Terminal 77
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Located south of Dallas, Texas, on Highway 77, a 550,000 sf site was transformed into a fueling station for Semi-trailer trucks. Creating a set of parameters, such as vehicular type, turn radius, and maximum vehicle dimensions, a systematic approach was organized in which to cultivate an architecture. The fueling station was reduced to three components: an area to fuel, an area to park, and an area leading to amenities. Researching the audience that would occupy the architecture, it was found that a further separation between the public and the truck drivers would be necessary. The solution was to make a fueling station that harbors a triple story configuration: the Trucker’s Haven, the People’s Haven and the Meditation Haven. This allowed the much disrespected truck driver a private plane on which they could affect an honorable existence. If need be, truckers could leave this haven, emerging on the upper most level, signaling a poetical release and meditative transformation. Reflecting on the fast pace nature of contemporary mass-transportation of goods and products, the meditation chamber was inserted into the canopy of the uppermost structure, violating a space that would otherwise be purely mechanical, in order to slow down the pace of daily rituals and allow a sense of exploration and removal from a culture of constant movement.