Architecture Commons^™

Reimagining Fire Tower Typology: Enhancing Safety And Creating A Sense Of Place, Chloe Bango

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

This architectural exploration studies the transformative evolution of fire watch towers, shifting from their traditional role as fire safety devices to become inviting destinations for hikers and visitors. This paradigm shift not only embraces the functional aspect of fire prevention but also capitalizes on the inherent potential for these structures to serve as unique, inhabitable spaces within the natural landscape. The design philosophy integrates state-of-the-art wildfire detection systems seamlessly into the architectural fabric, establishing a symbiotic relationship between safety and recreation. The incorporation of cutting-edge technologies, such as advanced sensors, satellite imagery, and real-time data analytics, enhances the tower’s primary …

Cal Poly's Old Powerhouse Analysis Assessing Stakeholder Preferences, Marissa D. Burns

Construction Management

This research paper delves into the historical and cultural relevance of Cal Poly’s Old Powerhouse, the college’s oldest architectural landmark, which has remained in a state of disuse since the 1990s. Employing meticulous survey methodology; perspectives from faculty, staff, alumni, students, and community members are gathered to illustrate the significance of the Old Powerhouse within the various stakeholders. The study refrains from imposing interpretation but rather seeks to capture the sentiments expressed by stakeholders, providing valuable insights into the building’s perceived value. By centering on the community opinions, the research will underscore the building’s potential and expand on the collected …

Adaptive (Re)Purpose Of Industrial Heritage Buildings In Massachusetts A Modular Strategy For Building A Community, Riya D. Premani

Masters Theses

A significant portion of a building’s carbon emission comes from the materials used to construct it, primarily through fabrication and assembly. According to the World Green Building Council, this is called embodied carbon, and it makes up to 49% of the total emissions from global construction. Thus, new energy-efficient buildings can take from 10-80 years of time to offset just the carbon used in construction. Combined with such amounts of construction and demolition waste, new construction can be viewed as a wasteful or even destructive practice. Adaptive reuse presents a promising alternative method for creating new space, without the emissions …

Eviction To Placement: Rethinking The Current Supportive Housing Systems For Hidden Homeless Families, Fang-Min Liou

Masters Theses

This thesis focuses on repurposing unoccupied office space into affordable housing systems tailored to meet the unique needs of homeless families. Families with children make up 36 percent of the homeless population overall and children’s homelessness status is almost always “hidden." Architecture and design can play a vital role in addressing social inequity by creating improved living environments for the houseless community through adaptive reuse of underutilized space situated within dense urban areas with the greatest access to resources to support these families, evoke feelings of comfort, security, and hope.

The following thesis accommodates three basic needs of homeless families: …

Urban Anchors: Reviving The "Motor City", Alan Mota Lopez

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Currently, there are several large post-industrial cities around the world that are ridden with abandoned industrial buildings, these cities have also gone through a constant decline in population and culture while at the same time the rest of the world has done the opposite. The question at hand is what can be done for these cities to catch up with the successes of other major neighboring cities. The existing infrastructure and buildings left behind by these industries hold a great potential for re-development into proposed districts which would span a couple of blocks along a main street. The primary function …

Exploring Methods Of Adaptive Reuse As A Means Of Reviving Abandoned Spaces, Joshua Davids

Honors Projects

This interdisciplinary project explores cases of building abandonment as well as adaptive reuse projects. Building abandonment is analyzed for its causes and influences, with adaptive reuse also discussed as a means to revitalize these abandoned spaces. The end of the project includes a small-scale design concept for the renovation of unused spaces in Bowling Green State University's Founders Hall.

Adaptive Reuse Of Frosty Morn, Veronika Kalugina, Rebecca Tonguis, Heidi Gabriel, Peyton Kauffman

Belmont University Research Symposium (BURS)

Frosty Morn, a former meat packing facility in Clarksville, TN, is now abandoned, dilapidated, and partially demolished. The site sits within the Red River District neighborhood, which consists of a diverse community of artists. The Red River District has been identified by the Clarksville Mayor’s Office as an area with potential for growth, catalyzed by repurposing the Frosty Morn building as an icon and beacon of the community. Highest and best use research, in addition to community voices, indicated programmatic needs of a farmer’s market, makerspaces, small business incubators, park space, and live/work units. Our presentation will describe how this …

Adaptive Reuse Of Abandoned Buildings As A Means Of Improving Livability, Carol Bassal, Mostafa Khalifa

Architecture and Planning Journal (APJ)

Due to the rapid growth of cities around the world, many buildings in ancient cities are now deserted, prompting countries to preserve their historical sites that represent their identity. According to researchers, Adaptive reuse, along with the renewal of social life and economic development activities, serve the basic concepts of livability, as well as the community's recognition of adaptive reuse as a reasonable alternative to the demolition and redevelopment of existing facilities. The study assumes that adaptive reuse of abandoned buildings revitalizes the area and preserves its values and identity. In this context, adaptive reuse refers to the process of …

Proposing A Second Life - (Adaptive Reuse) For Underutilized Condemned Masonry Buildings In Cuba, Fernando Asamoa

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

From 2000 to 2013 nearly 3,856 partial or total buildings collapsed in Havana, Cuba with a 206,000-home deficit thus adding to its severe housing shortage, reported by officials. Officials have also estimate 28,000 people live in buildings that could collapse at any moment and yet some residents refuse to leave structures that authorities have declared unsafe. Locals have described the deaths witnessed from structures collapsing however Cuban officials do not release figures on those killed or injured in building collapses in attempt to minimize the severity of the situation. This thesis aims to investigate an adaptive reuse strategy needed for …

Fitness Anxiety: Redesigning The University Of Arkansas’ Health, Physical Education, And Recreation Building To Reduce Intimidation In The Fitness Centers, William Tack

Architecture Undergraduate Honors Theses

The goal of the capstone was to redesign Health, Physical Education, and Recreation (from here on out referred to as the H.P.E.R.) building on the University of Arkansas Campus to make the space more friendly to new users. This redesign consisted of a reworked site plan for the overall building and some significant shifts in the program to accommodate more gym space. The redesign work was based on the following: prior academic research regarding what causes intimidation in gym settings, student opinions shared via questionnaires, spatial/ programmatic standards from the National Intramural and Recreational Sports Association, a photographic journal documenting …

Applying Metamorphosis Philosophy To Revive The Abandoned Buildings, Fatima Ghosn, Ayman Afify, Hiba Mohsen, Maged Youssef

Architecture and Planning Journal (APJ)

The metamorphosis philosophy is related to architecture, for instance this translation is showcased in the transformation of spaces in buildings that is either done by the destruction or modification of the architectural product. Unfortunately, many buildings, structures and spaces are left abandoned because of changing situations, war, or natural causes. These abandoned buildings can increase the crime rate and leave lands covered in leftover spaces which can have drastic consequences on the environment. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to propose a set of design approaches that can apply the philosophy of metamorphosis in the revival of abandoned buildings …

Socializing Vacancy: An Architectural Thesis, Greg Winawer

Architecture Senior Theses

A large portion of office space has been left vacant, and thus provides no beneficial program to its remaining occupants or the local urbanity it is surrounded by. When considering what can be done with this vacant space, the primary motivation should be to integrate a program which does the opposite: a program which positively disrupts its existing context to hybridize and improve the current outdated programmatic arrangement. To insert a residential program into an existing office tower both disrupts and enhances the rigorous flows of our working and our domestic lives. The predefined universal concept of the ‘working-day’ is …

A Second Life: The Adaptation Of Dying Italian Towns To Accommodate Immigrants And Refugees, Rachel Rubis

Architecture Undergraduate Honors Theses

Despite its efforts in historic preservation, there is an abundance of culturally significant Italian vernacular towns dying due to dilapidation and depopulation. Simultaneously, Italy has faced an ongoing stream of immigrants and refugees seeking work, housing, and asylum within its borders—a crisis that has resulted in Italian fear and animosity aside immigrant maltreatment and hardship. My research, which is supplemented by first-hand experience in Italy, qualitative analysis, and text sources, proposes interventions into dying Italian towns to aid in the resettlement of immigrants and refugees—an effort meant to be mutually beneficial to both the town and the immigrant. In my …

Epicenter: An Investigation Of Interior Design's Influence Of The American Suburban Situation, Lindsay Meyer

Honors Theses

The suburbs cause isolation and poor physical and mental health for a variety of individuals, including parents, teenagers, and the elderly. Neighborhood design rarely considers marginalized teenagers and elderly, but instead focuses on the automobile. Teenagers show higher rates of anxiety, depression, and substance abuse in suburban areas than in urban areas. Millennial desire for suburbs that are engaging and elderly desire to remain in their homes longer demands reconsideration of the current suburban model. Big-box store blight ravages suburban communities damaging local economies and diminishing community curb-appeal. Closing box stores compounds the suburban dweller’s reliance on the automobile, continuing …

From Archaic To Contemporary : Energy Efficient Adaptive Reuse Of Historic Building, Nisha Borgohain

Masters Theses

Over recent decades, the global focus on climate change and on conservation of resources has brought about a paradigm shift in the adaptive reuse of old and historic buildings. Adaptive reuse is now seen as a key factor in the conservation of land and environment, preservation of cultural identity, and reduction of urban sprawl. Increasingly, engineers, architects, and urban planners are making concerted efforts to realize the reuse potential of existing and outdated structures. Therefore, those involved in building design have studied the viability of adaptive reuse and generally favor the repurposing of old/historic buildings to suit new patterns of …

An Adaptive Reuse Strategy: The Jerome Academic Commons, Lucas Hartman

Honors Projects

The William T. Jerome Library has towered over the campus of Bowling Green State University for over 50 years and while the academic and campus landscapes have changed greatly over those years, the Library has not always been able to keep pace with those shifts. After a study of the application of Architectural Adaptive Reuse on college campuses, it was determined that the Jerome Library could be a good candidate for this as well. Following a qualitative research study of interviews with Library and University staff, a conceptual design proposal focused on resources and collaboration was presented showing there is …

Adaptive Reuse: Breathing Life Into America's Railways, Carter Jackson

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

For serving as a tool of westward expansion and industrial growth, the United States owes much of its history to the existence of railroads. Many of the derelict train stations constructed in the early 20th century remain in prominent locations in their cityscape, and through the advent of high speed rail in the United States, could rediscover their importance as the transportation hubs of tomorrow. One such station is located in Chattanooga, Tennessee: The Chattanooga Terminal Station, also known as the “Chattanooga Choo Choo.” In 2016, the Georgia Department of Transportation released the results of a nine-year study on the …

Adaptive Repurposing Of Smith Elementary, Kelsey L. Fields

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

For almost 100 years Smith Elementary School has been an institution of learning and a place of growth for children across the community of Kenmore, including myself. While its closing marks the end of an era it also presents a unique opportunity. Through adaptive reuse, Smith Elementary can have a second life and remain a cornerstone building in the community. The central goal of maintaining the beautiful original architectural details blends with the challenge of making this a functional space where a business can flourish, in the same rooms as hundreds of children have done before. This idea will set …

Rigs Of Refuge: Spatial Agency And Its Role In Conflict, Brittany Lauren Mcgraw

Masters Theses

Architecture is an inherently political endeavor. As such, designers should carefully consider the spatial dialogue that the built environment creates between those who control spaces and those who use them. In times of crisis, this dialogue often ceases to be an equal exchange, pushing users’ needs aside and exerting authority in the most expedient way possible.

This thesis proposes that amidst settings of conflict, hyper-responsive architectural systems can counteract landscapes of authority by returning spatial agency to users. As the means of providing such a system, oil rigs should be repurposed as a network of deployable crisis response hubs.

Monumental Revival, Michael Brandon Litton

Masters Theses

The post-industrial era has left textile mills programless and isolated from their towns, leaving these monuments in ruination. The villages surrounding these mill have began to decay as a part of the process of the mill closing. In search of a thriving economy, inhabitants of the town leave for opportunity elsewhere. This thesis explores a method of reviving a mill town by re-adapting the textile mill and injecting a transnational economic system into the town.

Scruffy City, Variegated Spaces, Rare Places, Royal Moore Starr

Masters Theses

The general basis of this thesis is to provide a critical examination of city branding and its implications on the built environment. Geographically fixated upon on the city of Knoxville, TN, Scruffy City, Variegated Spaces, Rare Places explores a unique relationship between cultural identity and architectural form. This project is an attempt to understand and harness an allusive attitude that undoubtedly shapes the architecture of this city. Therefore, the project itself is an open-ended set of design operations that inherently challenge the nature of architectural process in an attempt to study and emulate scruffiness in the built environment.

The project …

Evaluating Adaptability, Rebecca E. Robinson

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

This thesis aims to understand the process of adaptive reuse from the point of view of an owner and architect while uncovering the difficulties faced in schematically assessing existing building value and determining steps needed to preserve structures for continued occupation. This thesis will look at three approaches to the redevelopment of an existing building located in Atlanta’s Sweet Auburn District, each proposing a different degree of deconstruction while measuring the associated short-term capital and long-term operational cost of the building owner. A new metric is proposed to facilitate building evaluation and cost projection that is organized around six categories; …

Post-Olympic Stadium: Life Following The Games, Louis Lim

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

The post-Olympic Stadium is one of the greatest gems to be conceived from the Olympic Games and the quality of life for the city following it depends on how we can reuse the stadium when the torch goes out. In this study, strategies for adaptability will be analyzed for application to an existing post-Olympic stadium.

The urban fabric is where the stadium makes a negative impact: the displacement of local residents preceding and the urban voids proceeding the Olympic Games. It not only creates a physical void, but also a social void. Neighborhoods can be divided and the local community …

Reimagining Lalehzar Street, Sara Khorshidifard

Sara Khorshidifard

Designing Waste Creating Space: A Critical Examination Into Waste Reduction Through Building Techniques, Architectural Design, And Systems, Courtney M. Carrier

Masters Theses

Can we design waste? This is a question I seek to answer through the research of design and systems. Waste is an ever evolving and growing issue in our world today. Buildings and the spaces we inhabit contribute to the vast destruction and increasing detriment to our natural world. There are many “remedies” in the construction industry that attempt to regulate building waste and inspire sustainability, but are merely ruses for a much deeper rooted problem than sustaining the way we live. Sustainability is not enough, it simply means we are doing less bad while still perpetuating the problem of …

Open Space & Food Access In The City Of Chicopee, Madison M. Burke, Angelica L. Carey, Nicholas M. Fournier, Marika Kopp, Amanda M. Lipson, Jennifer M. Pacacha, Shannon M. Rice-Nicols

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

The goal of the Master of Regional Planning Studio is to develop a student’s techniques for collecting, analyzing, and synthesizing spatial and non-spatial data and then presenting that collective data in a manner (i.e., report, video, presentation, and charettes) that is understandable to academics, professionals, and the public. Planning Studio allows students to integrate knowledge from coursework and research, and apply such knowledge to resolving representative planning problems. At UMASS Amherst, these problems are found in neighborhood, rural, urban, and/or regional settings.

In the fall of 2015, the City of Chicopee contracted the MRP Studio to create a vision plan …

Reuse, Recycling, And Reintroduction Of History With Contemporary Eyes Through Adaptive Reuse, Tshui Mum Ha

Architecture Masters of Science Program: Theses

The idea of adapting old buildings for emerging purposes has been a regular strategy to sustain architectural resources since the medieval period or even earlier. However, the concept of adaptive reuse has only been gaining prevalence since the nineteenth-century when there was an increase in awareness of historic preservation. At this point, instead of sustaining architectural resources in both financial and functional terms, adaptive reuse was re-introduced and reapplied as one of the philosophical treatments of historic preservation.

As adaptive reuse is becoming a mature philosophical treatment of historic preservation, a great deal of critical thought and professional theory is …

From Vacant To Vibrant: Proposing A New Approach To The Anchor Store Typology, Samantha L. Greenberg

Masters Theses

The ever-evolving retail landscape in the United States represents a narrative of change for local communities. While change may signify instability, it also presents opportunities for innovation. This dichotomy is particularly pertinent in small downtowns, where the faltering of both national chain and locally owned retail establishments is felt, not only by business owners, but by all members of the community. The loss of anchor stores (large stores that serve to draw patrons to a commercial center) has proven especially challenging for downtowns that formerly relied on the consumer traffic generated by a big-name retailer. The loss of anchor stores …

New As Renewal: A Framework For Adaptive Reuse In The Sustainable Paradigm, Luke A. Beck

Masters Theses

The way in which we approach building design is constantly being influenced by evolving economic, environmental and social parameters. These factors have implications on both pragmatic and aesthetic facets of design. The built environment is not autonomous from its immediate site or the ecologies of the region in which it is located, rather, the former must be designed to symbiotically exist within and enhance the latter. The term ecology is defined as “a branch of science that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings.” Although this typically relates to biology, the term can …

Commonwealth Of Massachusetts Mill Building Repurposing Pilot Project (Twist Mill - Athol, Ma), Mark D. Berube, Calliope E. Bosen, Tara Lynn Gehring, Allyson C. Manuel, Alexander Casey Mello, John Armando Rosa, Alexander R. Train, Benjamin Perrett

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

The purpose of the UMass Amherst Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning’s participation in this project is to establish a redevelopment action plan that incorporates the ownership’s clear vision for reuse of the site, proposes solutions to various obstacles that have hindered progress, and serves as a guiding model in terms of improving the feasibility of similar projects throughout the state.

The project team gathered information from a variety of resources, and conducted three distinct phases of analysis in order to complete this redevelopment action plan. The Phase I: Inventory examines the physical, regulatory, and financial context surrounding the …