Architecture Commons^™

Juxtapositions: Exploring A New High-Rise Topology, Jacob Powell

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

The movement of people in urban areas creates a symphony of activity in public, private, commercial, leisure, work, and living spaces. However, high-rises often lack the public space found in more horizontal neighborhoods, with rows of nondescript doors leading to isolated floors. This thesis aims to challenge this narrative by bringing public space to high-rises, negotiating the boundary between public and private space, building internal and external connections, and uniting the city's horizontal movement with the high-rise's three-dimensional movement. By doing so, it seeks to create a sense of community within high-rises and enhance the urban experience for their residents.

Square One Station: Atlanta's New Multi-Modal Passenger Terminal, Mariya Georgieva

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

The Atlanta Journal Constitution Building and its block is located in arguably the most historically significant area to Atlanta: The Gulch. Being so close to the original Zero Milepost location, this is where the City of Atlanta was founded. The Gulch started out as the center of downtown’s business district, but has since steadily declined in popularity, initially triggered by people moving out to suburban homes

Even after multiple attempts to revive the area, it proved unsuccessful. This is best illustrated by the fact that the city lost money on the property even during big events like the 1996 Olympics …

Stitching Atlanta's Hbcus: Campus Design As The Site Of Integration, Nicole James

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

The DEI initiatives, which aim to cultivate an institutional culture at the intersection of diversity, inclusivity, and equity, have permeated every corner of public life. One can trace these initiatives to the rise of multiculturalism in the 1960s civil rights and other emancipatory movements that demanded the recognition of differences in general and ethnic, gender, religion, and cultural differences in particular. In architecture, however, the discourse of intersectionality arrived late and only in a fragmentary fashion. While Edward Soja, Saskia Sassen, David Harvey, Henri Lefebvre, among others, have underlined different dimensions of the relationship between space and politics, the intersection …

Proposed Charlotte To Atlanta High-Speed Passenger Rail Line: An Economic, Infrastructural, And Developmental Analysis In The Upstate Of South Carolina, Ian C. Macurda, Kimberly Whitehead

SC Upstate Research Symposium

This research paper is an in-depth analysis of the high-speed passenger rail line proposed between Charlotte, NC and Atlanta, GA and its impact on the economy, infrastructure, and future development of the Upstate of South Carolina. Currently, passenger rail service between Charlotte and Atlanta is offered on Amtrak at late hours throughout the night on its long-distance passenger rail line The Crescent from New York City, NY to New Orleans, LA. The train is often delayed and is operating at a deficit for Amtrak, like most of their long-distance routes. Traffic on Interstate 85 through the Upstate is another issue …

Convalesce, Grace Kunst

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

What do you value most? Security or comfort? Could you choose only one? This is the daily dilemma for women and children trapped in violence and trafficking. They have a greater disposition to being re-trafficked or abused if they are unsheltered. Often, people within this group have been cut off from their friends and families, meaning they have no access to food, shelter, or finances. They need a place that can provide safety and security along with a support system for a fresh start.

This thesis project aims to explore the socio-spatial dilemma and stigma of distressed and homeless women …

Building Unity; Design Framework For Inclusive New Urbanism, Chad Sharp

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

The city of Atlanta has historically embraced isolated growth over integrated density, which has contributed to the city’s limited inventory of inclusive urban centers. This divisive approach to urban design has helped facilitate a city of extremes; with high regional concentrations of wealth and poverty. This phenomenon is worsened by the city’s inherently exclusive transportation network and isolated residential development patterns. As Atlanta continues to grow and densify, it is crucial to adopt planning and design models that prioritize high-density, mixed-use residential developments in equitable locations with easy access to public transportation. To account for the failures of property filtering …

Borderline Re-Order: Negotiating The Edge Between City And Greenspace, Jeremy Taylor Morgan

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Does development of urban areas naturally lies at odds with maintaining any memory of their historic character, e.g. historic artifacts, structures, land? If so, such a perspective may have warrant. The Atlanta area serves as an easy example: the Loew’s Grand was conveniently burned down by arsonists after it received historic status and protection; the Fox Theatre was almost redeveloped into a parking deck, and; the placard for the site of Leo Frank’s lynching was moved across the street to make room for an entrance ramp to a toll freeway.

But this single perspective, or prejudice rather, despite warrant, is …

Revitalized Complex: The Redevelopment Of Abandoned Malls, Kyle Mccormick

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

This thesis explores two issues with one solution.

The first issue revolves around a large number of dying malls across America. While some still survive, others have become a deserted wasteland. It is reported that close to 2,000 stores will be closing in 2020. According to Business Insider, over 9,300 stores were closed in 2019, breaking the record of 2018, which was an estimated 8,000 stores.

The second issue involves large cities pushing the limits for population density. In cities such as Atlanta, Dallas, and Phoenix the rise in population cannot keep up with the current housing options provided in …

Bio-Symbiosis: Reconnecting To Nature And Each Other Through A Biological Lens, Melissa Holder

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that we spend 93 percent of our time indoors. For decades, the design of space has kept exterior environments separate from the interior conditions we have engineered for ourselves. This design process limits our ability to interact with other forms of life. According to Stephen Kellert’s principles of biophilic design, which defines an innate desire to interact with other forms of life, it is imperative that our spaces be designed to interact with each other and nature on an intimate and spiritual level. As humans have a hard-wired tendency to seek out relationships with other …

Intersectional Freedom: Rehabilitating Victims Of Human Trafficking, Nathalia Weston

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Atlanta, Georgia is associated with being the home of CNN, The Atlanta Falcons, and Coca-Cola, but it is also one of the largest hubs for human trafficking in the United States. Every month, 7,200 men purchase sex from a minor, accounting for more than 8,000 sex acts. According to the United States Department of Justice, human trafficking is defined as the illegal act of recruiting, harboring, transporting, obtaining, or providing a person and especially a minor for sex. The 100 billion dollar industry has trapped and permanently altered the lives of nearly 5 million women and children around the world. …

An Invisible Minority: Creating Agency For The Lgbtq+ Community, Zach Hart

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

4.5% of Americans make up an invisible minority - the LGBTQ+ community represents over 9 million Americans. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people have a history of being targets of discrimination, which is indisputable when we see that LGBTQ+ relations are illegal in 74 countries, a criminal offense in 72 countries, and punishable by death in 12 countries. The LGBTQ+ youth population makes up less than 10% of the overall youth population, but 40% of the homeless youth population. When compared to their straight peers - gay and lesbian adolescents are almost 4 times more likely to attempt suicide, …

Know Good Food: Fighting The Effects Of Food Deserts Through Community Education, Timothy Huntley

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

According to a nation-wide study conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture Service nearly 10% of the population “are living in communities that do not provide adequate access to healthy food retailers.” This phenomenon is commonly referred to as a ‘Food Desert’. This problem is predominately articulated in the low income, urban communities of color and many rural communities. The inadequate access to healthy food and the definition of what is considered a ‘Food Desert’ only provides a glimpse of the problem. Many families living in these low income areas have access to and are able to buy healthy …

Urban Stitch: A Game In Section, Jesse Garner

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

A city begins as a small, centralized community where everybody knows each other. Social events take place in the city square, or even on sidewalks, creating a street culture. As a city grows, so does the demand for larger roads, and eventually highways. In the late 1940’s President Eisenhower initiated the interstate system, capable of handling large amounts of traffic, creating connections to larger cities with economic centers. Over the next forty years, the interstates were installed across the United States, either bypassing, or crossing through cities. Although necessary, at what point does the interstate, if taken through a major …

Atlanta: Reconstructing A Fractured History, Clayton Odom

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Today we live in a world where the development of our cities has resulted in the destruction of historical and magnificent architecture that stood as monumental symbols of human achievement and evolution. This has been a problem for Atlanta in which the foundations of the city's architectural heritage and legacy has been destroyed as a result of Atlanta's fragmented development over time, leaving the city's architectural legacy and history in a state of fragmented ruin. For Atlanta, it is important to restore this lost architectural heritage by reconstructing the memory of the city's destroyed architectural icons by recreating and reassembling …

Re_Dressing Architecture, Kishan Desai

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Fashion can change its trends throughout the seasons, however, some buildings can adapt to the trends and change by altering their facades and or their interiors to give them a new image. How do the two disciplines interrelate? Could architecture be both in the moment and timeless? I will be exploring the intersection between fashion and architectural design. The objective of the project is to enhance the experience of the existing urban plaza at a variety of scales. I will investigate the edge condition of a downtown high-rise building, how it meets the sky and how it interacts the street …

Geofutures L Urban Integration, Adam Leicht

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Bring nature back to the city. Integrate neglected migration patterns in sprawling cities such as Atlanta. Mend urban fragmentation. The purpose is to make a cleaner environment in the city. My project looks at the Anthropocene as a fence. And how place has been fundamentally “displaced”. Resulting in a boundary or separation between man and nature. To study and research the Anthropocene (age of man) and how man has taken over as the main force behind the change of the environment. Looking through an architectural lens of ecology, how can we use this lens to help us slow down society …

Undeveloping The City, John Jones

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

What will the city of the future look like? This thesis investigates the ongoing growth of the city of Atlanta and proposes design strategies that responsibly manage future growth with an ecological mindset. The current metropolitan area occupies thousands of square miles of land with low-density development that blankets many natural ecosystems with little consideration to the impact of this sprawl. By utilizing the applications of transit oriented development and low-impact design, a section of the city can be used as a test bench for responsible future development. This growth would need to be managed from a two-sided approach: retracting …

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; …

Compelling Interactions, Zimbulus T. Nixon

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Architecture can unite cultural diversity through means of communication via spatial orientation. Spatial and sensory experience are key components in developing spaces that can compel interaction. By fusing communication and architecture, a complex international airport terminal can transform into a structure that supports the notion of communication and interaction between people.

A Place Of Our Own: Investigating The Physical And Social Construct Of Public Space In Atlanta, Jonne Smith

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Atlanta has lost the quality of spaces which links the social and physical qualities of its urban fabric. Through its disjointed nature its sense of place and organic public life has dwindled into the background. As it stands Atlanta’s “identity” broadcasts a city whose urban spaces are haphazard assemblages of the social, economic, cultural, and historical elements of the city.

Business has become an overbearing forefront in the streetscape as public spaces such as plazas function in reality as surveilled extensions of corporate space. The cultural and historic attractions, though enjoyable and interesting, are scattered throughout the city, making for …

Coda - Sound Urbanism, Michael Phaff

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

The interstate connector was once a really exciting and cutting edge concept for Atlanta. It celebrated a vehicular lifestyle and addressed movement in and around the city with the development of I-75, I-85, and I-285. The lack of connectivity in the Midtown area is divisive as it limits travel from one side of the Connector to the other and ruins the local atmosphere and exchange of ideas. Connecting across this sixteen lane barrier is imperative to the future success of the city of Atlanta. As society moves towards a more sustainable environment focused in pedestrian and public transit, the city …

Healing The Scars, Tony J. Rodriguez Jr

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

We live in a Kleenex society. What I mean by this is that everything is, or is in danger of becoming, disposable. We simply take what we need and like a tissue toss it aside when we've exhausted its use.

We have come to believe that no matter our actions nature will eventually heal itself. Showing the world the impact industrialization has had on the natural world can lead us as a society to become aware of our Kleenex mentality.

My site, Bellwood Quarry here in Atlanta, is currently proposed to be the largest park and water reservoir in the …

The Collective Object: Realizing Collective Space In An Era Of Bigness, Laura M. Sherman

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Architecture reacted to the Technological Revolution of the late 19th century with inspired proposals of optimistic expectation for the new era. The advancements of elevators, escalators and air conditioning meant almost limitless potential for the scale and scope of the built environment. However, society quickly realized the advantageous reality of this technology: Their buildings no longer needed the cities which surrounded them.

Endless interiors and “cities-within-cities” meant the possibility of a lifestyle where people could choose to never again interact with the undesirables of the true city. The built environment actively resisted the collective. A trend of self-interested architectures affected …

The Collective Object: Realizing Collective Space In An Era Of Bigness, Laura M. Sherman

KSU Journey Honors College Capstones and Theses

Architecture reacted to the Technological Revolution of the late 19th century with inspired proposals of optimistic expectation for the new era. The advancements of elevators, escalators and air conditioning meant almost limitless potential for the scale and scope of the built environment. However, society quickly realized the advantageous reality of this technology: Their buildings no longer needed the cities which surrounded them.

Endless interiors and “cities-within-cities” meant the possibility of a lifestyle where people could choose to never again interact with the undesirables of the true city. The built environment actively resisted the collective. A trend of self-interested architectures affected …

East Atlanta, Josh Curtis, Dana Delessio, Blake Fortune, Cari Foster, Jana Futch, Phillipe Gonzalez, Marni Gordon, Aretha Hills, Dennis Lovello, Amber Ray, Stacy Rieke, Sean Yates

Heritage Preservation Projects

Prepared by the Spring 2017 Case Studies in Historic Preservation students. Located partially in the City of Atlanta, DeKalb County and in unincorporated DeKalb County. East Atlanta is a good example of an evolving suburb. In the late 19th and early 20th century the area was an urban neighborhood that relied on the streetcar system and by World War II had evolved into an automobile-reliant suburban. Development progressed from a densely, gridded street pattern in the northern portion indicating a traditional urban neighborhood to a curvilinear street pattern in the southern section indicating an automobile-centric suburb. The area includes at …

Race, Class, And Gentrification Along The Atlanta Beltline, Natalie Camrud

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis examines issues of affordability and gentrification in neighborhoods around the Atlanta BeltLine. The BeltLine is a Transit Oriented Development project that is an adaptive reuse of an old freight rail corridor circling the city of Atlanta. The rapid new development occurring along the BeltLine is gentrifying neighborhoods and displacing communities. This thesis examines past urban redevelopment projects in Atlanta to see what the affects were on marginalized communities, and how the BeltLine is either similar or different to past development initiatives.

Longview Subdivision 1958-1962, Ellen Rankin, Nathan Brown, Collier Neeley, Nicole Gilbert, Sarah Love, Whitney Rooks, William Inman, Casey Radke, Anna Williams, Megan Wiginton

Heritage Preservation Projects

This form contains information about the Longview Subdivision, one of the few neighborhoods which represent mid twentieth century architectural styles to be nominated to the national register. The subdivision was created to cater to workers of new industrial centers within Doraville and along Peachtree Industrial Boulevard. This resource contains many primary sources, including contemporary photographs of the property, as well as various forms of maps, copies of original advertisements for the subdivision, and various documents and publications relating to the neighborhood itself.

Rethinking Atlanta's Regional Resilience In An Age Of Uncertainty: Still The Economic Engine Of The New South?, Jennifer Clark

Jennifer Clark

The Atlanta Streetcar: An Analysis Of Its Development And Growth As It Relates To The Core Cognitive Structure Of The City, Dawn Haynie

Art and Design Faculty Publications

the spatial structure of the city of Atlanta has shifted significantly as the city grew. It emerged from a pattern of colliding grids, which bridged the railroads, and an analysis of these early maps illustrated a centrally located area of dense street connectivity distinct from the spaces that are more easily accessible in terms of direction changes – where direction changes describe cognitive rather than metric accessibility. As the city grew and additional clusters of higher local density emerged, each isolated from the other, a multi-centered city was established with ever increasing fragmentation of the Directional Reach structure.Eventually, then, the …

Capitol View Manor, Erica Duvic, Meg Hammock, Justin Hutchcraft, Thomas Lee, Merribel Mckeever, Holly Schwarzmann

Heritage Preservation Projects

Prepared by the Spring 2011 Case Studies in Historic Preservation class. Information regarding historic relevance and resources located in the Capitol View Manor Historic District in Atlanta, Georgia was compiled to produce a Historic District Information Form (HIDF). This form is acceptable to submit locally and nationally for placement on the National Register of Historic Places. Capitol View Manor was established in 1920 and has a variety of historic building styles, including Craftsman, English Cottage, and English Vernacular Revival.