Rotary Park Shelter Update; Photo Simulations

The Park Shelter is ready to go - Construction Drawings are finished, budget is approved, and the Village has given its blessing.  We are just waiting on the final OK on the funding to submit for State permit.

In the meantime, some people wanted to see what this thing would look like on the site.  So we took some photos and dropped in the model (or at least a very sketchy version of the model).

Looking West along Main Street

Looking East along Main Street

These views were generated using Autodesk Revit and Adobe Photoshop.

Revit is the architectural profession's go-to platform for Building Information Modelling (BIM) - the new-ish method for taking concept to construction.  In addition to excellent modelling, design and construction documentation, Revit provides the capability to simulate the location and perspective of the proposed building in order to generate a very convincing preliminary view of the project.

Two primary options exist for representing the project: realistic or obviously laid in. 

Realistic simulations take a great deal of time to accurately render the view and convincingly stitch the image together.  While it is VERY impressive, this method also requires many decisions to be made in terms of color and material that may not be ready yet - as is the case here.  It is possible to (inadvertently) commit a proposer (developer, not-for-profit, etc.) to materials or design that are not necessarily approved, desired OR affordable. 

The "obvious" method - as shown - honestly represents the project as an insert into the photograph (which also helps to identify it).  Reducing the image to the basic elements of the design (excluding color and material) helps to focus the conversation on location, orientation and the design of the project - especially at the earlier stages.  This way, the proposer is less committed to color and material.  There is a reduced risk of a confrontation the next time an approving body sees it if something has to change due to budget.  This method, though, is still impressive - and VERY useful for discussing the project in terms of its actual location.

Our intention is to have the shelter complete before the snow falls.  More updates to follow.