Kara Blevins

Dr. Foster
HUM 110
4/26/2020
Building YOUR Community

I live in Queen Anne’s County Maryland, to be more specific, I live in Queenstown.

Queenstown is an interesting place to live because it’s sandwiched between Annapolis (Route

50) and Centreville (Route 301). In some ways being in Queenstown is great! It’s between two

areas that have plenty of things to do. Except that’s the exact issue, Queenstown has plenty of

things for the community around it, but not necessarily in Queenstown. To grab dinner, see a

movie, go ice skating, or visit a recreational center it’s at least a 20-30 minute drive. Then we

must ask ourselves, what about those who can’t drive? This includes young teens and people

who simply don’t have access to a car. I think what the community of Queenstown needs is

somewhere for teens, families, or adults to go to spend their free time. I would suggest a

multifunctional recreational center.

A recreational center would provide a safe space for kids, teens, parents, and elders to

spend their free time. One of the biggest struggles in communities are bored teenagers getting in

trouble, drinking, doing drugs, starting fights, the list could go on and on. While I am not

proposing that a recreational center would magically get rid of all of those struggles, I think it

would eliminate the boredom that often leads teens to alternative methods of entertaining

themselves. It’s safe to say Queenstown doesn’t have much to offer the community in terms of

local activities to do. If you do a quick google search of “things to do in Queenstown MD” a

church is one of the items in the search result. I have nothing against the church in any way,

however, what are teens going to do besides attend weekly service or youth group? It isn’t

somewhere that you can go to go swimming, work out, play sports, and more! Recreational

centers have a phenomenal impact on the youth in communities because it becomes their safe
Kara Blevins
Dr. Foster
HUM 110
4/26/2020
place or a place they want to go to hang out with their friends. A rec center would also give

parents peace of mind because they could know their children were safe but still having a good

time. Recreational centers bring the community together and I feel that is something Queenstown

could benefit from! A building that would bring all ages together to spend their free time wisely.

I believe the first of the three features the exterior of my recreational center should have

are beautiful windows. Windows for a building remind me of eyes on a person and just like eyes

can tell a lot about a person, I think windows tell a lot about a building. This image taken by

Iwan Baan and published by Interior Design shows the type of windows I would like in my rec
Kara Blevins
Dr. Foster
HUM 110
4/26/2020
center:
Kara Blevins
Dr. Foster
HUM 110
4/26/2020
This building is the Netherlands Institute of Sound and Vision created by Jaap Drupstee.

According to Interior Design, “The Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision is responsible for

keeping hundreds of thousands of hours of television, film, and radio in optimal condition for

present and future use” (Interior Design, 2014). The image above shows colorful stained glass

panels. Immediately when you take a look are this building it looks fun and energetic; which is

exactly how we want our recreational center to appear. It’s nearly impossible to not be drawn in

by all the stunning colors. I believe with the use of these window-like-panels on the recreational

center we will draw many people in! I also enjoy that stained glass windows provide some level

of privacy compared to just clear windows. No one wants to be watched as they are swimming,

playing sports, or ice skating with their friends or families by people on the street or outsiders.

These windows will allow the recreation center to get plenty of sunlight but protect the privacy

of those inside. All while bringing the community in with the fun appearance of the colors.

A second feature that would be ideal for the recreational center would be a circular shape.

I got the idea of a circular building from a Ted Talk I watched for a different assignment in this

class! The idea behind the circular building shape is that kids always come back around to where

they started. It creates an environment that is fully connected and safe. No confusing hallways,

just open space! This image below is courtesy of an article written by Thu-Huong Ha for

Ideas.Ted.com
Kara Blevins
Dr. Foster
HUM 110
4/26/2020

This building is the Fuji Kindergarten outside of Tokyo. Its often referred to as the “worlds best

kindergarten.” It’s a building that allows kids to be kids and that’s exactly what I want for the

recreational center! The donut shape allows for a safe outdoor space within the building. This is

great for younger kids; I even envision a giant slide in the middle! The possibilities for that space

are endless. This shape is innovative and smart. By using this building shape we will draw

people in, stand out from other buildings, and keep kids safer by having an outdoor area in the

center, safely enclosed. The shape is also different from buildings like schools. No teenager

wants to go hang out at a place that looks identical to the school they just spent 8 hours in! They

want a cool hangout spot and this building is exactly that!

Kara Blevins
Dr. Foster
HUM 110
4/26/2020
My third component for the recreational center would be a green roof. Green roofs are

not only interesting to look at, but are extremely beneficial for the environment. This photograph

is from INHABITAT on an article written by Rebecca Paul.

The building shown above is the Nanyang Technical University in Singapore. Their innovative

green roof design allows students to study on or under the roof and symbolizes creativity. I

believe this would be beneficial for the recreational center because of the benefits green roofs

have. Green roofs purify the air, provide a rainwater buffer, increases the feeling of wellbeing,

creates more social interaction and less vandalism, and extends the life span of the roof. We

don’t want to destroy the environment by trying to enhance our community, so the idea of a

green roof will help us be more environmentally friendly. Therefore our recreational center will

not only help bring the community together, but it will also help us bring the community and the

environment together.
Kara Blevins
Dr. Foster
HUM 110
4/26/2020
In conclusion, the goal of the recreational building would be to give the community a safe

place to spend their time that is accessible to anyone! Something that is a lot of fun for family,

friends, and anyone in the community who has free time. Those who don’t have access to

transportation will now have a place to hangout locally rather than 20-30 minutes away. The

story that this building will tell people about our community is that we value the people in it. We

take the time to make sure the space is visually appealing, safe, kid-friendly, and

environmentally helpful. The building will be an extremely social place because people from the

community can gather in one place! They can meet others in their community and spend time

together. It’s a place for people to get together as a community and have fun! The emotional

aspect would be the way things such as the fun and colorful stained glass windows make people

feel. If I saw that on a building, I would be wowed and would instantly think of how much fun it

would be to go inside. Another part of the emotional sense is how the building doesn’t belong to

anyone except the community. It will bring people together without a doubt. As for function, the

circular shape of the building isn’t just cool to look at- but keeps people from getting lost by

creating an open floorplan. Parents will know if their little ones run off that they’ll end up in the

same place because a circle just keeps going around! The functionality of the green room is

amazing. It will keep the roof strong for much longer than an average roof and it will also benefit

the environment! Overall, Queenstown, MD needs a community space such as a unique

recreational building that is unique. We need something in the community that doesn’t require a

long car ride. We need something of our own and I believe a recreational center for all ages

would thrive in this area and help our community stay strong!+++
 Kara Blevins
Dr. Foster
HUM 110
4/26/2020
Works Cited

Ha, Thu-Huong. “Inside the World's Best Kindergarten.” Ideas.ted.com, Ideas.ted.com, 4 Jan. 2016,

ideas.ted.com/inside-the-worlds-best-kindergarten/.

Paul, Rebecca. “A Swirling Green Roof Tops the Gorgeous Nanyang Technical University in

Singapore.” Inhabitat Green Design Innovation Architecture Green Building,

inhabitat.com/amazing-green-roof-art-school-in-singapore/.

Person. “The Small Screen, Writ Large: Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision.” Interior

Design, Interior Design Magazine, 26 Nov. 2014, www.interiordesign.net/articles/8696-the-

small-screen-writ-large-netherlands-institute-/.