PROJECT: River Viaduct Cycle Center
LOCATION: Philadelphia, PA
TIME: 7 weeks; Spring 2014
SIZE: 18,000 square feet
GOAL: To establish a bicycle shop next to Paine’s Park that engages the surrounding train tunnel which is being proposed as an extension of the Schuylkill River Bike Trail. The Cycle Center is to sell, repair, manufacture, and rent bicycles for the surrounding community. In addition, the facility must be able to store at least 300 bicycles owned by surround residents. Program and spaces can be incorporated under one organization or can be leased out to several separate groups.
DESIGN: To achieve a connection between Paine's Park and the newly formed Schuylkill river bike trail bike through a closed tunnel, the design intention is to create a form that integrates into the slope of the site to maximize programmatic interaction through multiple levels of space. These spaces are formed through the exploration of a modular bay that changes based on programmatic intent and site condition. The modular form allows the site to house multiple programmatic spaces associated with a bike factory that includes: repair, rental, and purchase; while remaining independent. Through this vertical integration into the site, spaces can function under separate degrees of interaction and privacy, engaging the community in the most effective and sustainable way possible.
PROGRAMMATIC USE: The Bicycle Center is headed by an overarching organization that manages the facility. Separate buildings designed for specific program uses that include; a cafe, a bicycle and skateboard shop, a repair and assembly building, a seminar/workshop space, locker rooms, and a Bike Share Outreach Center.
View from Bicycle Trail
Photographs of the site model: these show an evolution in size, massing, and form of the models
Site Plan with site analysis
Final model of one of the modules
