Model of Larimer. Terrain is hand shapes ply wood with a layer of laser cut pine on top to show the roads. Buildings were cast in resin and then sanded for translucency.
We produced nearly 250 linear feet of drawings. Each sheet is 5' tall and we spanned nearly 50'.
It took me over 25 hours to lay out the maps into presentation sheets with categories, titles and proper explanations. Plotting (printing in archi-speak) alone took another 10 hours.
Things I can't do:
I can't build a building. I can't plan a landscape. I can't renovate, remodel or refurbish it. I can't even demolish it. I can't actually DO anything to your built environment. Yet.
Things I can do:
I can draw a lot of pretty pictures about what is already there. I can tell you about a lot of things you already know. I can make some observations, collect some data and I can give you information. You might think these things are useless but they're powerful tools.
Things I want to do:
I want to empower you to change your community with these tools. I want to give you this vocabulary. I want to inspire you to change your own environment.
Things I'm going to do:
Learn how to write a grant application- you have needs and I have resources. I need to help do more and for now, this is the best I can do.
I want to change something in Larimer. Permanently. The value of being an architect is that what you do, it's very nature, has longevity. My work should outlive me.
The plan: There is a HUGE underground economy in Larimer. People sell food out of their kitchens and run day cares in their living rooms. To people passing through the neighborhood, it feels like a ghost town, but actually it's quite vibrant. The community needs a way to bring their economy to the surface and to make if public. These entrepreneurs are too small to even be eligible for small business status, and actually, couldn't afford to sustain that economically. The neighborhood needs a formal market area. This way, people selling things could pay for a stall at a very low monthly overhead rate, like 20 bucks. This would give the community some centrality and the opportunity for growth. Pittsburgh at large has many community craft fairs, farmer markets etc. which could come in once a month to attract outside money into the area. I want to buy the abandoned school in Larimer from the city. I want to collect volunteers from the area, students and professors to write grants. I want to turn this into their market. For real. Rural Studio and Sam Mockabee did it and so can we. I can't build anything, but I know people who can. I'm not an architect but I will be someday.
I wrote this in a rush after dinner conversation about how feasible this could be. There are a lot of other ideas I have about this, but if you think this is a project you're interested in, let's meet.