Building on the City: Inhabiting the Rooftops as a Strategy for the Urban Densification of Downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia

Abstract

This thesis investigates the space above buildings, as an uninhabited layer of the city, possessing vast amounts of interconnected space. This idea will be pursued through the insertion of rooftop housing over the existing buildings of Barrington Street, in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Through de-constructing the existing building fabric, as well as precedents of residential development, this project explores qualities of living above the city, as an alternative to urban sprawl and the notion of retreating from the city to live.