As larger big-box companies continue to close their brick-and-mortar stores, each leaves behind a sizable void within the communities these centers once served. Rodeo 39, seeks to break the models of traditional retail that are founded on convenience and visibility and shift the focus to community aspirations and user experience.
The 31,000-square-foot food hall is flanked by two SWA-designed community plazas. A strong emphasis on materiality, sense of enclosure, and moments of threshold help to integrate the interior and exterior environments. Each of the plazas is enclosed by a hedge that is envisioned to serve as a point of transition from the surrounding traditional retail spaces into the community focused gathering spaces. A series of sculptural, terraced seat walls, large communal tables, fire pits, and game lawns, alongside murals and art installations, seek to encourage social vibrancy, a community of inclusivity, and further serve the adjacent restaurants, brewery, and boutique tenants.
Shaoxing Paojiang Sales Center
As a model home sales center, the first concern of this project is to guide visitors from the entrance to the exhibition center in an elegant and impressive way. Shaoxing is famous for its natural and cultural heritage, which inspired the design of several elements: a “blue galaxy” pool, southern concept frame wall, galaxy walk, inkwell pool, and flower garden...
RIT Global Village and Global Plaza
Global Village, a pedestrian-only infill neighborhood adjacent to Rochester Institute of Technology’s academic core, and its mixed-use centerpiece, Global Plaza, create a social heart for 17,200 students and 3,600 faculty and staff. The landscape architects and architects collaborated on an urban design that establishes multiple “crossroads” ...
Poly Pazhou Mixed-Use
The iconic architecture and riverside context that characterize Poly Pazhou were inspirations in this SWA/SOM collaboration, which also took adjoining development in the burgeoning region into account. Broad, sweeping landscape, featuring diverse local plant species, embraces both the soaring buildings and the Pearl River corridor, extending its spatial charac...
Monet Avenue 2.0 at Victoria Gardens
A decade after completing Victoria Gardens, the owner looked to refresh the project to maintain its relevancy. SWA redesigned a three-block streetscape and plaza along Monet Avenue. The focus is on the next generation of users, with a shopping environment that highlights the social landscape and blurs the lines between retail and recreation. The design scope i...