Designed to serve as a makers hub for the maritime community “The Knot”  is located in the Rockaway Beaches in Queens. Studying the site from the beginning of the semester we knew that acknowledging the existence of the marina, the beach and the train station on the  adjacent sides of the site was a must for the design. We wanted to create different arms of circulation inside of the project. We managed this by layering the program in 4 legs. Each leg of the project leads you up inside the project through different layers. The ramp legs serve as selling spaces occupied with specially designed booths that allow 3 means of circulation divided by privacy. The other 2 legs contain the lobby and the sacrificial mackers space of the project. Each ramp leads up to the locker rooms in the center of the project connecting the two elbows which are marked by the atriums inside. On the second floor the bifurcation happening on the ground floor with the ramps is mimicked and we can see the display space of the project protruding straight towards the elevated train station. On the very top floor we have our makes space program which functions in an open workstation style. We also have our classroom spaces located on this floor all surrounding the makers space. With the placement of these arms and the pivot points we were able to achieve occupiable exterior spaces. We also wanted to design the roofs of the ramps as occupiable spaces to connect the site and the project together. 

With the artificially created stepping, visitors are pulled into the central courtyard of the site which is covered by one of the arms of the projects. This central courtyard is one of instances we feel the difference between being inside and outside of the project. From afar the building looks almost monolithic however when you get close you can see the separations in the mass and how the arms interlock with each other. The same design method was applied to the material selection of the project. Covered by metal panelling similar to patina copper,  which has a shiny and smooth finish on the facades looking inward and the facades looking to the exterior of the project have more of a rough and matte finnish on it. Conveying the idea of an interior world created by the materials. The mesh screen facade we used adds another dimension to the project by covering the exterior occupiable spaces, and emphasizing the form of the building. Creating another defined space on the exterior parts of the project. The project's arms are extended beyond the site to the train station, creating a bridging between the thresholds of the neighborhood.