Boathouse & Launch

Project idea

For Design 5 this project was meant for us to design a boathouse on the New River, in Fort Lauderdale, for use as a public recreational facility. It immersed us into exploring the relationship of land to water, tidal estuary, recreation, and proprioception.

Project description

With this project I created a habitable intermediate connection between water and land, where people can experience both at once. Opening up to the land you have kayak storage areas which also provide a visual key to pedestrians of the use of the building. The entrance gives you an option of either moving into the closed temperature controlled area with a view of the river or allows you to access the staircase that follows the shape of the building up to the second story. Riverside, along with the view you will find a walk around dock that connects to a kayak launch. Visually the dominantly wood structure uses key elements to represent symbolically parts of boats and oars. Overall the recreational boathouse and launch project successfully provides a stunning visual and programatic design.

Technical information

Floor plans, elevations, sections, isometrics, and site plan technical drawings are provided using AutoCAD. A Sketchup 3D model was created from the drawings and was used to create Lumion 3D renderings.