One Rincon Hill I & IIOne Rincon Hill is a residential complex that is currently under construction on the apex of Rincon Hill in San Francisco, California, United States. The complex, designed by Solomon, Cordwell, Buenz and Associates and developed by Urban West Associates, consists of two skyscrapers that share a common townhouse podium. One tower, One Rincon Hill North Tower, is planned to reach a height 495 feet (151 m) with 45 stories. The other tower, One Rincon Hill South Tower, is 60 stories and stands 641 feet (195 m) tall. The South Tower contains a number of unique elements, such as high-speed elevators for moving residents effectively, and a large water tank designed to help the skyscraper withstand strong winds and earthquakes. Both skyscrapers and the townhomes contain a total of 709 residential units.

In order to support the 60 story condo tower, One Rincon Hill South Tower will have a 12 foot (4 m) thick massive foundation embedded deep into serpentine rock. Rising out of the foundation are the concrete core and large, tall columns of steel-reinforced concrete called outriggers. The core is attached to large outrigger columns by steel-buckling restrained braces that are designed to transfer building loads in an earthquake. These V-shaped restraining braces are said to act like a shock-absorber during earthquakes. The braces are also encased in a concrete and steel casing in order to prevent the braces from buckling and losing their strength. Many of these engineering technologies used in One Rincon Hill South Tower are new to the United States.

This was the first project I worked on while at Solomon Cordwell Buenz. I had the opportunity to work on both the residential towers. On the phase I of the tower I assisted with construction administration and shop drawings. My responsibilities on the phase II included detailing and coordinating the waterproofing, expan-sion joint and landscape details. I worked on the section and detailing of trash chute. I also had the opportunity to layout the geometry plan for the project.

Main Program Elements - Improvement to the exterior facade included wrapping the spandrel glass system to the new glassed entryway. - Reception area designed with materials including granite pavers, bamboo plants in low river rock planter beds to create an outdoor feeling, a welcoming 3-form art wall and reception counter finished with with blue enviro glass and bamboo veneer. - Juice Bar / food Area with cafe tables and high bar area with cool cobalt blue pendant lights, - Aerobics room with mirrors to create a dynamic feeling and soft bamboo flooring. - Yoga room with soothing wall colors is softly lit with uplights and highlighted with amber colored pendant lights. - Locker rooms providing 260 lockers with shower rooms designed to recall the characteristics of water, with both sauna and steam room. - Massage rooms with soothing wall colors and accented with appropriate light fixtures to create a relaxing ambience. - Fitness area for cardio and strength training with indirect lighting and vibrant wall colors to create an energetic environment. - Gymnasium with basketball court with vibrant red bleachers and wall pads. - Trainers office which over looks the main fitness area for ease of supervision. - Complete seismic upgrade and ADA upgrade to all areas. - Complete upgrade of mechanical and electrical services. Project Data Design Duration: January 2006 to August 2006 Construction Duration: April 2006 to November 2006 Square Footage: 24,167 sf Consultants: Exterior Renovation: Korth Sunseri Hagey Architects Interior Design: Korth Sunseri Hagey Architects Structural Engineer: Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc. Electrical Engineer: Cupertino Electric MEPS Engineering: C & B Consulting Engineers Civil Engineer: Wilsey Ham Landscape Architect: The Guzzardo Partnership, Inc.

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Main Program Elements

- The Servery area was refurbished with new maple veneer for the servery equipments,new ceiling and lighting,new stained concrete flooring - The existing 3 Com Kitchen was upgraded with new ceiling and lighting, new epoxy flooring. - The Dining area was redesigned with earthy colored concrete flooring and warm colored walls and seatsapproximately 700 persons- New Coffee Shop with vibrant wall colors and informal seating area.- Complete upgrade of mechanical and electrical services.

MARVELL CORPORATIONThe 850,000 square foot Marvell Semiconductor Campus is located on the former site of the 3COM Headquarters in Santa Clara, California. Completed in the early 1990’s, the 3COM campus lacked any sense of clarity or quality, with a collection of poorly designed buildings clad with dark glass and EIFS panels. Marvell Semiconductor purchased the property in 2004 and hired Korth Sunseri Hagey Architects to redesign the campus to become Marvell’s Headquarters.The scheme involved stripping the existing buildings down to structural steel, combining several buildings to provide larger and more efficient floor plates, and installing a new high quality curtain wall system consistent with Marvell’s hi-tech image. Located on a highly visible site along Highway 237, the Marvell Headquarters has become a symbol of pride for The City of Santa Clara.

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Del Mar Station : The Del Mar Station is a housing project designed by Moule & Polyzoides around the Metro Gold line station Del Mar between downtown Los Angeles and Pasadena. It houses 347 housing units with subterranean garage for 1200 cars, 2000 sq ft of retail area along Raymond Avenue and around the light rail station. One third of the ground area is open for public use in ways of courtyards for housing and waiting spaces for transit users.

Transit Oriented Development:Catalytic Projects We are aware of the scenario that with the introduction of the automobiles the large scale suburbanization has made the once thriving downtowns into empty passerby streets and unhealthy neighborhoods for day to day living. The pedestrian life in these empty streets declines after a certain area and time into unsafe and deserted neighborhoods. The question is whether we should wait and see the evolution of transit to lead to a solution, to make a better scenario, or do we need new thinking and a new approach?

Project Description:-Introduction to the site:-The site needed to be near downtown Los Angeles where already a reasonably complex transit structure thrives. It should be offering various options of modes of transport both public and private. It needed to be a part of a neighborhood housing significant institutions, a corridor which currently heavily traversed by pedestrians.

View of the site along Grand Avenue

Panoramic view of the site

View of the site along Washington Boulevard

The Site sits at an important junction where on one hand is the light rail station: “Grand Avenue”, the La Trade Tech College, Grand Olympic Auditorium and California Medical Center along Grand Avenue and the Municipal Courts and LA Mart along Washington Avenue. It is flanked by the freeway I-10 and I-110. The site holds enormous importance if seen in the light of a project with a TOD template.The Site is also part of the Council District Nine in the Community Redevel-opment Agency project areas. The 2817 acre of this district is focused on the economic development through commercial and industrial revitalization.

Objectives:-• Identify the role of transit, in combination with supportive public policies and institutions, in influencing the built environment at transit stations and in transit corridors.• Identify the unique cultural institutional issues and barriers which mediate between transit and urban form.• Furnish case studies of designs useful to visualize a successful TOD setting and station area development and analysis of these outcomes.• Study various design options to come to a design solution optimum for success of the neighborhood and transit corridor.

Precedents:-Light Industry Typology Study:-The Light Industry Typology study was essentially done in order to study the functional system and various systems which are vital to understand light industries. The main category of light industry is garment industry, wholesale and retail activity related to this industry, a number of auto repair shops and spare part dealers, air conditioning and refrigeration related wholesale.

Analysis vital to the project:-The existing typology of this region is two storeys, make shift box type. Material used for construction is mainly brick. The typical depth of the plot varies from 60 feet to about 100 feet. Highlighted in the diagrams above are the various typical functional spaces: The loading unloading bay perpendicular to the main street, the main light industry zone and an office/ retail front to the street.

Courtyard housing type was studied in the light that the project would house typical Southern California Multifamily dwelling in Los Angeles. The typical court types that were studied were essentially the U-shaped courtyards, the dispersed court type and the street type. Of these types studied the design was much inspired by the street type of court which is typical of urban residential streets, involving the right courtyard proportions.

Analysis vital to the project:-

Del Mar Station is a good example of a TOD in the form of a residential project. The Del Mar Station project tries to maintain the scale along the street edges to those of the existing buildings and higher density towards the center of the site. It houses the right mix of housing types to ensure mixing of various income groups. It aptly addresses the issue of not incorporating excessive retail and commerce in a typically residential project. More so it carefully takes care of courtyard spaces though proportion of built to unbuilt is not

Peabody Terrace is a married student housing in Cambridge, Massachusetts, designed by Sert, Jackson & Gourley. Their mission was to reorganize the site and provide a transition to the surrounding neighborhood. It is an exposed concrete façade, reinforced concrete skeleton frame structure. It is interesting how the courtyards are designed to house various outdoor activities. There exists a good mix of high rise and medium rise buildings.

Transit Oriented Development:Catalytic Projects

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Figueroa Corridor:- The Site shares adjacency to the “Service District” of the Figueroa Corridor. The Figueroa Corridor Economic Development Strategy describes means for implementing public and private improvement plans. The Figueroa Corridor has a vision of achieving five goals:- - Guarantee the further leadership and involvement. - Secure funding. - Create a success story. - Raise the visibility of the corridor. - Obtain broad acceptance a policy support. The strategic vision for the service district was to develop infill projects that will strengthen bridge to the adjacent districts. Key uses they foresaw were technology/ media center, auto sales, incubator business and the services related to support them. In the background of this vision one cannot really decipher the future of the district. Landuse Analysis:- The Zone in which the site lies is essentially has an industrial character. Two storey box type, having adjacency to districts which are zoned for commercial typology and residential neighborhood. It also houses a number of institutional projects 1) LA Trade Tech 2) Grand Olympic Auditorium 3) Patriotic Hall 4) Municipal Courts 5) Orthopedic Hospital & 6) California Hospital Medical Center which are vital to the neighborhood as well as the city. Numerous valuable empty lots are presently being used parking lots. This District also contains retail spaces on the pedestrian level along the Washington Boulevard which are presently in a rundown condition. Modes of Transportation Analysis:- The District is supported by a good transportation system of the rail: Blue Line Metro, the Metro Buses, the DASH & municipal buses. The Blue Line is the most successful of these systems in terms of ridership and frequency followed by the DASH and the Metro Buses. The transport system has its own flaws and fails to address the following issues:- - The issue of pedestrian space within the transit corridor and transit related project. - To provide good way finding device for the pedestrian and automobile drivers to get to their destination. - Additional transportation network to reach into the residential neighborhoods not connected. Street network analysis:- This District houses a network of streets with Grand Avenue acting as the arterial street connecting the Southern District with Downtown. The freeway I-10 marking a major divider with two exists into the district. Washington Boulevard acts as a collector street and connectors various neighborhoods. Broadway and Figueroa act as passing connector streets. Numerous service streets supporting the light industrial plots. Grand Avenue, Broadway and Main are wide street but do not address the issue of pedestrian related activities. Activity hubs analysis:- There are not many pedestrian hubs in this district except for the ones around the LA Trade Tech College, The California Hospital Medical Center and the retails at the intersection at Los Angeles and Washington Avenue.

Growth of the city through time:- Before the establishment of the castle there appeared a large settlement north of the now existing Prague castle, in the basin that forms the Bubenec. Few centuries later the Celtic settlers, the Boji tribe inhabited the terrain. 5th and 6th century saw the arrival of the first Slavs,they established their settlement and trade center at the foot of the hilly territory in the 7th and 8th century - 870 the Prague castle was founded whose location made it possible to control all important fords in the area - 9th century saw the establishment of Vysehrad on the opposite bank of the river - Beginning of the 10th century the Jewish settlers established their settlement at the ford across the Vltava -973 the bishopric founded its seat at the castle - end of the 10th century a wooden bridge was constructed to connect the castle with the right bank of the Vltava - 1041 the castle was fortified in a typical Romanesque style - 11th century marked the set up of the Old Town market place and Tyn, forming the royal trading stations and custom houses - 1070 the Vysehrad was recontructed in romanesque fashion. In 1170 the first stone bridge was constructed.In 1230's the town on the right bankof the Vltava was ramparted forming the medeival settlement with Old Town marketplace area

b. Medieval Prague (1235-1400) 1257 the lesser town-Mala Strana on the left bank to the Vltava was founded and its bounding walls at Prague castle were connected to the Stone Bridge -1348 saw the climax of the development of Prague as a medieval town by founding of the New Town of Prague by the King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV. The new town covering 360 ha had three marketplaces - 1360 Charles IV reconstructed the lesser town of Prague and fortified Hradcany by new ramparts along the perimeters - 1375 Pohorelec was founded - 1380 the Old Town Bridge tower was constructed,both the Prague castles enhanced the city with new buildings including the royal palace and chiefly the St. Vitus cathedral. At the same time the archbishop was set up in Prague together with the oldest Central European medieval university - 1360 the Romanesque bridge was washed away by the flood and was replaced by a new more gothic bridge.1338-91 The Old Town hall of The Old Town was constructed.

c. Renaissance and Baroque Period (1400-1815):- From the mid of the 13th century to the beginning of the 16th century the Gothic artistic scene dominated the Kingdom of Bohemia. It’s influence was so strong that the gothic motives are seen in the works of Renaissance and Baroque architects. The turn of the 16th and 17th century, under the rule of Emperor Rudolph II, Prague once again became the center of the Holy Roman Empire.At this time the renaissance architecture reached its peak in Prague with the construction of a number of palaces and gardens for aristocracy, houses for the burghes, town gates and town halls.1620 saw the defeat of the Czech, mainly non-catholic, Estates against the emperor resulted in the economic exhaustion along with the start of the process of ruthless re-catholization thus resulting in a large amount of migration of population and permanent removal of the ruling seat to Vienna. Thus for the next 300 years Prague became the provincial town of the Habsburg monarchy. The depopulation of the 1630 lead to the expansion of the cityscape in terms of construction of large building complexes. The end of 17th and 18th century saw the decline of the economy and power after 30 years of war. After which the city recovered and rembarked on the Baroque construction. In 1760-81 the city avenues such as Na Prikope and Narodni were the two of the first boulevards that were created. In 1784 the four towns- Old Town, Lesser Town,

d. The 19th century Prague (1815-1918):- 1817 set up the scene of setting up of the first industrial suburb of Prague, Karlin, built behind the Procini gateway, followed by Smichov, Holesovice and Bubny. The first half of the 19th century saw the demolition and reconstruction of the Old Town, building up of the city infrastructure, sewage system and Prague’s first gas works.1840-78 five new bridges were built across the Vltava.1845-70 the railway line south to Vienna and north to Dresden and Berlin also the railway station was constructed. 1893-96 the ramparts of the jewish town were torn down. And it became the fifth district of Prague - 1874-76 the city walls were torn down. In 1893-96 The Old Jewish town was torn down and Parizka Avenue and Na rejidisti Square were built. End of the 19th century the national theatre and museum and other Czech and German national were constructed in the neo-renaissance style. In 1891 the horse drawn cars were electrified. Also Prague began to become an agglomeration of the suburbs and the old town which today houses more than a million residents

e. Prague the capital of Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1948):- Prague became the capital of the newly created Czechoslovak Republic. In 1919 The Prague Castle was declared the seat of the President, many palaces were turned into administrative offices. Merger of 37 communities formed the Greater Prague established on the territory of 174 square Km with over 670,000 inhabitants. The state regulatory commission was formed to examine the urban concept with a view towards more construction. In 1929 a directive plan was adopted. IN the twenties new settlements in Bubenec were set up mainly in Dejvice where architect Antonin Engel applied his urbanist theories. The thirties saw the appearance of small flats. However the construction was halted because of war. But Prague’s historical core escaped destruction

f. Metropolis Prague (1948-1995):- In 1948 the communist government was operating which laid stress on extensive pre-fabrication construction. In 1957-90 large housing estates were constructed on the outskirts. Along with these many new modern building were erected having much negative impact on the city. In 1962-68 the new airport was constructed in Ruzyne. In 1967 the underground metro work began. Basic network of highways went crisscross across the city.

Prague: a journey through medieval times Introduction There is a legend connected with the founding of Prague.In around AD 800, Countess Libuse, a woman with great powers of divination, sent her henchman into the forest with instructions to found a town at the spot where they saw a ploughman (premyusl) constructing the threshold of the house.She married the ploughman( thus establishing the Premyslid dynasty) from her palace at Vrshrad, situated on a rocky outcrop above the right bank of the Vltava, predicted that the new town, later be called Praha or Prague, would have a future so glorious that it's fame would reach the stars.(michael pg. 9)

Setting:- The city of Prague is located amongst the scenic settings of the hills of Hradcana and Petrin on the western edge and the steep cliff of Vysehrad and Vitkov. Seated on the stratergic location of the Bohemian plateau the river Vltava cuts through the plateau, creating a meandering wide loop through its precincts.

Analysis of existing city:- a. Solid Void Study:- The Old Town of Prague is a typical example of a medieval city, organic Building blocks with formal facades and amorphous courtyards, narrow streets radiating out from the Old Town Square and large market square.

b. Squares:- The Old Town Square acts as a market square and church square with all major streets converging to it (the square is linked to the Prague castle by the Charles bridge0. The Chares Square and the Wenceslas Square form key parts of the fourteenth century expension of th city under Charles IV. c. Streets:- The residential streets are typically narrow leading to a public square. The newly developed streets are more grid iron and wider.

d.Waterways:- The Vltava forms the meandering bisector of the city, forming the western and northern side of The Old Town; the defensive wall with it’s moat was demolished in 1760 to from the present-day east bank inner-ring boulevard.

Historic character of the city of Prague:- Though Prague was in the midst of the restless Europe, it never succumbed to the destructive influences, never underwent a fundamental reconstruction. Everything remained preserved, anything that was new grew out of the old- The Romanesque city plan, the Gothic parceling of land, Renaissance and Baroque street facades- this is what makes up the fabric of Pragues current appearance.

a.Romanesque Prague:- The Prague castle was established as the seat of royalty around 850 A.D., leading to a process of erection of building reflecting the importance of the ruler’s residence. Later Vysehrad was built across on the opposite bank on the Vltava. The Romanesque core is defined by the establishment of presti-gious buildings like the Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul. These were concentrated around the Old Town Square (Straromestske namesti) and the streets leading from it. They lined significantly along the connecting route between the square and Vysehrad, today’s Husova and Jilska Streets. Most of these buildings were constructed from small cretaceous marly limestone blocks. Frequently they were located on small fortified lots, raised two stories, accessed by exterior stairways. The halls were vaulted onto central pillars with handsomely shaped capitals.

b.Gothic Prague: - The city was fortified and small defensive buildings were rebuilt into comfort-able town residences. The street grid was logically organized and the religious buildings had more space. The city grew gradually, the Havel quarter was established and several settlements, at the foot of the Castle were merged into Lesser Town of Prague.The greatest development took place during the reign of Charles IV, who made the city worth being the seat of the of the Roman Emperor.

c. Renaissance Prague:- The importance of prague as the royal seat dimished at the beginning of the 16th century and population decreased. Yet the commercial prosperity was undetered and the city continued to undergo substantial renovation.

d. Baroque Prague:- Prague got it’s foremost architectural expressions in the Baroque period. In the early 17th century the city went through catholic reformation which led to massive construc-tion of churches, convents and monastic colleges.

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P I have worked with 3Ds MAX for the last 3 years, starting from graduate school. I also had the privi-lege of attending the 3Ds Max workshop organized by Solo-mon Cordwell Buenz for employees that would be part of the design team. In the project exhib-ited on this page I modelled the base model in AUTOCAD, imported it into 3Ds MAX, applied V-ray material and rendered it using V-ray. The challeng-ing part of the rendering was making the glass look realistic, getting the sun angles right so as to achieve good color rendering quality of the vertical surfaces.