Potomac Yard used to be known as the gateway between the north and south, this being because it had the biggest railroad yard in the east coast. Overtime it became less populated due to the scarcity of jobs. There are small pockets of development actively going on right now. Being from the neighboring state and with my knowledge of the area it is considered for the upperclass. With the median household income being one hundred two thousand.
I gathered inspiration to create my design specifically from the national mall. Instead of having a Egyptian obelisk, a fountain is found at the center that will create a focal point for drivers and pedestrains passing by. A space not only for it's residents but it's working class also a place where everyone will be able to gather. Gaining the name "The Peoples Fountain" As seen below a closer view depicts 1/4th of the center of my open space. I created a ring that uses trees specifically ones with large tree canopy's thus providing shading. The sound of the fountain will provide the areas users peace in shutting out the noise of the loud city. I also added benches around the fountain to give people seating. Another thing is one looks closely there is heavy vegetation surrounding these benches to provide it's users a experience that is comfortable, private and most importantly calm.
With a a FAR of 2.1 this site has the perfect amount of uses! What is Far? Far stands for floor area usage. it is what is used to distinguish if there are too many buildings and not a lot of open space or if there is too much open space and too little buildings/hardscapes. To find the FAR you calculate all the buildings Sq Ft and in addition each floor divided by the sq ft of your design space total.
Image is from the book (Global Street Design Guide by National Association of City Transportation Officials, Global Designing Cities Initiative
What influenced me to design my road like this is because most roads in the city are mostly for cars, they do not consider the needs of pedestrians. For this reason I created a road that can have four users.
Store/restaurant frontage
sidewalk for pedestrian circulation
Buffer zone
Biker Lane
Road for drivers
Each row has a purpose no space is being wasted and most importantly it is pedestrian friendly.