DANIEL

= Best Fit = = by Danny =

= INVESTIGATION STAGE =

**General characteristics of the neighborhood** :
This neighborhood in which the empty lot is located is developing very fast. There is a vast amount of apartment buildings and stores popping up all over the place. It is in Woodside, but near Sunnyside, Across the boulevard is a graveyard, but there is a train and bus station nearby, and there are many houses and small stores. Father down the boulevard, Manhattan is visible and there is an amazing view of Manhattan. There are many places of worship nearby the empty lot, and although the surround blocks might not be the nicest, they will soon be developed with the rest of the neighborhood and the neighborhood will be quite nice. There is a Boston Market, a Wendy's, a Dunkin' Donuts, many gas stations, and a lot of small restaurants nearby.

= Block and lot number: = 1321, Lot Number 1 = Size of Lot: = 100' x 120' = = =Images:=







= Needs Assessment =

**1. A description of what the neighborhood already has.**
The neighborhood that my empty lot is in is very mixed. There is a variety of different buildings including apartment buildings, small stores and delis, large stores, gas stations, and fast food restaurants. It is a high traffic area, as Queens Boulevard is very busy with cars throughout the day and night, therefore it is noisy. The majority of the buildings in the vicinity of the lot are private houses though. They are typically 2 to 3 stories high, and they are one family houses. However, these houses are on the side streets of Queens Boulevard, and my empty lot is right on the boulevard.

**2. An analysis of what the neighborhood needs.**

Since a lot of the buildings around my empty lot are stores, and since the area in which the lot is located is developing rapidly, I feel that there is a need for an apartment building. I also feel that the lot is located in a very central, convenient location, which is where many people would probably like to reside. Despite this, it is not as crowded as the neighborhoods of Manhattan, which might add a more comfortable touch to the apartments. I feel that an apartment building would be suitable because there is a need for a lot of housing in the particular neighborhood, and I feel that many people would want to live her. It is also very close to a train and bus stations, so for those looking to travel often, this would be a very convenient place.

= Inspiring Buildings: =


 * [[image:the-terry-thomas-building.jpg width="375" height="282" align="center"]] ||
 * =====I think that this building is very inspiring because it is very eco-friendly and it offers a lot of workspace. It is a very work-friendly building and I like the look of it because I happen to like glass buildings because they seem to have a serious touch. The building shows how we all must take steps towards making the buildings of our future eco-friendly, and I would like to see all of the buildings that are to be built in the future to be eco-friendly.===== ||
 * [[image:image_011-300x225.jpg align="center"]] ||
 * =====I think that this building is amazing in every way. It is a big tourist attraction, and I think that it is very cool. This building houses a museum, and I think that it looks very cool. At first glance, people will want to know more about it and they venture towards it, and it is very appealing to those who see it. I think that it is an architectural feat because it seems as if it alters the rules of gravity, or as if the picture has been altered in some way. ===== ||
 * [[image:Aqua-Tower-in-Chicago1-225x300.jpg align="center"]] ||
 * =====I think that this building is very inspiring because it shows the many directions that people can head in when designing a building. This displays how texture can come into play, and I find it amazing how this buildings seems as if it has water running down it's sides. I also find it interesting how the building was designed this way to display the topographical traits of the region, as this building is in Chicago and it is near the Great Lakes. ===== ||
 * [[image:dsc00153-ed-300x225.jpg align="center"]] ||
 * =====I think that this building is very inspring because it resembles something of nature- a flower. The design of the building is incredible, as it is humungous and it actually looks like a Lotus flower. I think this is a step forward for all designers because it shows how buildings can be designed to reflect nature, and that different elements of a building can be changed in order to make the building more feasible. This building is simply amazing.===== ||
 * [[image:004_DUBAI-240x300.jpg align="center"]] ||
 * =====I think that this building is amazing because just by looking at it you can tell that it is amazing. The outer structure of the building is glass and you can see the reflections of the nearby surroundings and I think that that is incredible. I am also amazed at how each floor of the building rotates and how all of the floors rotate in sync building in order to make the look as if it is a spiral.===== ||  ||

= Works Cited: =

=In what ways has this investigation influenced you to design a building for your lot that makes the best fit for the neighborhood? =

Although I have been influenced greatly by all of the buildings that I researched, I don't think that I could use any of the ideas that I found in these buildings. This is because many of the designs would be unfeasible, and they would seem out of place if they were built in my empty lot. However, I feel that these buildings have influenced me because they have showed me that anything is possible, and that even ideas that no one thought possible can work. This has inspired me to try somethign out of the ordinary, and this might just be helpful in designing the best fit for my neighborhood.

= DESIGN STAGE =

**Design Brief:**
**Problem to be solved:** There is a shortage of housing in this part of Woodside, and people want to live in a nice apartment building.

**Requirements:**

 * The building's front door must face Queens Boulevard.
 * The building should have bricks walls on the exterior.
 * The building must be appealing, and be unique but not too different from the surrounding buildings.
 * The building must utilize roof space and/or space outside the front door.
 * The building has to have windows or doors on every floor.

**Constraints:**

 * Building can be no larger than 100' x 120'.
 * Building can be no more than 10 floors.

Description of Three Possible Designs

** Design #1 **

media type="custom" key="8114072"

**This design for my empty lot is an apartment building with dark brown bricks and many windows. The designed building is not a perfect square, and it's width is much shorter than its length. The windows aren't very complex, as they are simple rectangles, but they like modern and they go with the rest of the building. There are plants on either side of the front door, and this helps to make the building more appealing.**

** Design #2 **

media type="custom" key="8114310"

**This design for my empty lot is an apartment building with light down bricks and pretty complex windows. The designed building is a has square faces, and it is eight stories high. The door has an awning overhead as to protect people from the elements such as snow, sun and rain. There are nine windows on each side of every story, and each window consists of four panels. The building doesn't have much on the roof.**

** Design #3 **

media type="custom" key="8147514"

** This design for my empty lot is an apartment building with darkish gray bricks and pretty complex windows. The designed building has square faces and it is eight stories high above ground, but it also has a basement. There are plants on the rooftop in order to lighten up the building, and there are nine windows on each side of every story excluding the basement, and the basement has no windows or exterior doors. **

** Identify the Best Design: **
The best design for my empty lot was the design that included a basement. This building was very complex and it had nice windows and doors. All of these fixtures were properly spread out, and the building looked good in general. There are also plants on the rood in each of the four corners.

** Justify Your Choice: **
This is the best design for many reasons, but the distinguishing feature was that this design had a basement. This helped to make the building very realistic and this was good in the end up because it is how a regular apartment building would look. I also feel that the plants on the roof were a nice touch because they added some color to the atmosphere, and it wasn't all industrial, as there was some green. This design for a building was more appealing than the other two designs, and it followed the design brief well, as it would fit the area in which my empty lot is located very well.