"interconnections"
reconnecting and rebuilding the forgotten Hill District
project location
The Hill District is located in the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
images below depict the current state of each neighborhood
timeline
1800s: the hill district was part of the underground railroad
1900s: haitians + eastern europeans began migrating to the hill district, as well as recently freed black men and women due to the labor shortage from WW1 and the demand of the steel mill
1930-50: the district became a national hub for african american music, art, and culture; as well as being the home to 25 different nationalities
1950-60: undergoing an "urban renewal" plan due to deteriorating buildings; 8000 residents, 1300 buildings, 80 blocks, and 400 local businesses were displaced and the access to the downtown economy was cut off. a giant arena and parking lot replaced this. national civil unrest and lack of attention to the hill district lead to its eventual deterioration.
1990: by this time, 71% of the entire hill district's community was gone and the majority of businesses vacant
2012: the arena was demolished
2013: YMCA, grocery store, and a library were built; public interest groups began brining awareness and investment to the hill district
2017: the Cap project was announced to connect the district to downtown Pittsburgh through a large public greenspace built above the interstate
lower hill district masterplan
“Interconnections” is a project that abstracts the forgotten social life of the hill district and aims to revive it. The vast amount of vacant lots in the Hill District, allows for revamping the public social scene. Walking around the area, you see a lot of people outside their homes, without proper outdoor living spaces or seating. The main feature of the design is the tube-like structures that connect the buildings along the central axis. They are an abstraction of the social life of the community, mimicking the verbal connections from across streets and from porch to porch. These tubes create an indoor social space/connection which is important, as Pittsburgh's climate does not allow for outdoor connection all year round. These same buildings have angled facades to allow more sunlight through to the ground plane. There are divets along the central axis, giving users the option of refuge. The large greenspace has concrete pads for sitting, another abstraction of residential social life that often takes places from stoop to stoop.
