The Loss of the Wild — Pt.2
Bridging the gap between the city and nature.
Read part 1 here.
I grew up in a mixed use development in the heart of downtown White Plains. My dad used to practice dentistry on the first floor of the building we lived in.
I used to wake up and go down to the deli on the 4th floor to have breakfast every morning. I was a mere 11 years old but I remember these interactions with the guys at the deli fondly. They even had a tab for me.
Around us was a mall, the library and the train station — all within walking distance. But the primary mode of transportation in the area was cars, so that's how the area is built. It was an oasis among isolated developments.
50 Main Street in White Plains, NY was a multi-award winning building complex by Warshauer Mellusi Architects, a development way ahead of its time in terms of how it was built.
For the most part during the 1990s, the term mixed-use was considered an office building that had a deli and some really bad retail around the corner, with apartments that were unconnected but just happened to be there.
During this time period you had such broad areas between the different sub markets and tenants. Developers became inwardly focused on their buildings, and what the tenant’s experience would be like inside not as much out. The rest was up to the city or someone else to figure out.
The idea of mixed-use is a very natural idea. Its built into the DNA of every rainforest canopy.
Our cities are, in fact, large mixed-use developments, and finding the right mix on a small scale, neighborhood by neighborhood, is how we find sustainable solutions.
Mixed-use areas keep us healthier, minimize the need for automobiles or other vehicles and maximize opportunities for people. By having a mix of class and race with a variety in cost for living options — people can live more diverse and enriching lives. If all the rich people live in one area and poor people live in another, how will opportunities open up to the poor if they don’t know anyone who is rich? Mixed-use helps to reduce the stratification of income.
When you look at the great cities of the world — Paris, Madrid, New York — they’re walkable. You walk to be entertained, walk to your house, walk to your office — enjoyable just to be outside and to explore.
Many of these cities were organized around central open public spaces that relate to those districts. New York for example has many hubs that help orient walking areas. Mixed-use architect, Gordon Beckman talks about it more in depth:
Think of New York City, where the broad boulevards run north-south and the narrow streets run east-west. The narrow streets connect to the river on both sides — that was the open space when the city was first planned. The boulevards were broad because they were in the city and not connected to the open space. In terms of mixed-use design and urban design, it’s critical to keep in mind these simple lessons and urban patterns that we’ve seen in cities throughout history.
Each city is unique in its patterning and urban typology; learning from the various examples and applying this knowledge allows the continuation and creation of authentic urban spaces. — Gordon Beckman
I love the sound of authentic urban spaces.
But what are authentic urban spaces? I interpret the phrase to mean spaces that are true to the culture, flora and fauna of a place.
This is what we should strive for when we create mixed developments. By combining a knowledge of place with a knowledge of space — we can create livable and thriving habitats that will in turn create thriving cities. When we think about who we’re designing for when we talk about mixed-use, we’re not only designing for the residents inside the buildings and parks but also the community members who benefit from their existence. Its all about scope.
So, what are some examples of mixed-use that are already developed or being developed?
Here are three recent projects:
Bosco Verticale
Bosco Verticale is the “world’s first vertical forest” comprised of a pair of high-rises that add nearly 2.5 acres of lush vegetation to the skyline of Milan, a city notorious for its air pollution.
However, Bosco Verticale will be more than just a beautiful sight to behold — like a pair of green lungs, its forested facade of 21,000 plants will absorb CO2 and particulates, dampen noise pollution, lessen the urban heat island effect, and create oxygen and favorable microclimates.
Bethesda Row
by Street Works & Federal Realty Investment Trust
Bethesda Row is a walkable downtown mixed-development in Maryland. Although the condominiums located directly above the main walking strip are luxury, there are many other apartments and houses close enough to make the area easy enough to get around.
The development feels thriving, pedestrian-friendly and fun to explore. Design elements, including brick sidewalks, plazas, trees, outdoor café seating, and curbside parking, help make Bethesda Row feel like you’re somewhere on a small European city street.
Hudson Yards
By Related & Oxford in Partnership with New York City
Hudson Yards is the largest private real estate development in the history of the United States and the largest development in New York City since Rockefeller Center.
When completed in 2024, 125,000 people a day will work in, visit, or call Hudson Yards their home. The site will include more than 17 million square feet of commercial and residential space, state-of-the-art office towers, more than 100 shops, a collection of restaurants, approximately 4,000 residences, The Shed, a new center for artistic invention, 14 acres of public open space, a 750-seat public school.
Trust me when I tell you — the west side will never be the same. They might even finally get the subway coverage they need with all these people moving in. I’ve got mixed feelings about all the luxury stuff with Hudson Yards, but we are talking about New York City – no one seems to come here and is able to save any money. The city is the lifestyle.
My biggest caveat with these mixed development projects is that although they are beautiful, they are expensive for most and don’t include enough affordable units. More projects need to include more biodiversity, integrated businesses, connected sustainability efforts, hydroponic agriculture, solar window capture and regenerative energy production.
These developments integrate people quite well, but they largely lack integration of the natural environment.
I’d imagine we would need more input from experts and companies that do bio-mimicry focused architecture like Terrapin Bright Green.
Here’s to more mixed-development with better environmental strategies.
This is part nine of my series on Design & Nature.
If you resonated with this article, click that green heart below, follow me here on medium or on instagram! Thank you for reading! Have an amazing day.
