Communal Fabric crafts a new site for synergies of local program and public commons via connection, continuity, and meandering landscape. The existing site and its unused brick building is embraced as more than an abandoned relic of West Philadelphia's urban fabric, but as part of the ever-evolving fabric of Mill Creek's neighborhood. The new maternal resource center acts as a fraternal twin, borrowing its massing and openings from the site’s existing brick structure, which is revitalized to house a fresh public market. The project’s footprint, openings, and connecting bridge maximize interior and exterior public space, and reinforce continuity between each building and important local sites like the neighboring Clara Muhammad Square. The ground further challenges boundaries between various programs and spaces through a plethora of seams, patterns and localized moments that extend from interior to exterior, and invite the community to find joy in connectivity, contemplation, and nature.

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HOK Design Futures Competition

with Maria Fuentes