Center for Urban Agriculture

Goal:

to develop a building proposal for a new Grow Pittsburgh Center for Urban Agriculture in the Allegheny West neighborhood of Pittsburgh, PA. It would serve as a center for supporting gardening, farming, and community activity for the area and the Grow Pittsburgh organization. The program consists of an outreach center for education and community engagement, a barn for tool and equipment lending, and a greenhouse to extend the growing season.

This proposal emphasizes the community engagement branch of the program by focusing on circulation paths and a strong axis through the site. The functions and the axis of the building begins to address the social context of the greater area, by bringing together the different neighborhoods that intersect the site. The rest of the program is divided into the public community, market and cafe area (upper floor) and the more private educational and administrative areas (lower floor). The central staircase and outdoor courtyard breaks through the greenhouses to interact with the agricultural aspect of the building’s program.

Learn about Grow Pittsburgh.