The Water Edge as Thermal Commons: A Network of Bathing Infrastructure for Halifax

Abstract

The commodification of water in urban development has reduced our relationship with this element into a predominantly visual experience, weakening embodied engagement and social affordances. In response, this research uses Halifax as a prototype to explore the concept of dispersed commons: a network of public bathing programs conceived as nodes of social infrastructure and anchored by a neglected urban beach. To challenge this sensorial detachment, the project positions temperature as a primary medium of architectural investigation. In a country defined by long winters and increasingly hot summers, seasonal extremes become an opportunity to re-engage the body with water through thermal enjoyment. The principles of collage operate as a generative method, enabling the reinterpretation of program and the speculative reassembly of fragmented site conditions. Ultimately, the thesis proposes a design framework for reclaiming the edge, reframing the collective perception towards urban waters, and collaging city and ocean back together.