Re-interpreting and Re-programming the Edge: Site, Infrastructure and Community

Abstract

Landscapes are formed across space and over time by both natural processes and human artifice. Within urban landscapes, natural processes have been harnessed as the basis for infrastructural systems, which support urban life. However, the relationship between infrastructure and natural processes has become increasingly opaque. This thesis seeks to reveal the interrelationship between natural, infrastructural and human processes by integrating a wastewater treatment facility with a public park, offering recreational and cultural amenities, in the town of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada. The design entails the addition of a “new landscape,” including built facilities on three sites within the park space. The architecture of these sites engages in multiple and layered flows of nature, infrastructure and community, acknowledging the complex history, ecology and diverse programs existing within the chosen site. The concept of edges is used as a tool for relating diverse programmatic elements and the complexity of site.