For my 5th year thesis I looked at how to  merge cultural identity with architectural method.   My site was the dilapidated O Street Market in the Shaw neighborhood of Washington DC.  The site had a negative connotation in the community as historic location of a slave market. This intervention used the remains of the O Street Market as a courtyard wall to liken the structure to Greek ruins.   The new building used lines and cues from the openings and foundations of the previous structure in its interior layout and facade design.  The community center was intended as a new public node for Shaw, placing the most public programs on the first level for a truly permeable and accessible building to visitors and patrons.  The rendering shows the second floor space near the elevator and stair.  The light well and skylight open up the space to the neighborhood and   connect it across the street to the JFK Recreational Center.  It also provides for visual connection the first floor lobby   through the atrium as well as the occupied green roof.    Down the hall are views of the flex spaces that allow for adjustments of reconfigurable gallery walls, the dance studios and the recording studio that has a window for public viewing.