The Long Island Project
One thing that we are very passionate about at UP is the degrading effect suburban sprawl has had on middle class neighborhoods, especially, on Long Island. Our solution centers on creating more density around rail stations and downtown areas. Restructuring parking around those areas and creating smaller, affordable and sustainable homes will keep the young, talented professionals from Long Island on Long Island.
The Long Island Project is proposing three distinct methods of architectural intervention at the Long Island Rail Road's (LIRR) significant stations. The first restructures the LIRR parking lots to create highly evolved, sustainable, modern communities. Secondly, the downtown areas are in-filled with commercial and residential programs. Finally, the project introduces sustainable, modern, single-family housing within walking distance of the train. With the integration of these three strategies, the surrounding communities would become destinations themselves rather than simply existing as a stop on someone's daily commute.
In the main parking lot of the Port Washington Station a restructured ground plane would be developed to allow for modern, mixed-use towers. These towers would include residential and commercial spaces and would also attract the public to the parks, recreation areas, restaurants, and shops at street level. Given the location of these towers, the immediate need to own a car would be abated and carpool programs would be implemented for any subsequent need for a car.
With a delicate hand, modern additions will be injected into the downtown areas of Port Washington. These interventions could arrive as vertical or horizontal housing units above the existing buildings. These new structures would increase density in Port Washington's downtown while freeing up land that would otherwise be covered by suburban sprawl. The use of sustainable technology and design would allow these modern additions to power the existing buildings below.
Within walking distance of the Port Washington Station, compact modern single and multi-family housing would be designed. The design of these new homes, or additions, would maximize their efficiency and would be grounded in sustainability. The proximity to the train station would allow small families to reduce the need for multiple automobiles.
The implementation of The Long Island Project's three architectural interventions in Port Washington would create a radical shift in the evolution of residential and commercial development. The Long Island Project is not a prototype; it is a planning strategy. Many of the significant Long Island Rail Road stations could implement these planning strategies which would create new and diverse architectural textures and bring a different scale to Long Island.