Design-Build As An Approach for Community-Focused Projects: Building and Adapting in a Northern Community

Abstract

This thesis focuses on creating and testing a design-build strategy for community-based projects. It poses questions on how to create work that is locally relevant, place sensitive and site specific in the contexts of working ‘for’ and ‘with’ a community. As designers, we frequently make assumptions based on what we think community design should be. In developing a design-build strategy which responds to community needs, this thesis makes a claim for design-build. The strategy developed attempts to create a hybrid form in responds to a local material culture, the benefits of a local material palette, and community engagement in the design-build process. The production of two design-build projects located in Dawson City, Yukon Territory, provides an opportunity to examine the proposed strategic framework, its ability to integrate a sense of place, the design-build process, and the project outcomes.