Project Description

the RISING SEA LEVELS negotiates activating the portside space along a body of water rising at a rapid pace. Between the sea and the mountains, the project serves as a community food hub for the people of the historic port city of Genoa. Featuring open air market space, pop-up restaurants, a culinary school, and terrace views that span the entire city, the proposal engages with an underutilized site on the waterside in order to revitalize what once was an active civic space. Utilizing a glulam wood primary structure, the building expands its programmatic use as a cultural food hub for the city to the sustainable use of mass timber in its structural system. The translucent, angular roof structure mimics the mountainous sightlines of Genoa, providing interior shade or external views where necessary. Whether shopping, eating, or simply enjoying the views, the experience of the hub is momumental and elegant with a permeable ground floor that activates public circulation, but also serves as a reminder of the ever-increasing threat of flood that threatens the port each day.