David Rubin presenting at DesignDC 2014
On October 1st from 8:30-10:00 AM, David Rubin will present at the annual AIA DesignDC 2014 Conference, as part of a panel about the revitalization of Southeast DC and his design of Canal Park, which was done while he was equity Partner at Olin. His fellow panelists include Uwe S. Brandes of Georgetown University and Cheryl O’Neill of Torti Gallas and Partners.
Until its recent revitalization, Capper/Carrollsburg in Southeast DC was a public housing community of 707 low-income residents in garden-style apartments. Over the past decade, the neighborhood has transformed, through the efforts of local and private entities and funding sources, into a thriving, mixed-income, mixed-use community. This session will examine the disciplines – planning, urban design, architecture and landscape – that contributed to the neighborhood’s success. A visionary regional plan, a contextually-based urban design, sensitive architecture and a park that’s a model of sustainability, together have created a unique new community.
On Friday, October 3rd from 2:00 – 4:00, David Rubin will be leading a guided tour of Canal Park. The tour will originate at The District Architecture Center.
Initially engineered in 1810 by Benjamin Latrobe, the original Canal linked Tiber Creek with the historic Washington Navy Yard. The design team transformed an area of vacant lots and abandoned buildings into a sustainable, urban oasis for a new generation of Washingtonians. Canal Park was designed to be a model of sustainability, exploring the creative, cutting edge of energy efficiency with the intent of being a “zero energy park.”
The tour will emphasize the history of the site, the goals of the project’s program, and the creativity behind the infrastructure that enables the three-block park to act as a storm water retention and bio-filtration system for the surrounding neighborhood.
