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Janelle Schmidt: At this moment, there are two opposing views of Brookyln’s Gowanus Canal. For the new residential community, the canal is an opportunity for waterside development, but if you ask the current trade community, the canal is one of the most polluted bodies of water in the United States.
I’m employing this binary as a spatial construct with the goal of feeling two spaces at once. The canal’s existing pump station is adapted to a core maker space and new residential units envelope around it.
If you’re a new resident, you must be tied to the existing artist community in some way, and the architecture enforces this constraint because it is communal living. The private residence contains bedrooms and baths, the public market is the workplace, and the semi-private band in-between contains kitchens and living areas.
With hope, maybe development can expand communities rather than replace them.
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