BIG D

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BIG D

Firm

Komanda

SIZE

500,000 sqft - 1,000,000 sqft

BIG
D, DALLAS prides itself on its larger than life
character. Dallas is a city of suburbs and intense urban nodes with their
associated problems: sprawl, a lack of networked connections, and a degraded
environment. But the hot, humid climate is not always conducive to street-based
urbanism. Replacing one paradigm with another can be problematic.
BIG
D URBANISM thinks BIG. Big scale thinking can make
a more integrated and symbiotic urbanism. Dallas’s towers, Convention Center, department
stores, Civic Center, and Aquarium are cultural oases. We propose to link them through
naturally cultivated greenways. The high-rise tower can achieve density and the
benefits of a holey fabric.
That
holey fabric, the BIG D LANDSCAPE, forms a spongy watershed, naturally alleviating
flooding at the Trinity River, cultivating soil production, and restoring the city’s
ecology. Underperforming downtown parking lots are turned into rain gardens and
gray water retention areas that green up civic spaces. These patches are linked
as pedestrian, bike, or horse trails weaving throughout the city. The proposed
storm water management network syncs with existing DART and new light rail
lines as “bio-streets,” enables a diverse planting habitat, acts as a carbon
sink, and intensifies the urban landscape experience.

BIG
ARCHITECTURE absorbs and intensifies the
complexities of the city. It is a social and technical condenser of urban
systems and people, forming an identifiable architecture. The section is a city turned
on its side. Its hybrid organization of stacked courtyards gets the passive
microclimate benefits of traditional typologies and the urban vistas demanded
by market driven real estate. The ascending courtyards form a series of semi-public
areas including gardens, outdoor pools, and a variety of commercial spaces. Our
building taps cool sub-grade water for geothermal cooling. Conservation is preferable
to technical solutions. Solar collectors’ benefits are offset by the heat
island effect. Wind is too gentle to produce significant energy. However,
capturing breezes and providing shade can greatly increase comfort levels
throughout the building and the city.