Abstract:
The Virginia Avenue Center, an office-retail complex of approximately 750,000 square feet, is located in Indianapolis, Indiana. The design's emphasis is on the surrounding urban fabric as much as anything else. I chose to utilize this theme because I felt such has not been the case in the past, and Indianapolis has been worse because of it. In my attempt to coordinate my proposed thesis project with its surroundings, I became aware of the many issues involved with an urban project.There are three issues paramount to the determination of my final design. The mast prominentissue is that of responding to existing circulation patterns, both vehicular and pedestrian in nature; the second issue involves responding to existing buildings in good, sound condition along with their prominent outdoor spaces; and finally, responding to the heights of various surrounding buildings brings the design around full. It is these ideas that provide the essence to my architectural thesis.
