Sensitivity

With the intended sensitivity to site, I conducted a 'Before and After' analysis of the site, in relation to my proposed intervention.

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Conceptual Building

A conceptual representation of the principles that have been extracted from the site.

Section through Oriental Plaza and Site

Perspective

Higher Level Decisive Functions

Context

Concept

My concept looks at

• Bridging the void/juxtaposition between the large Oriental Plaza, parking and fine grain Context of Fordsburg,
• Increasing the economic growth, skills and standard of living
• Sensitivity to Culture, Social and Trade networks
• Promoting Individual Agency, within a structured system
• Time Based Growth

These principles result in

• Activating Retail Edges
• Inverting and stitching a specific part of the Oriental Plaza into the fine grain fabric of its context
• A transition between the Oriental Plaza and its juxtaposed context
• Integration with existing

Network Analyses

Curtain Manufacturers' Network

Customer Network

Shopkeepers' Network

Mapping

An immersive analysis of the site revealed various unique attributes of the site and its context - most prevalently to my criteria, was a network of curtain manufacturers.

A Gauteng City Region wide study of the various entities involved in curtain manufacture revealed how the Oriental Plaza is the nucleus of this network.

Site

My site is a block adjacent to the Oriental Plaza, with the possibility of integration with the Oriental Plaza. This site has existing retail and residential buildings on it, which I intend to integrate into my scheme.

Multi-Layered, Mixed Neighbourhoods in Newtown, Johannesburg

Newtown is a unique post-apartheid space, ideal for the exploration of  societal transformation. It is ideally suited for mixed income, mixed-race, mixed program, and ultimately new ways of being and living in South Africa. There is also harder infrastructure, of railway lines to the north and highways to the south. There are also the dramatic changes of fabric and programme in the area.