Mediative Urbanisms – Entry 111
Presented by:
William Esarey – wee (at) wee-la (dot) com
Winchester, KY
Ned Crankshaw
Meaghan Mroz-Barrett
Gabriel J. Presley
The design revolves around four main areas: reconnections, scale gradient, remediation of urban ecology, and infill that meets neighborhood needs.
RECONNECTIONS:
The site is bounded by a railroad line that it from the Clifton neighborhood and is separated from downtown Louisville by a deteriorating industrial zone. This design:
- Provides multi-model transportation opportunities
- Pedestrian bridge to the upper area of Irish Hill
- Connection to existing greenway
- Bus Station
- Beargrass Creek access to the Ohio River
- Bike Lanes
- Future Light Rail in
- Restores street grid connections
- Allows access across the railroad tracks to Main St.
- Has visual connections to downtown and the river from the multistory apartment buildings
SCALE GRADIENT:
The Irish Hill neighborhood consists generally of smaller scale buildings, while downtown contains a massing of large scale skyscrapers. The design:
- Locates small scale buildings along Lexington Avenue and Beargrass Creek
- Shops and restaurants on first floor
- Residences above
- Creates compact higher development to provide additional housing opportunities
REMEDIATION OF URBAN ECOLOGY:
Beargrass Creek is an opportunity to restore a broken ecological link to create a resource for the neighborhood. The design:
- Widens the creek to slow flow and allow for water purification.
- Provides visitor access to water’s edge
- Creates a floodplain to deal with increased flow in an ecological manner.
- Uses the creek as a recreational and ecological resource.
INFILL THAT MEETS NEIGHBORHOOD NEEDS
There are functions residents have found missing from the neighborhood that have been lost over the years. This design:
- Creates a commercial destination increasing neighborhood visibility
- Helps the viability of other developments such as Distillery Commons
- Provides a range business opportunities
- Anchor locations
- Small scale retail
- Offices
- Different urban scale living arrangements
