Abstract:
Having an interest in plants and greenhouses, I was searching for a thesis topic when the possibility of re-designing the Ft. Wayne, Indiana botannical conservatory was suggested to me. A downtown urban site had already been selected and cleared for the soon-to-be-built conservatory. Taking this site as a given, I gathered both site context information and general conservatory information. . Upon analysis and much consideration, it became apparent that a higher density, urban development with mixed uses would address more of the downtown's needs than the low density design being proposed. This was particularly true for this site, as it has about 650 feet of frontage on a developing downtown axis. I then changed the initial approach from designing the conservatory as a single use for the site to an approach which accounted for an emerging concept of an Urban Conservatory. This approach was one of exploration and discovery, for my conceptual ideas of an Urban Conservatory were very cloudy at this time. Certain questions became central. Among them were "Given Ft. Wayne and its downtown, what is appropriate to go on this site?" "What does an Urban Conservatory look like and how does it work?"Using both Ft. Wayne's downtown needs and the general conservatory needs as a starting point, I developed various working concepts which incorporated additional uses (commercial, office, and residential) into the site to create a mixed-use project. Three site concepts were then worked out. I selected a final site concept; this one was then developed into the Urban Conservatory as presented in this book.In the early 1980's, a botannical conservatory was built in downtown Ft. Wayne, Indiana. Several groups, both private and public, were instrumental in its successful completion. For this thesis project, I began by assuming that I have been asked to design the conservatory. I would use the original project information and then fill in with additional information that I would acquire by research. Using this, my approach was as follows:Ft. Wayne has asked me to design a "Greenhouse Conservatory" in their downtown (central business district). It is to be a unique and added attraction to the area, as well as a "people generator"-- one more step in a series of downtown improvements intended to renew the downtown area.
