[ Ja Studio ] the caseof Kaohsiung Port and Cruise Service Center

Back in April, we published the fascinating bridge proposal by Toronto-based Ja Studio incollaboration with Tadj-Farzin Studio which earned them lots ofpositive feedback. Following up is another proposal by this team; thistime, for the Kaohsiung Port and Cruise Service Center InternationalCompetition in Taiwan. The entry didn't make the competition shortlist,but we think it's definitely worth sharing it with a larger audience.

Related news:

• Maribor Footbridge Proposal by Ja Studio & Tadj-Farzin Studio

Bird’s – eye view of the proposed terminal and the city of Kaohsiung

Project description:

Waterfront edge is perhaps the most unique urban condition for acity thus waterfront buildings will always play an urban roleregardless of their architecture and program. The common designchallenge is to maintain the public accessibility of the water edgewhile creating density and urbanity along the waterfront. In the caseof Kaohsiung Port and Cruise Service Center, security adds anothertwist to an already challenging condition.

Bird’s – eye view of the proposed terminal and the city of Kaohsiung

Byinfusing air and light into the bulk of a raised thin expansivebuilding we can mend the scared reputation of the Corbusian pilotis andcreate active and warm covered public space.

Diagramsdepicting; The connectivity of the proposed bike path with the existingpaths , Major site entrances and their relation to the existing roadnetwork and The potential for a continuous green belt along thewaterfront edge.

Our proposal is an attempt to preserve the continuity of publicaccess to the waterfront edge by Extending the water front parkunderneath the elevated terminal and service center building. Thedesign challenge is to create coexistence between the building and thepark that allows each to give vibrancy to the other withoutcomplicating each other’s flow and functionality.

Solid and void study of the elevated building

Diagram showing the fast concept

Diagram depicting the building mass and light

There are three major components to the project: The Park, the terminal and the service building ellipsoid.

The park - The introduction of the continuation of the water frontpark in between the two levels of the terminal building wouldelevatethe notion of sustainability from common practice of minimizingthe negative impacts of the building on nature to a new level in whichthe building becomes the generator of new ecologies. Promoting thenative plants of twain Bamboo trees are the dominant plants in thepark. Soaring high the trees enters the sky level of the terminalcreating unique opportunities for “tree top cafes and lounges “while atthe base the culms of the trees act as an effective wind buffer.

Fivelevels of ecology; The “Root Forest” at terminal level I , the “Greenscape” on the roof of terminal level I, the “Bamboo Forest” on the roofscape and the “Tree top cafes” and “butterfly Gardens” at terminallevel II

The users of the terminal will have the opportunity to enjoy thisvibrant park and the users of the park are provided with naturalsurveillance due to the long hours of the terminal’s operation. Thelandscape would be continually evolving along the conditions providedby the architecture; shade, slope, topography and wind protection… Thepark is created on top of the ground floor of the terminal thereforethe height difference between the park and the dock operation area,would prevent access and interference between the two and maintain theseparation of the controlled zones and the park.

Soaringhigh the trees enters the sky level of the terminal creating uniqueopportunities for “tree top cafes and lounges “while at the base theculms of the trees act as an effective wind buffer. The users of theterminal will have the opportunity to enjoy this vibrant park and theusers of the park are provided with natural surveillance due to thelong hours of the terminal’s operation. The landscape would becontinually evolving along the conditions provided by the architecture;shade, slope, topography and wind protection…

The Terminal - The terminal is split into two levels; the groundlevel, accessed from the street, which provides spaces for groundrelated functions (baggage check-in and handling) and the sky levelwhich contains functions directly related to boarding and dischargingthe cruise ships. The connection between the two levels is provided bya series of escalators enclosed in glass tubes. Departing passengerswould enter the terminal at the ground level, check in their baggageand get on the escalators to reach the sky level of the terminal,moving up they will have the unique experience of a sectional travelthrough the park. The sky level is a single storey expansive buildingthat is floating above the landscape. The building is punctured on boththe ceiling and floor to provide light and views to the park as well asto create a sense of lightness to the building’s presence. Thiselevated building provides the space for departure and arrival hall,boarding concourse, commercial duty free and the multi-purpose room forthe terminal.

Proposals main components

The Park, the terminal, the service centre ellipsoid

The Park, the terminal, the service centre ellipsoid

A series of elevators would provide the barrier free accessibility.The voids punched in the elevated building create a range oftypological conditionfor the elevated building and the space below.Some voids are covered with glass block to pass the light to below,without blocking the space of the terminal, and some are enclosed byglass wall on the sides to create covered outdoor patios for thecommercial spaces of the terminal.

Plan of terminal level I,the green roof and port service centre levels I &II

Plan of terminal level II and port service centre levels III&IV

The Service Center Ellipsoid- The third component of the project isthe service center designed as an asymmetrical ellipsoid that gentlysits on the landscape of the park and is connected to the sky level ofthe terminal. Two major types of floors exist in the service centerbuilding are; office floors and ancillary floors. The entry to theservice building is provided from the east side of the site to avoidinterference with the traveler’s traffic on the north.

Thebuilding is punctured on both the ceiling and floor to provide lightand views to the park as well as to create a sense of lightness to thebuilding’s presence.

Eye-level view of the proposal

At the end the project experience would be a series of grandarchitectural gestures; starting with the view from the car drop-offzone to the soffit of the elevated building populated with thefootprint of people walking on glass floors, the undulating spaceunderneath the park, the passage in the enclosed escalators through thepark, the light and airy elevated building all the way to the boardingconcourse with intense proximity to the cruise ships, the experience ofthe PNCSC would be a unique prelude to the journey of the departingtravelers and a pleasant ending for the arriving passengers descendingin the escalators and waiving to their loved ones waiting in the park.

from  bustler