Connect & Fill:
Patching a Torn Urban Fabric in Charlotte’s Historic Brooklyn Village
UNC Charlotte David R. Ravin School of Architecture, Charlotte, NC
This research-based studio centered on the site of Charlotte, NC’s historic Brooklyn Village – now called Fourth Ward – which was a thriving Black neighborhood and economic hub that was destroyed through urban renewal in the 1950s and 60s. Our team was tasked with creating a tactical vision plan for the neighborhood that addressed current transportation and urban development challenges while honoring the character of the neighborhood before it was razed.
Through comparative analysis and diagramming of the historic and modern urban fabrics, my team identified that the current urban fabric is both empty and disconnected from other neighborhoods due to the presence of the highway and of large, single-use blocks that create a distributed street network, making the area unfriendly to pedestrians and discouraging local engagement.
Our proposal was guided by the inverse actions – “connect” and “fill” the neighborhood – to create greater economic opportunity, community cohesion, and liveability by investing in transit improvements, housing, green infrastructure, and a concentrated network of cultural assets.
Team: Amanda Marais, Gabby Pace, Erik Darden
If you’d like to see more of this project, please email me at enew302@gmail.com.
Left: Illustrated rendering by teammate Amanda Marais