GENJI

= **Best Fit** = by Genji

= INVESTIGATION STAGE =

**General characteristics of the neighborhood** :
The largest street in my neighborhood is Union Turnpike. Up and down the street is full of shops and businesses, fast food restaurants, pizzerias, and laundromats. These business hope to make money off of the students of St. John's University, which has many students streaming in and out of it on weekdays. Besides the college, however, there are a lot of houses with a lot of inhabitants. They are mostly single-building houses, with green lawns which are cared for. Cunningham Park, a park run by the city, is a few blocks down the street.

Block and Lot Number:
Block Number: 7012 Lot Number: 30

Size of lot:
103.97' x 54.41' x 100' x 25.94'

**Needs assessment** :
**1. A description of what the neighborhood already has.**

The name of this neighborhood is Fresh Meadows. This half-developed lot is facing Union Turnpike, which is a huge street abound with shops and stores. It stretches all the way to Queens Boulevard, a huge boulevard with cars racing across its surface as i on a highway. In the other direction, it goes to Forest Hills. Across the street from the lot is St. John's University, which has many students pouring in and out of its many gates. There is a huge market for food shops, mostly snack shops and corner stores where people can quickly get a pick-me-up. Dunkin' Donuts is a very popular place, and there many pizzerias because pizza is a food which is easy to carry around and eat with the hands. Most of the homes, such as mine, are single-family homes. Some of the houses further from Union Turnpike are extremely large, but they are single-family houses. However, for the first 3-4 houses from one end of the block adjacent to Union Turnpike, they are all townhouses, connected to each other. In addition, there are some doctors which open their businesses in their own homes. However, there are no schools (other than Catholic schools), factories, places of worship, and hospitals. There is only one community service which I know of, and that is Cunningham Park. It is a very large patch of grass, with complete with trees and nature. There are even tennis courts, baseball fields, and a track. It is monitored by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.

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

This is a difficult problem, for me, because the neighborhood already has so many businesses and shops that it doesn't seem like it needs anything more. If a new building or store was to be added, there would be no guarantee that that building would be successful at all. Because there are already a lot of stores, many which sell the same products, there is a lot of competition between stores. A store of the same type would only become bankrupt after a few months, but there is not much else you could sell. The neighborhood does not have places of worship, hospitals, factories, or public schools. The lot is much too small to be a church or a hospital. Neighborhoods not having factories are better off without them, because they may release smoke and pollution. Public schools can only be created by the Department of Education. But I realized one thing that the neighborhood did not have- businesses focused on serving the people who lived in the houses of the neighborhood. Because there are so many college students who are willing to spend money, most or all of the businesses just decide to serve them in order to get more money. The neighborhood is missing services which serve the families residing in the neighborhood. Most college students eat at restaurants which can serve quickly and cheaply, such as Subways or fast food. It would help the neighborhood if there was an authentic restaurant where people sit down to eat and order off a menu.

**Buildings and architects that provide inspiration**
This is the Sydney Opera House. It was designed by Jørn Utzon, when his design was picked as the best from a contest to see which design was best for the Opera House. It is inspirational for me because of its creativity and shape. It has "shells" which reflect light and the building dazzles people at night.

This is the rotating Dynamic Tower in Dubai. Its many panels spin all at different speeds making the building not have a permanent shape. It spins like this because it wind blows the panels to spin, in addition to its motors. That rotates a generator which generates electricity, acting almost like a windmill. In addition, on the tops of each panel is a massive solar panel which also adds to the supply of energy for the motors. In addition to its unique design, it is even Eco-friendly! This is the Guggenheim Museum, built by the world-renowned Frank Gehry. This building shows a completely new design for viewing products, and in this case, art, by using a spiral which people walk on. People can view all the works from all angles, and it spares them the walk up the stairs. It shows how a simple idea can be put to use in such a creative design. This is the Taipei 101, the world's tallest building from 2004 to 2010, when the Burj Kalifa Tower was built. I think this building is inspiration because it is not only a business center, it is also a huge shopping mall in its lower levels, and it also includes New Year broadcasts and a huge countdown clock, the world's largest. This is a building which is suited for a huge range of people. In addition, it's strong- it can withstand the frequent typhoons which hit Taiwan. This is a special kind of building where people can buy them cheaply and can build them on their own. They are simple, but are very easy to build and almost anybody can afford them. It's simple, but it opens a wide range of buyers because of the price.

** In what ways has this investigation influenced you to design a building for your lot that makes the best fit for the neighborhood? **
Based on investigation, I think that I will make a building that is a authentic restaurant which allows people to sit down and eat a 3 course meal. This building will be created mainly for the families which live in the neighborhood, rather than just for the college students. It will not be too flashy or have colors which are too bright, because that will not seem to fit in the neighborhood. To make the building more eco-friendly, I think that there should be some sort of renewable energy involved, such as solar power and wind power. The Taipei 101 is strong enough to withstand frequent hurricanes, but New York does not have too much extreme weather throughout all four seasons. What New York does have, however, is a very sunny summer. The restaurant can utilize this solar energy by using solar panels, and that will save the restaurant a lot of electricity. Also, just like the stairs can also be round and go next to the wall, allowing customers to easily traverse from floor to floor. All in all, it should be a business which main purpose is to serve the people who live in this neighborhood as opposed to the college students.

WORKS CITED

Dubai Dynamic Tower "Rotating Tower, Dubai, UAE -- Show Story." // Show Story -- Hunan //. Web. 10 Jan. 2011. .

Guggenheim Museum "File:Taipei101.portrait.altonthompson.jpg." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 10 Jan. 2011. .

Portable homes Quackenbush, Jeff. "Company Sending 100 Portable Houses to Haiti – North Bay Business Journal - North San Francisco Bay Area, Sonoma, Marin, Napa Counties - Archive."// North Bay Business Journal - North San Francisco Bay Area, Sonoma, Marin, Napa Counties //. Web. 10 Jan. 2011. .

Sydney Opera House: "Image:Sydney-opera-house-261106-2.jpg - SIUE Geog201 Wiki." // Main Page - SIUE Geog201 Wiki //. Web. 10 Jan. 2011. .

Taipei 101 "File:Taipei101.portrait.altonthompson.jpg." // Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia //. Web. 10 Jan. 2011. .

= DESIGN BRIEF =

Problem to be solved: The stores in my neighborhood is mostly designed for the college students in the neighborhood, rather than the people who live in the houses of the neighborhood. Functions: This building should be an authentic restaurant which mostly serves the people who live in the houses of the neighborhood.

**Requirements:**

 * The building should be wheelchair accessible.
 * The building should have an Asian style, or whatever style which suits the type of cuisine.
 * The windows should be large enough for emergency egress.
 * The building should somewhat fit into the buildings in the neighborhood.

**Constraints:**
103.97' x 54.41' x 100' x 25.94'. (Lot size)
 * The footprint of the building cannot exceed
 * The height of the building cannot exceed 5 floors.
 * The building cannot be too flashy.

Description of Three Possible Designs
 * Design #1 **

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This model was based off of a Japanese 5-floor temple or shrine where people would pray. The entire building is very traditional, with paper windows, doors, and perhaps even walls. The windows are also Japanese-style, though they are not shown in the Sketchup model. On each floor there is a sort of awning which partially covers the floor below. In addition, on each floor there is a porch with a wooden railing where people can look out and see the neighborhood, the sunset, the college, or the night sky.

** Design #2 **

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This model was also based off of a very important part of the Japanese culture. It represents light and hope, providing a beacon showing the right way. The lantern will be decorated so that the sides of the lantern will look as though they were paper. The top of part of the lantern that looks like a lantern will be glass, so that precipitation does not get into the restaurant. In the center of the restaurant will be a bright lamp that will shine into the neighborhood and make the restaurant actually look like a lantern glowing.

** Design #3 **

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Of course everybody can recognize this design. Everybody knows the wonderful taste that the MSG in this quick-serve, unhealthy instant ramen noodles can provide. It is the opposite of authentic (which is what the restaurant is going to be, authentic and traditional) and it really adds a fun look to the neighborhood. I mean, which American who sees a towering replica of a cup of Cup Noodles for the first time not laugh? The walls will be painted to look like Styrofoam and on the outside there will be the logo, with all of the colors and the the words "Maruchan Instant Lunch- Beef Flavored" on the outside. On the inside, on the wall of the restaurant, there will even be a rectangle with the words "Sauce Pack-Beef Flavored." There will be double doors, which lead to the first floor or an elevator which takes you up to the other floors.

** Identify the Best Design: **
I think that the best design is the Japanese pagoda design with 5 floors.

** Justify Your Choice: **
I think that it is the best choice because it fits the design brief the best, and it fits into the neighborhood better than the other two designs. The footprint of the building fits the size of the lot. The building barely exceeds the limit of 5 floors. The building has an Asian style because it serves an Asian cuisine. There is a ramp with a sign that indicates that it is for disabled people. In addition, it fits in better than the other two designs because it actually is a building based on something that is not a building, like a cup of instant ramen. However, what it does not have is the fire escape.