Presentation of Issues
City populations are growing faster than the city infrastructure can adapt. The world's cities are growing because of population shift especially concerning rural to city areas in search of jobs and other opportunities in hopes for improvement of lives and creating better future for the younger generations. Along with the growth and expansion of cities, comes the rise in environmental issues and problems. It comes to the role of future architects, planners and developers to achieve green and sustainable strategies where modern buildings can rely on new forms of energy.
Horizontal Skyscrapers as Possible Solution
Horizontal Skyscrapers as Possible Solution
Although most skyscrapers provide solutions of catering the density of population with the spaces they provided as compared to the available space on land, it is highly argued that they do not provide good street-level experience that hence, totally disconnect the street cultures from vertical structures. This disconnection has led to the difficulties, in a case of high-rise apartment living, for families to experience the community living where the proximity to other facilities available in street culture is higher instead of being constrained in the walls and perimeter of the vertical structures they live in.
The exploration of horizontal skyscraper aims to offer dwellers a maximum recreational experience almost as much as living on the ground or surface of the streets. This horizontal skyscraper is building a community where neighborhood qualities and everyday life practices are carried through. People relate to these living environments as part of their identity and, thus, neighborhood community living becomes personally meaningful and relevant. In fact, studies have shown that people who live in close-knit communities are statistically safer and less likely to be burglarized.
The exploration of horizontal skyscraper aims to offer dwellers a maximum recreational experience almost as much as living on the ground or surface of the streets. This horizontal skyscraper is building a community where neighborhood qualities and everyday life practices are carried through. People relate to these living environments as part of their identity and, thus, neighborhood community living becomes personally meaningful and relevant. In fact, studies have shown that people who live in close-knit communities are statistically safer and less likely to be burglarized.
By honoring the culture of the nature setting, the Vernacular Sky-Terrace invites visionary ideas for Kampung Baru to become a better city without ‘touching’ the existing fabric. The basic idea for this project is to elevate the existing site and improvise! The decision of hovering over the existing site is inspired by the aims to create one community consisting of office spaces, apartments, commercial area and public landscape also to generate the largest possible green space open to the public, right in the heart of Kuala Lumpur city.
The overall design comprises of three primary components. They are structure and services, staggered modules and pitched roofs. Firstly, structure and services which are large supports equipped with ducts carrying service functions that include water, electric, plumbing, and air conditional supply which is transferred from the land up into the building. Next, the module which is arranged in staggered manner. The arrangement is responsible to maximize the view as well as to prevent overshadowing the area below. This also allows different programs being implied through different levels. The third component of the building is the pitched roof. The triangle prism shape of the roof relates to the traditional Malay house roof characteristic, emerging with the site below.
In term of programs, Vernacular Sky-Terrace is simply divided into public spaces and private spaces. The public area consists of community park and garden, retail and shops and a lake which completes the artificial eco system within the building. In the other hand, the private spaces include apartment units which are restricted for the residences and service controls which are accessible only by the administration.
Vernacular Sky-Terrace is equipped with many sustainable features. They are wind turbine, rainwater harvesting, solar energy which enables the building to generate energy by itself. Other than that, other features include cross ventilation through many openings and hierarchy of levels and green areas improves the living condition on the building while minimizing the consumption of energy.
Vernacular Sky-Terrace is equipped with many sustainable features. They are wind turbine, rainwater harvesting, solar energy which enables the building to generate energy by itself. Other than that, other features include cross ventilation through many openings and hierarchy of levels and green areas improves the living condition on the building while minimizing the consumption of energy.
Internet as Technological Injections
Apart from personal usage like socializing and entertainment, the internet had contributes so much in aiding global development as a whole especially economy. In conjunction with Vernacular Sky-Terrace, we came up with the idea to associate the potential of internet with its development. The idea is to allow access for the client (developer, architect, entrepreneur etc.) to an interface which is responsible for real time planning of the project which includes land expansion, upgrade of structure or choosing the residential units/floor based on provided module for purchase. This will attract more users in investing in the project as well as expanding possibilities for its growth.
