Phoenix rising: Eaton Gardens. A case study of a former retail property: A redesign prototype for revitalization of an urban core

The first goal for a redevelopment in the downtown area is to provide an integrated systems approach to the case study. The Landscape Architect's contribution is through climate-sensitive design---cost effective solar heating, creating favorable microclimate within the building context. Effective use of former retail space converted to a mixed-use---commercial, office and housing space with emphasis on the solar gain from the photovoltaic cells within the roof structure. The microenvironment of the atrium is the major area of concentration involving the possibilities of how the building reacts with the environment. As the study evolved a roof garden emerged.;The reuse of an empty retail building as a multi-use complex promotes energy conservation simply by reducing the extensive use of the automobile. Parking is a major consideration in any urban design and can easily be accommodated with the parking arrangements that are currently attached to the Eaton building. A major portion of the design criteria deals with the public open space throughout the property. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).