Picking the Right Thesis Project Site

It is well understood that picking the ideal site for your thesis is arguably the most important part of the project. At this early stage of the research, some may have already selected their site based on a preconceived idea well before beginning thesis research, or some may feel that the perfect site will come around as the research project evolves. I have decided to instead break down the characteristics of the ideal site as a means to narrow down researching potential sites. Some of the characteristics include; a neighborhood in an urban area, a neighborhood in a coastal area, or one that is subject to urbanization. These characteristics were the guidelines in picking the 3 potential sites I have so far, and I assume some more potential sites will come along with further research, while some will be eliminated.

The first site is Rikers Island in the East River between Queens and The Bronx in New York City. The island has been a site of interest for a while now due to the potential it has for a research project. Recently, there have been discussions on ideas that address the justice system in New York City, mainly, the broken and unjust incarceration system in prisons on Rikers Island. This provides an opportunity for designers to repurpose the prisons in favor of systems that support an alternative typology to the existing one. If the prisons are to be removed, leaving unoccupied space on the island, why not use it for a proposal of a prototype car-free city or neighborhood that serves the community better than prisons do?
Its proximity to an urban area is one of its pros as a potential site, and it satisfies one of the criteria for the ideal site. However, there may be a dilemma of whether to use the entire island as a site, or picking a specific neighborhood or a few blocks for the development of the project.

Aerial View of Rikers Island

The second potential site is Governors Island, which is another island in New York Harbor, within the New York City borough of Manhattan. This site provides the opportunity to transform this once abandoned island into a unique prototype for the ideal car-free city. There have been many proposals that have called for the repurposing of the island into a public park, museum, climate center, resort, arts and cultural center, educational campus, etc. Its proximity to the NYC boroughs, topography, and land size make it ideal for a widescale redevelopment project. Similar to Rikers Island, the land size will make it difficult to define the project scale or scope.

Aerial View of Governors Island

The third potential site is in Bay Ridge, in a neighborhood along the Gowanus Expressway in Brooklyn, New York City. The historical context behind this site is what I find particularly interesting. The construction of the Gowanus Expressway as a means to connect the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge to the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel came at the expense of the disruption and destruction of parts of the neighborhood of Bay Ridge. There are many instances of highways cutting through neighborhoods to accommodate more vehicular traffic in NYC, however, there are questions to be asked about the creation of this segment of the highway system. Was it necessary for houses and other neighborhood property to be destroyed in its creation? This provides the opportunity to investigate ways in which to "stitch" the neighborhood back together architecturally by repurposing and rerouting the Gowanus Expressway. This has the potential to reimagine the site as a vibrant and pedestrian-oriented neighborhood, instead of the destructive, abrasive, and pollutant highway that runs through it currently.

Map View of Bay Ridge

So far, these 3 sites are the strongest candidates for the project site. As the research goes on, hopefully, more information will lead to the ideal site picking itself, while weeding out the less ideal ones.