Project Statement | Designing and Prototyping a
Porch for the Wilkinsburg Community Forge

Last Updated on 2019.08.26 by slee

An important proposal from the master plan was the design and construction of a porch on the west end of the building to directly connect from the playground into the building. The Forge stakeholders are excited about the opportunity to continue the collaboration with SoA and look forward to our creativity and vision. The drawings, renders, models, details and full-size prototypes we produce will be a crucial part of their fundraising efforts to secure the monies to construct the porch on site.

From the spring studio report, "The proposed Red Porch aims to establish a direct physical and visual connection between the Community Forge building and the outdoor space, via the second floor. Acting as the new "front" of the building, it will complement the outdoor landscape and strengthen its ability to function as an extension of the interior spaces, allowing Community Forge to truly take ownership over it. In order to navigate the seven-foot grade change between the second floor and the ground, the porch incorporates two levels connected by a wooden staircase. The upper level of the porch acts as an outdoor recreation area. In addition to facilitating a valuable connection between the seating island and the kitchen, the lower level of the porch incorporates seating and a built-in grill, creating an opportunity for large-scale gathering."

The porch is not just a connection from the playground to the interior of the building, it is also community meeting place for socializing, for barbecuing, for hydration, for protection from the elements, for viewing events, such as Pogopalooza, and other activities, perhaps invented by this studio.

The scope of the studio will include:

• Critical analysis of civic/institutional porches/ pavilions through time and space
• Catalog of porches in the neighborhood including photos, measured drawings, structural systems, material systems, water control systems and vertical circulation systems
• Measured drawings of Wilkinsburg Community Forge porch site inside and outside including existing topography
• Individual Design Process | Generate - Evaluate - Iterate
• Selection of design to be built by SoA faculty & students and stakeholders
• Creation of design teams by system
• Construction of full-size prototypes on campus e.g. column-beam connections, eave details, rainwater system details, railing and stair details
• Critical analysis of aesthetics and constructability of prototypes
• Re-draw documents based on lessons learned from prototype construction
• Complete documentation: construction documents, specifications, pricing, visual packages for fundraising, scale models, and prototypes
• Stakeholder meetings