Cincinnati Junior
Rowing Club




Summer 2016 // University of Cincinnati
Professor: Melanie Swick
Location: Newport, KY

The Cincinnati Junior Rowing Club Boat House is a storage and training facility in Newport Kentucky located in General James Taylor Park along the banks of the Licking River. Storage areas include space to keep a range of rowing shells up to 62’ in length along with additional equipment and the training facilities require classrooms, locker rooms, weight training, ergometers, and an interior rowing tank. At the convergence of the Ohio and Licking Rivers, the site lies within a seasonal flood plane that poses a severe threat to the building. Further complicating site access is a levee built 200’ from the river’s edge.

Considering these circumstances, the Boat House is constructed on the waterside of the levee and lifted above the 50-year flood plane by a rugged concrete plinth that is integrated with a series of pedestrian paths. This lower level is meant to be flooded and acts as a buffer against rising waters. During times of low water, the space is able to house canoes, kayaks, and other less valuable boats. Over time, the concrete will capture the residue of each flood instance and preserve it as a record that shows the patina of age.

Most of the building’s program sets on the plinth outside of the flood plane. Primary boat storage and main training areas are wrapped in an intricate louvered facade that responds to solar patterns and vistas from the site. The wood slats continue uninterrupted around the periphery of the building and twist to achieve varying opacities. They are also pinched above and below site-lines in select areas to allow for unobstructed glazing. The effect is mimicked in a north facing saw-tooth roof that allows indirect light into the storage area. Tectonically, the framework is emblematic of rowing shells, consisting of planks bent around a fluid hull. The wood louvers emulate a form that diagrammatically represents the movement of a rowing shell slicing through water.

 

Cincinnati Junior
Rowing Club




Summer 2016 // University of Cincinnati
Professor: Melanie Swick
Location: Newport, KY

The Cincinnati Junior Rowing Club Boat House is a storage and training facility in Newport Kentucky located in General James Taylor Park along the banks of the Licking River. Storage areas include space to keep a range of rowing shells up to 62’ in length along with additional equipment and the training facilities require classrooms, locker rooms, weight training, ergometers, and an interior rowing tank. At the convergence of the Ohio and Licking Rivers, the site lies within a seasonal flood plane that poses a severe threat to the building. Further complicating site access is a levee built 200’ from the river’s edge.

Considering these circumstances, the Boat House is constructed on the waterside of the levee and lifted above the 50-year flood plane by a rugged concrete plinth that is integrated with a series of pedestrian paths. This lower level is meant to be flooded and acts as a buffer against rising waters. During times of low water, the space is able to house canoes, kayaks, and other less valuable boats. Over time, the concrete will capture the residue of each flood instance and preserve it as a record that shows the patina of age.

Most of the building’s program sets on the plinth outside of the flood plane. Primary boat storage and main training areas are wrapped in an intricate louvered facade that responds to solar patterns and vistas from the site. The wood slats continue uninterrupted around the periphery of the building and twist to achieve varying opacities. They are also pinched above and below site-lines in select areas to allow for unobstructed glazing. The effect is mimicked in a north facing saw-tooth roof that allows indirect light into the storage area. Tectonically, the framework is emblematic of rowing shells, consisting of planks bent around a fluid hull. The wood louvers emulate a form that diagrammatically represents the movement of a rowing shell slicing through water.

 










Average Water Height
(+30’-0”)


Photograph: 2016

At the Ohio River’s average level the Boat House operates at full functionality with both docks in the water and the lower boat storage at full capacity.
Springtime High
(+45’-0”)


Photograph: 2014

At this level the path that runs adjacent to the river becomes a waterfront promenade for pedestrians and cyclists while both docks remain completely functional.
15 Year Flood Plane
(+60’-0”)


Photograph: 2015

Though the lower storage is submerged, its concrete finish is resilient against damages and the upper storage is able to house boats typically kept on the lower levels.
100 Year Flood Plane
(+80’-0”)


Photograph: 1937

The reality of the site is its susceptibility to flooding. While building beyond the levee provides protection from rising waters it inhibits the functionality of the boat house.

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