The Living Terrace

By Daniel (Yijie) Hsu

Transcript: The project is conceptualized as an urban agrarian housing that produces more than just crops – it is a foodscape that is simultaneously a gathering plaza, a city green space, a food literacy center, and a home to urban farm workers.

The farming component is situated near the ground level for public accessibility, connecting both the street as well as the adjacent Crispus Attucks Playground and ball courts, spatially and visually, to attract community interactions. The remaining ground level footprint beneath the terraced foodscape then allows interior occupation for crop storage, packaging and loading, as well as other public programs relating to agriculture. Residential units, considering their need for privacy and tranquility, are elevated above ground and placed to the northwest corner to hence not shade the farm.

It is aspired that the project can bring more value to the community besides mere edible goods – the greenery and the terrain allow for environmental improvements through purifying the air and mitigating the heat island effect, while the community garden format encourages societal participation and improves food literacy, all of which promotes ecological and social justices and can therefore benefit the entire neighborhood.