a community space that encourages people to gather, such as a courtyard space and a community garden space provides a task that enables interactions within the space.
Bibliography
On-Line Enciklopedia and Integer Sequences® (OEIS®). On-Line Enciklopedia and Integer Sequences® (OEIS®).
