Design for Safety and
Security
In this time of heightened national security,
both the general public and the design
community have a new sense of awareness and
appreciation for safety. With daily reminders
in the news; delays at transportation hubs;
re-routed city traffic; and metal detectors
and bag inspections in office lobbies,
museums and sports arenas, there are many
perceptible changes we now experience in
everyday life.
Our collective and renewed priority for
safety and security at the local city, state
and national levels, requires commitment and
further consideration. The pressing need to
ensure safety and security, however, ought
not be used needlessly as an excuse for the
rushed installation of the cheapest and
"easiest" security measures when designing
new spaces and redesigning existing ones.
Rather, in recognition of the importance for
time-tested and long-lasting security, it is
essential to realize the maximum integration
of safety and good design.
di Domenico + Partners, LLP (dD+P) is an
interdisciplinary partnership that provides
services in Architecture, Landscape
Architecture and Urban Design. dD+P has
extensive experience in designing secure and
safe spaces that fit well within a variety of
program needs, be it a major public
transportation facility (MTA/NYCT,
MTA/Metro-North, MTA/Long Island Rail Road;
Manhattan, NY), a public city plaza (Port
Authority of NY & NJ; Manhattan, NY), an
office park (UBS Warburg; Stamford, CT), or a
city street (Washington Street Streetscape;
Manhattan, NY). Our primary security
objective is that safety not be compromised
in decisions that are made in the design of
any building or open space. This we
guarantee.
Our firm is fully versed in the regulatory
requirements and specifications for buildings
spaces, expertise that enables us to apply
the surest methods for all clients. We always
seek innovative design solutions and, when it
comes to security, we are not content unless
these solutions meet the highest standards in
safety and appearance. Typical security
structures that include bollards, barriers,
gates and fences, among others, can be
incorporated in ways that do not detract from
the visual integrity of the spaces they
protect. dD+P understands how seemingly small
improvements (such as the selection and
treatment of a single bollard or fixture)
involve critical decisions that have an
impact on the overall design of a space on
different scales, especially when taken as
part of the larger context. Plantings,
surface materials, and pedestrian and
vehicular circulation are additional and
important categories that are studied and
considered at length. Our experience shows
that a building or park need not appear to be
an island or fortress, but can meet its
immediate neighbors and surrounding streets
with nuance and a sensitivity that assures
protection, security and safety. |
