KEK Residentials

Newark is a small traffic friendly city that has been expanding rapidly in recent years. Currently, Newark’s city center is being restored, driving up property values and attracting a far wealthier demographic than those who have lived there in recent history. It is in this setting that KEK Designs has decided to unveil KEK Residentials. The overall goal with this project is to capitalize on the future influx of wealth and overall lack of upscale housing. KEK Residentials is a three floor gym-apartment complex hybrid, designed to offer a modern, upscale alternative for wealthy tenants.

Figure one demonstrates an aerial view of the plot that the new residency intends to cover. Figure two demonstrates the floor plans of the three story building with underground parking. Figure three is a rough sketch of the front of the building.

(Fig 1)

(Fig 2)

(Fig 3)

Proposal Justification:

After discussing a number of different ideas of varying seriousness (see appendix for a sample), KEK Designs decided on a hybrid gym and upscale apartment complex for a number of reasons. The principle reason for the gym part of the project is the lack of a nearby, upscale gym. There are a handful of gyms sprinkled liberally throughout Newark, but many would feel unfamiliar to a wealthy Columbus expatriate. Furthermore, income can be supplemented by selling gym memberships to the general public, with the intent of providing an alternative source of revenue to the owners to insulate the project from fluctuations in the housing market. The upscale apartment portion of the project was decided upon after the gym portion, though the gym is supposed to supplement the apartment complex, rather than the inverse. This portion of the project is a bit of a gamble, reliant on Newark doing well financially in the relative long term. While finding investors at this moment would be extremely difficult, KEK Designs is confident that funding could be secured within a few years, as long as Newark’s growth continues to accelerate at the same rate it is now.

The building is offset from the sidewalk by the green space located in front of the building and this is approximately 412/192 feet. This offset and the associated green space is designed such as to both draw the eye into the front of KEK Residentials while simultaneously being consistent with the setbacks of the surrounding buildings. KEK decided the green space would also be a beneficial touch to the apartments as it adds a backyard like feeling to the space and thus inspiring a notion of home.The green space contains three picnic tables for outdoor lunches and meditation. The gazebo outside of the residence has a stone path and serves as a great place for pictures or simply enjoying the view.   The first floor houses half of the gym, a small indoor track and basketball court (as currently proposed) as well as a lobby area, mailroom, and offices.The first floor is designed to be a common area, where the public gym goers mix with residents freely. One heavily debated feature of this floor is the indoor basketball court and track, with concerns about the resulting noise being the main complaint. In any case, much like the underground parking, the basketball court is an addition that may or may not be realized, depending on other external factors. The second floor encompasses the other half of the gym and features the first set of apartments. As currently planned, there are ten spacious apartments, each with private bathrooms and pseudo-balconies overlooking their respective sides. The remaining space is reserved for a common area, which serves as a buffer between the gym and apartments. The third floor offers penthouses and larger sized rooms to accommodate families while the second floor consists of smaller rooms for those who want a more solitary space.

The strengths of this proposal include an adaptable plan that allows the residence to adjust to threats,a potentially substantial return on investment,easy access to downtown Newark, and nearby access to necessary utilities. The weakness of the proposal are the proximity to other gyms and less appealing infrastructure of Newark’s downtown. However, these weakness may be overshadowed by the opportunities that the residence provides and may take part in. Opportunities include expansion to vacant lots that may be easy to acquire and the opportunity to attract millennials to its downtown creating a diverse generations for the city of Newark. Threats that may impede the implementation of KEK residentials are limited demand for high end apartments, assumption of Newark’s economic expansion, competition of smaller high quality lofts in the area, and the surrounding buildings not tailored for high end clients.

Appendix: Rejected Ideas

• Shopping Complex
• Public Park
• Space Elevator
• Parking Lot
• Tannery and Rendering facility
• Low cost housing apartments
• Vertical Shooting Range
• Low cost gym

Photos and Reflection of Downtown Newark

The Canal Market District was planned fairly well. It has the appropriate parking on site for the venders and a nearby parking garage for people who wish to attend events here. Overall the city of newark managed to find a spot big enough to hold this site and it is also tucked away so as not to cause traffic problems.

Chicago’s comprehensive plan summary

Major goals

Chicago’s major goals are to

1. Have communities that are a great place to live through managing the natural resources of Chicago in an efficient manner
   1. Manage and Conserve Water and Energy Resources
   2. Expand and Improve Parks and Open Space
   3. Promote sustainable local food
2. Supporting chicago’s economy and workforce
   1. Support Economic Innovation
3. Ensuring that government policies are “transparent and “efficient
   1. Reform State and Local Tax Policy
   2. Improve Access to Information
4.  Improving transportation efficiency
   1. Invest in useful Transportation
   2. Increase availability of Public Transit
   3. Create a More Efficient Freight Network

Changes KEK thinks might help the city’s plan-Kait

Beginning with the former development of the city, we would have gradually developed around the city entirely as opposed to one “chunk”, if you will. Also, housing appears to be an issue in the regard of commuting to and from a job. There are several “major” employment centers with no close residency. We would also focus on bringing in more supermarket options, for there are pieces of city that have low access to one. While considering the lack of major roads, we would also like to bring in more Amtrak stations to accommodate issues involving housing and work. We would add more Meta rails, too.

Interesting points in Chicago’s plan-Kailyn

• In Chicago’s plan it is mentioned that they have many units of government that are also not as responsive as the citizens would like. This was interesting because as the amount of people handling issues increased it seems reasonable to assume the government would be more capable of handling these issues.
• Water in Chicago is extremely scarce ,despite its proximity to lake Michigan ,due to laws prohibiting its use.

http://www.cmap.illinois.gov/about/2040

Zoning

Inclusionary Zoning-Kailyn

Inclusionary zoning makes sure that residential land developers have affordable housing for residents of lower incomes. The developers are often granted special permissions such as allowing them to build more or faster as  consequence of their agreement. This type of zoning is used to create a  community with different financial situations ,so that different socioeconomic levels will be integrated. A scenario where inclusionary zoning would be used is one where the amount of affordable housing is scarce and to encourage it a city government says that buildings with more than twenty-five units must be at least ten percent affordable housing.

Cluster Zoning- Kait

Cluster zoning is a technique used to preserve green area by placing lots closer together. It also focuses on creating less roads. It contrasts to other zoning techniques because it drives away from straight lines in regards to lots and streets. This type of zoning allows for a lot of creativity, for the form is flexible. We may see cluster zoning used heavily in subdivisions and small neighborhoods as opposed to bigger metropolitan areas.

Planned Unit Development-Sam

Planned Unit Development, also known as (PUD) has been used in the U.S. for many years and is spreading to several other developed and developing countries.

Incentive Zoning – Edwin

Incentive Zoning is a very robust zoning technique that is arguably the best for a community who has a highly desirable plot of land that they want developed and want more than just money from the developer in return. Incentive zoning is most often used in larger cities, and can help supplement existing infrastructure and/or provide services that are missing or insufficient. For example, in return for allowing a developer to build a skyscraper, the city may require the developer to reserve a certain number of floors for affordable housing or community services, like a day care or public space.

Kailyn – Economy

The economy is expected to come into play in any design decision as it is typically common knowledge that  budgets can restrict what can be done within designs. However,the economy also influences what should be done for a city. As the movie, Urbanized mentioned Detroit’s design decisions were made to accommodate millions of people ,but after Detroit’s debacle from its motor city reputation, the city contained vastly fewer individuals. The economy drives the population of the  city and as the mayor mentioned the people drive what the city needs as far as design. The mayor’s decision to keep Newark more rural makes the people drawn to its peace but they may also be drawn to its proximity to the job market in Columbus. The most important thing about planning and design is who it is being designed for. The easiest way to tell what a city needs without asking the people in them is to observe the local economy in combination sometimes with the local infrastructure.

Edwin – Economy

The most important element one must consider when creating a city plan is economy. Without an appreciation for the economic power of a city or region, nothing else will matter. When designing the a master plan for a growing city, failing to account for the overall wealth of its populace can lead to empty houses and shantytowns, while failing to account for what is produced in the city or region can lead to inefficiencies. Furthermore, if a city has a strong economy, it becomes easier to modify as problems arise. A clever and elegant solution is useless if it requires more funds than accessable. China may have some serious design problems, but they can fix their problems by using the time-tested technique of throwing money at them until they go away.

Kait – Form

Form positively impacts design in so many ways. It really has the potential to set a specific and desired tone for an entire community or neighborhood as a whole. We see a wide variety of form across our country, or the world eve, for accommodations and needs within societies differ. Also, culture impacts form immensely. Form allows for creativity on a much larger scale than design does. It can potentially set apart communities and create different emotions for travelers and residents of a particular area. Form brings together design and efficiency, and considers the functionality of a space or community.

Sam – Economy

The economy has a major hand in any of the other aspects of planning.Without enough Money/material you will not have a very efficient neighborhood. For example the city off the coast in Africa from the movie had rather narrow walkways, few streets,poor lighting and several other problems. Which led to high crime rates.A good economy will help make planning the neighborhood easier as well as more efficient. With a well off economy you can afford to have proper lighting, wide streets, a good sewage/storm water drain system.well planned cities also have a considerably lower crime rate. A city built with a good economy is more attractive to people looking to move. Cities with a good economy are more likely to improve themselves.

The ideal city we designed focuses on combining nature with modern suburban design. It pulls nature and urbanization together to create an efficient, unique, & activity-filled area. As pictured above, we have an almost central-park. Wrapping around the central park there are 2 paths and a parking lot for visitors. The park is quite large and has some paths for walking and running, along with green space for other leisurely activities. This whole neighborhood design really accommodates travelers, for there is parking and roads, and an easy detour right off the highway exit to allow for quick shopping and dining. This design as a whole has a lot of contemporary touches, for its unique and accommodated modern lifestyles. There’s plenty of living space, too, on the outskirts of the inner town. It’s a really ideal neighborhood in regards to efficiency, residency, and activities. Perhaps maybe more shopping and dining could be added along the outside of the park to address the people that utilize the park often. For instance, maybe a healthy shake shop, workout attire shop, or even a running shoe store. The possibilities are endless with a neighborhood like this. It has the potential to appeal to residents of all sorts: older, younger, traditional, or contemporary. This neighborhood has a piece for everyone.