The Foundry District by Riley Campbell and Miguel Magtaan

The Foundry District serves the Austin community as a central hub for healthy foods, sustainable learning, and neighborhood interaction. The District capitalizes off an underutilized area near downtown, west of North Lamar off 5th Street to serve the city in anticipation of massive growth but also to establish a direct connection between Clarksville District and Lady Bird Lake. The urban-scale site aims to encourage multi-modal transportation, foster communal interaction, and demand sustainability and resource efficiency.

The Foundry District utilizes three net-positive vertical farms that not only democratize locally-sourced organic food but also act as hubs of learning for sustainable practices. Named the Bloomeries, these vertical greenhouses utilize a mass timber system, an atrium, and a double-skin facade with photovoltaic panels to maximize south and east sunlight and mitigate harsh western sunlight. The building employs the use of a specially-designed triangulated butterfly roof and gutter to collect over 16,000 gallons a month, which provides all the potable water needed for the internal systems that require it. The Foundry District ultimately provides a space that empowers the customer and reinstills the desire to shop after the global pandemic made grocery shopping an anxiety-ridden experience. It is here that the intersection of nature and technology come together to connect Austin and provide the narrative of a sustainable future by allowing shoppers to directly see where their food is grown from.