Tag Archives: Brooklyn

DD PEER REVIEW: REBECCA LEFKOWITZ

Design Development Peer Review

Designer(s): Rebecca Lefkowitz & Laura Deluca


Rebecca and Laura started their presentation by siting the lack of a strong entrance into Dumbo, Brooklyn. Their design was a step towards addressing the lack of an entrance into the rapidly developing area via a major transportation hub. The transportation hub would service taxis, bikes, buses and cars as well as a car sharing service, and convert those means of transportation to pedestrian movement. Their meandering path then engage the pedestrians, providing movements for them to relax, work, and eat along the way. Continue reading DD PEER REVIEW: REBECCA LEFKOWITZ

Design Development Statement

Separation of Realms to the Community

The surrounding area in and around Dumbo, Brooklyn is demographically sectioned by industrial, residential, and mixed-use commercial and residential sectors. In utilizing this information as well as the previously existing Hamilton Road that divided the site the design is able to separate into two separate realms, a private and a public.

A parking garage is placed on the previously existing in order to maintain the idea of transportation. This aspect again divides the site as the road had previously done, creating a public realm on the west side and a private realm on the east side. The public realm consists of a subway along Jay Street and an open pavilion for movie viewing utilizing the garage façade as a projection screen. The other side of the parking deck consists of a residential, office and daycare complex.

Lying between the parking deck and the complex is an indoor market, which acts as a filter for pedestrians that come into the building complex. This market averts the public sector from coming into the private building complex allowing for a relaxed and quiet environment. The end results in a space that gives back to the neighborhood a space for congregation as well as a work/live environment.

Schematic Design Review: Alice Stewart-Castner

Alice’s schematic design focused on a missing link beyond the Dumbo area that connects the historic naval shipyard and the developed commercial area. She modified her site with a stretching diagonal from the corner of Front and Jay Street to the opposite corner of Bridge and York Street. While a diagonal is the most immediate and effect way of reaching the opposing corners it ignores the apparent grid that exist in New York. Continue reading Schematic Design Review: Alice Stewart-Castner