The Downtown Phoenix Partnership alongside Logan Simpson Design Inc. hosted “The Space Between Charrette” on Wednesday, a discussion of what could fill the empty lot between the Taylor Place Residence Hall and the Valley Youth Theatre as part of the Phoenix Urban Design Week.
Ray Cabrera of the Downtown Phoenix Partnership said he wanted to “get everyone’s creative juices flowing” and include the people who would benefit the most by filling the space between the two buildings. The stakeholders include downtown ASU students, downtown residents and anyone with organizations that work to improve the downtown area.
The space will only be temporarily filled until bigger plans are created. But it intends to be a peaceful destination for downtown students, residents and visitors.
The first effort to fill the space was about a year ago with the colorful mural that pays tribute to Native American culture and the Arizona desert. Aside from a concrete slab and a handful of cigarette receptacles, it’s been empty since, so planners turned to the downtown community to brainstorm ideas about what it could be.
The space was filled with colorful boards and diagrams of the space with several pictures of potential lighting, such as strings of bulbs hanging above the space and mason jars with solar-powered lights. The diagrams also showed different kinds of potted plants as well as picnic tables and benches. The participants had green stickers to put on the ideas they liked and red stickers on the ones they found the least interesting for the space.
In small groups, participants bounced ideas off of one another and used terms like “Instagram-worthy,” “inviting” and “sustainable.”
Another word many were using to describe their vision for the space was “intimate.” They wanted this space to be tucked away and without the noise from cars or the light rail. They are hoping for it to be the escape from the world that other spots such as Civic Space Park, which was used as an example, are not.
The “Space Between Charrette” is one of the many events in the third annual Phoenix Urban Design Week, which ran April 3-10. There have been other discussions, workshops, tours and group bike outings that are all centered around downtown Phoenix growth, sustainability and community empowerment, according to the design week’s website.
David Krietor, the CEO of Downtown Phoenix Inc., said vacant lots are “energy killers” in downtown Phoenix. Filling this vacant lot could be the example that displays that you can energize an area with some collaboration and work, Krietor said.
Downtown Phoenix is a “unique space in the Valley,” said Anna Cansie, communications manager for the Downtown Phoenix Partnership.
The 10-year resident is proud of her city and said her vision for downtown is for people to want to come and share in the story. Filling the space between Taylor Place and Valley Youth Theater is a “piece of that overall puzzle” of growth, Cansie said.
Contact the reporter at mariah.hurst@asu.edu.
