CREJ

December 2018 \ BUILDING DIALOGUE \ 19 WOULD YOU LIKE TO BALANCE INNOVATION WITH FINANCIAL REALITY? We arrive at design solutions for our clients that are innovative, cost-effective, financeable and practical to construct. These solutions range from high end luxury living environment to affordable housing strategies that can be delivered using site built or modular construction. SUSTAINABILITY = LOWER COSTS DYNAMIC DESIGN HAS MULTI-GENERATIONAL APPEAL ITS NOT HOW DENSE YOU MAKE IT, ITS HOW YOU MAKE IT DENSE For more information on Real Estate Development Solutions contact us info@laidesigngroup.com Dairy Block eschews the idea of people and cars sharing the road; it simply offers them each their own time. During open hours, the alley welcomes pedestrians, and during closed hours, the alley is open to service vehicles. Although the full devel- opment is not yet open and there remain many les- sons to learn, this little experiment offers a glimpse into the future. The solution at Dairy Block is just a beginning. The main, street-facing facades are still littered with cars (and on most days, bikes and scooters, too). The “innova- tion” is really only relevant to a young city like Denver, which was built after the automobile. It would not even garner a shrug in any of the timeworn cities of Europe, Asia or Africa. However, that does not diminish its im- pact, or the experience of the space. If you have not yet visited, take a moment to check it out – and walk there. Just 10 or 20 years ago, the architectural discourse on suburbia as an edge to the city proposed solutions and provoked ideas, which are transforming suburban areas into satellite urban areas today; their edge conditions have changed from their initial purpose. As we contemplate the challenges in our city and imagine where we want to go, we must consider how to transform or uniquely utilize the edge conditions we notice. How can take advantage of the edges and form them; make them fluid? Go back to that curb. Does it have to be just a delineator between a park- ing spot and a sidewalk? How can we begin to make bold, architectural design to address traffic congestion, and long rows of metal littering our streets? We could add more and different types of vehicles: bicycles, scooters, flying carpets … Alternately, we could think about utilizing edge condi- tions in a new way, experimenting with how we live and move about our city; finding the sunset or beach in the unassuming edge. \\ In the Details The edge conditions of cities wander, change and move, attracting people to them. They exist at different scales and even different times.